CARRAGEENAN
Description
Carrageenans are derived from certain seaweed types belonging to the Rhodophyceae family. Carrageenans are extracted from the seaweed by three different types of processing; alcohol precipitation, gel press (KCl precipitation), and Natural-Grade/semi-refined method. There are four general carrageenan types: kappa, iota, lambda and kappa-2.
Properties
Carrageenans, depending on the type, produce a wide range of gelling and thickening effects. Kappa and iota carrageenans will form thermally-reversible gels with potassium and calcium salts, respectively. Proteins, such as milk, soy and others will also affect the gel structure. Kappa and iota carrageenans are not cold soluble and require heat to completely hydrate. Kappa carrageenans are synergistic with a variety of other gums such as locust bean and tara and combinations of these gums form stronger gels with less syneresis. Kappa-2 carrageenans are predominantly used for milk gelling and thickening and require heat for complete solubility. Lambda carrageenans are soluble in cold water and are generally non-gelling.
Carrageenan in milk systems provides gelation (flans and puddings), thickening and suspension (chocolate milk and other flavored milks), and emulsion stability (evaporated milk and infant formulas). Carrageenans provide suspension and body to soy-based beverages. They are also effective in preventing mix separation in frozen desserts.
In processed meat and poultry applications, carrageenan provides water binding and texture enhancement. Major applications include deli meats, rotisserie chicken, fajita strips and whole smoked turkeys.
Product Range
Ingredients Solutions offers a broad range of carrageenan products for most food applications. Our carrageenans are Kosher Certified and meet the FCC specifications. Listed below are a few applications and suggested carrageenan usage levels. Please call Technical Support for recommended carrageenan types and grades.
Meat and Seafood
| Processed Deli Meats | 0.25 to 1.0% | MBF-202, MBF-202i or MBF-120i |
| Further Processed Ham | 0.25 to 1.0% | MBF-202, MBF-202i or MBF-120i |
| Kamaboko (surimi-based) | 0.25 to 0.50% | WG-2000 |
| Marinades for fajita strips and rotisserie chicken |
0.15 to 0.50% | MBF-36, MBF-36i or S-100F |
Dairy
| Chocolate Milk | 0.025 to 0.035% | CM-61BF or CM-65B |
| Ice Cream | 0.02 to 0.04% | IC-61BF |
| Sour Cream | 0.10 to 0.25% | IC-61BF |
| Buttermilk | 0.05 to 0.10% | IC-61BF or CM-888 |
| Cottage Cheese | 0.05 to 0.15% | IC-61BF or CM-888 |
| Egg Nog | 0.08 to 0.15% | CM-65B |
| Evaporated Milk | 0.001 to 0.015% | IC-9429 |
Beverages
| Soy Milk | 0.05 to 0.10% | CM-993X or CI-200 |
| Nutritional Dry Mixes | 0.10 to 0.20% | CS-9314 or CS-01 |
| Infant Formula | 0.02 to 0.03% | CM-993X or CI-200 |
| UHT Flavored Milk | 0.02 to 0.35% | CM-915 or IC-61BF |
Desserts
| Water Gel | 0.25 to 0.80% | WG-9577, CI-200 or WG-2000 |
| Puddings | 0.10 to 0.50% | CI-200 or CM-993X |
| Flan | 0.20 to 0.30% | CM-888 |
Fruit Preparation and Syrups
| Pie Fillings | 0.10 to 0.20% | SP-9324, WG-2000 or CI-200 |
| Toaster Pastries | 0.10 to 0.40% | SP-9324 |
| Toppings | 0.10 to 0.70% | SP-9324 or CI-200 |
| Variegates | 0.20 to 0.45% | IC-9429 or SP-9324 |
| Syrups | 0.10 to 0.30% | CI-200 or CS-01 |
| Fruit Strips | 0.15 to 0.35% | WG-2000 or CI-200 |
Sauces
| Cheese | 0.20 to 0.50% | IC-9429, SI-100 or CS-01 |
Bakery
| Cake Glazes | 0.50 to 0.70% | SP-9324 |
| Batters | 0.10 to 0.30% | CS-01 |
| Frozen Dough | 0.10 to 0.30% | SI-100 |
CARRAGEENAN PRODUCT LINES
Further Processed Meat & Poultry
| MBF-36 | Cold swelling, iota carrageenan designed for fresh poultry and pork applications. Reduces package purge in refrigerated tray-packs, allows increased brine addition (to ~ 20%), reduces cook loss and improves juiciness in the finished product. Can be injected and/or tumbled. Typical use in ~0.2% based on finished weight. |
| MBF-36i | Brine suspension-stable version of MBF-36. Provides excellent suspension of particulates in the brine. It may be combined with a suitable auxiliary binder such as starch. |
| MBF-70 | Economical, fine-mesh iota carrageenan. At low concentrations, iota carrageenan has the ability to retain large amounts of water and/or brine without forming gel pockets. It is especially useful in tumbled food service chicken strips where freedom from visible gel in a steam tray is required. Provides cooked yield increase and improved “cling” of the marinade and spices in the steam tray. May be used with starch. |
| MBF-202 | Injection/Tumbling – Lightest color Natural Grade kappa carrageenan. Will not darken poultry products. Ideal for masking gel pockets. Also available in a suspension-stable version: MBF-202i |
| MBF-202i | Produces an injection brine with improved suspension of solid ingredients including starches and proteins. Improved uniformity in the finished product and reduced losses from waste are achieved. |
| MBF-138 | A pure, fine mesh injectable Natural-Grade kappa carrageenan with no added salts. Ideal for low-sodium products or clean-label needs. Labeled simply “Carrageenan”. Use level is typically 10-20% lower than most other carrageenans in meat since it contains no standardizing agents. |
| NEW! MBF-167X |
Very cost-effective yield improvement system for case-ready tray pack raw poultry and red meat products. Best results are obtained through injection. Reduces cook loss and improves freeze-thaw stability. |
| MBF-120 | Injection/Tumbling – New, more cost-effective injection grade. Offered also in a suspension stable version (MBF-120i). |
| MBF-9414 | Injection/Tumbling – Provides excellent purge control, slicing and freeze-thaw stability. Provides unique binding of free brine during tumbling cycle to minimize seal flashing during vacuum packaging. Recommended for high-pump applications. |
| S-100F | Injection/Tumbling – Fine Mesh, Natural Grade iota carrageenan. Provides good water binding and yield improvement without visible gel formation. Ideal for products intended for food service steam trays, i.e. fajita strips. Also available in suspension-stable S-100Fi version. |
Cold Milk and Water Mixes
| CS-01 | A high viscosity water thickening carrageenan providing excellent body at low temperatures. Also suitable for cold milk systems. |
| CS-07 | An economical lambda-like carrageenan for cold milk and water reconstituted beverage mixes. Provides suspension and body. |
| CS-9314 | Cold-swelling lambda carrageenan designed for rapid thickening in powder mixes for cold milk or water reconstitution. Provides viscosity, mouth feel and suspension of solids in the reconstituted drink. Typical use level is ~0.1 – 0.15% of the reconstituted drink weight. |
Water Gel Desserts
| SP-9324 | A carrageenan blend designed for HTST processed fruit topping systems where flow and cling are required along with clarity and good flavor release. |
| WG-9577 | System composed of clear-gelling carrageenans with clarified locust bean gum to provide gelatin like water dessert gels which do not require refrigeration. Typical use level is ~0.7 – 0.9% of the gel weight. (Powder Mix / Ready to Eat). |
Fluid Dairy Products
| CM-61BF | An economical blend of carrageenan types (predominately kappa) which combines maximum performance and economy for a variety of stabilizer applications such as HTST chocolate milk, frozen desserts and culture products (cottage cheese dressing and sour cream). Provides suspension, viscosity and emulsion stability with good resistance to shear. A fine-mesh product designed for processes where nested filter screens are used in the filling operation. Typical use level is ~0.03 in chocolate milk and ~0.02 in hard pack (>10% butter fat) ice cream. |
| CM-65BF | Economical carrageenan blend designed for fluid dairy and HTST chocolate milk products. Most suitable in applications where the use level can be closely matched to dairy plant conditions and those conditions are expected to remain consistent. |
| CM-888 | Natural Grade regular mesh kappa carrageenan, ideal for frozen desserts, HTST chocolate milk, cottage cheese dressing and eggnog. |
| CM-915 | A cost-effective carrageenan system designed specifically for UHT processed fluid flavored beverages. Provides excellent spread, shear stability and resistance to overstabilization/gellation. |
| CM-993X | Cost-effective, concentrated kappa/lambda type carrageenan designed primarily for use in soft serve and low-fat dairy applications. |
| CM-9401 | Provides high viscosity and improved shear stability. Designed for UHT and retorted dairy applications such as canned nutritional drinks (e.g. diet and nutritional supplements). Similar to CM-61BF. |
| IC-9429 | A kappa/lambda blend designed to stabilize HTST, low-fat, low-solids mixes (shakes, soft serve). Prevents separation of refrigerated liquid mix prior to being frozen. Typical use in soft serve mix is ~0.025 – ~0.03%. |
| CS-9311 | Hot/Cold Process, coffee creamers, whipping cream, low-fat frozen dessert mixes (See General Purpose Section). |
| SI-100 | Iota carrageenan typically used in imitation chocolate milk (whey/vegetable oil-based) with a kappa carrageenan such as CM-9401. Also used in certain retorted nutritional beverages such as soy-based infant formulas. Cold swelling but low or non-gelling in water. (See Further Processed Meat & Poultry Section). |
General Purpose Gelling and Thickening
| CI-200 | Pure iota, maximum syneresis control, high clarity, elastic gel. |
| CS-9311 | Good general-purpose lambda-like carrageenan. Provides cold water and milk thickening |
| PT-200DX | An economical kappa carrageenan which will provide firm gels where clarity is not required. |
| S-100 | An economical iota carrageenan which provides a very elastic, freeze-thaw stable gel where clarity is not required. |
| WG-15 | An economical refined kappa carrageenan which forms clear gels in water. Suitable for use in cheese products and meat applications where high gel strength and clarity are important. |
| WG-2000 | General purpose KCI-refined kappa carrageenan producing strong brittle gels with good clarity. |
Air Freshener Gels
| AFG-331 | Complex blend of Natural Grade carrageenan with other gums and salts designed for controlled release of fragrance in water gel systems. Suitable for tub-type or self supporting gel containers. Often used with CMC for improved syneresis and freeze-thaw stability. Light gel color, very low odor. |
Technical Service
For more information on any of ISI’s carrageenan products, please contact our customer service desk at 800-628-3166.
Regulatory Status
The carrageenan contained in ISI products meets the definitions and requirements as set forth in 21 CFR 172.60 and 172.626 (augmented by material contained in the Federal Register of July 10, 1979: 44 FR40343.
Product Warranty
ISI warrants that our products are not misbranded or mislabeled at the time they are shipped from our plant or warehouse. Although our application recommendations are believed accurate at the time of printing, ISI cannot guarantee the suitability of our products for a given use. Further, we cannot warrant against possible infringement of third-party patents.