Tech centres with test lines
Ruitenberg considers innovation the company’s key ingredient (see the box about Ruitenberg on this page). This philosophy put the company on the trail of the Dutch Ingredients For Food Innovators (IFFI) association. CEO Ward van der Kaaij: “I knew IFFI non-executive director Joep van Wessem from a previous position. I frequently witnessed activities on the cutting edge of ingredients and innovation. And that’s not something you see very often. These activities also fit our profile, which is why we became a member. We love the idea of joining together within the ingredients sector, exchanging ideas and jointly stepping up our game.”
Recently Ruitenberg Ingredients introduced itself to IFFI members by welcoming them on the premises and giving them a tour. “We showed them how we distinguish ourselves: our tech centres”, says Van der Kaaij. “These are test lines fully equipped with the necessary machines and instruments. They allow us to demonstrate clearly for ourselves and for our clients what our ingredients mean to their end product. Clients may also have us test their new products with our ingredients, while their regular production keeps running uninterrupted.” There is a tech centre for processing meat, for bakery products and for liquorice extracts. Van der Kaaij: “The latter of these involves developing extracts for our sister company, Ruitenberg BasIQs, in Amersfoort. A novelty we developed recently is a liquorice sweet based on pectin instead of gelatine, starch or gum arabic. Many people said it wasn’t possible, but our pectin sweets really are going on sale in stores soon.”
Animal-friendly and sustainable sources of protein
The visit by IFFI members was perfectly timed, as they were able to witness a new development that Ruitenberg Ingredients launched recently. As with the fillings, it is a semi-finished product. Schijns: “Meat consumption in Western Europe is falling. Both consumers and meat-processing companies alike are looking for animal-friendly and sustainable sources of protein. Unfortunately these often miss the fibre structure of real meat.” Van der Kaaij: “A product that does possess that structure is precisely the kind of distinct product with added value that we are always aiming for.”
Together with its partners, Ruitenberg has actually developed such a product: Rudin ProVega. “This involved us setting up the entire production process ourselves that results in this distinctive structure”, states Van der Kaaij. “On the newly developed line, we can even vary the fibre structure. This means we can use different animal and vegetable protein sources, such as milk, egg, peas or lupine for juicy meat replacements, to imitate chicken, pulled pork or fibrous meat.”
Van der Kaaij recently treated a number of clients to a lunch of ‘chicken nuggets’. “It was only afterwards that we asked them to comment on what they thought it was. The answer was: chicken. Err, no actually, they were nuggets based on our Rudin ProVega.”
It is an exciting time for the company: over the last few weeks, Ruitenberg Ingredients has been scaling up production and whetting the market’s appetite for Rudin ProVega.
“Consumers and meat-processing companies in Western Europe are looking for animal-friendly and sustainable sources of protein.”
Nederlands
From savoury fillings for bakery markets to animal-friendly sources of protein with the characteristic fibre structure of real meat. Ruitenberg Ingredients focuses on niches with added value in the international market for ingredients and semi-finished products. One new addition is Rudin ProVega: thanks to its fibre structure, this meat substitute perfectly replaces chicken, pulled pork and fibrous meat.
