GLASGOW, Kentucky (July 12, 2022) – Bluegrass Ingredients, Inc., a leading R&D-based specialty food ingredients supplier, announced today the release of nearly 20 new dairy concentrate product offerings, including a first-of-its-kind vegan-friendly cheez concentrate product.
Dairy and cheese concentrates, also known as enzyme modified cheese (EMC), are created by treating ingredients with natural enzymes that enhance flavor and texture. Bluegrass’ portfolio expansion is a response to the growth within the concentrates market as more manufacturers recognize their unique advantages, including more intense flavors, reduced freight and storage costs, and ease of use.
“Dairy concentrates provide an innovative solution for food brands looking to increase efficiency and predictability in sourcing and manufacturing without sacrificing flavor,” said Hoyt Huffman, Chief Executive Officer at Bluegrass Ingredients. “Our expanded portfolio of concentrates products offers a wide range of flavors that can be used to create more intense tastes at a fraction of the time and cost of traditional cheese and dairy ingredients.”
Bluegrass Ingredients is introducing a wide range of cheese and dairy concentrates. All concentrates are clean label and certified Kosher.
The vegan cheez concentrate is plant-based with just nine ingredients: Water, Coconut Oil, Salt, Modified Food Starch, Yeast Extract, Natural Flavor, Lactic Acid, Xanthan Gum, and Citric Acid.
Bluegrass also introduced butter concentrates, which are also all clean label and Kosher.
In addition to off-the-shelf formulations, Bluegrass Ingredients is partnering with customers to craft tailored concentrate formulations. This commitment to innovation and monitoring ingredient trends and market opportunities is a cornerstone of its Agile Ingredient Innovation® service model.
“From Italian dishes to queso dips, we’ve seen concentrates become a go-to ingredient for R&D professionals looking to add more intense cheese flavors without adding more cheese, which can be expensive and impact a product’s health profile,” said Peter Losee, Vice President of Marketing at Bluegrass Ingredients. “We’re working to stay on the cutting edge of the emerging concentrates market, including offering a vegan cheez formulation.”
About Bluegrass Ingredients®
Founded nearly a quarter century ago, Bluegrass has evolved from a boutique dairy ingredients provider into one of the nation’s leading R&D-based specialty ingredients suppliers to the food industry. The company has production facilities located in the heart of bluegrass country in Glasgow, KY and Springfield, KY, and R&D Innovation Centers in Springfield, KY and Bowling Green, KY. Bluegrass serves and supplies some of the world’s biggest brands in niche ingredient sectors like custom dairy blends and specialty powders, fruit/citrus powders, clean label alternatives and more. Through its Agile Ingredient Innovation® Model, Bluegrass Ingredients utilizes its deep technical expertise to help leading brands rapidly concept, test and produce the custom flavors and formulations they need to stay ahead. To learn more, visit www.bluegrassingredients.com.