Invited review: Annatto usage and bleaching in dairy foods.
Annatto is a yellow/orange colorant that is widely used in the food industry, particularly in the dairy industry. Annatto, consisting of the carotenoids bixin and norbixin, is most commonly added to produce orange cheese, such as Cheddar, to achieve a consistent color over seasonal changes. This colorant is not all retained in the cheese, and thus a percentage remains in the whey, which is highly undesirable. As a result, whey is often bleached. Hydrogen peroxide and benzoyl peroxide are the 2 bleaching agents currently approved for bleaching whey in the United States. Recent studies have highlighted the negative effect of bleaching on whey flavor while concurrently there is a dearth of current studies on bleaching conditions and efficacy. Recent international mandates have placed additional concern on the use of benzoyl peroxide as a bleaching agent. This review discusses the advantages, disadvantages, regulatory concerns, flavor implications, and optimal usage conditions of 2 widely used bleaching agents, hydrogen peroxide and benzoyl peroxide, as well as a few alternative methods including lipoxygenase, peroxidase, and lactoperoxidase systems.
Kang
E J
EJ
Department of Food, Bioprocessing and Nutrition Sciences, Southeast Dairy Foods Research Center, North Carolina State University, Raleigh 27695, USA.
Campbell
R E
RE
Bastian
E
E
Drake
M A
MA
D000818:Animals; D001585:Benzoyl Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D031212:Bixaceae; D057886:Bleaching Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D002338:Carotenoids / Q000032:analysis / Q000494:pharmacology; D002417:Cattle; D003611:Dairy Products / Q000032:analysis; D005505:Food Coloring Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D007784:Lactoperoxidase / Q000378:metabolism; D007881:Legislation, Food; D008892:Milk / Q000737:chemistry / Q000187:drug effects; D010084:Oxidation-Reduction / Q000187:drug effects; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000032:analysis / Q000494:pharmacology
D057886:Bleaching Agents; D005505:Food Coloring Agents; D010936:Plant Extracts; D002338:Carotenoids; C054041:annatto; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D007784:Lactoperoxidase; D001585:Benzoyl Peroxide