The gluten-free products offered by supermarkets have the advantage of offering an alternative but at the price, very often, of a formula very rich in additives.
Indeed, gluten plays a major role in the formation of the texture of bakery products, pastries and for certain pastry products. It is thanks to the mechanical development (kneading) of gluten and the formation of a network that products developed in the oven can be obtained.
Historically, to reproduce the supple, soft texture of breads and pastries, “gluten-free” products contain gums, modified starch and processed fibres.
So, for example, if a classic bakery sandwich bread contains 7 ingredients (Flour, Water, Butter, Milk, Sugar, Yeast, Salt), a “gluten-free” sandwich bread sold in the supermarket can contain 21 ingredients, i.e. 3 times more. Among these new ingredients are fibre (psyllium, bamboo, potato), glycerol, cellulose derivatives (Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose), guar gum and xanthan, in addition to starches and various starches.
Faced with this state of affairs, many companies have taken on the challenge of offering gluten-free and additive-free products. It is more common to see these offers in “dry” aisles such as biscuits (especially shortbread/cookies) and pasta whose technologies make it possible to do without gluten. This is how we meet companies of all sizes that are already developing or offering biscuits, cakes, extruded snacks and flatbreads (such as Cracotte) and more natural gluten-free pasta.
Crispy products are easy to find bread substitutes, such as “Le pain des fleurs” which have no additives.
Flowi offers a range of gluten-free cookies, granola and tagliatelle without any additives. Similarly, EnCœur offers healthy snacks with a limited list of additives of natural origin (acacia fiber).
Many ready-to-use flours and mixes are also available. They are often made from maize flour, rice and potato and cassava starch. For some, they also contain additives.
The big challenge today remains the production of soft bakery and pastry products without gluten and additives.
Science 2 Food has the opportunity to work with startups that develop gluten-free products or flours for pastries and breads without additives.