How Z Trim® Works

The superior water holding capacity and amorphous cellular structure of Z Trim multifunctional fibers are key to their outstanding performance in many functionalities important to food product design, including moisture management, texture control, emulsion stability, freeze-thaw stability, and many others – across a wide pH and temperature range.

The high water holding capacity, especially of corn Z Trim®, helps to provide texture, mouthfeel and moistness, extends the yield of certain foods, and may extend shelf-life of some products. The amorphous cellular structure enhances freeze-thaw and heat stability, and helps to hold in place other liquids and ingredients to prevent pooling, weeping, separation, and settling in emulsified systems. Z Trim® multifunctional fiber ingredients are rendered, by a special process, amorphous, and thus, capable of gel formation.

The amorphous nature and very high surface area of single fiber or fiber fragments, along with the fibers’ hydrated dimensions, dictate the gelling properties of Z Trim. Z Trim forms a short and soft gel better than other soluble fibers, but retains the non-digestibility and non-fermentable attributes of insoluble fiber. The viscosity of Corn Z Trim gel is dependent on concentration, and influenced by its high water holding capacity (Figure 1). Z Trim gels can mimic the viscosity of most commercial foods at an appropriate concentration (Figure 2). This characteristic is a key factor in how effectively Z Trim performs in both standard full-fat and fat-reduced products. Key properties of Z Trim multifunctional fibers are:

• Water Holding: Corn=25-30 grams water per gram Z Trim; Oat=9-12 grams water per gram of Z Trim
• Emulsifying Capacity (with and without emulsifiers): 0.3-0.5X of hydrated gel
• Foaming Capacity: 25% of total hydrated gel
• Foam Stability: 20% of hydrated gel is stable over 28 hours at ambient temperature as examined under microscope

Figure 1: Comparison of water holding capacity of corn Z Trim with other dietary fibers.

Figure 2: Brookfield viscosity in centipoises of various food products that can be matched with Z Trim gel viscosity at an appropriate concentration depending on the percent solids in a food composition and the nature of individual components of the total solids.