These days, less is more when it comes to food products—less ingredients, fewer (or no) GMOs and less sodium. Several companies are launching ingredients to help manufacturers keep up with the demands.

Salt of the Earth, Ltd., will launch Umamix, its new sodium-reduction ingredient for hamburgers and processed meat at Fi Europe in Paris, Dec. 1 to 3.

The savory profile of Umamix is derived from three extracts rich in umami: tomato, shiitake mushroom and kombu seaweed. Combination with Red Sea salt, it can enhance flavor in meat products while helping reduce sodium by up to 45 percent. It also replaces MSG, (monosodium glutamate), a common yet controversial flavor enhancer added to many processed meat products.

Salt is widely used in meat processing as a flavor enhancer as well as a functional ingredient. Hamburgers or meatballs typically contain 1.2 to 2 percent salt. Lab tests show Umamix can help decrease sodium by 45 percent in hamburgers and meatballs, and by 33 percent in frankfurter sausages, without affecting the taste of the final product. It is heat-stable, pH-stable, kosher, halal and has no artificial ingredients.

Regarding the clean-label trend, TIC Gums now offers an extensive portfolio of clean label solutions for sauces and dressings, which  rely on stabilizer systems to provide shelf and freeze/thaw stability, viscosity, resistance to flow, mouthfeel and other vital textural characteristics to the end product. These clean label hydrocolloids meet multiple requirements such as all-natural, certified organic and non-GMO.

Wixon expanded its portfolio of proprietary Mag-nifique technologies, a collection of 18 all-natural flavor modifiers designed to enhance food and beverage products, to include a non-GMO option. The Mag-nifique portfolio can remove unwanted off-notes, bitterness, sodium, fat and sugar in food and beverages, while taste remains unchanged. The non-GMO technologies are all-natural and suitable for low-calorie, fortified, and botanically enhanced products in a variety of consumer segments.