Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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PROCESS FOR MAKING MICRO-AERATED CHOCO-MATERIAL
The present invention relates to the field of chocolate confectionery
compositions that
comprise gas bubbles therein (commonly known as aerated chocolate) and
processes for
making them.
It has been known to prepare chocolate containing gas bubbles (commonly
nitrogen or
carbon dioxide). However such products typically t bubbles are visible to the
consumer (such
as in the products sold by the applicant under the Aero registered trade
mark). Such visible
bubbles with an average diameter of 100 microns or above are commonly known as
macro-
aeration. What is less common is to aerate chocolate with bubbles of a size
which are
sufficiently small so the bubbles are not visible to the naked eye, typically
with an average
bubble diameter of less than 100 microns (informally known as micro-aeration).
There are
technical challenges with micro-aerating chocolate. For example the gas must
be injected
into the chocolate mass in a more precise method using specialized equipment
otherwise
there is a risk that the bubbles may coalesce to form larger bubbles. Care has
to also be
taken in terms of depositing. Micro-aerated chocolate mass is very sensitive
to any form of
mechanical stress, which causes coalescence. A pressurized deposit, directly
into the mould
is therefore required to ensure optimal aeration quality. Until recently the
focus has been to
.. micro-aerate to low levels, primarily for cost reduction reasons.
The applicant has surprisingly discovered that certain micro-aerated chocolate
compositions
exhibit unexpected properties which are advantageous to the end consumer and
also during
manufacture. These advantages include improved stability of the matrix of
aerated bubbles
in the solid product and/or greater ease of removal from a mould and/or
packaging. These
properties make the product easier to manufacture and/or produce more desired
and/or
consistent organoleptic properties in the final confectionery product. The
invention provides
for methods to prepare such micro-aerated chocolate compositions and different
uses of such
chocolate compositions.
It had previously been thought that micro-aerating chocolate to achieve high
porosities would
be difficult and expensive, with no added benefit leading to unstable and
adversely tasting
products. This is the reason that the few prior art micro-aerated products
made in practise
contain small amounts of gas micro-bubbles to achieve a porosity of at most
8%, often much
lower. The applicant has surprisingly found a method for preparing a novel
micro-aerated
chocolate where the chocolate contains much higher proportion of gas than
incorporated
heretofor and the micro-bubbles are characterised by optimum parameters (as
described
herein). Such micro-aerated chocolate exhibits several beneficial properties
which have
never been appreciated before.
Aeration of chocolate has also been described in the patent literature as
follows.
EP2298080 (Kraft) (also referred to herein as Kraft080) discloses a method and
apparatus
for making aerated food product which details the use of a microporous gas
diffuser for the
.. aeration of food products in a low shear mixing method. These products
include, allegedly,
chocolate, though the single example provided is a chocolate flavoured wafer
filling and is
not chocolate
Paragraph [0017] of Kraft080 states:
'The viscosity of the process medium before adding the gas through the
microporous diffuser is typically in the range of from1 to 200 Pa.s, and
preferably
within the range of 1 to 60 Pa.s.'
Paragraph [0027] states:
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'The gas volume fraction incorporated into the food product depends on the
specific
application and is typically in the range of 5 to 75% vol., preferably 5 to
40% vol.,
and most preferably 10 to 30% vol.'
Paragraph [0034] states:
'As mentioned before, the present invention aims at products with small gas
cells
and preferably products with a microcellular structure. Microcellular
generally
implies gas cells of an average size of 100 pm or less. Preferably, the
average cell
size is less than 50 pm and most preferably, the average cell size falls
within the
range of 5 to 30 pm. In the most preferred embodiments, 90% of the cells have
a
size between band 50 pm:
Paragraph [0042] states:
The product of the process according to the present invention typically
contains 30%
or less by volume of gas. Preferably, the gas volume fraction is less than 25%
and
most preferable it is in the range of 10 to 25%. The best results are obtained
when
the aforementioned preferred gas volumes and preferred cell sizes are realised
in
combination.
Kraft080 discloses a very broad range of viscosities (from 1 to 200 Pa.$) for
food media
stated to be successfully aerated by this method. It is not credible that all
food with such a
broad range of viscosities can be aerated by the same method described in
Kraft 080 and
such statements must be considered highly speculative. For example chocolate
masses
used to prepare moulded chocolate products have typical plastic viscosities of
from 1 to 20
Pa.s and high shear mixing would be required to provide homogenous aeration.
The
aeration method described in Kraft080 injects gas under low shear with a micro-
diffuser. It
is doubtful this method could aerate viscous chocolate masses, with
viscosities in the high
end of the claimed range. It is also doubtful this method could aerate
chocolate with
bubbles evenly and uniformly distributed within the product. Kraft080 also
describes
products aerated with very wide gas volume ranges (from 5 to 70%). There is no
appreciation of the unique properties of chocolate. The applicant has found
aerating
chocolate with micro-bubbles at gas volumes above 20% increases the chocolate
viscosity
leading to difficulty in removing such chocolate from moulds. Therefore the
micro-aerated
chocolate described in Kraft080, even if was ever made, is far from
satisfactory.
Josefin Haedelt et al, Institute of Food Technology, vol. 70 (2), March 2005,
p E159-164
(also referred to herein as Haedelt2005) describes vacuum-induced bubble
formation in
liquid-tempered chocolate. Haedelt2005 acknowledges (page E159, col. 2, lines
7 to 11)
that:
'Furthermore the dispersion characteristics obtained under a given set of
conditions
are not highly reproducible. In general, the effect of operating conditions on
key
quality parameters, such as density, gas hold-up, and bubble sizes, are far
from
being well understood.'
The bubble sizes of the aerated chocolate prepared by Haedelt2005 are clearly
macro-
sized. This can be seen from Table 2 on page E161 which describes samples
having a
bubble size with mean diameter (mm) prepared at various gas pressures, namely
0.85 mm
0.4 standard deviation (SD) (at 1000 Pa); 0.4 mm 0.16 mm SD) (at 5000 Pa);
and 0.37
mm 0.19 mm SD (at 10,000 Pa). Also Table 3 on page E161 describes samples
having a
bubble size with the following mean diameters (mm) prepared from chocolate
with viscosity
tempered at the given temperatures, namely: 0.4 mm 0.19 mm SD (at 27 C);
0.41 mm
0.16 mm SD) (at 30 C); and 0.49 mm 0.19 mm SD ) (at 33 C).
Josefin Haedelt et al, Journal of Food Science vol. 72(3), 1 April 2007, p
E138-142 (also
referred to herein as Haedelt 2007). Haedelt2007 investigated the sensory
properties
produced by using different gases to micro-aerate chocolate, namely carbon
dioxide,
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nitrogen, nitrous oxide, and argon. Haedelt2007, does not consider or disclose
the effect of
varying any other parameters on the sensory properties of aerated chocolate.
W02002-13618 (Danone) describes an apparatus for aerating a foodstuff
including
chocolate.
US4674888 (Komax Systems) describes a gas injector.
EP2543260 (Kraft) (also referred to herein as Kraft060) discloses use of a
frozen cone
process for micro-aerating a chocolate shell. Such thin shells are very
different from thicker
moulded chocolate products such as tablets. The use of a cold stamping process
avoids
challenges associated with flow characteristics of micro-aerated chocolate.
Paragraph [0008] lines 45 to 55 of Kraft060 states:
' ... wherein the aerated shell layer has a total gas content of at least 5%,
the gas
content being calculated using the following formula (1):
Gas content of aerated shell layer = (M2 - M1) / M1
wherein M1 is the mass of the aerated shell layer having volume V1, and M2 is
the
mass of a non-aerated shell layer having volume V1 and being formed from the
same edible liquid as the aerated shell layer and in the same manner as the
aerated
shell layer.'
Paragraph [0023] states:
The aerated edible liquid to be deposited into the mould cavity in step (ii)
suitably
has a total gas content of at least 5%, the gas content being calculated using
the
following formula (2):
Gas content of aerated edible liquid = (M2 - M1) / M1
wherein M3 is the mass of the aerated edible liquid having volume V2, and M4
is the
mass of the same volume of the edible liquid without aeration. This means that
the
mass of the edible liquid per unit volume (V2) is reduced by at least 5% upon
aerating the liquid.
Paragraph [0024] states:
A gas content of at least 5% is advantageous in terms of providing a good
texture
and reducing the calorie content of the shell. In this regard, the gas content
of the
aerated edible liquid can be at least 10%, at least 15%, at least 20%, at
least 25%,
at least 30% or at least 40%, and in some embodiments the gas content is
within
the range 5-40%, 5-25% or 10-20 mass% so that there is not an excessive loss
of
gas from the liquid during cold-stamping. A higher initial gas content leads
to a
greater degree of de-aeration relative to the initial gas content. This is
because the
gas bubbles have a greater chance of coalescing to form larger bubbles. Large
bubbles quickly escape from the liquid due to the large difference between
their
densities and the density of the liquid.
Paragraph [0025] states:
Another measure of the degree of aeration of the liquid is the volume of gas
in the
liquid with respect to the total volume of the liquid. In one embodiment, the
liquid
contains no more than 14 vol%, no more than 18 vol% or no more than 22 vol% of
gas. A suitable minimum gas content is 10 vol%. A gas content of 10-22 vol% is
advantageous in terms of taste and mouth feel.
Paragraph [0026] states:
The aerated liquid can have a density or no more than 1.10 g/cm3, no more than
1.05 g/cm3, no more than 1.00 g/cm3, or no more than 0.95 g/cm3. A density
within
the range of 0.98-1.10 g/cm3 is optimal in terms of taste and mouthfeel.
Kraft060 is more concerned in improving methods for making thin chocolate
shells than
aerating a large chocolate mass such as those used to produce chocolate
tablets. The
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method described in Kraft060 uses cold stamping form a thin shell. Kraft060
does not
suggest how to produce a controlled size distribution of small bubbles in a
micro-aerated
chocolate. This is due in part due to the rapid cooling associated with the
cold stamping
method, meaning less time for expansion and coalescence of the bubbles.
Cooling times
for a chocolate tablet are significantly longer due to the use of long cooling
tunnels and a
much larger mass of chocolate in the mould cavity. The stamping process leads
to bubble
destruction through the physical force of the stamp impacting the aerated
chocolate. The
problem of how to ensure uniform distribution of bubbles homogeneously within
a solid
chocolate product is not addressed by Kraft060 as for a thin shell this not an
issue. The
method of Kraft060 is not designed for and would be unsuitable to use to
aerate thicker
moulded product such as tablets. The process of Kraft060 is designed for the
production of
chocolate shells for the addition of a further component.
US2006-0057265A1 (Knobel) discloses a method for producing confectionary
products
having an outer shell made of a substance that is placed inside a mould into
which a
temperature controlled male die is subsequently introduced. The substance is
placed under
pressure after the male die is introduced.
EP2018811 (Winkler) discloses an apparatus for moulding foodstuffs.
EP0589820 (Aasted-Mikroverk) discloses a method of moulding chocolate
articles.
DE 102005018415 (Winkler) discloses a method for making candy products (and
candy
moulding station) that uses a cold stamp protected from an air by filling the
chamber in
.. which stamping occurs with a gas has such as helium that is less dense than
air. A mixing
zone is formed between the area with the protective gas and air.
W02009-040530 (Cadbury) discloses an aerated centre filled confectionery
composition.
EP0914774 (Aasted-Mikroverk) discloses a method, system and apparatus for
producing
shells of fat-containing chocolate like masses.
CH680411 (Lindt) describes a method of forming a semi-solid , fatty, aerated
masses,
especially chocolate and / or chocolate like masses and a device for its
implementation.
US5238698 (Jacob Suchard) describes a product and process for producing a
lower
density milk chocolate composition, substantially free of sucrose and having
the taste and
mouthfeel of a traditional milk chocolate. Here the milk chocolate composition
is aerated
with an inert gas under a pressure of about 1.2 about 8 bar at temperature of
27 C. to
about 45 C.
EP0230763 (Morinaga) describes aerated chocolate composition with a gaseous
continuous phase and the dispersed phase of fine grains of conglomerated solid
chocolate.
The aerated chocolate has an apparent density of 0.23 to 0.48 g / ce. The
composition is
made by agitating a melted chocolate whilst cooling from 8 to 14 C lower than
the fat
contained within the chocolate, to incorporate gas therein. The apparent
density of the
composition is allowed to reach from 0.7 to 1.1 g / ce and then the
composition is exposed
to a reduced pressure of 150 Torr or less to expand the composition and
convert the gas
and solid phases.
EP1346641 (Aasted-Mikroverk) discloses a method of making chocolate shells.
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W02001-080660 (Effem Foods) describes a confectionery product comprising low
density
chocolate surrounded by a sugar based coating and a process for producing this
product.
The product is stated to be shelf stable even at elevated ambient
temperatures.
5 GB1305520 (Abalo) describes a continuous process for making foamed
candies having a
continuous outer shell of non aerated chocolate shell and a foamed chocolate
filling in the
centre.
W01999-34685 (Mars) (= US6165531) describes the use of moulds made from a
material
of low surface energy < 30 mJ / m2 (such as silicone) for de-moulding of a
micro-aerated
product. This reference shows (e.g. on page 29) that aerated chocolate is more
difficult to
de-mould than non-aerated chocolate.
W02000-078156 (APV) describes use of micro-aerated chocolate for enrobing,
Page 5, lines 1 to 5 states:
'Existing equipment for aeration within a tempering unit is available, but as
no high
shear unit is fitted the level of aeration is limited (usually to below 5%)
and the ability
to produce microscopically-sized bubbles is also limited (this being
considered a very
desirable attribute in some applications of the invention.)
The patent application describes mostly detail of the equipment and there is
no further
suggestion from the above paragraph which levels of aeration may be desirable
or what
microscopic bubbles would be useful.
W02004-056191 (Mars) (= US2006-0147584) describes using drop rollers for the
production of chocolate lentils, with a low density (i.e. aerated) chocolate
core surrounded
by a sugar shell. The lentils are analogous to products available commercially
from Mars
under the registered trademark M&M . The patent states on page 6 lines 27 to
30 that:
' ... the chocolate core is dispersed with gas bubbles having an average
diameter of
less than 25 microns. Typically the average diameter of the gas bubbles is
less than
about 17 microns. The dispersion is preferably homogeneous throughout the
core.'
These bubble sizes are very small and difficult to produce in a large
chocolate mass than a
core (e.g. to make chocolate tablets). The patent states on page 4 lines 6 to
8 that:
'Most equipment in chocolate manufacturing lines is very specific to the type
of
confectionery being produced and therefore not readily transferable from one
production line to another.'
Therefore the disclosure of this document relating to aerated chocolate cores
would not be
considered relevant to prepare chocolate masses more generally. Using cooled
rollers and
a smaller mass of chocolate means that aeration stability is less of an issue
than for a
moulded tablet.
W02013-143938 (Unilever) discloses how colorants can be added to ice cream
coatings to
counteract the impact of micro-aeration. The patent states on page 4 lines 19
to 22 that:
'Preferably 80% of the cumulative area weighted size air bubble distribution
is below
60 pm. Preferably, 95% of the cumulative area weighted size air bubble
distribution
is below 125 pm, preferably below 100 ,um. Preferably, 99% of the cumulative
area
weighted size air bubble distribution is below 150 pm.
The desire to limit impact on colour teaches away from using a high level of
aeration. The
document remarks in passing (page 2, line 3) that this aerated chocolate is
perceived as
more milky, however this remark is not supported by any data. A reader of this
reference
would understood that in context this comment refers to a perception due to a
colour
change rather than due to other sensory changes such as a flavour or textural
changes.
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WO 2014-037910 (Barry Callebaut) describes a micro aerated chocolate used to
limit
exudation and fat bloom, in which the gas is present as a volume fraction of
from 0.1% to
4.5% of gas micro-bubbles having a diameter from 1 to 100 pm.
The patent states on page 5 lines 1 to 10 (informal translation) that:
The preferred volume fraction of the gas micro-bubbles is greater than or
equal to
0.2%, and more particularly greater than or equal to 0.5% or to 0.8%.
The preferred volume fraction of the gas micro-bubbles is less than or equal
to
5.0%, and more particularly less than or equal to 4.5% or still to 4%.
Advantageously the volume fraction of the gas micro-bubbles is less than or
equal
to 3.5%, or to 3.0% more particularly less than or equal to 2.8% or to 2.0%.
The preferred volume fraction of the gas micro-bubbles is selected in the
range from
0.2% to 4.5%, advantageously in the range from 0.3% to 2.5%. Alternatively the
volume fraction of the gas micro-bubbles is selected in the range between 0.5%
to
2%.
The patent states on page 4 lines 22 to 25 (informal translation) that:
'Advantageously the gas micro-bubbles present have a diameter less than or
equal
to 100 pm. The diameter of the micro-bubbles may have a diameter from 1 pm to
100 pm, preferably a diameter from 1 pm to 30 pm and in a more preferred
embodiment a diameter from 1 pm to 10 pm.'
The patent states on page 5 lines 26 to 28 (informal translation) referring to
foodstuffs of the
invention that:
... characterised in that dispersed in the composition [is] a volume fraction
from 0.1
to 5.0% of gas micro-bubbles of diameter ranging from 1 pm to 100 pm.
Thus the whole teaching of this document is teaches away from using higher
amounts of
aeration than 5% of gas by volume much lower than the amounts of gas used
herein.
EP2016836 (Mondelez) describes a method of producing a confectionery product
includes
the steps of: a) depositing into a mould an aerated confectionery mass (such
as chocolate)
such that the equipment keeps the mass under super atmospheric pressure and
allows it to
flow into the mold, b) depositing at least one particulate material in and/or
on the
confectionery mass; and c) repeating at least step a) at least once. The
patent states that
this method avoids applying shearing forces to the mass typical of extrusions
method and
thus allows the gas bubbles to be maintained in the final product.
W02006-67123 (= EP1835814, EP1673978 & W02006-79886) (Mondelez) describes
apparatus and method for producing aerated chocolate to avoid the need to
reuse aerated
chocolate mass in an online process, as the returned portion of the aerated
mass has to be
de-tempered, de-aerated and re-tempered. The method is a one pass process that
matches
the aeration rate to the production of the chocolate so no aerated chocolate
is wasted and
reused. This is achieved using a rotor-stator to aerate the chocolate and
controlling and
adjusting the rotor speed to the minimum needed to create (non-visible) bubble
sizes of just
below 50 microns based on the feed rate of the mass through the rotor- stator.
The bubbles
are stated to have approximately the same size and the amount of gas
introduced is said to
be constant and independent of feed rate as the rotor speed can be varied to
keep the
aeration level constant. The small size of bubbles is said to be achieved
using a
pressurised manifold with multiple nozzles. No further details are given of
the size and
distribution of the bubbles in the chocolate produced. The invention is more
concerned with
avoiding issues relating to over production of aerated mass in an online
process there is no
teaching that this process can be used to form bubbles with the narrow
criteria as defined
herein or that a particular level of micro-aeration in the final chocolate
would be more
desirable than any other level.
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EP2804487 (= W02013-108019) (Mondelez) discloses a confectionery composition
comprising an edible shell having a filling therein. The filling comprises a
fat system and
has a solid fat content (SFC) of 35 to 65% at 0 C and 1 to 8% at 30 C. In
particular
embodiments the fat system is prepared from palm oil mid fraction. The filling
is soft at low
.. temperature so that it is palatable. However, it does not melt at ambient
temperatures and
therefore does not require refrigeration / freezing for storage or transport.
W02015-101965 (Mondelez) describes a process for the preparation of a
confectionery
composition and compositions producible by the process. The process comprises
providing
.. a first sheet (10) of edible film having a plurality of first recesses (12)
therein and a second
sheet (22) of edible film, optionally having a plurality of second recesses
(24) therein. A
liquid filling (18) is supplied to the first recesses (12) and then sealed
between the first and
second sheets (10, 22) to form capsules (26). Molten chocolate (14) may be
applied to the
first recesses and/or the second recesses before the liquid filling. The
capsules may be
placed in a chocolate shell.
W02015-072942 (Eti Gidan Sanayi) describes an industrial food product with
high water
activity and filler and free of preservative, colouring agent and emulsifier.
The invention is a
production method for an industrial convenience food product with ready-to-
eat, high water
.. activity and filler, and free of preservative, colouring agent and
emulsifier, comprising the
process steps of a) preparation and cooking of the bakery products, b) in
order to prepare
the filler (2), obtaining by product by executing agitation-condensation-
pasteurization-
homogenization processes within a single unit, reducing the temperature of the
by-product
and fixing the same at a certain range (50-55 C), processing the by-product
with fixed
.. temperature in individual passages (K1,K2,K3,K4), and cooling down the same
to a
temperature (down to +8 C) far below the freezing point (15 C) without
allowing
crystallization (constant agitation), and execution of crystallization-
aeration processes by
retaining air particles within the viscous matrix structure formed by
minimizing the
temperature variation at this temperature, c) combining the cooked bakery
product (1) with
the filler (2), d) packing with packages filled with preservative gases.
JP03-883479 (Meji) describes a method for making pneumatic combined oily
confectionery
comprising a shell of pneumatic oily confectionery and using a moulding
method. The
method comprises pouring pneumatic combined oily confectionery dough into a
mould
where a thin layer of oily confectionery is formed, pressing the mould using a
pressing
pattern to make a doubled shell, and charging edible material as a centre
stuffing inside the
shell. Alternately, the method comprises the following process: directly
pouring pneumatic
combined oily confectionery dough into a heated mould to make its interfacial
part melt,
forming a thin layer on the interfacial part with the inner surface of the
mould followed by
pressing the dough using a cooled pressing pattern to make a shell, and
charging edible
material as a centre stuffing inside the shell.
Few chocolate products have been intentionally micro-aerated, the vast
majority of aeration
is macro-aeration where some or all of the bubbles within the chocolate are
visible to the
.. naked eye either because the all the bubbles are made to be macro-sized
and/or because
the bubbles are produced methods that are imprecise and produce a population
of bubbles
with a wide variation of sizes so that many of bubbles will be unavoidably
visible without
magnification. There are few aerated chocolate products where the aeration is
truly hidden
from the end consumer because the bubble sizes are reliably and consistent
below the
visibility threshold (nominally 100 microns or less).
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The applicant has analysed various chocolate products a few of which were
found to contain
a small amount of entrapped gas bubbles of micro-size. The low levels of such
bubbles and
their inhomogeneity, indicates such micro-aeration is likely to have been
inadvertent and due
to naturally incorporated of gas during manufacture.
Dove - The highest porosity product of this type, which is not believed to
have been
purposefully micro-aerated, was the chocolate available commercially in the
USA from
Mondelez under the registered trade mark Dove which had a 1.85% porosity of
micro-
bubbles.
Jacob's Club . The chocolate coated biscuit available commercially in the UK
under the
registered trade mark Jacob's Club contained both aerated cream and chocolate
and was
believed to have been aerated intentionally. Interestingly a significant
difference between the
level of aeration on the top and sides parts of the product was observed,
where the porosity
of the chocolate forming the top coating was 8.5 % (average bubble size 281
microns 311)
whereas at the sides the chocolate porosity was 3.7% (average bubble size 202
microns
184). It is worth noting that the average bubble size obtained for the Jacob's
Club product is
significantly larger than that which would typically be considered micro-
aerated (100 microns
or less) and the bubbles would be visible to the consumer by naked eye.
Mars 0 Easter Eggs ¨ the chocolate used in shell of two different 2014 Easter
Eggs produced
by Mars (those eggs available commercially in UK under the registered trade
mark M&MCD
and Mars ) were tested for the presence of micro-aeration using X-ray
tomography.
Alongside these tests, a conventional milk chocolate also available
commercially from Mars
under the registered trade mark Dove silky smooth milk chocolate was also
tested for micro-
aeration. The results were as follows:
Mean bubble Standard deviation Median bubble
Product Porosity size (microns) (SD) (microns) size (microns)
Mars Egg 6.9 % 73 pm 64 pm 48 pm
M&MCD Egg 9% 132 pm 133 pm 84 pm
Dove milk choc. 1.8% 76 pm 49 pm 60 pm
The Dove milk chocolate had a porosity of 1.8% and it is believed that this
low porosity is
much more likely to result from natural micro-aeration as a by-product of a
conventional
process rather than gas being incorporated intentionally. The Mars and M&MCD
eggs were
more likely to be aerated deliberately possibly, as these eggs are quite
large, as a means to
reducing the amount of chocolate for cost saving whilst maintaining product
size. They also
appear to have been produced using a frozen cone/cold stamping method (perhaps
similar
to that described in Kraft060 above), where aeration stability is less of a
concern due to the
rapid cooling associated with this process.
The few aerated products that have been launched and/or described in the prior
art, have a
wide size distribution of bubbles, larger bubbles and/or result in a product
with low porosity
(i.e. the gas was added in small amounts).
Thus it can be seen that there has been a technical prejudice against micro-
aerating
chocolate with uniform bubbles at other than low gas levels (i.e. at 9%
porosity or less). There
has been a belief that micro-aerating at high gas levels is difficult and
expensive to do, and
is not advantageous, indeed would adversely impact the organoleptic and
aesthetic
properties of the chocolate.
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The applicant has surprisingly found that a means to aerate choco-material to
form a micro-
aerated choc-material having a population of small bubbles having a narrow
distribution of
sizes and uniformly distributed within the material. These choco-materials can
readily
moulded into micro-aerated choco products such as chocolate tablets, bars and
other
moulded chocolate confectionery such as moulded chocolate coated wafers (e.g.
prepared
using a wet filled mould).
The object of the present invention is to solve some or all of the problems or
disadvantages
(such as identified herein) with the prior art, including optionally
overcoming the technical
prejudice described above preventing the wide adoption of micro-aeration in
choco-
confectionery.
By micro-aerating a number of different chocolate recipes under different
aeration
conditions, the applicant has found those optimal composition and/or process
parameters of
the invention which are selected to achieve corresponding and unexpectedly
advantageous
properties in the micro-aerated chocolate (as described herein). These
parameters define
aspects of the present invention.
Without wishing to be bound by any theory, the applicant has observed that
micro-aeration
increases the viscosity of the aerated chocolate mass post deposit. It is
believed that the
small bubbles act analogously to small particles an increase the internal
surface area for
interactions to occur within the fluid chocolate mass. The applicant has
selected the
parameters used to define the present invention as those such that the degree
of aeration
is enough to increase the viscosity of the aerated chocolate mass sufficiently
to stabilise the
gas bubbles and reduce or eliminate coalescence. Thus the micro-sized bubbles
that are
formed have a more uniform size (narrow size distribution) and are dispersed
more
homogeneously throughout the chocolate that in previous micro-aerated
chocolates. This
produces micro-aerated chocolate of high quality (e.g. as determined by the
resultant
advantageous properties described herein).
The applicant has found a means to calculate a baseline figure of estimated
porosity to gas
flow (nitrogen) for a chocolate throughput of 1000 kg per hour. This is based
on trials
carried out on various apparatus at industrial scales.
Therefore broadly in accordance with the present invention there is provided a
process for
producing a micro-aerated choco-material the process comprising the steps of:
(I) mixing a choco-material under a high shear of at least 200 s-1 ,the choco-
material having
a plastic viscosity before aeration as measured according to ICA method 46
(2000) of from
0.1 to 20 Pa.s, and
(II) passing the choco-material from step (I) through an injection zone
located between two
regions held at different pressures,
(III) injecting inert gas at a gas pressure of from 2 to 30 bar into the choco-
material as it
passes through an injection zone using a gas depositing means at a nominal gas
flow rate
(Fv) which is within the range for Fv values calculated from equation (2)
P = ¨ A Fv2 + B Fv + C (2)
where
P represents the porosity target of the micro-aerated choco-material in %
measured under
standard conditions, P being from 10 to 19%; and
Fv represents the nominal volumetric flow rate of the inert gas in normal
litres per minute (NL
/min.);
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A, B and C are numerical constants (having the respective units to balance
equation (2));
the numerical parts of each of these constants being:
A from 0.06 to 0.07;
B from 2.00 to 2.05, and
5 C from 3.70 to 3.80; with the proviso that:
(A) the nominal flow rate Fv calculated from equation (2) is based on a
nominal throughput
of the choco-material of 1000 kg / hour in the injection zone, the actual flow
rate of inert gas
injected in step (III) being recalculated where necessary from the nominal
flow rate Fv from
equation (2) to match proportionally any differences from 1000 kg / hour in
the actual
10 throughput of the choco-material that is passing through the injection
zone.
Conveniently the injection zone is defined by a conduit with a choco-material
entrance and
exit are held at different pressures with the gas depositing means being
located within the
conduit.
Preferably the regions of different pressure around the injection zone are
formed by two
pumps located outside the injection zone, more preferably the pumps are run at
a constant
differential pump speed of 25%.
It will be understood that the precise parameters used to determine the
porosity from equation
(2) may change slightly depending on factors such as mass rheology, pump
differential
speeds and line pressure, hence the parameters and constants are given as
ranges within
which the process may be satisfactorily operated. Nevertheless the equation
(2) allows a
skilled person to achieve a desired target porosity in the final product by
selecting given gas
flow in step (II) within a fair approximation. Equation (2) also assumes that
during gas
dispersion in step (II) the choco-material passes by the gas depositing means
in the injection
zone at a nominal throughput of 1000 kg / hour. Thus where the actual choco-
material
throughput differs from 1000 kg / hour the actual gas flow required should
also be adjusted
proportionally up or down from the value for the nominal flow rate (parameter
Fv) calculated
from equation (2) so the volume of inert gas injected into each kilogram of
the choc-material
per second remains constant.
Normal litres per minute is the amount of inert gas flow calculated as if the
gas was under
'normal' conditions of zero degrees Celsius and one atmosphere (1.01325 bar).
A skilled
person would well understand how to convert an actual flow rate measured
during operation
of the process into NL / min using the actual pressure and temperature
experienced during
the process of the invention and the ideal gas law (PV=nRT). A flow rate
sensor may even
have pressure and temperature sensors built in to make the conversion
automatic and
available in real time.
It will also be appreciated that there exists a range of inert gas flow rates
for use in step (II)
that satisfy equation (2) within which the process can be operated to achieve
the desired end
results. Thus suitable values of specific gas flow rates Fv that will achieve
a desired porosity
P in the final product can calculated by finding any solutions for quadratic
equation (2), for
example by selecting suitable specific values of constants A, B and C within
the ranges
stated herein (and adjusting for chocolate throughput if required).
Preferably in the mixing step (I) the high shear mixing is performed at a
shear rate of at least
300 s-1, more preferably at least 400 5-1.
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Usefully in the mixing step (I) the high shear mixing is performed at a shear
rate of no more
than 1000 s-1, more usefully no more than 800 s-1, most usefully no more than
600 5-1.
Conveniently in the mixing step (I) the high shear mixing is performed at a
shear rate of from
200 to 1000 s-1, more conveniently from 300 to 800 s-1, even more conveniently
from 400 to
600 s-1, most conveniently from 400 to 500 s-1, for example about 415 5-1.
Optionally the high shear mixing in step (I) may be achieved using a beater
mixer to mix the
choco-material, with a beater speed of from 200 to 600 revolutions per minute
(rpm), more
optionally from 300 to 500 rpm, for example 400 rpm.
Advantageously in the gas dispersing step (II), the porosity target 'y' may be
any porosity
value given herein as desired for the choco-materials of the present
invention.
The numerical values for constants A, B and/or C in equation (1) (independent
of units) may
independently be:
usefully A from 0.061 to 0.069; B from 2.01 to 2.04, and C from 3.71 to 3.79;
more usefully A from 0.062 to 0.067; B from 2.01 to 2.03, and C from 3.72 to
3.76;
most usefully A from 0.062 to 0.064; B from 2.01 to 2.02, and C from 3.73 to
3.74;
for example A is 0.0636; B is 2.0197 and C is 3.7353.
In another embodiment of the present invention the gas depositing means is
other than a
micro-diffuser, more preferably is from one or more nozzles. Usefully the
nozzle(s) having a
exit diameter of from 2 to 3.5 mm and/or an orifice length of from 6 to 12 mm.
Gas flow rate may be measured as volumetric flow rate denoted by the symbol
Tv' and/or as
a mass flow rate denoted by the symbol ' Fm' . For a fluid (e.g. gas) having
density 'p (rho),
these flow rates may be related by
Fin
Fv = -
P
where
Fv denotes the volumetric flow rate of inert gas in normal litres of gas per
minute (NL / min);
Fm denotes the mass flow rate of the inert gas in kilograms of gas per minute
(kg / min); and
p (rho) denotes the density of the inert gas in kilograms per normal litre (kg
/ NL), i.e.
measured under normal conditions (0 C and 1 atm.).
Gas mass flow rate Fm can be calculated from gas volumetric flow rate Fv
and/or directly
measured, independent of pressure and temperature effects, by any suitable
means such as
thermal mass flow meters, Coriolis mass flow meters and/or mass flow
controllers. The
desired value of Fm to achieve a desired porosity P can thus optionally be
calculated from
equations (2), (3) and/or (4).
In yet another embodiment of the present invention the inert gas is dispersed
into the choco-
material at a gas mass flow rate ('m') which of preferably from 2.4 to 6
kilograms per minute,
more preferably from 3.0 to 4.8 kg/min, most preferably from 3.6 to 4.2
kg/min.
In a yet other embodiment of the present invention the inert gas is may be
dispersed into the
choco-material at a gas pressure of from 2 to 30 bar, usefully from 4 to 15
bar, more usefully
from 6 to 12 bar, most usefully from 8 to 11 bar, for example from 9 to 10
bar.
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The applicant has surprisingly discovered that gas flow (whether measured by
F, or Fm is a
significant factor in determining important properties of micro-aerated choco-
material.
Adjusting gas flow (when held a constant temperature no higher than the exit
temperature
from the chocolate temperer) can control the amount of gas dispersed in a
micro-aerated
choco-material; the stability of the bubbles formed in the micro-aerated choco-
material;
and/or the degree to which the choco-material can be easily and cleanly
removed from a
mould (demoulding). The gas flow temperature can be kept constant by control
of beater
speed (so it is not too fast to heat the choco-material significantly) and/or
by use of a
cooling jacket. The equation (2) herein can thus be used to calculate the gas
flow rate (F,
or Fm) that used by the gas depositor in step (II) of the process of the
invention will reliable
and consistently produce micro-aerated choco-material with a given target
porosity P
and/or also other bubble parameters as described herein.
The applicant has also found that in a preferred embodiment of the present
invention where
the composition is mixed and/or beaten then it is preferably performed under
high shear. As
used herein the term 'high shear' denotes a shear rate of at least 200 s-1. In
one
embodiment of the method of the present invention high shear rates of from 200
to 1000 s-1
are more preferred, high shear of from 300 to 500 s-1 are even more preferred.
In another
embodiment of the invention the applicant has found that mixing speed has a
large impact
on mean bubble size and standard deviation. When mixed with a rotator beater
at a speed
of 100 rpm the mean bubble size is much larger than the median and the
standard
deviation is high (this means there are a lot of small bubbles and a few very
large bubbles
in these samples). Beater speeds of from 300 to 500 rpm have been used with a
Novac0
mixer on an industrial scale to produce more normally distributed bubble
sizes, if the beater
speed is increased too far, heat generation is likely to become a problem and
may de-
tempering the chocolate.
A further aspect of the present invention is the method for control of the
aerating process of
the present invention such that the gas flow rate remains substantially within
a range (as
calculated from equation (2)) to achieve a desired target porosity in the
final micro-aerated
chocolate. Such control may be manual or automatic, for example using sensors
to
automatically adjust gas flow rate of the gas depositor in responses to
changes in the
process (for example changes in throughput of choco-material) and may be
operated by a
computer controlled apparatus and/or using a feedback loop.
Without wishing to be bound by any mechanism it is believed that the main
factors that
influence deposit time are system pressure (back pressure), nozzle diameter
and
temperature after mixing (which impacts viscosity). There is also some
evidence that as
well as (or instead of) high shear mixing, pressure can be used to reduce
marbling in the
product (marbling is a due to non-uniform distribution of the bubbles within
the chocolate).
At high pressure (e.g. 9 bar), no marbling was evident which is another
advantage of
using high system pressure for the inert gas up to the point of deposit.
Preferably the gas bubbles are produced in the compositions of the invention
using an
aerating machine selected from one or more of the following machines and/or
components
thereof:
(i) one or more rotor stator mixers (for example those having mixing heads
with intermeshing
pins, available commercially under the trade mark Mondomix from Haas (ii) a
gas injector
where preferably the composition is pumped by at least two pumps to pass an
injection site
being located between said pumps, and the inert gas is dispersed into the
composition by
injection at the injection site at high gas pressure, more usefully the gas
pressure being less
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than or equal to 9 bar. System pressure is 9 bar post gas injection. The
advantage of injecting
between 2 pumps is that the pressure at this part of the process is lower and
shielded from
the rest of the system. Suitable gas injectors may comprise the Novac injector
as defined
herein and/or described in W02005/063036); and/or
(iii) a jet depositor for depositing the composition onto a substrate under
positive pressure
(for example as described in W02010/102716).
More preferably the aerating machine comprises a Novac injector and/or a jet
depositor; even
more preferably a Novac injector, most preferably where the gas is injected
into the
__ composition in between two pumps, usefully at a pressure of from 2 to 30
bar, more usefully
from 4 to 15 bar, even more usefully from 6 to 12 bar, most usefully from 8 to
11 bar, for
example 9 bar or 10 bar.
Each of these machines are described more fully below.
A rotor stator mixing head (that available from Haas under the trade mark
Mondomix0) is
shown in Figure 4 and 5 herein.
A modular mixing head with three different sets of rotor stators and referred
to by the trade
name Nestwhipper is shown in Figure 6 herein.
Any suitable gas injector, especially those where the gas is injected into the
composition at
an injection site between two pumps, optionally capable of being operated at
pressures from
2 to 30 bar. The most preferred injectors are those denoted herein by_the term
'Novac '
which refers to the injectors described in the applicant's patent application
W02005/063036
the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference. A Novac gas
injector comprises
a two pumps with gas injected between them (as shown schematically in Figure
7). For
preparing the micro-aerated choco-material of the present invention gas
injectors such as the
Novac offers several advantages:
Firstly the gas injection is effectively isolated from any pressure
fluctuations occurring in the
rest of the system. This gives a more stable gas flow into the product.
Secondly injectors such as the Novac can optionally operate at higher
pressures compared
to conventional rotor stator systems (9 bar is a typical operating pressure
for the Novac
compared to 6 bar typical operating pressure for a Mondomix0). When the
injector is attached
to a jet depositor, this is additionally useful as higher flow rates can be
delivered with
consequent faster line speeds.
Thirdly the whole system is fully pressurized up to the point of deposit. This
results in
significant advantages described herein such as optimising final aeration
quality and reducing
the opportunity for bubble coalescence.
As used herein the term 'jet depositor' refers to an apparatus for depositing
a fluid food
product (e.g. a liquid, semi-liquid or semi -solid food) under positive
pressure (i.e. pressure
above ambient pressure). A preferred jet depositor comprises a reciprocating
valve spindle
to deposit the food and/or is as described in the applicant's patent
application
W02010/102716 the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Usefully in the process of the invention the composition is pumped by at least
two pumps to
pass an injection site being located between said pumps, where in step (a) the
inert gas is
dispersed into the composition by injection at the injection site at high gas
pressure, more
usefully the gas pressure being greater than or equal to 9 bar.
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Preferably in the process of the invention the gas bubbles are formed in the
composition
(preferably during step (a) using an aerating machine selected from one or
more of the
following machines and/or components thereof:
(i) one or more rotor stator mixing heads (for example those available under
the trade
designation Mondomix0),
(ii) a gas injector where preferably the composition is pumped by at least two
pumps to pass
an injection site being located between said pumps, and the inert gas is
dispersed into the
composition by injection at the injection site at high gas pressure, more
usefully the gas
pressure being greater than or equal to 9 bar (for example the Novac injector
as defined
herein and/or described in W02005/063036); and/or
(iii) a jet depositor for depositing the composition onto a substrate under
positive pressure
(for example as described in W02010/102716).
In one preferred embodiment of the present invention it was found that the two
process
parameters that impacted porosity and aeration quality to be most extent were
gas flow and
temperature. The control of other parameters in the aeration process was found
to have little
or no effect. Without wishing to be bound by any theory the applicant believes
that when
producing micro-aerated chocolate the crystallisation of the fat is the main
factor which holds
the aerated structure. Micro-aerated chocolate is also stable over time.
Preferred values of these parameters are described below.
Conveniently in step (a) the gas is dispersed into a molten choco-material at
a mass flow rate
of from 0.6 to 12 kg / min; more conveniently from 1.2 to 9 kg / min; most
conveniently from
2.4 to 6 kg / min.
Usefully when the choco-material is chocolate and/or compound in step (a) the
gas is
dispersed into the composition when the composition is at a temperature of
from 28 to 33 C,
more usefully from 30 to 32 C, most preferably 31 C.
It will be appreciated that to achieve a desired gas flow and temperature,
other parameters
of the specific equipment used will need to be adjusted (such as mixer speed,
system
pressure and/or jacket temperature). How to do so for a particular system (to
achieve any
given gas flow and temperature target) will be within the routine skill of a
skilled person in the
art. This is of course independent from the non-obvious appreciation of which
gas flow and
temperatures might be advantageous to select compared to other values. It is
surprising that
by controlling gas flow rate and temperature (in a process as described
herein) certain
porosity and bubble size properties in the resultant aerated compositions can
be achieved
reliably and controlled within narrow limits to produce stable micro-aerated
bubbles in the
final chocolate product which are also easier to demould. It is then further
surprising that the
micro-aerated compositions of the invention that have certain porosities (10%
to 19%) and
small homogenous bubble sizes exhibit unexpectedly useful properties compared
to
otherwise similar micro-aerated compositions with different porosity or bubble
sizes.
In another aspect of the present invention there is provided an aerated choco-
material and/or
confectionery product obtained and/or obtainable by a process of the invention
as described
herein. Such an aerated choco-material and/or confectionery product may
optionally have
dispersed therein bubbles of an inert gas, the dispersed bubbles being
characterised by the
following parameters
(a) mean bubble size less than or equal to 100 microns,
(b) standard derivation of bubble size less than or equal to 60 microns;
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(c) a total bubble surface area (also referred to herein as TSA) of from 0.5
to 1.2 m2
per 100g of the aerated choc-material;
where parameters (a) and (b) are determined from X-ray tomography and/or
confocal laser
scanning microscopy (CLSM) and parameter (c); and where
5 the gas bubbles are homogenously distributed within the choco-material,
having a
homogeneity index of at least 0.8; and
TSA may be determined by any suitable empirical method, well known to those
skilled in the
art and/or may be determined by calculation. In one preferred embodiment of
the invention
10 the TSA is determined from equation (1):
3==in ac
TSA =P (1)
dac:r
where TSA is total bubble surface area, P is porosity of the aerated choco-
material, mac is
mass of aerated composition (g), (lac is density of aerated composition
(g/cm3) and r is the
radius of a bubble of mean size (cm).
Preferably the aerated choco-material of the invention is a chocolate mass.
Conveniently the plastic viscosity of the pre-aerated choco-material of or
used in the invention
is measured herein according to ICA method 46 (2000) under standard conditions
unless
otherwise stated and more preferably is from 0.1 to 10 Pa.s.
The micro-aerated choco-material of the invention described herein (and/or
made according
to any process of the invention as described herein) has a total bubble
surface area (TSA)
of from 0.5 to 1.2; preferably from 0.55 to 1.10, more preferably from 0.6 to
1.0; most
preferably from 0.65 to 0.90, for example from 0.7 to 0.8 m2 per 100 g of the
aerated choco-
material. The term surface area or total surface area (TSA) referred to herein
can be
calculated from equation (1) herein and/or measured by any suitable apparatus
or method
known to those skilled in art. In one embodiment of the invention the TSA is a
specific
surface area (SSA) and may be measured as described in the article
'Determination of
Surface Area. Adsorption Measurements by Continuous Flow Method' F. M. Nelsen,
F. T.
Eggertsen, Anal. Chem., 1958, 30 (8), pp 1387-1390 for example using nitrogen
gas and
SSA calculated from the BET isotherm.
Usefully the choco-material is chocolate or compound, more usefully chocolate,
most usefully
dark and/or milk chocolate, for example milk chocolate such as a moulded milk
chocolate
tablet (optionally with inclusions and/or fillings therein).
In one embodiment of the invention the homogeneity index that measures how
uniformly the
bubbles are distributed within the composition may be determined by taking an
image (from
X-ray tomography and/or CLSM) and measuring the number of bubbles that
intersect along
at least 3 parallel horizontal lines of equal length (preferably at least 1
cm) located on the
image to be equally spaced from each other and the image edges. The ratio of
the minimum
number of bubbles on one of these lines to the maximum number of bubbles on
one of these
lines can be defined as a number bubble homogenous distribution index (NBHDI)
which may
be at least 0.8, preferably greater than or equal to 0.85, more preferably
greater than or equal
to 0.9, most preferably 0.95, for example about 1.
In another alternative or cumulative embodiment of the invention the
homogeneity index that
measures how uniformly the bubbles are distributed may be determined by taking
an image
(from X-ray tomography and/or CLSM) and measuring along each of at least 3
parallel
horizontal lines of equal length (preferably at least 1 cm) located on the
image to be equally
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spaced from each other and the image edges, the length of each line that lies
inside the void
of a gas bubble. The ratio of the minimum void length on one of these lines to
the maximum
void length on one of these lines can be defined as a void length bubble
homogenous
distribution index (VLBHDI) which may be at least 0.8, preferably greater than
or equal to
0.85, more preferably greater than or equal to 0.9, most preferably 0.95, for
example about
1.
In another aspect of the micro-aerated choco-material of invention the inert
gas bubbles are
also characterised by the parameters
X(90,3) of 100 microns; and Q(0) of 20.
Bubble size may be measured from images obtained using suitable instruments
and methods
known to those skilled in the art. Preferred methods comprise X-ray tomography
and/or
confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), more preferably X-ray tomography.
Both these
methods are described more fully later herein.
In various embodiments of the present invention, which values for parameters
that are
preferred will vary within the claimed values depending on the recipe of the
choco-material
that is used. However to exhibit the advantages described herein the choco-
material will have
at least the parameter values given herein.
The term choco-material (and related terms) are defined later in this
application, preferred
choco-materials of the invention being chocolate and related compositions such
as
compound also defined later herein.
As used herein the term inert gas denotes a gas that is substantially
unreactive with the
components of a choco-material and are also food grade approved i.e. suitable
to form part
of a foodstuff which will be consumed by human beings. Thus inert gases will
not contain
components which might substantially oxidise the choco-material (or components
thereof),
for example gases which contain significant amounts of oxygen (such as air)
are not inert
gases as used herein. Preferably the inert gas is selected from nitrogen,
nitrous oxide and/or
carbon dioxide; more preferably from nitrogen and/or carbon dioxide; most
preferably is
nitrogen.
The bubble size as defined by the parameters of the present invention is also
referred to
herein as micro-aerated.
The amount of gas in the choco-material may optionally also be determined by
the porosity
of the choco-material when solid. Thus the amount of inert gas dispersed in
the micro-aerated
choco-material may be sufficient to produce a porosity (as defined herein) in
the ranges
and/or of the values described herein. The amount of gas used to achieve the
defined
porosities can be for example using the flow rates and/or temperatures as
described herein.
Optionally in one embodiment the micro-aerated choco-material of the invention
may have a
porosity (as defined herein) of greater than or equal to 10% usefully greater
than or equal to
11%, more usefully 12%, even more usefully 13%, most usefully 14%.
Optionally in another embodiment the micro-aerated choco-material of the
invention may
have a porosity (as defined herein) less than or equal to 19%, conveniently
18%, more
conveniently 17%, even more conveniently 16%, most conveniently 15%.
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Optionally in a still other embodiment the micro-aerated choco-material of the
invention may
have a porosity (as defined herein) of from 11% to 19%, advantageously from
12% to 18%,
more advantageously from 13% to 17%, even more advantageously from 14% to 16%,
most
advantageously from 14.5% to 15.5%.
A further aspect of the invention provides a micro-aerated choco-material, fat
based
composition and/or confectionery product obtained and/or obtainable from a
process of the
present invention.
A yet other aspect of the invention broadly provides a foodstuff and/or
confectionery product
comprising a micro-aerated choco-material, composition of the present
invention and/or
component(s) thereof as described herein.
Many other variations embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those
skilled in the
art and such variations are contemplated within the broad scope of the present
invention.
Thus it will be appreciated that certain features of the invention, which are
for clarity described
in the context of separate embodiments may also be provided in combination in
a single
embodiment. Conversely various features of the invention, which are for
brevity, described
in the context of a single embodiment, may also be provided separately or in
any suitable
sub-combination.
Further aspects of the invention and preferred features thereof are given in
the claims herein,
which form an integral part of the disclosure of the present invention whether
or not such
claims correspond directly to parts of the description herein.
Certain terms as used herein are defined and explained below unless from the
context their
meaning clearly indicates otherwise.
Within the context of the present invention, terms such as "fat based" and/or
"fat based
edible product' denotes a composition, preferably a choco-confectionery that
comprises a
matrix of edible hydrophobic material (e.g. fat) as the continuous phase and a
dispersed
phase comprising solid particles dispersed within the edible hydrophobic
continuous phase.
Within the context of the present invention the term "fat" as used herein
denotes hydrophobic
material which is also edible. Thus fats are edible material (preferably of
food grade) that are
substantially immiscible with water and which may comprise one or more solid
fat(s), liquid
oil(s) and/or any suitable mixture(s) thereof. The term "solid fat" denotes
edible fats that are
solid under standard conditions and the term "oil" or "liquid oil" (unless the
context indicates
otherwise) both denote edible oils that are liquid under standard conditions.
Preferred fats are selected from one or more of the following: coconut oil,
palm kernel oil,
palm oil, cocoa butter (CB), cocoa butter equivalents (CBE), cocoa butter
substitutes (CBS),
cocoa butter replacers (CBR), butter oil, lard, tallow, oil / fat fractions
such as lauric or stearic
fractions, hydrogenated oils, and blends thereof as well as fats which are
typically liquid at
room temperature such as any vegetable or animal oil. However fats that are
most preferred
for use herein for use in preparing the micro-aerated choco-materials of the
present invention
are CB, CBE, CBS, CBR and/or any mixtures and/or combinations thereof.
The liquid oil may comprise mineral oils and/or organic oils (oils produced by
plants or
animals), in particular food grade oils. Examples of oils include: sunflower
oil, rapeseed oil,
olive oil, soybean oil, fish oil, linseed oil, safflower oil, corn oil, algae
oil, cottonseed oil, grape
seed oil, nut oils such as hazelnut oil, walnut oil, rice bran oil, sesame
oil, peanut oil, palm
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oil, palm kernel oil, coconut oil, and emerging seed oil crops such as 25 high
oleic sunflower
oil, high oleic rapeseed, high oleic palm, high oleic soybean oils & high
stearin sunflower or
combinations thereof.
The fat content in the product of the present invention may be provided by
fats of any origin.
The fat content is intended to indicate the total fat content in the
composition, comprising
either the content coming from solid fats and/or the content of liquid oils
and thus the oil
content will also contribute to the total amount of fat content as described
herein for a fat
based confectionery composition.
The term 'fat based composition and/or mass' respectively identifies a fat-
based composition
and/or mass (including its recipe and ingredients) which is used for the
preparation of the
products of the invention.
The term 'fat based confectionery composition and/or mass' identifies a
confectionery
composition and/or mass (including its recipe and ingredients) which is used
for the
preparation of fat based confectionery products such as micro-aerated choco-
material of the
invention.
The present invention relates specifically to a confectionery product,
composition and/or
mass that that comprise choco-material (preferably chocolate and/or compound,
more
preferably chocolate) as defined herein as well as optionally other
confectionery products
and/or components thereof.
The term 'chocolate' as used herein denotes any product (and/or component
thereof if it
would be a product) that meets a legal definition of chocolate in any
jurisdiction and also
include product (and/or component thereof) in which all or part of the cocoa
butter (CB) is
replaced by cocoa butter equivalents (CBE) and/or cocoa butter replacers
(CBR).
The term 'chocolate compound' or 'compound' as used herein (unless the context
clearly
indicates otherwise) denote chocolate-like analogues characterized by presence
of cocoa
solids (which include cocoa liquor/mass, cocoa butter and cocoa powder) in any
amount,
notwithstanding that in some jurisdictions compound may be legally defined by
the presence
of a minimum amount of cocoa solids.
The term `choco-material' as used herein denote chocolate, compound and other
related
materials that comprise cocoa butter (CB), cocoa butter equivalents (CBE),
cocoa butter
replacers (CBR) and/or cocoa butter substitutes (CBS). Thus choco-material
includes
products that are based on chocolate and/or chocolate analogues, and thus for
example may
be based on dark, milk or white chocolate and/or compound.
Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise it will also be appreciated
that in the present
invention any one choco-material may be used to replace any other choco-
material and
neither the term chocolate nor compound should be considered as limiting the
scope of the
invention to a specific type of choco-material. Preferred choco-material
comprises chocolate
and/or compound, more preferred choco-material comprises chocolate, most
preferred
choco-material comprises chocolate as legally defined in a major jurisdiction
(such as Brazil,
EU and/or US).
The term `choco-coating' as used herein (also refers to a `choco-shell')
denotes coatings
made from any choco-material. The terms 'chocolate coating' and 'compound
coating' may
be defined similarly by analogy. Similarly the terms `choco-composition, (or
mass)', 'chocolate
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composition (or mass)' and 'compound composition (or mass)' denote
compositions (or
masses) that respectively comprise choco-material, chocolate and compound as
component(s) thereof in whole or part. Depending on their component parts the
definitions of
such compositions and/or masses may of course overlap.
The term `choco-confectionery' as used herein denotes any foodstuff which
comprises choco-
material and optionally also other ingredients and thus may refer to
foodstuffs such
confections, wafers, cakes and/or biscuits whether the choco-material
comprises a choco-
coating and/or the bulk of the product. Choco-confectionery may comprise choco-
material in
any suitable form for example as inclusions, layers, nuggets, pieces and/or
drops. The
confectionery product may further contain any other suitable inclusions such
as crispy
inclusions for example cereals (e.g. expanded and/or toasted rice) and/or
dried fruit pieces.
The choco-material of the invention may be used to mould a tablet and/or bar,
to coat
confectionery items and/or to prepare more complex confectionery products.
Optionally, prior
to its use in the preparation of a choco-confectionery product, inclusions
according to the
desired recipe may be added to the choco-material. As it will be apparent to a
person skilled
in the art, in some instances the product of the invention will have the same
recipe and
ingredients as the corresponding composition and/or mass while in other
instances,
particularly where inclusions are added or for more complex products, the
final recipe of the
product may differ from that of the composition and/or mass used to prepare
it.
In one strongly preferred embodiment of the invention the choco-confectionery
product
comprises a substantially solid moulded choco-tablet, choco-bar and/or baked
product
surrounded by substantial amounts of choco-material. These products are
prepared for
example by substantially filling a mould with choc-material and optionally
adding inclusions
and/or baked product therein to displace choc-material from the mould (so-
called wet shelling
processes), if necessary further topping up the mould with choco-material. For
such strongly
preferred products of the invention the choco-material forms a substantial or
whole part of
the product and/or a thick outside layer surrounding the interior baked
product (such as a
wafer and/or biscuit laminate). Such solid products where a mould is
substantially filled with
chocolate are to be contrasted with products that comprise moulded thin
chocolate shells
which present different challenges. To prepare a thin coated chocolate shell a
mould is
coated with a thin layer of chocolate, the mould being inverted to remove
excess chocolate
and/or stamped with a cold plunger to define the shell shape and largely empty
the mould.
The mould is thus coated with a thin layer of chocolate to which further
ingredients and fillings
may be added to form the interior body of the product. The challenges to
maintain a uniform
and consistent level of micro-aeration throughout the body of a thick or solid
chocolate
product such as a tablet or bar are different from micro-aerating a thin
chocolate shell. Thin
shells are also made by enrobing or frozen cone methods (some of which have
been
described in the prior art acknowledged previously) which would be unsuitable
for micro-
aeration.
Unless the context herein clearly indicates otherwise it will also be well
understood by a
skilled person that the term choco-confectionery as used herein can readily be
replaced by
and is equivalent to the term chocolate confectionery as used throughout this
application and
in practice these two terms when used informally herein are interchangeable.
However where
there is a difference in the meaning of these terms in the context given
herein, then chocolate
confectionery and/or compound confectionery are preferred embodiments of the
choco-
confectionery of the present invention, a preferred embodiment being chocolate
confectionery.
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Preferred choco-confectionery may comprise one or more choco-product(s) and/or
choco-
ingredients therefor, for example selected from the group consisting of:
chocolate product(s).
compound product(s), chocolate coating(s) and/or compound coating(s). The
products may
comprise uncoated products such as choco-bar(s) and/or choco-tablet(s) with or
without
5 inclusions and/or products coated with choco-material such as coated
biscuits, cakes, wafers
and/or other confectionery items. More preferably and/or alternatively any of
the
aforementioned may comprise one or more cocoa butter replacer(s) (CBR), cocoa-
butter
equivalent(s) (CBE), cocoa-butter substitute(s) (CBS) and/or any suitable
mixture(s) thereof.
10 In choco-confectionery the cocoa butter (CB) may be replaced by fats
from other sources.
Such products may generally comprise one or more fat(s) selected from the
group consisting
of: lauric fat(s) (e.g. cocoa butter substitute (CBS) obtained from the kernel
of the fruit of palm
trees); non-lauric vegetable fat(s) (e.g. those based on palm or other
specialty fats); cocoa
butter replacer(s) (CBR); cocoa butter equivalent(s) (CBE) and/or any suitable
mixture(s)
15 thereof. Some CBE, CBR and especially CBS may contain primarily
saturated fats and very
low levels of unsaturated omega three and omega six fatty acids (with health
benefits). Thus
in one embodiment in choco-confectionery of the invention such types of fat
are less preferred
than CB.
20 It will be appreciated that one aspect of the present invention may
provide for a choco-
confectionery composition, preferably which has a lower total fat content (at
least 5 parts or
5% by weight) than previously obtainable from prior art choco-material.
One embodiment of the invention provides a multi-layer product optionally
comprising a
plurality of layers of baked foodstuff (preferably selected from one or more
wafer and/or
biscuit layers, and/or one or more fillings layers there between with at least
one coating
layer located around these layers foodstuff, the coating comprising a choco-
material of or
prepared according to the invention.
A further embodiment of the invention provides a choco-confectionery product,
further coated
with chocolate (or equivalents thereof, such as compound) for example a
praline, chocolate
shell product and/or chocolate coated wafer or biscuit any of which may or may
not be
layered. The chocolate coating can be applied or created by any suitable
means, such as
enrobing or moulding. The coating may comprise a choco-material of or prepared
according
to the invention.
Another embodiment of the invention provides a choco-confectionery product of
and/or used
in the present invention, that comprises a filling surrounded by an outer
layer for example a
praline, chocolate shell product.
In another preferred embodiment of the invention the foodstuff comprises a
multi-layer coated
choco- product comprising a plurality of layers of wafer, choco-material,
biscuit and/or baked
foodstuff, with filling sandwiched between them, with at least one layer or
coating being a
choco-material (e.g. chocolate) of the invention. Most preferably the multi-
layer product
comprises a choco-confectionery product (e.g. as described herein) selected
from sandwich
biscuit(s), cookie(s), wafer(s), muffin(s), extruded snack(s) and/or
praline(s). An example of
such a product is a multilayer laminate of baked wafer and/or biscuit layers
sandwiched with
filling(s) and coated with chocolate.
Baked foodstuffs used in the invention may be sweet or savoury. Preferred
baked foodstuffs
may comprise baked grain foodstuffs which term includes foodstuffs that
comprise cereals
and/or pulses. Baked cereal foodstuffs are more preferred, most preferably
baked wheat
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foodstuffs such as wafer(s) and/or biscuit(s). Wafers may be flat or shaped
(for example into
a cone or basket for ice-cream) and biscuits may have many different shapes,
though
preferred wafer(s) and/or biscuit(s) are flat so they can be usefully be
laminated together with
a confectionery filling of the invention (and optionally a fruit based
filling). More preferred
wafers are non-savoury wafers, for example having a sweet or plain flavour.
A non-limiting list of those possible baked foodstuffs that may comprise choco-
compositions
that comprise choco-material of and/or used in the present invention are
selected from: high
fat biscuits, cakes, breads, pastries and/or pies; such as from the group
consisting of: ANZAC
biscuit, biscotti, flapjack, kurabiye, lebkuchen, leckerli, macroon, bourbon
biscuit, butter
cookie, digestive biscuit, custard cream, extruded snacks, florentine,
garibaldi gingerbread,
koulourakia, kourabiedes, Linzer torte, muffin, oreo, Nice biscuit, peanut
butter cookie,
polvorOn, pizzelle, pretzel, croissant, shortbread, cookie, fruit pie (e.g.
apple pie, cherry pie),
lemon drizzle cake, banana bread, carrot cake, pecan pie, apple strudel,
baklava, berliner,
bichon au citron and/or similar products.
Preferably the micro-aerated choco-material of or prepared according to the
invention may
be suitable for use as (in whole or in part as a component) of one or more
coatings and/or
fillings.
The coating and/or filling may comprise a plurality of phases for example one
or more solid
and/or fluid phases such as fat and/or water liquid phases and/or gaseous
phases such as
emulsions, dispersions, creams and/or foams.
Therefore broadly a further aspect of the invention comprises a foodstuff
comprising choco-
material and/or choco-com position as described herein.
A yet further aspect of the invention broadly comprises use of a choco-
material of or prepared
according to the invention as a choco-confectionery product and/or as a
filling and/or coating
for a foodstuff of the invention as described herein.
In one embodiment of the present invention, the process may be performed in
any type of
equipment which is able to perform a mixing action at modulated speed. Non
limiting
examples of this type of equipment are: vertical and horizontal mixers, turbo
mixers, planetary
and double planetary mixers, continuous mixers, inline mixers, extruders,
screw mixers, high
shear and ultra-high shear mixers, cone and double cone mixers, static and
dynamic mixers,
rotary and static drum mixers, rotopin mixer, ribbon blenders, paddle
blenders, tumble
blenders, solids/liquid injection manifold, dual-shaft and triple shaft
mixers, high viscosity
mixers, V blenders, vacuum mixers, jet mixers, dispersion mixers, mobile
mixers and banbury
mixers.
Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have
and should be
given the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the
art to which
this invention belongs.
Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, as used herein plural forms of
the terms herein
are to be construed as including the singular form and vice versa.
The terms 'effective', 'acceptable' active' and/or 'suitable' (for example
with reference to one
or more of any process, use, method, application, preparation, product,
material, formulation,
composition, recipe, component, ingredient, compound, monomer, oligomer,
polymer
precursor, and/or polymer described herein of and/or used in the present
invention as
appropriate) will be understood to refer to those features of the invention
which if used in the
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correct manner provide the required properties to that which they are added
and/or
incorporated to be of utility as described herein. Such utility may be direct
for example where
a moiety has the required properties for the aforementioned uses and/or
indirect for example
where a moiety has use as a synthetic intermediate and/or diagnostic and/or
other tool in
preparing other moeity of direct utility. As used herein these terms also
denote that sub-entity
of a whole (such as a component and/or ingredient) is compatible with
producing effective,
acceptable, active and/or suitable end products and/or compositions.
Preferred utility of the present invention comprises use as a food stuff,
preferably as a
confectionery product and/or intermediate in the manufacture thereof.
Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, as used herein plural forms of
the terms herein
are to be construed as including the singular form and vice versa.
The term "comprising" as used herein will be understood to mean that the list
following is non
exhaustive and may or may not include any other additional suitable items, for
example one
or more further feature(s), component(s), ingredient(s) and/or substituent(s)
as appropriate.
In the discussion of the invention herein, unless stated to the contrary, the
disclosure of
alternative values for the upper and lower limit of the permitted range of a
parameter coupled
with an indicated that one of said values is more preferred than the other, is
to be construed
as an implied statement that each intermediate value of said parameter, lying
between the
more preferred and less preferred of said alternatives is itself preferred to
said less preferred
value and also to each less preferred value and said intermediate value.
For all upper and/or lower boundaries of any parameters given herein, the
boundary value is
included in the value for each parameter. It will also be understood that all
combinations of
preferred and/or intermediate minimum and maximum boundary values of the
parameters
described herein in various embodiments of the invention may also be used to
define
alternative ranges for each parameter for various other embodiments and/or
preferences of
the invention whether or not the combination of such values has been
specifically disclosed
herein.
Unless noted otherwise, all percentages herein refer to weight percent, where
applicable.
It will be understood that the total sum of any quantities expressed herein as
percentages
cannot (allowing for rounding errors) exceed 100%. For example the sum of all
components
of which the composition of the invention (or part(s) thereof) comprises may,
when expressed
as a weight (or other) percentage of the composition (or the same part(s)
thereof), total 100%
allowing for rounding errors. However where a list of components is non
exhaustive the sum
of the percentage for each of such components may be less than 100% to allow a
certain
percentage for additional amount(s) of any additional component(s) that may
not be explicitly
described herein.
The term "substantially" as used herein may refer to a quantity or entity to
imply a large
amount or proportion thereof. Where it is relevant in the context in which it
is used
"substantially" can be understood to mean quantitatively (in relation to
whatever quantity or
entity to which it refers in the context of the description) there comprises
an proportion of at
least 80%, preferably at least 85%, more preferably at least 90%, most
preferably at least
95%, especially at least 98%, for example about 100% of the relevant whole. By
analogy the
term "substantially-free" may similarly denote that quantity or entity to
which it refers
comprises no more than 20%, preferably no more than 15%, more preferably no
more than
10%, most preferably no more than 5%, especially no more than 2%, for example
about 0%
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of the relevant whole. Preferably where appropriate (for example in amounts of
ingredient)
such percentages are by weight.
Compositions of and/or used in the present invention may also exhibit improved
properties
with respect to known compositions that are used in a similar manner. Such
improved
properties may be preferably as defined herein. Preferred compositions of
and/or used in the
present invention, may exhibit comparable properties (compared to known
compositions
and/or components thereof in two or more of those properties.
Any weight percentages in parameters above are calculated with respect to
initial weight of
the component.
Improved properties as used herein means the value of the component and/or the
composition of and/or used in the present invention is > +8% of the value of
the known
reference component and/or composition described herein, more preferably >
+10%, even
more preferably > +12%, most preferably > +15%.
Comparable properties as used herein means the value of the component and/or
composition
of and/or used in the present invention is within +/-6% of the value of the
known reference
component and/or composition described herein, more preferably +/- 5%, most
preferably +/-
4%.
The percentage differences for improved and comparable properties herein refer
to fractional
differences between the component and/or composition of and/or used in the
invention and
the known reference component and/or composition described herein where the
property is
measured in the same units in the same way (i.e. if the value to be compared
is also
measured as a percentage it does not denote an absolute difference).
TEST METHODS
Unless otherwise indicated or the context clearly indicates otherwise all the
tests herein are
carried out under standard conditions as also defined herein.
BUBBLE SIZE
The bubble size values given herein are measured by X-ray tomography and/or
confocal
laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) as described below.
Bubble size may be determined by measuring the volume distribution of the
sample by
plotting volume (%) versus size (microns) for example from images generated
using the
techniques described herein. Bubble size is then quoted as the linear
dimension which
corresponds to the diameter of an approximate spherical bubble having the same
volume as
the mean volume calculated from the measured volume distribution and is
referred to herein
as mean bubble size in microns. A normal bubble size distribution (BSD) with
single
maximum peak (mono modal) is assumed in most cases for the bubbles generated
in the
present invention. However other BSDs (e.g. multimodal such as bimodal) are
not excluded
from this invention. The BSD is measured by the standard derivation from the
mean bubble
size also measured in microns.
As an alternative measure of bubble size, d90 may also be used (also expressed
in linear
dimensions) which denotes the size of bubble below which 90% (by number) of
the bubbles
in a given aerated sample lie.
NUMBER WEIGHTED MEAN DIAMETER OF BUBBLE SIZE (X p, 0)
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The parameter denoted by a symbol in the format Xp, 0 is measured in units of
length (e.g.
microns) and denotes that bubble diameter for which P % of the total number of
bubbles
counted in the sample have a diameter smaller or equal to the length given for
this parameter.
Thus for example if X50,0 = 1 micron, this means 50% of the total number of
bubbles in the
sample have a diameter of 1 micron or less. Parameter X50,0 is commonly used
to indicate
number weighted diameter but analogously, parameters X90,0 and X10,0 (the
diameters below
wich respectively 90 % and 10 % of all bubbles lie) may also be used.
SPAN (QO)
SPAN (QO) may be calculated for the number based bubble size distribution by
determining
the ratio of (X90,0- X10,0) / X50,0. This is a measure to evaluate the width
of the number weighted
bubble size distribution. A lower SPAN (QO) value indicates a narrower bubble
size
distribution and with this a more homogenous and more stable foam structure.
VOLUME WEIGHTED MEAN DIAMETER OF BUBBLE SIZE (X50,3)
The parameter denoted by the symbol in the format Xp, 3 is measured in units
of length (e.g.
microns) and denotes that bubble diameter for which P % of the total volume
taken by the
bubbles in the sample have a diameter smaller or equal to the length given for
this parameter.
Thus for example if X50,3 = 1 micron, this means 50% of the total volume of
bubbles in the
sample is provided by those particles having a diameter 1 micron or less.
Parameter X50,3 is
commonly used to indicate volume weighted diameter but analogously, parameters
X90,3 and
X10,3 (the diameters at which respectively 90 % and 10 % of the volume
occupied by all
bubbles lie) may also be used.
SPAN (Q3)
SPAN (Q3) was calculated for the volume weighted bubble size distribution by
determining
the ratio of (X90,3- X10,3) / X50,3 This is a measure to evaluate the width of
the volume weighted
bubble size distribution. A lower SPAN (Q3) value indicates a narrower bubble
size
distribution and with this a more homogenous and more stable foam structure.
DETERMINING BUBBLE SIZE USING X-RAY TOMOGRAPHY OR CLSM
X-ray tomography
A rotating sample is bombarded with polychromatic X-rays, and X-ray intensity
resulting from
interaction with the sample is spatially recorded by a pixelated planar
detector which forms a
two dimensional image of the projected absorption of the sample. A three
dimensional
reconstruction of the sample is then performed from the collection of 2D
projections using
back projection algorithms. This is described in 'Principle of X-ray
tomography', K.S Lim, M.
Barigou, X-ray micro-computed tomography of cellular food products, Food
Research
International 37 (2004) 1001-1012. X-ray tomography is non-invasive and is a
powerful
technique for mapping air voids embedded in a solid matrix (such as the
bubbles in micro-
aerated chocolate). X-ray tomography has a high resolution of up to 1 pm and
no sample
preparation is required, it provides an easy, quantitative means of evaluating
bubble sizes
from the images generated. Unless otherwise indicated herein samples evaluated
herein by
X-ray tomography used the instrument MicroCT 35 available commercially from
Scanco
medical AG. The samples (e.g. chocolate pieces) to be X-rayed were gently cut
in the z-axis
using razor blades and small cylinder like samples were trimmed and placed in
sample
holders.
Confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM)
For CLSM a pinhole in an optically conjugate plane in front of the detector is
added to a
fluorescence microscope in order to eliminate the out-of-focus signal (a large
unfocused
background part not coming from the specimen). As only light produced by
fluorescence very
close to the focal plane can be detected, the image's optical resolution,
particularly in the
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sample depth direction, is much better than that of wide-field microscopes.
Moreover, the
sample is illuminated point by point. However, as much of the light from
sample fluorescence
is blocked at the pinhole, this increased resolution is at the cost of
decreased signal intensity
¨ so long exposures are often required. CLSM provides images of good
resolution in a
5 comparative and qualitative method. The principle of CLSM is described in
the following
article. G.L. Hand, E.R. Weeks, 'Physics of the colloidal glass, 2012 Rep.
Prog. Phys. 75
(especially section 2.2). CLSM equipment is less expensive than an X-ray
tomograph and is
user friendly. Unfortunately, confocal microscopy implies a long destructive
preparation
(analyzed sample surface must be completely straight and dyes are used).
Confocal
10 microscopy does not provide quantitative information (the scanning
process needs to be
repeated with different samples which assume that the preparation of the
samples is very
similar). Dyes are used in order to highlight the presence of bubbles hence a
better
determination of the bubble characteristics.
15 Unless otherwise indicated herein samples evaluated herein by CLSM used
the confocal
microscope available commercially from Leica instrument under the trade
designation LAS,
Type DM6000. The samples (e.g. chocolate pieces) to undergo CLSM were gently
cut in
the z-axis using razor blades and small cylinder like samples were trimmed and
placed in
sample holders. Then samples were then dyed for the confocal microscope using
first Nile
20 red then adding Fast green (as shown in the table below). In the
morphology images
generated by CLSM shown herein, the Nile red signal is displayed in a red look-
up-table
and the Fast green one in a green look-up-table. The remaining dark areas
having a
circular shape are therefore assumed to be gas bubbles. The sugar is
represented by
smaller black areas with irregular borders.
Compound Dye Wavelength Emission Color
(nm) bandwidth (nm)
Fat Nile red 490 500-600 Red
Protein Fast green 638 650-750 Green
Sugar -- -- -- Black
Bubble -- -- -- Black
There is no data processing associated with the confocal microscope, so bubble
diameter
can be measured using the scale which is integrated into the image software.
POROSITY
Porosity values (P) stated as a percentage were derived from computed
tomography
evaluation. Porosity describes the ratio of void fraction to the total volume
of a sample. Hence
porosity represents the ratio of the volume of gas VG within a sample to the
total sample
volume Vs, hence VG/Vs. Porosity may also be estimated as otherwise described
herein or
calculated from Over-Run (OR) measurements (also stated as a percentage) in
standardized
plastic cups using the following equations.
ninon aerated ¨ Maerated
%OR = x100
Maerated
OR
%P= _________________________________________ x100
OR +100
COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY ANALYSIS
Foamed confectionary samples were stored below 5 C until analysis. The
samples may be
analyzed using a CT 35 (Scanco Medical, Bruttisellen, Switzerland) operated in
a climate
chamber set to 15 C. The bubble detection resolution of the device is 6
micron. Cumulative
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bubble size distributions Q(x) (characterized by: X50,3X90,3X10,3and
X50,0X90,0 X10,0), VG and
Vs, may be measured by computer X-ray tomography and extracted by image
analysis.
From the bubble sizes X50,3 X90,3 X10,3 and X50,0 X90,0 X10,0 the size
distribution widths
SPAN(Q3), SPAN(Q0) can also be derived.
STANDARD CONDITIONS
As used herein, unless the context indicates otherwise, standard conditions
(e.g. for defining
a solid fat or liquid oil) means, atmospheric pressure, a relative humidity of
50% 5%, ambient
temperature (22 C 2 ) and an air flow of less than or equal to 0.1m/s. Unless
otherwise
indicated all the tests herein are carried out under standard conditions as
defined herein.
TEXTURE AND VISCOSITY
Texture of foodstuffs is perceived as a composite of many different
characteristics comprising
various combinations of physical properties (such as mechanical and/or
geometrical
properties) and/or chemical properties (such as fat and/or moisture content).
As used herein
in relation to the compositions of the invention for a given fat and moisture
content the
composition texture can be related to the viscosity of the composition as a
fluid when
subjected to shear stress. Provided that the measuring technique is carefully
controlled and
the same shear rates are used apparent viscosity can be used herein as a guide
to indicate
texture. The term "viscosity" as used herein refers to the apparent viscosity
of a fluid as
measured by conventional methods known to those skilled in the art but in
particular the
method described herein is preferred. Some fluids display non-Newtonian
rheology and
cannot be totally characterized by a single rheological measurement point.
Despite this
apparent viscosity is a simple measure of viscosity useful for the evaluation
of such fluids.
The viscosity of the compositions according to the invention and/or prepared
by a method of
the invention, as well as comparative examples, (for example choc-materials
such as
chocolate) can be characterized by two measurements, one at about 5s-1 for low
flow
situations to approximate to the yield value and a second one at 205-1 for
higher flow rates.
(See Beckett 4th edition, chapter 10.3). As used herein for the purpose of
measuring the
viscosity of the fillings of the present invention the yield value of
viscosity is used to determine
texture measured at a low flow rate of 55-1.
The preferred method for measuring the yield value for viscosity uses an
instrument denoted
by the trade designation RVA 4500 (available commercially from Rapid Viscosity
Analyzer,
Newport Scientific, Australia) measured under standard conditions (unless
otherwise
indicated) and at a rate of 5s-1. In this test method 10 grams of the sample
composition are
added to the canister supplied with the RVA instrument and then measurement is
performed
using the following profile: a constant temperature of 35 C, mixing vigorously
at 950 rpm for
10 seconds then at 160 rpm for the duration of the test which is 30 minutes.
The test is done
in duplicates or triplicates to ensure repeatability. The final viscosity is
used for comparison
as well as the quality of the RVA viscosity curve.
WEIGHT PERCENT
All percentages are given in percent by weight, if not otherwise indicated.
Figures
The invention is illustrated by the following non-limiting Figures 1 to 19
where:
Figure 1 is a photograph of a cross section of comparative chocolate of the
invention (Comp
A) which was aerated with nitrogen to achieve a porosity of 5%. As can been
many larger
bubbles are formed with overall a wider size distribution of bubbles due to
coalescence of the
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initially smaller bubbles when a low amount of gas is initially dispersed into
the chocolate
mass.
Figure 2 is a photograph showing the difference in stability between chocolate
aerated to
from left to right Comp B (porosity of 10%), Example 1 (porosity of 12.5%) and
Example 2
(porosity 15%).
Figure 3 is a photograph showing the instability of chocolate aerated at a
higher level (from
left to right Comp C (porosity 20%) and Comp D (porosity 25%)
Figure 4 shows the mixer head of a rotor stator mixer available commercially
from Hass under
the trade mark Monodmix0
Figure 5 shows the mixer blades from the mixer head of a rotor stator mixer
available
commercially from Hass under the trade mark Monodmix0
Figure 6 shows the modular mixer head of a rotor stator mixer used by Nestle
under the trade
mark Nestwhipper0
Figure 7 is a schematic drawing of the gas injector referred to herein as
Novac (as described
in W02005-063036) combined with a jet depositor system (as described in
W02010/102716).
Figure 8 shows a prior art micro-aerated chocolate sample - Comp E (micro-
aerated to 12%
porosity) which has been tested in the aeration test described herein, the
sample surface
having risen due to instability of the incorporated gas.
Figure 9 shows a micro-aerated chocolate sample of the invention - Example 3 -
(micro-
aerated to 15% porosity, simply by increasing the gas flow slightly compared
to Comp E
shown in Figure 8), where there is no dome formed at the sample surface when
tested in
the aeration test described herein, indicating the aeration becomes stable at
a level of 15%
porosity.
Figure 10 shows a micro-aerated chocolate tablet micro-aerated to 10% porosity
using and
formed in an angular mould, i.e. where the vertices form sharp corners. In the
tablet shown
in Figure 10 bubbles are clearly visible on the surface of the angular mould,
and also
appear consistently at the same position on each pip. The appearance of the
tablet is
aesthetically undesirable.
Figure 11 shows a micro-aerated chocolate tablet made from a micro-aerated
chocolate
mass aerated to 10% porosity using the same chocolate and process conditions
as for the
tablet shown in Figure 10, but formed in a mould having rounded vertices, i.e.
the only
difference in the tablets shown in Figures 10 or 11 being the mould design. As
can been
seen the visual appearance of this tablet compared to that of Figure 10 is
more
homogenous and aesthetically is much improved.
For chocolates with relatively low viscosity, the challenge at higher aeration
levels can be
to actually hold the gas within the solidifying matrix, meaning that
coalescence occurs. This
leads to clearly visible bubbles both inside and on the bar surface (please
see Figure 15
and Figure 16 herein).
Figure 12 to 16 herein show tablets produced using the same chocolate mass,
all temper
and mini Novac parameters being kept constant, apart from the gas flow which
was
adjusted to give the desired porosity level. It is particularly interesting to
note the fact that
at lower aeration levels, not only is the aeration visible but also the de-
moulding
properties are impacted. The reason behind this impact on de-moulding is not
understood
but impacts most masses that have been tested.
Figure 12 shows a micro-aerated dark chocolate with 5% porosity (Nestle,
Brazil). Please
note the visible bubbles and also marks resulting from poor de-moulding.
Figure 13 shows a micro-aerated dark chocolate with 10% porosity: good de-
moulding and
invisible bubbles. The mass did rise during the cup test, showing some signs
of instability.
Figure 14 shows a micro-aerated dark chocolate with 15% porosity: good
homogeneous
aeration and de-moulding properties. The 'cup' test showed the aeration to be
very stable.
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Figure 15 shows a micro-aerated dark chocolate with 20% porosity: bubbles have
started to
coalesce and are clearly visible inside the bar.
Figure 16 shows a micro-aerated dark chocolate with 23% porosity: bubbles have
started to
coalesce and are clearly visible inside and at the surface of the bar. It was
not possible to
increase the porosity any further than 23% by just adjusting the gas flow
alone.
Figures 17, 18 and 19 are images of a micro-aerated sample of the chocolate
mass used
(when unaerated) to prepare the confectionery product sold by the applicant in
Brazil as
chocolate tablets under the trade mark Garoto (see Example 5 and Table 2
herein), where
Figure 17 was generated with X-ray tomography, Figure 18 with confocal
microscopy (CLSM)
and Figure 19 is a 3D visualization of the micro-aerated Garoto chocolate.
It should be noted that embodiments and features described in the context of
one of the
aspects or embodiments of the present invention also apply to the other
aspects of the
invention. Although embodiments have been disclosed in the description with
reference to
specific examples, it will be recognized that the invention is not limited to
those embodiments.
Various modifications may become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the
art and may be
acquired from practice of the invention and such variations are contemplated
within the broad
scope of the present invention. It will be understood that the materials used
and the chemical
details may be slightly different or modified from the descriptions without
departing from the
methods and compositions disclosed and taught by the present invention.
Further aspects of the invention and preferred features thereof are given in
the claims herein.
Examples
__ The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the
following non
limiting examples which are by way of illustration only.
The applicant prepared various samples of micro-aerated chocolate tablets. All
samples were
aerated (unless indicated otherwise) using the equipment described in the
applicant's patent
applications W02005-063036 and/or W02010/102716. When the same recipes were
compared at different levels of micro-aeration (as measured by the porosity of
the final
product when solid) the following general observations in Table 1 were made
consistently.
Table 1
Porosity (%) Aeration Quality
5% Aeration unstable at this level, due to coalescence of the
micro gas bubbles
9% Still some instability observed in the aerated matrix
15% Optimal aeration level, good stable foam
20% Good stable foam but significant viscosity increase,
considerable vibration
required to ensure that when moulded, the chocolate composition filled all
the extremities of the mould
25% Unstable aeration, coalescence, 'spitting' from the nozzle
and poor flow in
the mould
Comp A
Comparative example A (Comp A) is a chocolate aerated with nitrogen to achieve
a porosity
of 5%.
As can be seen from Figure 1 (photograph of a cross section) Comp A contains
many large
bubbles (some of which are very visible to the naked eye) and overall exhibits
a wide
distribution of bubble sizes. Without wishing to be bound by any theory the
applicant believes
__ that this may be due to coalescence of the small bubbles initially formed
when a low amount
of the nitrogen gas was dispersed into the chocolate mass.
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Examples 1 and 2 and Comp B
Chocolate was prepared to the same recipe and micro-aerated with nitrogen to
achieve a
porosity of 10% (Comp B), 12.5% (Example 1) and 15% (Example 2).
An aeration stability test is shown in Figure 2 which is a photograph showing
these examples
(respectively from left to right Comp B, Example 1 and Example 2) after
undergoing the
aeration stability test as described herein.
As can be seen from Figure 2 Comp B forms a dome whereas Examples 1 and 2 do
not,
which indicates the improved stability of Ex 1 and 2, which compared to Comp
B. This shows
that aerated compositions of the invention that have a porosity and bubble
sizes and
distribution as defined herein have desirable properties. Such parameters have
been found
to define an optimum region that is selected from the general scope of
parameters within
aerated compositions can be prepared.
Comp C and D
Similarly to above chocolate compositions were prepared and aerated with
nitrogen to
achieve much higher porosities of respectively 20% (Comp C) and 25% (Comp D).
Figure 3 is a photograph showing the instability of these samples (left to
right Comp C and
D) after they have undergone the aeration stability test as described herein.
Visible aeration
can be seen on the surface of the chocolate especially for Comp D.
Comp C and D were also found to exhibit too large a viscosity to be easily
handled especially
in an industrial process under the normal temperatures at which moulding and
demoulding
occurs. For example these samples were found to be too viscous to readily flow
into moulds
to provide good surface definition. The resultant moulded products nmade from
Comp C or
Comp D were also very difficult to be removed from a mould (demould) without
damage to
the product. So surprisingly the applicant has found that there is an upper
limit to micro-
aerating chocolate. Adding gas to chocolate as small bubbles (micro-aeration)
to achieve
porosity levels of 20% or above has been shown to be impractical.
Results
Without being bound by any theory, in one most preferred embodiment of the
invention the
optimal porosity range is believed to be from 12.5% - 15% for the micro-
aerated chocolate
masses tested. Surprisingly these porosities were found to gives a workable
viscosity and a
stable and homogeneous micro-aeration (invisible bubbles to the naked eye) as
seen in the
profile of bubble size distribution. For micro-aerated chocolate with
porosities above 15%,
viscosity starts to become a challenge, before significant coalescence occurs
at porosity
above 20%. Micro-aerated chocolate prepared with much lower porosity (e.g. see
Comp A
oft 5% porosity) also forms inhomogeneous bubbles which is both visually
unappealing and
effects the organoleptic properties of the chocolate.
Example 3
The following product recipe for a chocolate mass (sold by the applicant in
Mexico as a
chocolate tablet under the registered trademark Carlos V) was aerated with
Nitrogen
The chocolate is a relatively low fat recipe (24.7% fat content by weight) and
therefore has a
relatively high viscosity (yield value = 8.64Pa, plastic viscosity =
6.52Pa.$).
Examples 4 to 6 and Comp E
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The bubble size and BSD present in various samples of conventional chocolate
masses,
which were then micro-aerated at different levels) were evaluated using two
methods of
bubble measurement, X-ray tomography and CLSM.
5 Comp E and Example 4
Micro-aerated samples of the chocolate mass used (when unaerated) to coat the
confectionery product sold under the trade mark KitKat , referred to in Table
2 as KitKat .
It can be seen that a low levels of aeration (Comp E), the bubbles coalesce
and are thus
have a larger mean size (> 200 microns) and broader BSD. The larger bubbles
are noticeable
10 to the naked eye. At higher levels of aeration surprisingly both the
mean bubble size and
standard deivation decreases (narrower BSD, i.e more uniform, smaller bubble
size).
Example 5
Micro-aerated sample of the chocolate mass used (when unaerated) to prepare
the
15 confectionery product sold by the applicant in Brazil as chocolate
tablets under the trade
mark Garoto , referred to in Table 2 as Garato . Pictures of micro-aerated
Garoto obtained
with X-ray tomography are shown in Figure 17 and confocal microscopy (CLSM) in
Figure
18. A 3D visualization of micro-aerated Garoto chocolate is shown in Figure 19
where the
different colours represent the different depths and highlight the presence of
bubbles as
20 described herein.
Example 6
Micro-aerated sample of the chocolate mass used (when unaerated) to prepare
the
confectionery product sold by the applicant in Brazil as chocolate tablets
under the trade
25 mark Nestle Classic , referred to in Table 2 as Nestle Classic .
The results are given in Table 2.
Table 2
Mean Standard
Example Sample Method bubble deviation
size (pm) (pm)
CLSM 212 52.3
Comp E KitKat 8.8% aeration
X-ray 290 54
CLSM 55.9 51.2
Ex 4 KitKat 11.5% aeration
X-ray 39 23
CLSM 54.6 21.3
Ex 5 Garoto 10% aeration
X-ray 42 16
Nestle Classic015`)/0 CLSM 45.8 12.4
Ex 7
aeration X-ray 45 17
