Similar to ovalbumin from egg whites, EVERY’s variants contribute to foaming, binding, gelling and nutritional properties across a wide range of food products including baked goods, meat alternatives and analogues, ready-to-eat eggs, whipped cream, ice cream and meringues, among others. It also delivers functional benefits, including hardness, cohesiveness, springiness, chewiness and foam stability in liquid and powder formats, according to EVERY.
‘Different forms of ovalbumin function in different ways’
The scope of the patent includes wild-type ovalbumin variants with additional functionalities via modifications and ovalbumin sourced from a multiple avian species and production methods using a variety of yeast and fungal systems (e.g. Pichia, Trichoderma, Saccharmyces and Aspergillus), according to the company.
“The foaming, gelling, emulsification and other functional properties of eggs are the cornerstone of countless food products. But because most other bird species are not domesticated and cannot be easily farmed, we are largely limited to the functionalities of a single species: chicken. Different forms of ovalbumins function in different ways. We have worked with multiple species and wanted to ensure this patent covered the breadth of the work our team has done not just with chicken ovalbumin but other types,” Elizondo said.
‘Hyper-functional’ ovalbumin delivers similar benefits as egg white, potentially reducing costs for manufacturers
According to Elizondo, EVERY’s fermentation-derived ovalbumin performs comparably to egg white “with minimal formulation challenges.”
“For whole egg product applications, some formulation adjustments may be necessary to account for the fact that our ingredient is an egg white protein rather than a whole egg (egg white and yolk). However, in most cases, we have found that customers can utilize our ovalbumin alongside plant-based fats to replace whole eggs,” Elizondo explained.
While costs vary for different products, Elizondo predicts that “hyper-functional” ovalbumin variants will help lower expenses because "the more functional an ingredient is, the less of it you need to use in a formulation.” Additionally, the company’s ingredient has the potential to mitigate market volatility issues such as price fluctuations, supply chain disruptions, and variability in quality and functionality for multinational food companies.
