Ashland Upgrades Nutrition Technical Center in Shanghai

Ashland is ready to assist the food and beverage industry in the Asia Pacific region with a range of technical solutions following the completion of an expansion project at its technical center in Shanghai, eastern China. New state-of-the-art equipment is in place that affords food scientists at Ashland the ability to work closely with dairy, bakery, beverage and meat product makers to solve complex formulation and processing challenges.
Ashland is one of the world’s leading producers of food cellulose gums, a gluten-free ingredient essential to improve the allure of some food and beverage products and vital to advance the integrity of products produced in a commercial setting. A hydrocolloid, cellulose gum finds application in protein stabilization of dairy products, texture enhancement of various beverages and quality enhancement of baked goods. Ashland also supports thermal gelation, film formation, thickening and food binding solutions with modified cellulose products sold under the BenecelTM trade name.

Catering to Asia’s demand
for dairy

As the dairy industry continues to expand in Asia, a new Ultra High Temperature (UHT) system and online homogenizer are now in place at the technical center to simulate conditions representative of commercial milk production.
William Zhao, General Manager of Specialty Ingredients, Greater China said UHT-processing fits well with a significant need in Asia to secure low-fat milk products that taste great, exhibit good texture and remain stable for an extended period.
“Adding a UHT pilot system in Shanghai enables Ashland to assist companies with technical and product development trouble-shooting to ensure the production of milk products that fit the lifestyles and preferences of consumers in Asia Pacific,” said Zhao.
In addition to dairy equipment, Ashland has in place analytical and pilot-scale operations to support producers of baked goods, beverages and meat products.