BRPI0611547A2 - fortified soy protein composition, soy beverage and beverage composition - Google Patents

Abstract

FORGED SOYBEAN PROTEIN COMPOSITION, SOYBEAN DRINK COMPOSITION AND BEVERAGE. First embodiment, the present invention relates to an alkaline earth metal fortified soy protein composition neutral beverage dispersed in aqueous medium, comprising: aqueous syrup of soy protein material and hydrated metal phosphate salt gel alkaline earth, wherein the soy protein material contains beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40% and wherein the alkali metal content The alkaline earth metal-fortified soy protein composition is from about 1.5% to about 12% by weight, on a dry basis and wherein the alkaline earth metal-fortified soy protein composition forms a suspension. stable in the aqueous medium. In a second embodiment, soy milk drink is prepared. The soymilk beverage is prepared by combining soybeans containing beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40% with water. , milling of soybeans still in water and liquid separation in the form of soy milk.

Description

"COMPOSITION OF FORTIFIED SOY PROTEIN, COMPOSITION OF

SOYA AND DRINK "

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to soy protein based beverage composition which is mild, tasty, palatable and has good storage stability in acidic or neutral environment. Stability is increased by the addition of stabilizers such as starch, pectin and hydrocolloids. Soy protein is fortified with calcium or magnesium salt. The soy protein employed contains low phytic acid content of deinositol 6-phosphate, inositol 5-phosphate, inositol 4-phosphate and inositol 3-phosphate. Furthermore, soy protein contains beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40%.

Background of the Invention

Protein isolates that are derived from vegetable protein sources, such as soybeans, contributed substantially to the economic importance of these materials as a crop. Soy protein isolates have been found to be particularly useful nutritional supplements in a range of foods and beverages. Protein isolate may generally be characterized as a product resulting from the extraction, subsequent concentration and purification of proteinaceous material from proteinaceous material such as plant protein material. Typically, the moisture-free protein isolate will contain protein content ranging from about 90% to 98% by weight.

The usefulness of soy protein isolates in the formation of foodstuffs as beverages has been achieved, for the most part, by producing modified or enzymatically hydrolyzed isolates or by adding such materials as surfactants to promote the dispersion or suspension capacity of the specific type isolates. of an aqueous medium that is used in the preparation of the beverage. An example of this type of protein product is described in U.S. Patent No. 4,378,378, in which simulated milk product with improved suspension characteristics is made, in which vegetable protein material syrup and whey is formed, followed by the reaction of the proteolytic enzyme mixture. Although protein isolates are generally dispersible in aqueous media, it has been very difficult to employ these isolates in conjunction with certain vitamins and minerals that may be required if a nutritionally complete beverage or refreshment such as infant formula is produced. Fortification of liquid product with calcium, for example, represents a specific problem, since most forms of calcium employed for calcium supplementation in nutritional drinks are relatively insoluble in aqueous media. These materials precipitate or deposit easily from the aqueous suspension to provide the user with a beverage that must be stirred relatively frequently to ensure adequate consumption of minerals in the feed.

The dispersibility of mineral enriched protein composition has been described in U.S. Patent No. 4,214,996, in which mineral is chelated with organic acid and sugar for the purposes of increasing the dispersibility of minerals in aqueous medium such as beverage. It is indicated that the product can be dried and reconstituted with good results.

An alternative approach to the dispersibility of specific minerals, such as calcium phosphate, is described in U.S. Patent No. 2,605,229. It describes the production of decalcium phosphate gel that will remain dispersed in water when mixed to generate milk suspension that simulates the dispersion of calcium phosphate in milk.

Brief Description of the Invention

In the first embodiment, the present invention relates to an aqueous drink of an alkaline earth metal-fortified soy protein composition dispersed in aqueous medium comprising: aqueous syrup of soy protein material and hydrated alkaline earth metal phosphate salt gel wherein the soy protein material contains beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40%, wherein the alkaline earth metal content of the protein composition The alkali earth metal-fortified soybean protein is about 1.5 to 12% by weight in the dry base and wherein the alkaline earth metal-fortified soy protein composition forms a stable suspension in the aqueous medium.

In a second embodiment, the present invention relates to the aqueous medium dispersed soy protein composition comprising: aqueous syrup of soy protein material, wherein the protein material displaces contains about 40% beta-conglycinin content at about 85% and glycine content of about 5% to about 40%, wherein the soy protein composition forms a stable suspension in the aqueous medium.

Detailed Description of the Invention

To provide understanding of several of the terms used in the descriptive report and in the claims, the following definitions are provided.

High beta-conglycinin soybeans: As used herein, high-beta-conglycinin soybeans means soybeans that contain more than about 40% of the protein in the debeta-conglycinin form.

Soy Protein Isolate (SPI): As used herein, soy protein isolate is spray-dried powder made from spawn grains containing no less than 90% protein (N times 6.25) in free moisture.

High beta-conglycinin soybean seeds are processed into high beta-conglycinin soy protein extracts as described below.Soybean protein material:

Soy proteins are composed of four deglobulin fractions: 2S having a molecular weight of about 8000 to about 21,500; 7S (beta-conglycinin) having a molecular weight of about 150,000 to about 200,000; 11S (glycine) having a molecular weight of about 350,000 and 15S having a molecular weight of about 600,000.

In the present invention, the soybean starting material is organismogenetically modified available through DuPont1 Wilmington DE1identified as Version 1, IA Grain No. 408, which contains 65.5% 7S content and 9.7% 11S content.

The soy protein material used in the present invention for both embodiments contains beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% of the total weight of soy protein and glycine content from about 5% to about 40% by weight. total soy protein. The use of high beta-conglycinin soybeans containing more than 40% of beta-conglycinin allows the preparation of soy protein material containing beta-conglycinin content of about 40% about 85% without inefficiencies. of glycine removal during processing. The high beta-conglycinin soy protein material according to the present invention contains about 40% about 85% of beta-conglycinin, compared with 26 to 29% commercial soy protein isolates. Soy protein isolates, typical beverage starting material, typically contain about 40 to 45% glycine. High beta-conglycinin soy protein material contains less than about 40% glycine.

First Realization:

In the first embodiment, a ready-made neutral drink (RTD-N) is prepared. Typically, RTD-N drinks are fortified or mineral fortified. Mineral fortification takes place by the addition of hydrated defrosting of mineral fortifying material to the hydrated beta-conglycinin high protein protein syrup syrup.

High beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate, as used herein, means soy protein material containing about 90% or more protein content and preferably about 95% or more protein content. soy protein, wherein the beta-conglycinin fraction is from about 40% to about 85%, preferably about 45% to about 70% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40%, preferably about 15% to about 35% of total soy protein. High beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate is typically produced from starting material such as skimmed high beta-conglycine soybean material, wherein the oil is extracted to leave pasta or soy flakes . More specifically, high beta-conglycinin soybeans can be minced or ground initially and then passed through conventional oil expelling apparatus. It is preferable, however, to remove the oil contained in the depleted grains by solvent extraction with aliphatic hydrocarbons, such as hexane or its azeotropes, and these represent conventional methods employed for the removal of oil. The skimmed beta-conglycinin high protein soybean flakes are then placed in an aqueous bath to provide a mixture having a pH of at least about 6.5 and preferably about 7.0 to 10 in order to extract the protein.

Typically, if the pH is to be raised above 6.7, various alkaline reagents such as sodium hydroxide, potassium hydroxide and calcium hydroxide or other commonly accepted food grade alkaline reagents may be employed to raise the pH. pH of more than about 7 is generally preferred as alkaline extraction facilitates protein solubilization. Typically, the pH of the aqueous extract of high beta-conglycinin soy protein will be at least about 6.5 and preferably about 7.0 to 10. The weight ratio of the aqueous extractor to the protein material desoils is usually about 20 to 1 and preferably about 10 to 1 ratio. In alternative embodiment, the soy protein is extracted. skimmed flakes ground with water, ie without pH adjustment.

It is also desirable in obtaining the high beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate used in the present invention to employ high temperature during the aqueous extraction step, either at or with pH adjustment, to facilitate solubilization of soy protein at ambient temperatures. equally satisfactory if desired. Extraction temperatures that may be employed may range from the environment to about 49 ° C, with a preferred temperature of 32 ° C. The extraction period is additionally non-limiting and a time period of about five to 120 minutes may conveniently be employed with a preferred time of about thirty minutes. After extraction of the vegetable protein material, the aqueous protein extract can be stored in a holding tank or appropriate container while a second extraction is performed on insoluble solids from the first aqueous extraction step. This increases the efficiency and throughput of the extraction process by exhaustively extracting the protein from the residual solids of the first step.

The combined aqueous protein extracts from the two extraction steps, without pH adjustment or having a pH of at least 6.5, preferably about 7.0 to 10, are then precipitated by adjusting the pH of the extract. soybean to, at or near the isoelectric point of the high beta-conglycinin soy protein to form an insoluble rennet precipitate. The pH is typically about 4.0 to 5.0. The precipitation step may conveniently be conducted by the addition of common feedstock reagent such as acetic acid, sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid, hydrochloric acid or any other suitable acid reagent. The high beta-conglycinin-containing protein precipitates from the acidulated extract and is then separated from the extract. The separated high beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate can be washed with water to remove residual carbohydrates and ash from the protein material. The separated protein is then dried using conventional drying media to form high beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate.

The soy protein rennet is then formed into syrup for mineral fortification purposes as described below. Although the protein isolate can be obtained directly by the isolation procedure described above, in which the precipitated protein is still in aqueous suspension form, it is equally possible, within the present invention, to employ as a dry protein isolated starting material which is dispersed in aqueous medium to form aqueous suspension.

Essential aspect of the present realization, however, is the specific means of mineral fortification of the protein material. For example, it has been found that if the mineral fortification of the protein material is to be achieved by the addition of hydrated gel to the mineral fortifying material and not by the addition of dry mineral supplement, a product with improved de-suspension characteristics is achieved. Improved suspension characteristics are also retained after drying of the fortified protein composition.

The hydrated gel is alkaline earth metal salt. Typical alkaline earth materials used for mineral fortification and which are considered essential for nutritional purposes include calcium and magnesium.

Calcium has been shown to be a specific problem with respect to fortification of protein supplements for liquid foods as it is used at a higher defortification level than other minerals in aqueous media such as infant formula or nutritional drink. For the most part, this was achieved in the technical state by dispersing dry calcium phosphate salt in the dry protein supplement, which upon dispersion in aqueous medium still often results in deposition of mineral components during storage of the liquid food.

While the first embodiment is particularly directed to the production of calcium-fortified high beta-conglycinin soy protein compositions with enhanced suspension characteristics, it is equally adaptable to other bivalent salts such as alkaline earth metal bones commonly used for mineral fortification. of foods such as magnesium. The exact means of hydrated dog formation of the various alkaline earth metal salts are not critical to the practice of the present invention and these gels may be prepared by a series of chemical reactions. Specifically with respect to calcium, reaction between calcium chloride and trisodium phosphate can be used to form tricalcium phosphate gel according to the following reaction:

<formula> formula see original document page 9 </formula>

Alternatively, reaction between calcium hydroxide and phosphoric acid can be used with similar degree of success to form tricalcium phosphate gelhydrate according to the following reaction:

<formula> formula see original document page 9 </formula>

The above reactions represent typical reactions for the production of alkaline earth metal hydrated gel such as calcium which has been found to specifically enhance the suspension characteristics of plant protein material from which it is fortified.

Regarding the production of hydrated calcium salt gel, it is preferable to employ the reaction described above, in which calcium hydroxide is reacted with phosphoric acid, as no salt is produced by this reaction. Typically, dilute calcium hydroxide solution is employed for reaction with phosphoric acid and although the exact concentration of calcium is not limiting, it is preferable that the calcium level in the solution is about 0.1 to 3.0 wt%, preferably about 1.0 wt%. To this solution is added dropwise concentrated phosphoric acid (85% by weight) at uniform and low speed so that the pH of the reaction mixture is kept above about 7. It is desirable to keep the pH of the reaction medium at about 7, and preferably about 9.5 to 11.5 for tricalcium phosphate production purposes, which is the preferred material for calcium protein fortification purposes. If the pH of the reaction mixture is allowed to fall below about 7, mainly mono and dibasic calcium phosphate forms are formed, and although they can be used with equal fortification of protein materials and are intended to be covered by the present The use of tricalcium phosphate is preferred because this material is the most stable form of calcium phosphate for purposes of calcium fortification.

The reaction is kept running and tricalcium phosphate translucent hydrated gel begins to form. The hydrated gel, through centrifugation, provides gel containing solids content of less than about 10 wt%, preferably about 7 to 10 wt%. It is this hydrous tricalcium phosphate geltranslucid which has been found to provide improved soybean protein composition with suspension characteristics to provide mineral fortification of the soy protein composition.

It is important that the hydrated gel is not dried prior to addition to the high beta-conglycinin soy protein syrup as it has been found that it does not result in mineral fortified soy protein composition having the desired suspension characteristics.

The hydrated mineral gel is then added to the high beta-conglycinin isolating soy protein syrup in an effective amount to provide the exact amount of mineral fortified protein composition to be added, which depends on the degree of fortification desired, typically about from 1.5% to about 12% alkaline earth metal on a dry basis. For adults, for example, the level of about 1.5% calcium based on protein solids in the mineral-fortified protein composition is sufficient to meet daily needs, while for babies or if you want to simulate milk through In providing comparable calcium level, the level is usually about 2.7% to 3.5% or higher. Therefore, the exact amount of gel added depends entirely on the degree of fortification desired and the specific amount added is not intended to limit the present invention.

Although it is preferable to employ heating step as described below, heating step is not essential for this embodiment and can be excluded if desired. Whether or not the warming step employed before or after the addition of the hydrated gel to the high beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate is not critical. The high beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate, which contains hydrated gel added for the purpose of fortifying the high beta-conglycinin soy protein isolate, is then heated at a temperature of about 104 ° C to 204 ° C. and preferably at a temperature of from 126 to 1540 ° C for a few seconds to several minutes, preferably about seven acem seconds. Preferably, the heating is conducted in a jet annealing apparatus or the like, in which steam jets intersect segments of the syrup such that the mineral-fortified protein composition syrup is dynamically heated under conditions of elevated temperature and pressure. After heating the mineral-fortified protein composition slurry under the dynamic conditions of elevated temperature and pressure, the slurry with the protein and minerals is typically ejected to the lower pressure vessel, causing volatilization of a portion of the water contained in the slurry. cooling resulting from the syrup to a temperature of about 65 ° C or less.

The cooled mineral fortified protein composition syrup may then be dehydrated by any kind of drying procedure, but it is preferred to spray dry the mineral fortified protein decomposition syrup to provide the most uniform mixture of mineral fortifying salt and protein and provide product which has excellent dispersibility characteristics in The dried product has excellent liquid food suspension characteristics and overcomes the separation problems normally associated with the use of mineral fortified protein compositions in liquid foods such as nutritional drinks.

Hydrated alkaline earth metal salt gel is prepared to provide mineral enrichment media for the protein material, in which a mineral-fortified protein composition is formed which has improved suspension characteristics when used in the production of liquid food, such as a nutritional beverage. Typical alkaline earth materials used for fortification with minerals and which are considered essential for nutritional purposes include calcium and magnesium.

Calcium has been shown to be a specific problem in fortifying protein supplements for liquid foods because it is used at a higher defortification level than other minerals in aqueous media such as infant formula or nutritional drink. For the most part, this has been achieved in the technical state by dispersing dry calcium phosphate salt in the dry protein supplement, which upon dispersion in aqueous medium still often results in the deposition of mineral components during storage of the liquid food. Particularly directed to the production of calcium-fortified protein compositions with improved suspension characteristics, it is equally adaptable to other bivalent salts, such as alkaline earth metal salts commonly used for fortification with food minerals such as magnesium. of hydrated gel of alkaline earth metal salts magnesium or calcium are fundamental to the practice of the present invention. The hydrated gel is formed by reacting phosphoric acid with magnesium hydroxide or calcium hydroxide in the presence of ultrasound or homogenization or followed by either.

An aqueous solution of calcium hydroxide or magnesium hydroxide is prepared by the addition of calcium hydroxide or magnesium hydroxide respectively to water. Alternatively, alkaline earth metal hydroxide may be prepared in situ by reacting calcium oxide or magnesium oxide with water. Alkaline earth metal hydroxides have limited water solubility. It is not necessary, however, that alkaline earth metal hydroxides be in solution in order to react with phosphoric acid to form hydrated gel. Aqueous solution of alkaline earth metal hydroxide will suffice. The alkaline earth metal hydroxide solution, whether prepared from alkaline earth metal hydroxide or prepared in situ, contains from 2 to 10%, preferably up to 8% and more preferably up to 7% by weight hydroxide. of alkaline earth metal.

Stoichiometric amounts of 10 to 85% phosphoric acid are added rapidly to the alkaline earth metal hydroxide syrup in thirty to five minutes, depending on the batch size, employing the same time, or followed by ultrasound or homogenization. There is no need to maintain the pH of the reaction on the basic side. Ultrasonication and homogenization serve to reduce the particle size of the alkaline earth hydroxide and to provide mechanical energy such that the alkaline earth hydroxide reacts with phosphoric acid. Ultrasonication and homogenization also serve to reduce the particle size of the hydrated gel of the alkaline earth metal phosphate salt formed.

Reaction of phosphoric acid with alkaline earth metal hydroxide yields alkaline earth metal phosphate salt, especially trialkaline earth metal phosphate salt and tricalcium phosphate is preferred.

Homogenization can be conducted using conventional homogenizer. Preferably, homogenization is effected using the APV Gaulin homogenizer at about 500 to 2000 pounds per square inch.

Ultrasound may be conducted using Model A A ultrasonic mixing device under the trade name Sonolator by Sonics Corporation. For sonication, the pressure is 1000 to 1500 pounds per square inch. The gelhydrate, especially in the form of tricalcium phosphate, is insoluble in aqueous medium.

The amount of hydrated gel present as solids after the reaction of alkaline earth metal hydroxide and phosphoric acid is generally about 3.0% to about 14.0%, preferably up to about 11% and more preferably. , up to about 10% by weight.

The mineral enrichment or fortification of the soy protein material with the hydrated gel is obtained by adding the hydrated gel to the soy protein material. The ratio of soy protein hydrate to material hydrate depends on the desired alkaline earth metal content on a dry basis.

The following examples represent the non-limiting first specific embodiment of the present invention.

Example 1

Soy protein isolate is prepared, in which 68 kg per hour skimmed soy flakes are fed to the extraction tank to which 680.4 kg per hour of water is heated to 32 ° C. Sufficient calcium hydroxide is added to adjust the pH of the mixture to 9.7. The soybean flakes are extracted for a period of thirty minutes, after which the aqueous solution is separated from the extracted flakes by centrifugation. The first aqueous extract is maintained while the extracted flake residue is again dispersed in 408 kg per hour of water at 32 ° C. The pH of the mixture at this point is 9.0.

Second aqueous extract of the flakes is obtained by decentrifugation and combined with the first aqueous extract. To the combined extracts, 37% hydrochloric acid is added to adjust the pH to 4.5 and precipitate the protein. The precipitated protein is then centrifuged to remove excess liquids to a solids level of 24 to 28 wt%. Precipitated protein is then diluted with water to form syrup containing 7.5 wt% solids. The pH of the mixture is adjusted to 6.6 by the addition of sodium hydroxide.

Mixture of 2.3% calcium hydroxide and water is prepared by adding 230 grams of calcium hydroxide to 9536 grams of water, comagitation. Calcium hydroxide is dispersed in water for one hour. Amount of 85% phosphoric acid (238 grams) is added over a period of minutes. At the end of acid addition, the contents are allowed to stir for an additional thirty minutes. The syrup is transferred to Gaulin homogenizer (model 15MR) and homogenized at 1500 pounds per square inch. The tricalcium phosphate hydrating gel contains a solids content of 3.21%.

The hydrated gel is added in sufficient quantity to provide 2.6% by weight of the protein solids on a dry basis and the fortified syrup is allowed to equilibrate for one hour. The fortified calcium syrup is then passed through a 85lb per square inch pressure jet cooker. The steam heats the syrup in the jet cooker to a temperature of 154 ° C. After eight to ten seconds, progressive portions of the heated syrup are discharged into a receiver under pressure below atmospheric. The mineral fortified syrup is then spray dried to a moisture level of less than 5% by weight.

The following examples are directed to the preparation of trialkaline earth metal phosphate salt hydrogens from the reaction of calcium hydroxide and phosphoric acid.

Example 2

The hydrated gel procedure of Example 1 is repeated except for the addition of 4% (400 grams) of 9186 grams calcium hydroxide and 414 grams of 85% phosphoric acid. After homogenization, tricalcium phosphate hydrated gel contains a solids content of 5.58%.

Example 3

The hydrated gel procedure of Example 1 is repeated except for the addition of 5% (500 grams) of calcium hydroxide to 8982 grams of water and reaction with 518 grams of 85% phosphoric acid. After homogenization the tricalcium phosphate hydrated gel contains a solids content of 6,64%.

Example 4

The hydrated gel procedure of Example 1 is repeated, except that the calcium hydroxide and phosphoric acid syrup is subjected to sonication rather than homogenization. The tricalcium phosphate hydrated gel contains solids content of 3.21%.

The hydrated mineral gels of any of Examples 2 to 4 are then added to the protein slurry in an amount effective to provide mineral fortified protein composition with the exact amount to be added depending on the degree of fortification desired. For adults, for example, a level of about 1.5% calcium based on protein solids in mineral-fortified protein composition is sufficient to meet daily needs, while for babies or if milk is desired to be simulated. of the comparable calcium level supply, the level is usually about 2.7% to 3.5% or higher. The exact amount of gel added, therefore, depends entirely on the degree of fortification desired and it is not intended that the specific amount added limit the present invention.

Preferably, the high protein conglycinin soy protein material used in the present invention is modified to improve the characteristics of the soy protein material. Modifications are modifications known in the art to improve the utility or characteristics of the soy protein material. Modifications are known in the art to increase the usefulness or material characteristics of soy protein and include, but are not limited to, denaturation and hydrolysis of the protein material.

High beta-conglycinin soy protein material may be denatured and hydrolyzed to reduce viscosity. Chemical denaturation and hydrolysis of protein materials are well known in the art and typically consist of treating protein material with one or more alkaline reagents in aqueous solution under controlled conditions of pH and temperature for a period of time sufficient to denature and hydrolyze the protein material to a point. wanted. Typical conditions used for chemical denaturation and hydrolysis of high beta-conglycinin soy protein material are: pH up to about 10, preferably up to about 9.7; temperature from about 500 ° C to about 80 ° C and time period from about fifteen minutes to about three hours, where denaturation and hydrolysis of protein material occurs more rapidly under higher temperature and pH conditions.

Hydrolysis of the high beta-beta glycine soy protein material may also be effected by treating the soy protein protein material with enzyme capable of protein hydrolysis. Many enzymes that hydrolyze protein materials are known in the art, including but limited to fungal proteases, plant proteases, equimiotrypsin peptases. Enzyme hydrolysis is accomplished by adding sufficient enzyme to the aqueous dispersion of protein material, typically about 0.1% to about 10% enzyme by weight of the protein material and treating the enzyme and protein dispersion under typically from about 50 ° C to about 75 ° C and pH typically from about 3 to about 9, wherein the enzyme is active for a period of time sufficient to hydrolyze the soy protein material. After sufficient hydrolysis has occurred, the enzyme is deactivated by heating and the soy protein material is precipitated from the solution by adjusting the pH of the solution to near the isoelectric point of the protein material.

Particularly preferred modified soy protein material is soy protein isolate that has been enzymatically hydrolyzed and deaminated under conditions that expose the protein nucleus to enzymatic action as described in European Patent No. 0.480.104 B1, which is incorporated herein by reference. Briefly, the modified protein isolate material described in European Patent No. 0,480,104 B1 is formed by: 1) forming an aqueous syrup of soy protein isolate; 2) adjusting the pH of the syrup to pH 9.0 to 11.0; 3) adding 0.01 to 5% of proteolytic enzyme in the syrup (by weight of the dried protein in the syrup); 4) treatment of the alkaline syrup at a temperature of 10 ° C to 75 ° C for an effective period of time to produce modified protein material having a molecular weight distribution (Mn) of 800 to 4,000 and a deamidation level of 5% to 48% (typically ten minutes four hours); and deactivation of the proteolytic enzyme by heating the syrup above 75 ° C. The modified protein material described in European Patent No. 0.480.104 B1 is commercially available from Protein Technologies International, Inc. of St. Louis, Missouri. It is also preferred to reduce the phytic acid content of the high protein soy protein material. beta conglycinin. Phytic acid or phytate is inositol hexaphosphorus ester (1,2,3,4,5,6-cyclohexanehexolphosphoric acid) found in many seeds and cereals. It is the main storage form for phosphorus and inositol and represents up to 50% of the total phosphorus content. Phytic acid in plants appears in the form of salts of calcium, magnesium and potassium, which are commonly called fitin. Much of the phosphorus content of seeds is stored in these compounds. About 70% of total phosphorus in soybeans, for example, is represented by phytin. By using the terms phytate or non-present phytic acid, it is intended to include phytic acid salts and phytic acid molecular complexes with other soy components.

All vegetables contain phytic acid. Soya beans, however, contain higher levels of phytic acid than any other vegetable. Phytic acid tends to form complexes with multiple metal proteins and cations. Phytic acid complexes reduce the nutritional quality of soy protein. Phytic acid, by interacting with multivalent metal cations, interferes with the assimilation by animals and humans of various metals such as calcium, iron and zinc. This can lead to disability disorders, especially for vegetarians, older people and babies.

Phytic acid also inhibits various enzymes in the gastrointestinal tract, including pepsin and trypsin, and reduces the digestibility of soy protein. In addition, phosphate present in phytic acid is not available to humans. In addition, the presence of a relatively large amount of unavailable phosphorus in baby foods can lead to inadequate bone mineralization.

In commercial soybean protein isolation processes, nonfat soybean flakes or soybean meal are processed into water and base syrup and extracted at pH values from 8.0 to 10.0 to parasubilize proteins. The syrup is centrifuged to separate the insoluble part from the solution. The major fraction is recovered from the solution by precipitating at pH near the isoelectric point of the protein (4,5), separating it by means of centrifugation, washing the precipitate with water, redispersing it over pH 7 and spray drying to powder. In such processes, phytic acid will follow the protein and tend to concentrate on the soy protein product. The phytic acid content of commercial soy protein isolates is about 1.2 to 3%, while soybeans contain 1 to 2% phytic acid.

For beverage compositions, it is important that the soy protein material has a reduced level of phytic acid. To remove phytic acid it is necessary to employ phytate degradation enzyme. Phytate degradation enzyme reacts with phytic acid to generate inositol and orthophosphate, as well as various forms of inositol phosphates as intermediate products.

The phytate degradation enzyme includes at least one acid phytase and phosphatase. Particularly preferred enzymes are sold with commercial Finase® S brand by Alko Ltd., Helsinki, Finland; Amano 3000 da Amano Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Nagoya, Japan, and Phytase Natuphos® by Midday BASF Corp., Wyandotte, M1.

Phytase and acid phosphatases are produced by various microorganisms such as Aspergillus spp., Rhizopus spp. and yeast (Appl.Microbiol. 16: 1348-1357 (1968; Enzyme Microb. Technoi 5: 377-382 (1983)) efitase is also produced by various plant seeds, such as wheat, during germination. In the art, enzyme preparations may be obtained from the organisms mentioned above.

Caransa et al, Dutch Patent Application No. 87,02735, found that at the same enzyme dosage, Aspergillus spp phytase degraded phytic acid in corn more efficiently than wheat phytase. Finase enzymes, formerly called Enzymes, are particularly preferred for the purposes of this invention Econase EP43, manufactured by Alko Ltd., Rajamaki, Finland. These are described in US Application Serial No. 242,243, filed September 12, 1988.

Phytase degradation enzymes are typically added to soy protein extract prior to acid precipitation to reduce phytic acid. This can be conducted before or after mineral fortification. The amount of phytate degradation enzyme required will depend on the phytic acid content of the starting material and the reaction conditions. The correct dosage can be readily estimated by those skilled in the art. Generally, the concentration of the phytate degradation enzyme is from about 500 to about 2200, preferably from about 600 to about 2100, and more preferably from about 720 to about 1400 phytase units per gram of protein. soybean, which is usually expressed as PU / g. A Phytase Unit (PU) is defined as the amount of enzyme which under standard conditions (ie pH 5.5, 37 0C, substrate concentration of sodium phytate 5.0mM and reaction time of 30 minutes) releases 1 μηιοΙ phosphate per minute.

Second Realization:

In the second embodiment, soy milk drink is prepared. Soymilk milk is prepared by combining soybeans which contain beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% and glycinin content from about 5% to about 40% with water. In the preparation of deso milk, high beta-conglycinin soybeans are soaked in water and ground using, for example, grinder, blender, dough making apparatus etc. Grinding high beta-conglycinin soybeans in water produces passage. The passage is separated to generate soybean and okara milk. Okara is a byproduct of the elaboration of soy products such as soymilk and tofu. The passage is then heated and separated into water soluble fraction of soy milk and water insoluble fraction of okara.

The passage is heated at about 45 to 65 ° C for about ten seconds to about twenty minutes. The heating temperature preferably ranges from about 50 to about 65 ° C, more preferably about 55 to about 65 ° C. The warm-up time preferably ranges from about twenty seconds to about ten minutes, more preferably about three to about seven minutes.

The passageway can be heated in any way without restriction.

Namely, it can be fed to a vessel or the like and directly heated then with electric heater etc. Alternatively, it can be heated directly, for example by pure steam blowing. Either method makes it possible to obtain foods of processed soy protein with excellent qualities.

Then the passageway prepared in this way is separated into emokara and soy milk. Although it is preferable to separate the non-cooling passage, it can be cooled before separation. When heated, the passage may be separated immediately after reaching the desired temperature. Alternatively, it may be kept at the desired temperature for a defined time period and then separated. The passage may be separated by conventional method using, for example, centrifugal or hydraulic separation equipment.

In order to reduce the phytic acid content, phytate-degrading enzyme is added to the passage prior to separation or to soybean milk after removal of okara. Phytate degradation enzymes are as discussed above.

In the production process according to the present invention, the concentration method is not specifically restricted. Vacuum concentration, for example, may be effected using evaporator or centrifugal separator. Conducting the concentration under atmospheric pressure is not preferable, although possible, as it is feared that soy milk will be denatured by heating. When reconstituting concentrated soy milk by dilution and examining changes in properties before concentration, no changes are caused by concentration up to about 3.5 times. It is therefore obvious that, according to the production process according to the present invention, soya milk concentrated to a considerably high extent can sustain its properties.

By dilution with water, the concentrated concentrated soy milk may be reconstituted into one having the same extent of protein denaturation as before concentration. It can therefore be used in many ways similar to ordinary soymilk.

To obtain powdered soymilk, the liquid soymilk is spray dried. It is preferable to regulate the inlet temperature and outlet temperature, respectively, from about 90 to about 130 ° C and about 20 to about 65 ° C. It is further preferable to regulate the inlet temperature and outlet temperature, respectively, from about 100 to about 120 ° C and about 50 to about 60 ° C. It is most preferably to regulate the inlet temperature and outlet temperature, respectively, at about 120 ° C and about 60 ° C. The outlet temperature varies depending on the distance from the inlet to the outlet. In determining the inlet temperature, the correlation between the inlet to outlet distance and the outlet temperature can be confirmed by a method well known to those skilled in the art. Spray drying is conventionally conducted using the spray desiccator commonly employed by those skilled in the art. Powdered soymilk obtained by spray drying has high stability, low weight and small volume compared to liquid soymilk. Soymilk powder is therefore highly suitable for storage. This soybean milk powder can easily be reconstituted into soybean milk by dissolving it in water. Various foods can therefore be produced by further processing of this soybean milk powder. It is also possible to mix powdered soymilk directly with other food components, followed by processing without reconstitution in liquid soymilk.

It was concluded that when frozen, soy milk or concentrated milk can be stored for a long time in a stable state while inhibiting soy protein denaturation. The present invention also provides frozen soymilk and processed protein whey foods produced using frozen soymilk.

To produce frozen soymilk according to the present invention, freezing may be conducted by any restrictive methods. Soymilk can be slowly frozen, for example, chiller. Alternatively, it can be quickly frozen by blowing gas such as carbon dioxide gas or nitrogen gas over it. It has been confirmed that either method makes it possible to maintain the properties of soy milk without any significant difference.

When stored, frozen soymilk according to the present invention is maintained at a temperature such as to maintain the frozen state. The storage temperature is preferably about -15 ° C or less, more preferably about -20 ° C or less, preferably even greater about -25 ° C or less, and preferably higher about -30 ° C or less. It is more common practice to store frozen soymilk in a freezer, although the present invention is not restricted thereto. At high storage temperature there is a possibility that the protein will be denatured and thus the utility value of soy milk will deteriorate. By using such milk it spawns, less elastic and poorly processed soy protein products such as tofu are made. Accordingly, it is necessary that frozen milk be employed before protein denaturation proceeds to an undesired level. The relationship between storage temperature and shelf life may optionally be known to those skilled in the art.

To further illustrate the present invention, and not by way of limitation, the following examples are provided.

The following examples relate to the preparation of soya milk from common soya beans (baseline) and soya beans containing from beta-conglycinin content from about 40% to about 85% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40% (present invention).

Example 5

(Baseline)

About 0.4 kg of dry common soybeans are soaked in 1.0 kg of water at about 150 ° C. The soaked soybeans are then ground in a grinder by adding 1.12 kg of water to pass through. About 2 kg of the passage is fed to the enamelled vessel and heated to about 60 ° C for eight minutes by complete agitation to prevent burning of the passage. When the temperature reaches about 60 ° C, the passage is immediately pressed with a single press equipped with jack. The okara is separated and 1.47 kg of soy milk is obtained.

Example 6

The procedure of Example 5 is repeated, whereby common deso grains are replaced with high beta-glycine soybeans identified as Version 1, IA DuPont Grain No. 408 which contains 65S 7S and 9S 11S, 7. The comparative soy milk from Example 5 is compared to the milk from Example 6 according to the present invention in winged side serum test. Serum level is determined on samples that have been refrigerated at 4 ° C. Side-by-side comparison is accomplished by filling 250 milliliter narrow-mouth square bottles (Nalge Nunc International) with soybean scaffold. The percentage of whey in each sample is then measured to determine the effectiveness of stabilization in each soy milk. Serum is the transparent solution layer containing little or no suspended protein. Serum percentage is determined by measuring the height of the whey layer in the sample and measuring the height of the entire sample, where the Serum Percentage = (serum layer height) / (total sample height) χ 100.

Serum Percentage ID Table

<table> table see original document page 26 </column> </row> <table>

It can be seen from the data in Table I that the percentage of serum according to the present invention is well improved over the percentage of baseline serum.

While the present invention has been explained with respect to its preferred embodiments, it should be understood that its various modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading the specification. It is to be understood, therefore, that the invention described herein is intended to cover such modifications as they fall within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (14)

1. COMPOSITION OF FORTIFIED SOY PROTEIN with aqueous alkaline earth metals comprising aqueous solution of soya protein material and hydrous alkaline demetal phosphate salt hydrate in which the soy protein material contains debeta-conglycinin from about 40% to about 85% and glycine content from about 5% to about 40%, wherein the alkaline earth metal content of the alkaline earth metal fortified soy protein composition is about 1.5% about 12% by weight on a dry basis and wherein the alkaline earth metal-fortified soy protein composition forms a stable suspension in the aqueous medium. A composition according to claim 1, wherein the alkaline earth metal of the alkaline earth metal salt is magnesium or calcium. A composition according to claim 1 wherein the alkaline earth metal salt is tricalcium phosphate. A composition according to claim 1 wherein the hydrated gel is formed by reaction between alkaline earth metal hydroxide and mineral acid at a pH above about 7. A composition according to claim 1, wherein the soy protein material is hydrolyzed with protease enzyme to about 0.1% to about 10% enzyme by weight of the protein material. A composition according to claim 1 wherein the soy protein material is treated with phytate degradation enzyme. A composition according to claim 6, wherein the phytate degradation enzyme includes at least one of phytase and phosphatase acid. 8. SOYBEAN DRINK COMPOSITION, prepared by a process of combining soybeans and water, wherein the soybeans contain beta-conglycinin content of about 40% to about 85% and glycinin content of about 5% about 40%. BEVERAGE according to claim 8, wherein the soybeans are ground while in water to produce passage. A drink according to claim 9, wherein the pass is heated at about 45 ° C to about 65 ° C for about ten seconds to about twenty minutes. A drink according to claim 10, wherein the heated pass is separated into okara and soy milk. A drink according to claim 10, wherein the soy milk is spray dried. A drink according to claim 10, wherein the soybean leite is treated with phytate degradation enzyme. A drink according to claim 13, wherein the phytate degradation enzyme includes at least one of phytase and phosphatase acid.