Dive Brief:
- Omikenshi Co., a textile manufacturer based in Osaka, Japan, is using its cloth-making technology to produce a tree pulp flour that food companies could use to make noodles. The company will spend about 1 billion yen (about $8.1 million) to add a production facility in its textile plant in Kakogawa city.
- The company is using a process similar to the one used to make its rayon, a fiber made from tree pulp. Omikenshi mixes the pulp with konjac, a yam-like vegetable grown in Japan. The result is a fiber-rich flour the company refers to as "cell-eat." The flour is gluten-free, fat-free, and very-low carbohydrate, and contains 27 calories a pound, compared with 1,656 calories in a pound of wheat flour.
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Omikenshi decided to enter the food market due to decreasing demand for rayon caused by increased imports of the fabric into Japan and believes, "Demand for diet food is strong and looks promising." Output at the new production facility will begin in 2016 at 30 tons a month. The plant will have the capacity to triple production. Omikenshi is discussing cell-eat development and marketing tactics with manufacturers.
Dive Insight:
Noodles made from konjac are already available but have limited consumer appeal because of the bitter taste. Adding wood pulp to konjac helps the flavor and texture of noodles. Omikenshi isn't the only Japanese company attempting to enter the food market. Japan’s second-biggest paper manufacturer, Nippon Paper Industries Co., is marketing seedlings of a tea that claims to have health benefits.
Other companies pursuing innovative food ingredients include Carolina Innovative Food Ingredients with sweet potato ingredients and Solazyme with ingredients made from algae, though Omikenshi's development could prove more attention-grabbing for manufacturers, and in turn, consumers.
