Dive Brief:
- General Mills filed a patent that will enable it to put the yogurt whey byproducts that result from the Greek yogurt production process into food products, such as baked foods, beverages, snacks, dry meal products and more, according to BakingBusiness.com.
- The current byproduct is used as an agricultural liquid fertilizer.
- The patent application describes a way to use a basic material to lift the pH level, resulting in a neutralized product.
Dive Insight:
A couple of years ago, Chobani developed a reverse osmosis filtration system that converts the acid whey into pure water and a concentrated form of whey that can be used in animal feed.
General Mills, as one of the country's largest producers of Greek yogurt, wants to put its neutralized byproduct to use as well. In its patent application, General Mills says the "soluble fiber product composition that is converted from yogurt whey can be a useful source of soluble fiber that can be incorporated into food products as either a liquid concentrate or dried powder ingredient."
This type of ingredient reallocation could prove valuable. The repurposing of ingredients, where food companies reduce waste streams by using byproducts and waste materials to create foods, is a niche sector with mainstream potential, according to the New Hope Network.