Despite what the name might suggest, emulsifiers do more than just help to form emulsions.
They can also:

help retard staling of baked products
give increased strength in bread doughs
improve aeration and whipping
influence fat crystallisation and rheology
improve wettability of powders.

HWL offers five main types of emulsifier:

Lecithin, derived from soy
Gum Acacia
Fatty Acid based emulsifiers, such as Glycerol monostearate (GMS or Mono di glycerides) and distilled monoglycerides (typically grouped under the E471 category)
Polyglycerol esters
Polysorbates
Sucrose esters

Our Basic Emulsifiers
The most commonly used forms of emulsifier are lecithin, mono-di glyceride or Distilled monoglycerides (DMGs). However, HWL also stocks many specialty emulsifiers, selected for specific applications.

There are several theories for emulsifier selection, but food systems tend to be rather complicated, especially when protein, which often has emulsification properties, is introduced to a food system.

Please contact us for more applications and our suggestions on which product to use.

Lecithin
Lecithin is extracted from various plant sources but usually from soy. Our supplier, ADM, provides lecithin in two basic forms:

Liquid lecithin (Yelkin TS GMO DNA Neg, Yelkin Gold GMO DNA Neg)
Deoiled lecithin (Ultralec P GMO DNA Neg, Ultralec G GMO DNA Neg)

Liquid lecithin
Liquid lecithin is a viscous, brown liquid containing at least 62% phospholipids. It also contains some oil and free fatty acids that contribute to the 'beany' flavour commonly associated with liquid lecithin. The product is difficult to handle and will not readily dissolve in water. Clean-up usually requires lots of hot water and industrial strength detergent. However, liquid lecithin will readily dissolve in oil, so it is commonly used in water in oil emulsions.

HWL offers liquid lecithin in either 20 kg pails or 205 kg drums, and both packs are usually available ex stock.

Deoiled lecithin is exactly that. Initially, the process involved the removal of oil using acetone with the phospholipids content usually measured as Acetone Insolubles or A.I.

In the late 1990s, ADM developed a new process that extracted the phospholipids without acetone. The result is a much cleaner tasting product with a higher natural Lutein content. The Ultralec range includes powdered and granular lecithin with a minimum 95% phospholipids content. With the oil and free fatty acids removed, these products are much easier to handle, and are commonly used in products such as bakery mixes, snack bars and cereals.

More about Ultralec lecithin

Lecithin: Natural Emulsifier and Health Food

Gum Acacia
Gum Acacia is used as an emulsifier and film former in many food systems and can be used to provide a source of natural soluble fibre. Gum Acacia derived from Acacia Senegal tends to have better emulsification properties.

Mono-di Glycerides
Also known as Glycerol monostearate or GMS, mono-di glycerides were one of the first groups of emulsifiers to be used in the food industry and their widespread use continues.
HWL offers a good general-purpose emulsifier, Palsgaard 0069, suitable for use in basic ice cream systems and sauces.

Please contact HWL for dose and application information.

Polyglycerol esters



Polysorbates
Polysorbates are made by reacting ethylene oxide with sorbitan esters, and are usually more dispersible in water. By changing the fatty acid side chain, different types of emulsifiers can be obtained.

The two most common polysorbates available are polysorbate 60 (POE sorbitan mono stearate) and polysorbate 80 (POE sorbitan mono oleate), for example, Palsgaard P7463.

Sucrose Esters
Despite being available from Japan for many years, these emulsifiers are not widely used in New Zealand or Australia, probably due to their cost. New research has, however, identified these emulsifiers as giving exceptional protection against bacillus and clostridium spore-formers, especially in products that are held at elevated temperatures.

Click here for information on Ziko and their product range

ANTIFOAM AGENT	Water-soluble silicon based antifoams.
EMULPALS RANGE	Full range of powdered emulsifiers for the bakery industry
PALSGAARD 0069	Standard Mono-diglyceride emulsifier (GMS)
PALSGAARD 4125	Liquid PGPR emulsifier for chocolate applications
PALSGAARD EMULSIFIERS	Full range of emulsifiers from DMG's to specialty emulsifiers. Please call us for more details.
PALSGAARD P7463	Polysorbate 80 emulsifier
PALSGAARD SYSTEMS FOR ICE CREAM	Full range of integrated emulsifier and stabilisers for ice cream applications.
ULTRALEC P / G	Lecthin in either powdered or granular form
YELKIN GOLD	Liquid Lecithin for speciality applications, lighter colour, and quality parameters enhanced.
YELKIN TS	Unbleached liquid lecithin