Flavoring Supplements: The Advantages of Working with a Certified Food Scientist
What's the secret to flavoring a dietary supplement or sports supplement product that people will love? Along with some smart planning and a bit of careful research, enlisting the help of a manufacturer who has access to a certified food scientist certainly doesn't hurt.
Lab Meets Life: Food Scientists and Flavorists combine science and real-life to create innovate, safe, and delicious flavors.
Recognized by many industry insiders as the "mad scientists" of the dietary supplement flavoring world, experienced (and certified) food scientists have the ability to combine scientific knowledge, the latest techniques with general industry know-how to create some of the most innovative and tastiest supplement flavors around.
What is food science? What are food scientists?
For the answer to this question, let's turn to one of the foremost experts on the subject: The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT). Based in Chicago, IL, the IFT is an organization dedicated to all things food science – including the training and certification of food scientists. Here's how they define food science:
"Food science draws from many disciplines such as biology, chemical engineering, and biochemistry in an attempt to better understand food processes and ultimately improve food products for the general public."
Similarly, the IFT defines food scientist like this:
"As the stewards of the field, food scientists study the physical, microbiological, and chemical makeup of food. By applying their findings, they are responsible for developing the safe, nutritious foods and innovative packaging that line supermarket shelves everywhere.
Even though there aren't any nutraceutical rules stating that brand owners and manufacturers have to work with a food science-certified flavorist, choosing to work with a flavorist who is food science-certified has the potential to generate some serious ROI for you and your supplement or sports nutrition company.
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The Advantages of Flavoring Your Dietary Supplement with the Help of a Certified Food Scientist
Having an in-depth understanding of the chemistry, biology, and psychology behind taste (as well as the ties between taste and smell) can prove invaluable when the end goal is to flavor a supplement that will stand out among a see of dietary supplements and competitors.
Even though market research should be a key component of the supplement development process, finding the perfect flavor for your product doesn't mean anying unless there's someone on your team with the knowledge and resources necessary for bringing that flavor to life.
What a certified food scientist may be able to offer your supplement product (that other flavorists and chemists may not be able to offer) is the in-depth knowledge of how taste works at the molecular level different tastes and ingredients interact. That being acknowledged, for even the most experienced food scientists/flavorists, crafting a ground-breaking new flavor can take time, possibly calling for multiple attempts and samples until there's a flavor formula capable of satisfying your needs and (more importantly) your customers' needs. Striking the perfect balance between salty, sweet, bitter, and sour is just as much art as it is science.
The Takeaway
You could have one of the greatest dietary supplements that the world's ever seen, but if that supplement didn't taste right, there's a good chance it would never make it off the shelves. Taking the time to vet your manufacturing and flavoring options in order to find the best partner (or partners) for your supplement manufacturing journey has the potential to make or break your supplement project.
