Tocopherols
Food Ingredient Solutions
When it comes to One Degree Organics cereals, we like to “think inside the box.” Each ingredient is held to our highest organic, non-GMO, and plant-based standards. That is true for the plant-based antioxidant that keeps our cereals fresh as well.
Most corporate producers use chemicals such as BHA and BHT to extend the shelf life, and while they are FDA-approved, the University of California Berkeley points out that “the National Toxicology Program has concluded that BHA ‘is reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen,’ while BHT has been linked to an increased—or sometimes decreased—risk of cancer in animals.” Tocopherol, a form of vitamin E derived from vegetable oils, is a much safer, natural solution.
From a scientific standpoint, tocopherols are organic compounds that contain four key isomers: alpha, beta, gamma, delta. Most manufacturers extract only the alpha tocopherol, but Biotecnologías Aplicadas (BTSA)’s proprietary method, short path molecular distillation, guarantees that all four are captured for greater preservative effectiveness at lower concentrations. This pioneering technique also maximizes the number of valuable molecules that can be retained from the original oil.
Tocopherol’s natural antioxidant properties prevent other natural ingredients, such as the oats, honey, and garbanzos in our Oat Honey O’s, from turning rancid. This happens because naturally occurring fats in the ingredients react to oxygen and spoil over time—an inevitability with all cereals. Madrid-based BTSA was the first producer of natural antioxidants in Europe, and their innovation and quality made them an ideal partner to source sunflower-based tocopherol from for our One Degree foods.
The food transparency BTSA provides is outstanding. Every batch is Identity Preserved (IP) Certified, guaranteeing each step of the production process is documented, from planting and harvesting to processing and final extraction.
BTSA’s rejection of GMO crops was also very important to us. Their sunflower tocopherol is Non-GMO Project Certified and crafted using only plant-based methods.
No cereal harvest is safe from oxidation and expiration dates, but we are happy to have discovered a natural antioxidant to keep our cereals fresh. As Food Ingredient Solutions’ Marilea Romabiles puts it, “… natural and at the same time effective.”