We at Puratos can say with confidence that organic will become the norm in the future – but the question we continue to get amongst industry experts remains the same: is there a common definition for what can/cannot be considered organic?
Therefore, we defined organic as the following: the overall system of farm management and food production that combines the best environmental practices, a high level of biodiversity, the preservation of natural resources, the application of high animal welfare standards, a production method using natural substances and processes, and does NOT use chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Organic production outlaws the use of genetically modified organisms and derived products. Puratos considers organic products to be clean(er) label.
(EC) No 271/2010
3.) How have we ensured there is no compromise on taste, mouth feel, shelf life or other attributes after the reformulation to organic?
All ingredients we bring in, regardless of organic certification, are held to very high standards and are evaluated for quality when they arrive. We will not bring in ingredients that fail against those standards. Additionally, all standard Chocolante items, and Carat compound coatings for that matter, are already clean label, NAFNAC, and preservative free. This allows an organic range to be an easy and natural fit within our portfolio.
We are continuing to develop new and exciting items for our range to fill any needs we see our customers may have. This will certainly include Chocolante and Carat items suitable for a wide range of chocolate and patisserie applications.
Indeed, Puratos provides an array of organic offerings in the bakery, pastry and patisserie sectors, but our locally produced, real chocolate range is something special and unique all on its own. So, we sat down with Puratos USA’s Senior R&D Manager for Compound and Real Chocolate, Eric Wesner, for his take on the organic chocolate range…
1.) Eric, can you describe our real chocolate range, and what product offerings it provides to our customers?
Chocolante, our range of real chocolate is produced locally at our Kenosha, WI manufacturing facility and can fill each need a customer could have for clean(er), simply bett(er) real chocolate. The range offers milk, semisweet, and bittersweet options, as well as organic inclusions, chips and chunks, both for baking and decorating needs.
2.) Why did we decide to offer organic chocolate products? What value does organic Chocolante have that our competitors lack?
The need for good quality, organic chocolate is certainly not new, especially within our artisan and chocolatier customers. Offering this range of products was a natural fit to our portfolio in order to satisfy the needs of all our customers. The difference between Puratos and the competition is our flexibility to provide a specific solution to a customer, starting from the first sample all the way to full production, with a very experienced technical team to provide support as needed.