Teijin has signed an agency contract with Garzanti Specialties, an Italian distributor company active in food ingredients and food supplements, to sell Teijin’s highly nutritious BARLEYmax super barley in Europe.
Utilising Garzanti Specialties’ sales channels mainly in Italy, Teijin aims to encourage local food manufacturers to adopt BARLEYmax in place of conventional barley, mainly for use in breads, cereals, beverages and other healthy food products.
Teijin will also seek the opportunity to use BARLEYmax in Italian-originated food such as pastas and pizzas. Going forward, Teijin expects to expand its sales channels in countries such as France, Germany and the Netherlands to enhance its presence in the European market for functional food ingredients.
BARLEYmax has nearly 40 times more dietary fibre than white rice, compared to just 15 times more for rolled barley
BARLEYmax has nearly 40 times more dietary fibre than white rice, compared to just 15 times more for rolled barley. It contains dietary fibres such as fructan, β-glucan and resistant starch, each of which enters the intestine at a different digestive rate to provide food for good bacteria. BARLEYmax also contains iron, zinc, niacin and vitamin B6, all typically lacking in modern diets.
Furthermore, BARLEYmax offers an excellent nutritional balance and contains less sugar than other grains, according to data cited in the Standard Tables of Food Composition, part of the Japanese Food Labelling Standards. BARLEYmax had a mild taste, neither bitter nor harsh, and is more savory and sweeter than general barleys.
It also is virtually odourless. With so many benefits, it is increasingly being adopted for use in cooked rice, cereals, confectionery and breads in Japan and other parts of Asia as well as in countries of other regions where health consciousness is rising, such as the United States and Australia. BARLEYmax was developed in Australia by the national science agency, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
Based on data from industry reports, research by Teijin indicates that compared to Japan, Europe’s barley demand is about 15 times greater for cereals and about 30 times greater for breads. Furthermore, European sales of breads and cereals containing dietary fibre are rising due to increasing health consciousness and demand for high-performance food ingredients rich in dietary fibre.
Given that conventional barley has a distinctive taste that is not to everyone's liking, Teijin is assertive that Europe represents a highly promising market for the abundant dietary fibre, excellent nutritional balance and relatively sweet taste of BARLEYmax.
Backed by the confidence and preliminary researches, Teijin signed an agency contract with Emilio Peña (EPSA), a Spanish manufacturer, importer and distributor of food additives and ingredients, to enter European market in June 2022 and now BARLEYmax is evaluated by several Spanish and Portuguese food manufacturers for use in breads and cereals.
