Edible table (bio)spread containing potentially probiotic Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium species

A prototype of a reduced fat (60% w/w) edible table biospread, with an added viable, nongrowing, mixed‐strain and potentially probiotic culture was developed. Conventional commercial aqueous‐phase ingredient and reduced fat spread processing technologies were modified to achieve acceptable strain viability ( ≥ 105 cfu/mL) during scraped‐surface heat exchange emulsion processing and biospread shelf life. The modifications consisted of: spilt‐stream pasteurization of the aqueous and lipid phases (thereby obviating the need for in‐line pasteurization of the water‐in‐oil emulsion during processing); reduction of the second scraped‐surface tube‐chiller A‐unit agitation rate (thereby achieving a biphasic moisture droplet size distribution in the product); emulsification, processing and packaging under oxygen‐free nitrogen (thereby creating anaerobic conditions within the product); employing a near‐neutral pH, multicomponent, structured, hydrocolloid‐stabilized aqueous phase. The viability of added bifidobacteria was markedly less than that of lactobacilli, in spite of the biospread ingredient and processing modifications employed. It is advocated that further improvement of bifidobacteria viability is warranted before progressing to the validation of biological properties in vivo and making a commercial biospread available to the consumer.