MGP Ingredients, Inc. announced that all of the company’s food grade starches are now designated as Non-GMO Project Verified. Verified status is also in place for several of the company’s wheat proteins. This milestone signals MGP’s deepening commitment to the “better for you” market segment and to meeting rigorous testing and production requirements.
Currently, 22 MGP products are Non-GMO Project Verified, including signature proprietary ingredients such as Fibersym® RW resistant wheat starch, Midsol™ wheat starches, Pregel™ wheat starches, Optein® lightly hydrolyzed wheat protein and Arise® wheat protein isolate.
“Our Non-GMO Project Verified initiative represents a significant technical, manufacturing and quality assurance investment for MGP,” noted Mike Buttshaw, vice president for sales and marketing. “It speaks to the strength of our commitment and leverages the market demand for non-GMO, which climbed to $200 billion in sales in 2014 and is expected to reach $330 billion by 2019, according to Packaged Facts.”
The Non-GMO Project, a non-profit organization, offers North America’s only third party verification and labeling for non-GMO food and products. They currently verify products from more than 2,500 brands, representing $16 Billion in annual sales.
MGP’s ingredients also align with several important macro-trends impacting the growing market for food products that are functional as well as protein-enriched, fiber-enhanced and with sensory benefits relating to taste, texture and appearance.
As an example, MGP’s Fibersym RW resistant wheat starch recently met criteria for the United States Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) new definition of dietary fiber. This occurs in tandem with the FDA’s issuance of a recent directive requiring significant changes to labeling that appears on packaged food. The daily value for dietary fiber as it will appear in nutrition facts labels under the new directive was increased from 25 grams per day to 28 grams per day, which reflects a 12 percent increase.
The new FDA issuance includes resistant starch in the fiber definition and recognizes its potential to provide physiological benefits. Fibersym RW is widely used in the U.S. and worldwide by food scientists and formulators to boost the total dietary fiber content of food products. It is one of the most studied, tested and proven forms of resistant starches in the market today.
MGP’s protein and starch production facility meets international food safety guidelines such as the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) and received a Grade AA in its most recent British Retail Consortium (BRC) audit.
“The consumer movement for non-GMO Project Verified ingredients across all food categories has catalyzed the industry. It’s a remarkable opportunity. Our investment is a win-win-win for the food manufacturers we serve, consumers and MGP,” Buttshaw concluded.
