Corn Research

Report on global emerging market and technology opportunities for corn ingredients and food products containing corn
Dr. John Michaelides, Guelph Food Technology Centre

Although corn and other grains are currently enjoying healthy growth due to the demand for biofuels and bioproducts, it is important that their contribution to the food production is not neglected.

This project is currently gathering and analyzing global market information and trends as well as technology advancements in relation to corn ingredients and food products containing corn. The results and findings of the project will be used to provide recommendations to both producers and processors to ensure the demand for the commodity continues in the future.

The project will provide a global market report on new ingredients and products form corn. We are carrying out searchers using various databases and other sources to establish knowledge on market trends for food products and ingredients in relation to corn. We will provide recommendations with regards to the market and opportunities for the use of corn ingredients for the production of different and diverse food products. We will also investigate and provide recommendations for the use of corn ingredients in food products that currently do not use these ingredients.

In addition the project will investigate new technologies for processing corn into ingredients for the food industry. This activity will look at major ingredients such as flour, starches, and fibre as well as others. New technologies will be examined and reviewed providing recommendations for use by the ingredient manufacturers in order to increase corn processing capacity in Ontario.

New technologies for the production of minor ingredients especially those relating to health enhancement for application into functional foods and natural health products will also be searched. Investigations into available technologies will include milling, extraction, modifications as well as other processes that will result in ingredients solely generated from corn or corn in combination with other commodities. Combinations of processes will also be examined.

Other investigations will include ingredients and food products from by-products of biofuel production (co-products). Currently a substantial amount of these co-products are generated through the bio-ethanol production with a potential for use in food systems or to be used as feedstock for the generation of other major or minor ingredients.

Ontario corn producers will benefit from this project in different ways: