As an ancient crop, oat is cultivated and eaten in China for thousands of years. Oat is very popular at home and abroad due to its high nutritional value and recognized health care effects. Modern research shows that the key to the health benefits of oats is oat beta-glucan. Oat beta-glucan is a soluble dietary fiber. Both the US Food and Drug Administration(FDA) and the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) have examined the health effects of oat beta-glucan and accepted its beneficial physiological functions. In Year 2014 China also approved L&P Food Ingredient Co., Ltd of the oat beta-glucan to be used as a novel food raw material and applied in various foods.

01 Oat Beta-Glucan’s Market Trend

According to SPINS data, beta-glucan, with an annual growth rate of 507%, is the fastest growing functional ingredient in the US market in 2020. Markets and Markets data shows the compound growth rate of beta-glucan in the global market will reach 7.5% from 2017 to 2022, and the market scale is expected to reach US$476.5 million in 2022. In terms of sources, beta-glucan derived from grains (oat, barley) will continue to occupy the main share of the glucan market, by yeast as the second largest source of beta-glucan.

2.1 Beverages - good emulsion stabilizer

Oat beta-glucan is a good emulsion stabilizer, and it can be added to beverages not only as a functional ingredient, but also as an emulsion stabilizer. Karp evaluated the foaming ability and stabilizing effect of oat beta-glucan as a stabilizer compared with other commonly used food additives in oil-in-water emulsion system. The foaming ability of 4% oat beta-glucan reached 32.57%, second only to the foaming ability of HPMC emulsion (50.50%). The foam stability of 2% oat beta-glucan and 4% oat beta-glucan both exceeded 60% after 1hour, and the emulsion stability reached 80% after 14 days, indicating that oat beta-glucan acts as a stabilizer and thickener, which can be used in various foods to improve their texture and taste.

2.2 Pasta products - dough rheological properties improvement

In recent years, there are many flour products such as oat beta-glucan bread, noodles, and wheat flour. On one hand,the addition of oat beta-glucan into flour products can increase the water-soluble dietary fiber content of the product; on the other hand, it can effectively improve dough rheological properties, hydration properties and product texture. Studies show that adding an appropriate amount of oat beta-glucan can improve the rheological properties of dough. Adding 0.5% to 5.0% oat beta-glucan to flour increases the dough water absorption rate, forming time and stability time; The addition of 0.5%~1.0% oat beta-glucan can make the tensile properties of low-gluten flour close to that of steamed bread flour.

Oat beta-glucan also affects product quality by affecting dough hydration properties. Studies also show that the addition of oat beta-glucan to noodles and steamed bread can inhibit water migration and starch aging, reduce water loss rate and cooking loss.

2.3 Meat products-fat substitutes

Oat beta-glucan can be used as a fat substitute in low-fat foods due to its colloidal property, thus ensures the products present good flavor and texture. Lee studied that gelatinous oat fiber containing 10% oat beta-glucan at a addition level of 13.45% can be effectively used as a functional component of low-fat beef patties, which can effectively reduce cooking losses and maintain the uniform tenderness of the product by increasing moisture and fat entrapment, and the sensory state was the same as that of the control. Furthermore it remained stable under the condition of 60 days of frozen storage, and the microorganisms did not grow significantly.

2.4 Fermented milk and milk beverages—prebiotic effect

Oat beta-glucan is an effective prebiotic that can effectively promote the growth and vitality of beneficial bacteria. Du Yajun studied the selective growth-promoting effect of oat beta-glucan on intestinal probiotics. In vitro experiment results showed that oat beta-glucan had a significant growth-promoting effect on Bifidobacterium or Lactobacillus ascidophilus, but no obvious growth-promoting effect on Escherichia coli.

L&P Food Ingredient Co., Ltd is based on nearly 40 years of ingenious research in the food chemical industry, and has been engaged in the research of oat beta-glucan products for more than 20 years. The Ministry of Health of China approved the oat beta-glucan applied by L&P as a new resource food in 2014.

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