Whenever consumers make Jell-O, thicken gravy, or add corn starch to a pie filling, they knowingly or unknowingly are using gums like hydrocolloids to thicken their products and give them a desired consistency. As health-and-wellness trends impact new product development, dairy manufacturers increasingly are using an arsenal of gums, emulsifiers, and stabilizers to give consumers the clean-label, nutrient-enriched products they seek.

Additionally, as dairy’s “supporting actors,” these ingredients can boost soluble dietary fiber, improve the mouthfeel of juices and juice smoothies, and can extend a product’s shelf life by keeping solid ingredients in suspension so they don’t settle at the bottom, according to experts.
Wei Li, director of texture solutions at Chicago-based ADM, explains the differences between stabilizers and emulsifiers. “Think of it like this: oil and water don’t mix — until stabilizers and emulsifiers come into play,” he tells Dairy Foods. “The stabilizer helps manage the behavior of water in an application through its ability to form gel structures within water, whereas an emulsifier will affect the functionality of fats and create an emulsion of two liquids that are naturally immiscible.