The Production of High Fiber Cookies

Group 15

Yuan Soo Mun  1001024745

Gan Li Yi          1000924340

Chin Sze Jia       1000924212

Goy Hooi Fang  1001024810

Fiber, when this word flashs through your eyes, what is the very first though across your mind?

Slimmer body appearance?

“A more healthy diet?”

 “Oh, my saver of constipation?”

            Well, there are many reasons for us to consume more fiber in our daily diet. Especially after influenced by advertising about the benefits of fiber that can bring to us. Yet, as a rational consumer, before we pursuit those fiber product, perhaps there is a need for us to have a better understanding on what is fiber, and how is this fiber work to help.

                   Let us just start the discovery journey of fiber with its small little story. Fiber became a household word back in 1970s. A man who nicknamed the Fiber Man together with his colleagues made “the fiber hypothesis” which states that fiber can prevent certain disease. Their research was based in Africa, they discovered that disease that were common in the western cultures were not common in Africa. The primary dietary difference was the high intake of fiber and low intake of refined carbohydrates in the African population. Eventually a great deal of research about fiber started and finally supported and disputed what fiber man had discovered.

            Besides of stuffing ourselves from those gooey whole meal breakfast oat to obtain the require amount of fiber needed, the market is actually provided us an alternative way to increase the dietary fiber intake in our daily life, which is convenient and quite popular among people nowadays who lead a quite hectic lifestyle ,’The High fiber cookies”.

             Look around at the grocery area, you find out that there are actually quite a number of different types different brands of biscuit available in the market .How to make the rightful choice for it? All it takes is 5 minute. Following will be all about the high fiber cookies information that you ought to know in order to make a good choice.

Fiber is a virtually indigestible substance which can be found in all plant-based food. Dietary fiber is the kind you consume.  It can be found mainly in fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. Fiber cannot be digested and absorbed by your body. Fiber is commonly divided by two categories which are soluble and insoluble fiber. Soluble fiber is dissolved in water to form a gel-like material. It can help to lower the total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol as well as blood glucose level. It can be found in oats, beans, peas, fruits such as oranges and apples, barley, flax seed, etc. Insoluble fiber appears to help food pass more quickly through our stomach and intestine and increases stool bulk, making bowel movement easier. It can be found in wheat bran, vegetables such as  green beans and dark green leafy vegetables, nuts, whole-wheat products, etc.  

  

In today’s world, advancements in technology have allowed manufacturers to enhance their products with fiber ingredients that deliver function, flavour and texture. To incorporate fiber into crackers or cookies, manufacturers normally take into consideration on various types of fiber available, and then examine how the ingredient affects the formulation and manufacturing of the high-fiber cookies. A wide selection of fiber-rich ingredients is selected to boost the fiber content of high-fiber cookies. These include whole wheat and grain ingredients such as millet, flaxseed, sunflower seeds and bran; and processed ingredients such as soy fiber, citrus-based fibers, inulin and resistant starches made from wheat. Oat fiber is one of the most common options for fiber enrichment. It is normally incorporated in cookies, crackers, even in bread as to produce high-fiber products that maximize nutritional content, enhance texture, improve dough strength, retain moisture and improve shelf life.

Although advancements in ingredient technology have produced fiber ingredients that are processing-friendly, obstacles still remain in creating high fiber products. These challenges are varied and significant, but can be overcome by altering formulas and processing techniques. Water absorption represents a significant challenge in manufacturing high-fiber cookies. Adding more fiber will tend to increase the water adsorption, which increases the moisture content, and thus the cookies have to be molded quickly. However, the lumping caused by the increased dough stickiness can be reduced by mixing the fiber inulin and resistant starches in a rotary molder. At the same time, the resistant starch masks the aftertaste of inulin, and the inulin masks the starchy aftertaste of resistant starch. Resistant starch is also employed in significant amounts which provide a softer, but crisp texture to the cookies. Not only that, with the combination of inulin and resistant starch, it helps to reduce calorie, shortening or fat content, and sugar content present in the cookies.

In production line, the high fiber content cookie dough can be formed into individual pieces by a rotary molder, which molds the dough into a variety of shapes. Next, individual pieces are transferred from the rotary molder to an oven; especially multi-zoned band ovens which are gas fired and are equipped with top and bottom heating means. While baking times and temperatures will vary for different dough or batter formulations and oven types, generally, commercial cookies-baking times may range from about 2.5 minutes to about 15 minutes, and baking temperatures may range from about 250° F. (121° C.) to about 600° F. (315° C.). The freshly baked cookies can then be packed and ready for sending to marketplace.

There many types of brands of biscuits available in market, but there are only few types of brands are considered as high fiber biscuits. High fiber biscuit is a healthy snack and suitable to consumed by all range of individual from children to elderly. The demand of high fiber biscuit in market is on increase because high fiber biscuit provide a range of health benefit to individual who usually consumed them. High fiber biscuit may become the choice of family who concern about their own and also their family members’ health problem.

Consumer can check the amount of dietary fiber content of biscuit by referring to the nutrition fact labeling that are written on wrapper or tin of biscuit. Moreover, most of the high fiber biscuit will display the word “high fiber” on their wrapper or tin that is easily seen by every people. Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) recommended that for the 1000 kcalories intake, fibre that should be consumed is 14 gram. Whereas, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommended 11.5gram of fibre intake per 1000 kcalories intake. World Health Organization (WHO) recommended upper limit of dietary fiber intake which is 40grams. High fiber biscuit will help particular individual to achieve the recommendation intake of dietary fiber intake.

When dietary fiber content in high fibre biscuit is compared with non high fiber biscuit, their dietary fiber value is much higher than non high fiber biscuit. From the comparison of nutrition fact value of high fiber and non high fiber biscuit, 100grams of high fiber biscuits contain about 6.5-9.0grams of dietary fibre, but 100grams of non high fiber biscuits contain only about 2.0-3.0grams of dietary fiber or less. The value of dietary fiber depends on the brand to the corresponding biscuit. There are few brands of high fiber biscuits that can easily find in market, such as Jacob, IKO and Munchy oat crunch biscuit and Tatawa. IKO high fiber biscuit and Munchy oat crunch contain 9.0grams of dietary fiber per 100g of biscuit. They contain highest value of dietary fiber as compare with other high fiber biscuits. While Jacob contains only 6.5g of dietary fiber in 100grams of the biscuits.  Tatawa flax seed oat cookies is a new brand of biscuit that just launched in market, but they also contain high value of dietary fiber. There are about 8.3 grams of dietary fiber contain in 100grams of cookies.

High fiber foods have been shown to promote better health. Dietary fiber can lower choresterol level, reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and certain types of cancers It can help to keep your digestive system healthy and stabilize blood glucose level. High fiber cookies are one of the great food choices. Let’s try it for your own health!

                                                       Photo credit to ND Labs,INC 

References:

Sharon, R.R. et al.,2009. Understanding Normal and Clinical Nutrition. 8^th Ed.USA Wadsworth, Cengage Learning. Pg 124-125.

Juttelstad. A., 2005. Fiber Stronger than Ever. A Penton Publication, Baking Management [Online]. Available from: http://baking-management.com/ingredients/bm_imp_7876/ [Accessed 31 July 2010].

Greebnlum & Bernstein, P.L.C. High fiber rotary molded cookies containing inulin and resistant starch [Online]. Available from: http://www.freshpatents.com/High-fiber-rotary-molded-cookies-containing-inulin-and-resistant-starch-dt20080612ptan20080138472.php [Accessed 1 August 2010].

Kovacs, B. Fiber [Online]. Available from: http://www.medicinenet.com/fiber/article.htm [Assessed 1 August 2010]