Acrylamide-reducing yeast technology receives patent in Australia

Based in Vancouver, Canada, Renaissance BioScience Corp has received new patent allowances and grants for its non-GMO acrylamide-reducing yeast (ARY) from regulatory authorities in China, Russia, India, Australia and Vietnam. These five new ARY patent grants and allowances join previously issued patents from the US, Japan, Indonesia, Chile and Colombia, with patents pending in multiple additional markets.

The yeast technology is described as a clean-label ingredient which is designed to reduce the formation of the chemical acrylamide in cooked foods such as biscuits and chips.

Renaissance BioScience CEO and CSO Dr John Husnik commented on the newly granted patents: “As an intellectual property-focused company we are pleased to receive the new patent grants and allowances in the major markets of China, Russia, India, Australia and Vietnam. These new patents join those already granted or pending in other major markets around the world, to protect the use of our acrylamide-reducing yeast in many different and important food manufacturing applications.

“We are especially pleased that our acrylamide-reducing yeast is finding acceptance and being commercialised by food manufacturers in markets all around the world with a mandate to reduce the presence of this contaminant in their products.”

Background

Asparagine, a naturally occurring precursor amino acid found in many carbohydrate-rich food sources — including rice, grains and potatoes, converts to acrylamide with the application of heat during the cooking process. Acrylamide forms once the cooking (baking, frying, roasting and toasting) temperature reaches 120°C and above and continues to form until either all the asparagine has been converted or cooking has been completed and the temperature drops below 120°C.

Acrylamide was first discovered to be in many different foods in the early 2000s. Since then, a number of global regulatory bodies have moved to monitor and regulate its presence in many foods and beverages as a potential health issue.

How the technology works

In food manufacturing, the Renaissance acrylamide-reducing yeast is added during the standard manufacturing processing stage, where it begins to consume asparagine and reduces the potential for acrylamide formation when the mixture is later cooked above 120°C.