Elmshorn, November 26th, 2021 – Capol GmbH, the world-leading manufacturer of surface treatment products for the confectionery industry, headquartered in northern Germany, has developed an innovative anti-sticking agent for gummies. The formulation enables a long shelf-life for confectionery coatings based on rapeseed and sunflower oil. The company has announced that on September 7, 2021, the United States Patent and Trademark Office granted a patent for CAPOL’s innovative composition for coating food.
The United States is the biggest candy market in the world. In the confectionery world, coatings play an important role by adding the finishing touch, especially to gummy products, through a thin protective layer. This layer ensures that products neither stick together nor dry out prematurely, while also giving them an appealing look and attractive gloss. These requirements are not the only ones coatings must meet, however, as consumers attach more and more importance to healthier, more natural ingredients in their food – which extends to candy, too.
Capol GmbH is a front-runner in confectionery surface coating with over four decades of cutting-edge research and development under its belt in this field. The company’s goal has always been to fully meet the changing needs of both confectionery manufacturers and end consumers the world over.
So, what is so new and special about the recently US-patented product? Anti-sticking agents used for gummy products are traditionally based on a combination of oils and waxes. Vegetable oils containing saturated fatty acids were an industry favorite for many years as these fatty acids inhibit oxidation in the oils and give them significant stability. Natural sources such as rapeseed and sunflowers, however, deliver oils containing unsaturated fatty acids and have attracted growing interest over recent years. These oils are sometimes perceived as healthier, yet they are not as stable. In other words, they have a much more limited shelf-life.
Over recent years, CAPOL has carried out a great deal of research and development to create anti-sticking agents based on alternative natural oils – so as to meet the requirements of customers, while at the same time successfully offering stability and thereby a good product shelf-life. The special CAPOL formulation freshly patented in the US is based on sunflower oil while also containing a tailored anti-oxidization system for lasting stability. Furthermore, it creates an impressive gloss appeal and has excellent anti-sticking properties. To manufacture the agent, CAPOL uses a high-oleic sunflower oil base. Pressed from sunflower seeds, the oil is high in mono-unsaturated fats.
Britta Beer, Head of CAPOL R&D, commented: “We’re thrilled that our many years of research and development in this field have paid off and that our contribution to developing high-quality products that are natural, yet highly functional, has been acknowledged by the US Patent Office in this way. It’s great news for consumers, too!”
About Capol
Founded in 1975, today CAPOL plays a leading role for surface treatment in the confectionery industry. From glazing, anti-sticking, sealing and precoating agents through coated acids to machine release agents, the company provides highly innovative and efficient solutions for the finishing of confectionery, based on proven formulations and in-depth process expertise. Brand names like CAPOL®, CAPOLAN®, CAPOLEX® and FIX GUM® have made a worldwide name for themselves in the industry, for everything from sugar dragées and chocolate to gum products. With its patented VIVAPIGMENTS® technology, CAPOL provides unique natural coloring solutions for the food industry. The company offers global supply through subsidiaries, agents and distributors and has a workforce of 100 people. Since 2013 CAPOL is part of Freudenberg Chemical Specialities, Munich, a Business Group of the German multi-technology company, Freudenberg, Weinheim.