Galam scales up FOS production with US$20m facilities in Israel and Spain

22 Jun 2020 --- Israel-based Galam has recently unveiled two new production plants in a US$20 million expansion move. The manufacturer of ingredients for the food and animal nutrition industries seeks to scale up production of short-chain fructo-oligosaccharides (sc-FOS) and the plants both operate with a strict quality control system and a capacity of thousands of tons, Galam highlights. The Israel plant specializes in sc-FOS production in powder form and exports worldwide, while the plant located in Spain, specializes in liquid sc-FOS production for the European market. 

“Based on the technological experience that Galam has obtained over the last decade and our understanding of the market, we have decided to invest US$20 million in our new facilities. The world’s demand for prebiotic fibers in general, and sc-FOS in particular, is rapidly increasing. Galam is working on being a major supplier of high quality sc-FOS in this growing worldwide market,” notes Liad Cohen, Galam’s CEO. 

He goes on to explain that sc-FOS is one of the most researched prebiotics, with scientific evidence demonstrating that daily consumption of this prebiotic fiber brings about a range of health benefits by providing balanced gut microbiota resulting in wellbeing in both humans and animals.

Galam has recently unveiled two new production plants in a US$20 million expansion move.Galam’s sc-FOS, branded as GOFOS, is produced from beet sugar by a unique proprietary enzymatic process. During ProSweets in Cologne, Germany, NutritionInsight caught up with Yael Aizenbeg, International Sales Manager at Galam, who highlighted the ingredient’s potential in reducing sugar content, amid industry moves toward healthier formulations. GOFOS is derived from beet sugar that, apart from gut-health related properties, can offer sweetening power of up to 30 percent. 

“GOFOS is a 95 percent FOS fiber that allows fiber enrichment and sugar reduction in formulations,” notes Aizenberg. “The product has a low glycemic index, so it prevents spikes in blood sugar levels. It is a prebiotic fiber, which means that it can also improve gut health, increase good bacteria in the gut and reduce pathogens,” Aizenberg highlights. 

“Sc-FOS are one group of strong prebiotics highly known and documented for their beneficial roles in colon wellbeing. GOFOS is characterized by short oligosaccharides with a degree of polymerization of 3 to 5 monomeric units, which have been documented to be effectively fermented by Bifidobacteria and certain Lactobacillus species providing a proven prebiotic effect at lower doses,” says Dr. Fernando Schved, VP R&D, Support & CSO at Galam.

FOS is commonly used in food applications such as cereals, energy bars, dairy and non-dairy products, confectionery, bakery and chocolate.

Edited by Kristiana Lalou

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