Netherlands-based Fooditive, a pioneer in developing plant-based ingredients, is gearing up for a game-changer in the industry: a Novel Food licence from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) for its innovative sweetener.

 

Established in Rotterdam in 2018, Dutch firm Fooditive has developed from a concept into a company worth of €26 million in 2022, and is making significant progress in further advancing the prospects for its sweetener to take the F&B industry by storm.

Sweet and sustainable

A unique process allows the company to develop a remarkable sweetener, made from side streams of apples and pears. The production process has been enhanced and evolved from batch to continuous fermentation, to be able to deliver on the high demand from the food industry by producing up to 30 tonnes of sweetener per week. For this purpose, 83 tonnes of apples and pears are being upcycled, raw material that is considered as side streams, third-grade by juice manufacturers or simply ‘ugly fruit’.

 

The sweetener – the first of Fooditive’s cutting-edge products – sparked nothing short of a sugar-free, plant-based revolution. The company hopes to make a ground-breaking step towards establishing the sweetener in the market by forming a successful collaboration with a production partner in the Netherlands. 

 

Fooditive has already been offering the sweetener for research and development purposes to players in the food industry to determine which applications their sweetener performs best in. After three years’ worth of learning and development, feedback, and support from the food industry, the company will submit the sweetener as 5-D-Keto-Fructose in the process of applying for Novel Food certification from the European Food Safety Authority.

Global competitor 

Following the recent study by ReportLinker, Fooditive is the only start-up and Dutch company that is considered as one of the global competitors for food sweeteners in the industry competing alongside with several of the leading ingredient market vendors. Fooditive proudly provides an innovative sweetener to companies, for different product applications where it can deliver not only the sweet taste but also the functionality of sugar.

  

The sweetener is developed from the extraction of fructose through fermentation and its conversion to 5-D-Keto-Fructose through bio-refining techniques. Fooditive has accomplished this through its innovative approach to offer solutions by valorising side-streams and starting from different raw materials, including cherries and bananas, to transform them into valuable, healthy ingredients. 

An exciting journey

The Fooditive team is aware that the road ahead will be long and challenging. However, they know that completing its goal of securing EFSA approval for such a unique ingredient comes with a slew of benefits. Investors, venture capitalists, food attorneys, and consultants are invited to join the company’s journey on this effort to deliver this game-changer to the market.

 

Fooditive was founded by the Jordanian food pioneer and entrepreneur, Moayad Abushokhedim, at the age of just 17. The innovative Fooditive sweetener was developed after 11 years of research in finding a sweetener that can provide the functions and taste of sugar, and is good both for people and the planet.

Fooditive has received several awards for its innovative ideas, sustainable approaches, and contributions to a circular economy, including being nominated for the Index Award 2021.