Aramouni et al, 2005 – Functionality of Egg and Egg Alternatives in Selected Food Systems

The majority of eggs are marketed as shell eggs, however a growing percentage of eggs are being sold to the consumer in the form of egg products (liquid, dried or frozen whole eggs, egg yolks or egg whites). In 2002 there were 203.3 million cases of eggs produced in the US of these 30.6% were further processed and sold to food services, manufacturers, retail and export. Many of these egg products are used as ingredients in bakery products, desserts, noodles, and salad dressings. Eggs are considered a high profile ingredient because of their multifunctional properties. For these reason food designers have aspired to develop ingredients that emulate egg’s polyfunctionality. These egg alternative ingredients are carbohydrate, lipid and/or protein-based. This research investigated a wide selection of egg alternatives that are commercially available on the market and in many cases advertised as an egg alternative in specific food systems (bakery, ice cream, pasta, or salad dressings). These commercial egg alternatives identified were tested in angel food cake, French vanilla ice cream, mayonnaise, refrigerated pasta, and yellow cake. Physical and sensory analyses were employed to compare and evaluate eggs and egg alternatives in the aforementioned food systems. The results indicated that there was not one single egg alternative that was competitive in both physical and sensory attributes across all the food systems evaluated. However, in each of the food systems evaluated there was at least one single egg alternative or a blend that was competitive in a single particular physical or sensory test. Currently eggs do exhibit a competitive advantage with regard to performance. However, as egg alternative blends are further developed and as price decline for these products they may be an attractive alternative for the food manufacturer.