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Nutrition bars are among the most innovative product categories in the food industry today. They can be generally classified into three types, each with a combination of ingredients that reflects its intended purpose. "Sports bars" usually have a dense texture with a high-protein, low-carbohydrate profile and frequently contain such muscle-building compounds as creatine. "Energy bars," on the other hand, often have a high-carbohydrate composition, sometimes enhanced with caffeine or herbs such as ginseng. The third category is the "nutritionally balanced bar," which is often made with a 40% protein, 30% carbohydrate, 30% fat formula. There are many variations and crossovers between categories, but all pose unique flavoring challenges, both because of the characteristics of the bases and because of the many added ingredients.
Often built on a base of grains, such as rice or oats, or proteins, such as soy or whey, nutrition bars are usually fortified using a wide range of vitamins, minerals, herbs, and other nutrient- or energy-rich ingredients. Unfortunately, many of these ingredients have unpleasant flavors. For example, commonly used additives such as zinc, B vitamins, and caffeine impose strong, objectionable flavors. These ingredients, alone or in combination, present a challenge for manufacturers attempting to create products that deliver both the nutrition and the great taste that consumers demand.
The first attempts at fortified nutrition bars delivered nutritional value, but also delivered what consumers often described as a "chemical taste." Great strides in flavoring solutions for these types of bars have been made since these early products. Some of the most important advances have been in the area of flavor masking.
Neutral Flavors and Flavor Masking
Flavoring a bar is as much about what you don't taste as what you do taste. Before the process of adding flavors begins, it is essential to achieve a base that is as close to "flavor-neutral" as possible. At the outset, flavorists must inventory all of the ingredients in the formula and determine the effect of each on flavor. Beginning with the base, certain components present flavoring challenges. Soy proteins, for example, contribute bitter or green, "beany" notes and have a tendency to "soak up" flavors, whereas whey imparts dairy off-notes and is also a "flavor sponge." An oat base may impart "brown" notes, which...