HappyChile is the number one worldwide exporter of dried plum; the country has 70 years of tradition in the production of dried plum and nearly 15,000 hectares of its central zone territory is intended for its cultivation, says the Chilean Prune Processors and Exporters Association.
The nutritional and functional properties of this fruit are recognized by people who are constipated, as prunes are well known for their high fibre content, for every 100 grams of fruit 6.1 grams are of fibre. Furthermore, prune juice contains sorbitol, a soft stimulant for the colon that helps reduce intestinal transit time, colorectal cancer and haemorrhoids.
According to studies by the Department of Food and Nutritional Sciences of the University of Minnesota School and of Osaka University in Japan, consumption of prunes also prevents premature ageing, promotes cardiovascular health, reduces the risk of cancer and osteoporosis. Prunes also have more antioxidants than red fruits and blueberries.
Recently, the Happy Plum company -located in Quilpué- developed a fully functional food based on this fruit that encourages and stimulates the digestive health of people and that is beneficial for intestinal flora as it helps people recover it. The product, which is on the verge of being distributed by a retailer of the pharmaceutical industry, is a "plum cream that was processed at the Regional Centre for Studies in Food and Health (CREAS)", said Ernesto Sánchez, director of Happy Plum.
Having focused on developing products for the export market, Sánchez, an entrepreneur who was an external consultant for Pro Chile between 2000 and 2012, discovered that he could generate a free from sugar, preservatives and other chemicals, functional food that would benefit digestive health. The product is unique because it can be used and applied to other foods, such as yoghurt, ice cream, cookies, bread, without losing its beneficial properties, a property that other products, that are essentially laxatives, don't have.
Happy Plum wanted to incorporate bioactive prebiotics to this mixture and increase its health properties so that it had a high-fibre content, i.e. the consumption of 3-4 teaspoons would supply an individual with about 60% of the fibre needed in his daily diet. As such, they approached the CREAS and defined a path to formulate a functional food based on this mixture with Caroline Leon, project manager, and Christopher Gepp, Chief of Plant.
"We determined the dose of the bioactive and the quantity that was the most adequate to consume. Then we tested different mixtures of concentrated pastes until we created a product that satisfied our client in taste, texture and colour, "said Gepp.
The company plans to be present in the Mexican, Colombian and Brazilian market in the medium term, via pharmaceutical and retail companies that sell healthy products.
Source: Fresh Fruit Portal