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Abstract
A method was developed and validated in support of a 28-day feeding study of swine-adapted infant formula stabilised with carrageenan administered to neonatal piglets. Carrageenan concentrations in the test formulations were 0, 300, 1000 and 2250 mg kg–1 formula. Extraction of carrageenan from swine-adapted infant formula was achieved by breaking carrageenan–protein cross-linkages using saturated sodium chloride, followed by separation of the non-gelling carrageenan fraction via centrifugation. The extraction of carrageenan from formula was successful with respect to consistent recovery of the non-gelling carrageenan fraction from both test and control formula samples. Molecular weight analysis (Mw) of the recovered carrageenan fractions from the test and control formula samples confirmed that the carrageenan used to manufacture the formula was not degraded during the infant formula production process and subsequent storage for 4 months covering the 28-day piglet dietary feeding study. Carrageenan has excellent stability in infant formulations.
Acknowledgements
The authors thank: Abbott Nutrition for development and production of the swine-adapted test formulations; Bjorn A. Thorsrud, Study Director (MPI), Myra L. Weiner (TOXpertise LLC), Christopher J. Sewall (FMC), and Brinda Mahadevan (Abbott Nutrition) for technical discussions, Eunice M. Cuirle (FMC), Theresa M. Hedrick (IFC) and Brenda Frantz (MPI) for project management and coordination. William Blakemore is the owner and principal of Celtic Colloids Inc., a consulting company providing advice on hydrocolloids technology and including leadership on analytical methods development to private companies. Steven Davis is a strategic research scientist at Abbott Nutrition, and responsible for the nutritional specifications of the swine-adapted infant formula. Maggie Hroncich is an associate scientist and Mustafa Vurma a senior research scientist at Abbott Nutrition. They were responsible for the formulation development and manufacturing of the swine-adapted infant formulations. Research work detailed in this current paper was carried out for FMC Corporation (FMC) and the International Formula Council (IFC) under a cost reimbursable contract. FMC is a manufacturer of carrageenan and products containing carrageenan. The IFC is an association of manufacturers and marketers of formulated nutritional products, e.g. infant formulas and adult nutritionals, whose members are based predominantly in North America. The method development and validation reported in this paper is the professional work product of the authors. FMC and IFC were given the opportunity to review this paper and to offer comments on the content. Those comments did not alter the professional opinions of the authors. The authors have not appeared in any legal proceedings related to the findings reported in this paper. The conclusions drawn are not necessarily those of FMC or IFC.