The colorant composition may be a liquid or a solid composition. Preferably β-carotene is used as a solid water-dispersible colorant composition. The liquid colorant compositions may be a stable aqueous dispersion of β-carotene. In order to achieve an intermediate color hue, these compositions may optionally contain another coloring compound, e.g. another carotenoid such as β-zeacarotene, canthaxanthin, 8′-apo-β-carotenal, 8′-apo-β-carotenoic acid ethyl ester, lycopene, astaxanthin, lutein and zeaxanthin.
Solid water-dispersible colorant compositions are compositions wherein β-carotene is finely dispersed in a matrix or carrier. The matrix or carrier can be any matrix or carrier conventionally used for formulation of carotenoids. For example, the carrier can be a carbohydrate, a modified carbohydrate, a protein, a modified protein, or a mixture thereof.
The preparation of such colorant compositions for use in the present invention can be carried out in a manner known per se for the preparation of carotenoid and fat soluble vitamin compositions for use in food and beverages, e.g. as disclosed in European patent publications nos. 0 347 751, 0 966 889, 1066 761, 1 106 174 and International patent application WO 98/15195, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
A preferred procedure to prepare a colorant composition in accordance with the present invention is to prepare a solution of β-carotene and an oil-soluble antioxidant in a triglyceride and, optionally, an organic solvent, e.g., a chlorinated hydrocarbon and to emulsify the oily solution in an aqueous solution prepared from a protective hydrocolloid carrier such as a protein, a polysaccharide or a modified polysaccharide or mixtures thereof, a carbohydrate and, optionally, a water-soluble antioxidant, removing the organic solvent if required, e.g. by evaporation.
The so-obtained oil-in-water dispersion can be converted into a solid composition, e.g. a dry powder using conventional technologies such as spray-drying, spray drying in combination with fluidized-bed granulation (the latter technique commonly known as fluidized spray drying or FSD), or by a powder-catch technique where sprayed emulsion droplets are caught in a bed of an absorbant such as starch and subsequently dried.
Well known solid colorant compositions containing β-carotene in amount of approximately 1 wt-% have an orange shade. Such compositions are dispersible in water and generate a yellow shade in food, beverages, animal feeds, cosmetics or drugs. For economical reasons it would be advantageous to increase the carotenoid concentration in this type of water-dispersible compositions. It is therefore an object of the invention to suggest a new water-dispersible colorant composition with a comparable color shade but with an increased carotenoid concentration.
It is generally known that colorant compositions for use in beverages should have high color intensity as well as a relatively high turbidity. It has now been found, surprisingly, that variation of the content of starch or modified starch, if this compound is used as part of the carrier or matrix, has an effect on color intensity and turbidity, on the red color value and on particle size. It has been further found that by using 10% to 60% of starch or modified starch based on the total weight of the carrier or matrix, the concentration of β carotene can be increased to at least 2%, preferably to 2% to 10%, more preferably to 2% to 5% based on the total weight of the composition, wherein the final composition has still sufficient properties in relation to color intensity and turbidity.
The stated object of the invention is therefore achieved by a colorant composition as described and claimed herein.