Imitation whipped cream is a type of cream which is beaten by a mixer or a fork until it becomes light and fluffy. It contains butter, flour, milk, sugar, vanilla and salt and is also called Chantilly cream. It isflavored with orange, coffee, vanilla, chocolate etc and very popular dressing for desserts such as pies, ice creams, cupcakes, milkshakes, muffins and puddings. Imitation whipping cream contains vegetable fats, milk proteins, sweeteners, water and emulsifiers and stabilizers One should have the right amount of emulsifiers and stabilizers to produce it in the right way.
Imitation whipped cream is produced by the UHT-process as this results in a long shelf life of the product.Main function of emulsifiers in imitation cream is to destabilize the fat globule which is formed during homogenization of the cream. This is important for the structure formation and air cell distribution formed during whipping and also for the stability of the formed air cells. In imitation cream stabilizers work in the water phase to improve the emulsion stability in the liquid cream, improving the foam stiffness and also to prevent drainage in the whipped cream.
Imitation whipped cream market can be broadly segmented into two segments – Dairy whipped cream and non-diary whipped cream. Cream contains above 35% milk fat are called dairy whipped cream and creams which are based on vegetable fat or are non-diary whipped cream are called imitation whipped cream.
Imitation Whipped Cream Market Dynamics
Imitation whipped cream can be used for various purpose like to exclude dairy ingredients to avoid milk allergies, to provide extended shelf life, more flexibility to use, to reduce the price and for convenience. It also provides reduced fat content, better foam stability and better cost in use calculations, which hence makes them attractive for bakers and caterers to use. Few challenges for imitation whipped cream marketare procuring highest quality of ingredients, maintaining consistency in standards of food, managing efficient service in terms of hospitality, high inventory carrying cost, high taxation and high packaging costs.
United States has the most consumption of imitation whipped cream. They topped the charts followed by Europeans and Japanese. Growing scope in Asia Pacific countries in Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong and the Philippines in imitation whipped cream market.
Due to concerns like rising health awareness, concerns over physical appearance, growing media coverage on health, rising health conditions (obesity, diabetes and cardiac problems), changing lifestyle and also soaring costs of healthcare, the introduction of low / light, functional, natural and organic products has become a trend in the imitation whipped cream market.
Major industry players in theimitation whipped cream marketare Cool whip, Dream whip, LA Crème, Palsgaard, BestWhip Inc., Whipped Cream Company, Lucerne and Reddiwip.
