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The popularity of plant-based foods is growing as customers become more concerned about their health. The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified this trend recently, causing consumers to reconsider their lifestyles and shift to a more plant-based diet as a healthier option.

Cheese analog is one of the most challenging plant-based goods to create. The plant-based food industry is still struggling to provide the good organoleptic experience of the original product. The main issues that producers encounter are related to the appearance and textural attributes due to the phase separation.

With the latest development from the Java Biocolloid R&D team, we managed to make a formulation of vegan spreadable cheese with agarEASY® – fast soluble agar, made from a rice-based beverage. With agarEASY®, heat treatment up to 80°C is enough to dissolve the agar, unlike native agar, which requires boiling temperature for complete dissolution.

Like dairy cheese, this vegan spreadable cheese is an oil-in-water emulsion, but the vegan one is made with protein, texturizer, water, flavors, and colors without any fermentation. These materials are combined to mimic the appearance and consistency of conventional cheese, and no maturation period is required. The finished vegan spreadable cheese with agarEASY® has a dense texture and a very smooth and homogenous structure.
 

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