Research and Development
Our research and development group works out of a test kitchen and application laboratory at the Newark facility, a short walk from the mills and blenders. Its job is to make sure what we sell works in your product, and to help you make your product better.
What We Do
| Service | Description |
|---|---|
| Application testing | Evaluating a spice, herb or blend in your actual application: a topical snack seasoning, a retorted sauce, a dry soup mix, a meat rub, a bakery filling |
| Specification matching | Matching an existing product or ingredient, including a competitor's or a discontinued one, to color, flavor, heat and particle size |
| Formulation | Developing new seasoning blends from a flavor brief or a culinary concept |
| Cost optimization | Reformulating to reduce cost while holding flavor, often by changing origins, forms or carriers rather than quality |
| Clean label and sodium reduction | Removing artificial ingredients, anti-caking agents or excess salt while preserving performance |
| Shelf life studies | Accelerated and real-time studies on color, volatile oil and sensory stability in your packaging |
| Sensory evaluation | Trained panel descriptive analysis and difference testing |
| Regulatory support | Ingredient statements, nutrition facts, allergen declarations and organic claim documentation |
How We Work
Every project begins with a conversation about what you are trying to achieve and what constraints you are working under: cost, label, process, equipment, timeline. We then propose an approach and a timeline. Most matching and application projects return first samples within two weeks. Projects are quoted in advance; for program customers, much of this work is included.
Equipment
- Laboratory-scale ribbon and paddle blenders and mills
- Color measurement, moisture analysis and sieve analysis
- Commercial kitchen with range, convection oven, fryer, kettle and seasoning tumbler
- Access to the full analytical and microbiological laboratory
- Sensory booths for panel work
Data Behind the Work
Our formulators work with fifteen years of lot data in HELM. When they choose a cumin for your blend, they can see how every cumin lot from every origin has tested for volatile oil, color and cleanliness, and how it behaved in previous blends. That is the difference between a formulation that works in the lab and one that keeps working in production.
