Better Juice, GEA team up to make OJ sugar-reduction invention available globally

Better Juice’s process is now ready for prime time

Better Juice Cofounders Blachinsky and Yarom

Better Juice was founded by Eran Blachinsky, PhD, cofounder and CEO (right). Cofounder Gali Yarom, Eng is on the left. Photo courtesy of Better Juice.

When FE interviewed Eran Blachinsky, PhD, cofounder and CEO of Better Juice, Ltd., about two years ago in Engineering R&D, the company was looking for a partner to make its invention real and readily available around the world. Now Better Juice has the can-do partner it needed.

Better Juice, Ltd., the sugar-reduction food-tech start-up, has announced a collaboration with GEA Group AG, Germany in a push to scale up and expand Better Juice’s global footprint. This move comes as part of the company’s commitment to transform the global juice industry through advancing its technology for reducing all sugars in orange and other juices.

Better Juice and GEA TDS GmbH collaboratively agreed to construct and install the sugar reduction solution to reduce all types of sugars in orange juice and market the system globally. Under this strategic partnership GEA will engineer, design, manufacture and install the bioreactor that reduces sugars via Better Juice’s proprietary enzymatic process. Better Juice will produce the immobilized microorganisms for the enzymatic process.

The agreement contributes to Better Juice’s goals of broadening its outreach and support to the global juice industry. The company’s new technology effectively solves the sugar-reduction conundrum without negatively impacting the natural nutritional values and prebiotic benefits of fresh orange juice.

The start-up’s enzymatic technology uses all-natural ingredients to convert fructose, glucose, and sucrose into prebiotic dietary fibers and other non-digestible molecules. It can reduce up to 80% of sugars in orange juice. Better Juice’s non-GMO technology is designed to target the specific sugar composition in orange juice to naturally create a low-calorie, reduced-sugar product with a delicate sweetness, without sweeteners or other additives used to replace the sugars.

“This exciting collaboration marks a major milestone in Better Juice’s scale-up plans and advances the commercialization of our technology,” explains Blachinsky. “GEA possesses a sterling reputation in the field of process technology and will be a strong engineering partner. This collaboration will allow for smooth integration of our enzymatic technology into juice production companies seeking to meet the sugar-reduction trend. It will undoubtedly open doors for us and accelerate sales growth internationally,” adds Blachinsky.

“GEA is constantly seeking to work with companies developing innovative solutions and cutting-edge, sustainable technologies that benefit consumers’ nutrition and lifestyles,” says Colm O’Gorman, head of sales management for GEA’s Global Technology Center for Non-Alcoholic Beverages. “Better Juice is an excellent fit, and we are eager to help them develop the market for sugar-reduced juices."

GEA will design three instruments with small, medium, large production capacities to address various requirements of juice companies. The 200-liter device will launch within a few months. Each device will be customized to the manufacturer’s needs and limitations, with Better Juice & GEA providing full-service support. “This means that Better Juice can become a global player in the sugar-reduction market, with local support and service teams in each country,” explains Gali Yarom, cofounder, COO, and VP of Business Development for Better Juice.

For more information visit Better Juice on line or contact Eran Blachinsky.

KEYWORDS: juice

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Wayne Labs has more than 30 years of editorial experience in industrial automation. He served as senior technical editor for I&CS/Control Solutions magazine for 18 years where he covered software, control system hardware and sensors/transmitters. Labs ran his own consulting business and contributed feature articles to Electronic Design, Control, Control Design, Industrial Networking and Food Engineering magazines. Before joining Food Engineering, he served as a senior technical editor for Omega Engineering Inc. Labs also worked in wireless systems and served as a field engineer for GE’s Mobile Communications Division and as a systems engineer for Bucks County Emergency Services. In addition to writing technical feature articles, Wayne covers FE’s Engineering R&D section.