{"id":26016,"date":"2018-12-14T09:26:33","date_gmt":"2018-12-14T14:26:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/biospringer.kinsta.cloud\/?p=26016"},"modified":"2022-03-25T06:34:39","modified_gmt":"2022-03-25T10:34:39","slug":"food-technologist-culinary-center-andrew-vasina","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/biospringer.com\/en\/food-technologist-culinary-center-andrew-vasina\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Andrew\u00a0Vasina, Food Technologist at\u00a0Biospringer North America’s Culinary Center"},"content":{"rendered":"

Meet our Expert Andrew Vasina<\/a>, Food Technologist at\u00a0the Biospringer Culinary Center<\/a>\u00a0North America. Andrew answered our questions about his work and missions at Biospringer, and shared his vision of yeast extract<\/a> and food trends:<\/p>\n

Food technologist at Biospringer Culinary Center: what is it exactly?<\/h4>\n

Day to day, I spend most of my time\u00a0in\u00a0the Culinary Center<\/a>. I figure out new innovative ways to use yeast extract for our sales team for specific markets or type of products. I also help customers use our products in the best way possible. For that, I\u00a0have to\u00a0become an expert of all types of food applications<\/a>: seasoning blends for\u00a0snacks<\/a>, sauces<\/a>,\u00a0soups & broths<\/a>,\u00a0meat\u00a0and vegan and vegetarian<\/a> products,\u00a0etc. I\u00a0have\u00a0to\u00a0know\u00a0how to create all\u00a0of these\u00a0products and how to\u00a0best use\u00a0yeast extract\u00a0in them!\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What did you study for that?<\/h4>\n

I studied Food Biotechnology at the University of Georgia and\u00a0then did my\u00a0Master\u2019s\u00a0in Europe\u00a0as part of an\u00a0Erasmus\u00a0Mundus\u00a0program in Food Innovation & Product Design in France, Ireland, and Sweden.\u00a0\u00a0I didn\u2019t have any previously\u00a0knowledge concerning\u00a0yeast\u00a0extract\u00a0<\/a>when I joined\u00a0Biospringer\u00a0but was excited to learn!<\/p>\n

And how did you like it when you arrived?<\/h4>\n

Biospringer\u00a0was a great place to start my career where I got to jump right in to learning about yeast extract<\/a> and developing with them from day one.\u00a0\u00a0Biospringer\u00a0is\u00a0unique place to work as it is an established, global\u00a0company, but feels smaller as we are divided up by region.\u00a0We\u00a0have employees\u00a0in\u00a0every region of the globe, which allows us to\u00a0produce\u00a0the\u00a0yeast\u00a0extract<\/a>\u00a0locally and give\u00a0support directly to the local customers,\u00a0better\u00a0adapting to their needs.\u00a0\u00a0I\u00a0work closely\u00a0on a day to day basis\u00a0with sales, marketing and other departments\u00a0within the company.\u00a0We are\u00a0constantly sharing ideas and working together to ensure we give our customers the best possible service.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Talking about your job – what do you like in it?<\/h4>\n

What I like about it is that every day is different! Sometimes I\u00a0am\u00a0preparing\u00a0for a visit\u00a0of\u00a0one of\u00a0customers, working on technical challenges that clients might have, or showing them new & unique ways of using yeast extract<\/a>. Sometimes I\u00a0am\u00a0doing\u00a0internal testing\u00a0for a new product or\u00a0evaluating a\u00a0current product\u00a0for quality control<\/a>.\u00a0Despite\u00a0most of my day consisting of\u00a0some form of product development, it is\u00a0an\u00a0ever-changing\u00a0variety\u00a0of\u00a0applications: sauces<\/a>, seasonings<\/a>, real or vegan meats,\u00a0products to show taste improvement<\/a> or salt reduction<\/a>, etc.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What is your favorite food application<\/a>?<\/h4>\n

It depends. Something as \u201csimple\u201d as a barbecue seasoning can be fun to develop, as I\u00a0have the\u00a0challenge\u00a0of\u00a0recreating\u00a0something that I grew up tasting\u00a0and\u00a0then am discovering\u00a0how it is made.
\n<\/span>I also enjoy developing new vegan and vegetarian<\/a> products. Being able\u00a0to\u00a0recreate the texture and flavor of a slice of ham using yeast extracts instead of any animal ingredients is very complicated! It can be a long and sometimes frustrating development process, but when I get it right, it is a great feeling.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

You said you did not know yeast extract,\u00a0but you seem to like this ingredient\u2026<\/h4>\n

I didn\u2019t know anything about yeast extract, but I was excited to discover it! Yeast extract is unique: it is a natural solution*<\/a> that has been used for a long time, but we are constantly finding new ways to use it. It is a very dynamic ingredient\u2013 it really interacts with everything around it and can provide a wide variety of different benefits to food products.\u00a0 Not only can two different yeast extracts provide different benefits in say a sauce, but even the same yeast extract can be used at different dosages and provide very different results. Additionally, the same yeast extract that is used by a cracker manufacturer for salt reduction<\/a> can be used by a dairy company in a butter spread to enhance dairy notes.\u00a0 My job is to know which of our yeast extracts is best for every situation in any type of food product.\u00a0 This is both the biggest challenge and most exciting part about working with yeast extract!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What would you tell someone who doesn\u2019t know yeast extract?<\/h4>\n

Today,\u00a0companies are trying to find solutions to consumers demands to\u00a0move away from\u00a0highly\u00a0processed or synthetic\u00a0ingredients, while maintaining\u00a0the flavor profiles\u00a0the consumers have come to enjoy. Yeast extract<\/a>\u00a0is an excellent tool for creating healthier formulations<\/a> that are naturally full of flavor!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n