It is an unfortunate fact that the market continues to be flooded with claims of cheap, high-activity bromelain. Most of this goes into the dietary supplement market rather than the food processing market. The reason is simple: in the food processing market, the proof of performance, or rather lack of performance, is immediate. For example, when a hydrolyzed protein is produced, there are many immediate measurements of the performance of the enzyme, such as viscosity reduction or pH drop. The enzyme is used because it efficiently produces a hydrolyzed protein at a low cost. This adulterated bromelain is able to make its way into the supplement market because that market is buying based on an assay that can be fooled. However, adulterated material is being identified quickly by established food product processes because it does not perform the same.
There is another reason that the fake bromelain is not as prevalent in the food processing industry; the food industry is more visible to and more highly regulated by the FDA. An undeclared allergen or sensitizer is dealt with quickly and recalls are an expensive proposition. Purchasing and QA/QC are aware of this, and both departments work to prevent any recalls. One additional factor is the regulations set forth by the USA Foreign Supplier Verification Act. The requirements of this act and the internal and external audits to confirm that the individual company is complying with the requirements add an additional layer of accountability to food safety.
So, as a responsible person in a supplement company, what steps can be used to avoid being taken by fake bromelain?
- Consider the importance of the Foreign Supplier Verification Act (FMSA). If you have ever heard the phrase “know your farmer knows your food,” in this case, you want to know your Importer of Record (IMR) rather than the farmer. The IMR is responsible for the foreign production site’s fully complying with all USA food safety practices. In order to know if your IMR is doing their due diligence, you want to know if they are aware of the following items:
- Does your IMR have an unblemished history for quality control?
- Are they familiar with the production of bromelain?
- Have they visited the production site and Audited the site and QA Practices?
- Has the production site had a Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) audit from a recognized auditing body such as BRCGS, SGS, or FSSC?
- A very easy way to quickly eliminate fake bromelain is to know the basic facts about it:
- There is no such thing as bromelain that meets 5000 GDU/gram activity. The highest commercial production that has been seen is 3500 to 3600 GDU.
- Bromelain does not have measurable sulfite levels. If bromelain tests higher than the limit of detection, 10ppm, its not bromelain. The fake bromelain that has been entering the market contains anywhere from 500 to 2000 ppm SO2, and it not labeling the sulfites as required by USA Food Laws.
- Bromelain is essentially odorless. If the material you have has a strong odor of any kind, be it pleasant (e.g., reports of “vanilla”) or obnoxious (e.g., reports of rotten egg or cat urine), it is a clue that something besides bromelain is in your product.
- Bromelain is also never a pure white color. There is always a very slight tan shade.
We will do another blog post shortly on the relationship between various assays and the GDU assay. This gives a company an alternative way to measure if the bromelain is unadulterated. Taken in combination with the above steps, the risk of getting stuck with adulterated bromelain is drastically reduced.