As delicious and refreshing as they are on a hot summer day, popsicles can quickly become a sticky mess -- which is where these popsicles that don't melt come in. Developed at Kanawaza, Japan's Biotherapy Development Research Center, the popsicles were discovered accidentally when the researchers were focusing on helping strawberry farmers affected by the 2011 tsunami and earthquake.
Kanazawa University pharmacy professor Tomihisa Ota developed the popsicles that don't melt. Dubbed Kanazawa Ice, the frozen treats contain a micronutrient called polyphenol that researchers extracted from strawberries hoping it could be used as a health food additive. The polyphenol is the key reason dairy cream solidifies, as a chef realized when trying to add it to confectionary.
What Makes This Trend Stand Out
- Melt-resistant Food
- The development of popsicles that don't melt presents opportunities for creating other melt-resistant food products.
- Health Food Additives
- The extraction of polyphenol from strawberries for use as a health food additive opens doors for the development of new functional food ingredients.
- Accidental Discoveries
- Accidental discoveries, like the creation of melt-resistant popsicles, can lead to unexpected innovations in various industries.
Sectors Adopting This
- Food and Beverage
- The food and beverage industry can explore the use of melt-resistant technologies to create new products that retain their shape in hot weather.
- Functional Food
- The functional food industry can leverage polyphenol extracts from strawberries as a natural and healthy ingredient for various food products.
- Materials Science
- The materials science industry can research and develop new materials inspired by the properties of polyphenol to create heat-resistant and non-melting materials.
