Composition for enhancing nutritional content of food

• US 20030194423A1
• Filed: 04/15/2002
• Published: 10/16/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/15/2002
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Mars Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Mars Incorporated
• Inventors: Torney, Allan A., Slusarczyk, Peter, Mooney, Liisa
• Application Number:
  US10/122,832
• Publication Number:
  US 20030194423A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 424/442
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 10/18 of live microorganisms
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 20/10 Organic substances
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 20/147 Polymeric derivatives, e.g. peptides or proteins
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 20/158 Fatty acids; Fats; Products containing oils or fats
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 20/189 Enzymes
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 40/00 Shaping or working-up of animal feeding-stuffs
• CPC Class Codes: A23K 50/40 for carnivorous animals, e.g. cats or dogs

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a ready-to-use composition for supplementing nutritional content of a pet food. The composition comprises, on a dry matter basis, from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, and from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component. The composition does not require sterilization or addition of chemical preservative, thereby making the invention suitable for delivery of nutritional functional ingredients that are heat labile.

Claims

1. A ready-to-use composition for supplementing the nutritional content of pet food comprising, on a dry matter basis, from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, and from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component, wherein the composition is microbiologically stable.

2. The composition of claim 1, further comprising from about 0.1 to about 49% by weight of a functional ingredient.

3. The composition of claim 2, wherein the functional ingredient in heat labile.

4. The composition of claim 3, wherein the heat labile functional ingredient comprises an essential oil, a volatile molecule having a fragrance, a molecule that is readily oxidized, denatured or inactivated, an enzyme, an antibiotic or a probiotic.

5. The composition of claim 1, wherein said protein component comprises hydrolyzed proteins.

6. The composition of claim 5, wherein said hydrolyzed protein is from an animal or a plant source.

7. The process of claim 6, wherein said animal source comprises beef, swine, sheep, fish, or poultry.

8. The process of claim 6, wherein said plant source comprises wheat, alfalfa or legume.

9. The composition of claim 1, wherein said protein component comprises gelatin.

10. The composition of claim 1, wherein said humectant comprises a sugar.

11. The composition of claim 1, wherein said humectant comprises a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

12. The composition of claim 1, wherein the humectant comprises a mixture of a sugar and a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

13. The composition of claim 12, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

1.

14. The composition of claim 12, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

2.

15. The composition of claim 12, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 2:

3.

16. The composition of claim 1, wherein the lipid component is a fatty acid or a derivative thereof.

17. The composition of claim 16, wherein the fatty acid comprises lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, lignoceric acid, palmitoleic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, alpha-linoleic acid, gamma-linoleic acid, arahidonic acid, nervonic acid, eicosapentanoic acid, an omega-3 fatty acid or derivatives thereof.

18. The composition of claim 1, wherein the lipid component is provided as a vegetable oil.

19. The composition of claim 18, wherein the vegetable oil comprises coconut oil, corn oil, cotton seed oil, olive oil, safflower oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, or an equivalent oil.

20. The composition of claim 1, further comprising a vitamin.

21. The composition of claim 1, further comprising a mineral.

22. The composition of claim 1, wherein said composition is an aqueous solution, a liquid concentrate, or a colloidal suspension.

23. The composition of claim 1, wherein the composition is characterized by having a physical consistency of a gel, a sol-gel, a gravy, or a syrup.

24. The composition of claim 1, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 4.0 to about 8.0.

25. The composition of claim 1, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.0 to about 6.5.

26. The composition of claim 1, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.5 to about 6.5.

72. The process of claim 51, wherein said composition is an aqueous solution, a liquid concentrate, or a colloidal suspension.

27. A ready-to-use composition for delivering a pharmaceutical or a medicament comprising on a dry matter basis, from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component, and a therapeutically effective amount of the pharmaceutical or the medicament, wherein the composition is microbiologically stable.

28. The composition of claim 27, wherein the pharmaceutical is water soluble.

29. The composition of claim 27, wherein the pharmaceutical is an antibiotic.

30. The composition of claim 27, wherein the medicament is water soluble.

31. The composition of claim 27, wherein said protein component comprises hydrolyzed proteins.

32. The composition of claim 31, wherein said hydrolyzed protein is from an animal or a plant source.

33. The process of claim 32, wherein said animal source comprises beef, swine, sheep, fish, or poultry.

34. The process of claim 32, wherein said plant source comprises wheat, alfalfa or legume.

35. The composition of claim 27, wherein said protein component comprises gelatin.

36. The composition of claim 27, wherein said humectant comprises a sugar.

37. The composition of claim 27, wherein said humectant comprises a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

38. The composition of claim 27, wherein the humectant comprises a mixture of a sugar and a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

39. The composition of claim 38, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

1.

40. The composition of claim 38, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

2.

41. The composition of claim 38, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 2:

3.

42. The composition of claim 27, wherein the lipid component is a fatty acid or a derivative thereof.

43. The composition of claim 42, wherein the fatty acid comprises lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, lignoceric acid, palmitoleic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, alpha-linoleic acid, gamma-linoleic acid, arahidonic acid, nervonic acid, eicosapentanoic acid or derivatives thereof.

44. The composition of claim 27, wherein the lipid component is provided as a vegetable oil.

45. The composition of claim 44, wherein the vegetable oil is coconut oil, corn oil, cotton seed oil, olive oil, safflower oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, or an equivalent oil.

46. The composition of claim 27, wherein said composition is an aqueous solution, a liquid concentrate, or a colloidal suspension.

47. The composition of claim 27, wherein said composition is characterized by having a physical consistency of a gel, a sol-gel, a gravy, or a syrup.

48. The composition of claim 27, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 4.0 to about 8.0.

49. The composition of claim 27, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.0 to about 6.5.

50. The composition of claim 27, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.5 to about 6.5.

51. A process for producing a ready-to-use composition for supplementing the nutritional content of a pet food comprising the step of mixing, on a dry matter basis, from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, and from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component to form the composition, wherein the composition is microbiologically stable.

52. The process of claim 51, further comprising adsorbing the composition on the outer surface of the pet food.

53. The process of claim 51, further comprising adding from about 0.1 to about 49% by weight of a functional ingredient to the composition.

54. The process of claim 53, wherein the functional ingredient is heat labile.

55. The process of claim 51, further comprising adding a vitamin to the composition.

56. The process of claim 51, further comprising adding a mineral to the composition.

57. The process of claim 51, wherein said protein component comprises hydrolyzed proteins.

58. The process of claim 57, wherein said hydrolyzed protein is from an animal or a plant source.

59. The process of claim 58, wherein said animal source comprises beef, swine, sheep, fish, or poultry.

60. The process of claim 58, wherein said plant source comprises a wheat, an alfalfa or a legume source.

61. The process of claim 51, wherein said protein component comprises gelatin.

62. The process of claim 51, wherein said humectant comprises a sugar.

63. The process of claim 51, wherein said humectant comprises a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

64. The process of claim 51, wherein the humectant comprises a mixture of a sugar and a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

65. The process of claim 64, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

1.

66. The process of claim 64, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

2.

67. The process of claim 66, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 2:

3.

68. The process of claim 51, wherein the lipid component is a fatty acid or a derivative thereof.

69. The composition of claim 68, wherein the fatty acid comprises lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, lignoceric acid, palmitoleic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, alpha-linoleic acid, gamma-linoleic acid, arahidonic acid, nervonic acid, eicosapentanoic acid or derivatives thereof.

70. The process of claim 51, wherein the lipid component is provided as a vegetable oil.

71. The process of claim 70, wherein the vegetable oil is coconut oil, corn oil, cotton seed oil, olive oil, safflower oil, sunflower oil, soybean oil, or an equivalent oil.

73. The process of claim 51, wherein the composition is characterized by having a physical consistency of a gel, a sol-gel, a gravy, or a syrup.

74. The process of claim 51, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 4.0 to about 8.0.

75. The process of claim 51, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.0 to about 6.5.

76. The process of claim 51, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.5 to about 6.5.

77. A process for producing a ready-to-use composition for supplementing the nutritional content of a pet food, the process comprising the steps of:

adding from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component to an equal amount of water to form a solution;

mixing into said solution from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a carbohydrate component to form a mixture; and

combining from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component to the mixture to produce the composition.

78. The process of claim 77, further comprising the step of adding from about 0.1 to about 49% by weight of a functional ingredient to the mixture or the composition.

79. The process of claim 78, wherein the functional ingredient is heat labile.

80. The process of claim 77, further comprising adding a vitamin to the composition.

81. The process of claim 77, further comprising adding a mineral to the composition.

82. The process of claim 77, wherein said protein component comprises hydrolyzed proteins.

83. The process of claim 82, wherein said hydrolyzed protein is from an animal or a plant source.

84. The process of claim 83, wherein said animal source comprises beef, swine, sheep, fish, or poultry.

85. The process of claim 83, wherein said plant source comprises wheat, alfalfa or legume.

86. The process of claim 77, wherein said protein component comprises gelatin.

87. The process of claim 77, wherein said humectant comprises a sugar.

88. The process of claim 77, wherein said humectant comprises a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

89. The process of claim 77, wherein the humectant comprises a mixture of a sugar and a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

90. The process of claim 89, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

1.

91. The process of claim 89, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 1:

2.

92. The process of claim 89, wherein the mixture comprises the sugar and the polyhydroxyl alcohol in a ratio of about 2:

3.

93. The process of claim 77, wherein the lipid component is a fatty acid or a derivative thereof.

94. The composition of claim 93, wherein the fatty acid comprises lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, stearic acid, arachidic acid, behenic acid, lignoceric acid, palmitoleic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, alpha-linoleic acid, gamma-linoleic acid, arahidonic acid, nervonic acid, eicosapentanoic acid or derivatives thereof.

95. The process of claim 77, wherein said composition is an aqueous solution, a liquid concentrate, or a colloidal suspension.

96. The process of claim 77, wherein the composition is characterized by having a physical consistency of a gel, a sol-gel, a gravy, or a syrup.

97. The process of claim 77, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 4.0 to about 8.0.

98. The process of claim 77, wherein said composition has a pH in the range of about 5.5 to about 6.5

99. A process for delivering a nutrient to an animal comprising the step of feeding to an animal a ready-to-use composition comprising, on a dry matter basis, from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component, and from about 0.1 to 49% of an essential nutrient to form a nutritional delivery composition, wherein the composition is microbiologically stable.

100. A process for delivering medicine to an animal comprising the steps of:

mixing, on a dry matter basis, about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component, to form a delivery composition, wherein the composition is microbiologically stable;

adding a therapeutically effective amount of a pharmaceutical in a pharmaceutically acceptable diluent to form a medicinal delivery composition; and

feeding to said animal the medicinal delivery composition.

101. The process of claim 100, wherein the pharmaceutical is an antibiotic.

102. The process of claim 100, wherein feeding comprises oral feeding or enteral feeding.

103. The process of claim 100, wherein the protein component comprises gelatin.

104. The process of claim 100, wherein the humectant comprises a mixture of a sugar and a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

105. The process of claim 100, wherein the composition has a pH in the range of about 5.5 to about 6.5.

106. A process of promoting nutrition in a companion animal comprising the step of feeding to said animal a pet food having an outer layer comprised of from about 15 to about 80% by weight of a protein component, from about 20 to about 85% by weight of a humectant, and from about 1 to about 50% by weight of a lipid component, wherein the composition is microbiologically stable.

107. The process of claim 106, wherein the composition further comprises about 0.1 to about 49% by weight of a functional ingredient.

108. The process of claim 107, wherein the functional ingredient is heat labile.

109. The process of claim 106, wherein the protein component comprises hydrolyzed protein.

110. The process of claim 106, wherein the protein component comprises gelatin.

111. The process of claim 106, wherein the humectant comprises a mixture of a sugar and a polyhydroxyl alcohol.

112. The process of claim 106, wherein the composition has a pH in the range of about 5.5 to about 6.5.