The new gluten-free cassava flour from Rocha Alimentos will be in store shelves across Brazil at a cheaper price and in stand-up pouch packaging made with EkoFlex  

São Paulo, November 10, 2022 –  The gluten-free food market gets a new product – Yucafit, a special gluten-free cassava flour produced by Rocha Alimentos that replaces wheat mixtures in up to 95% of the recipes - a high number compared to existing products in the market - without losing flavor and texture.

The product packaging uses EkoFlex, a family of innovative solutions for flexible packaging developed by Klabin, Brazil’s largest producer and exporter of paper for packaging and the leading producer of corrugated board packaging and industrial bags.

The healthy food brand’s idea was to have packaging that translated one of the product’s main characteristics: 100% natural, without any additives or GMO. Produced from softwood (pine), EkoFlex is biobased and comes from planted and certified forests. It is a repulpable and recyclable solution that is also certified for contact with food.

Apart from its sustainable characteristics, the flexible solution from Klabin boasts sealability, which makes the rolls compatible with the conversion and filling machines (FFS: Form-Fill-Seal) already existing in the market, eliminating the need for fresh investments in equipment. The sealing system also ensures that the product stays free from cross-contamination by food containing gluten, resulting in greater safety for gluten-intolerant consumers.

“Klabin has been working increasingly closer with its clients to identify challenges and offer products that meet their needs in a personalized manner. We have a strong presence in the packaging segment, especially food packaging, and EkoFlex stands out due to its sustainable attributes that are required by society. It is a flexible solution capable of reducing or even eliminating fossil-based raw materials across the value chain,” said Laura Bretanha Herter, general manager of bags at Klabin. “We are pleased to partner with Rocha Alimentos, which enables our packaging to be present in the homes of consumers,” she added.

The product is already available in the market, in 500g and 1kg packaging. It must also be noted that, in line with Rocha Alimentos’ mission to expand access to gluten-free products, the new Yucafit’s selling price is 40% lower than the price of similar flour mixtures. The result of a four-year research project, Yucafit is the first product in a comprehensive line of gluten-free, cassava-based products being developed by Rocha Alimentos. 

“Rocha Alimentos is very careful in selecting dehydrated cassava roots, the only ingredient in Yucafit, which enables soft preparations, as well as light and tasty recipes that are safe for people with celiac disease or those who prefer not to consume gluten,” said Cloudo Rocha, CEO of Rocha Alimentos.
In Brazil, its products are available in Rio Grande do Sul, Santa Catarina, Paraná, São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro, Espírito Santo, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso and Goiás. The second largest exporter of cassava byproducts, Rocha Alimentos is also present in 12 countries.

                                                                    Divulgação Klabin

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