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Almond butter

Background

"Almond" is a small deciduous tree, Prunus amygdalus belonging to the subfamily Prunoideae of the family Rosaceae. Almonds are an ancient food that have been written about in historical texts, including the Bible. They were thought to have originated in regions in western Asia and North Africa. The Romans referred to almonds as the "Greek nut" suggesting that they had first cultivated them.

The grinding of nuts into a paste is not a new practice. Almond paste, or marzipan, was highly prized by the caliphs of Baghdad. The most esteemed sweet was lauziinaq, an almond paste much like marzipan.

In recent years, the popularity for alternatives to peanut butter has increased considerably. While peanut butter used to be the primary alternative to dairy butter, development in technologies as well as growing consumer demands has led the production of an array of nut butters, such as almond butter.

Almond butter, as well as other nut butters consisting of macadamia, coconut, cashew, and walnut have been able to attract the attention of health-conscious consumers. Consumers have exhibited a strong interest towards spreads and butters that are free of salt, sugar, preservatives, and additives.

Packaging

Almond butter is packaged in a similar manner as other nut butters, such as peanut butter. Packaging materials for almond butter range from plastic to glass containers, typically transparent so consumers can see the final product. After the finished product is packed in their respective jars, capped, and appropriately labeled according to Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) standards, it is sent for shipping to retailers across the country.

While nut butter products are typically considered to be microbiologically stable and safe for consumption due to their inherently low water activity, oxidation must be considered in the process of packaging. Manufacturers utilize vacuum packaging in order to reduce oxidation.

CFIA provides strict guidelines as to how the finished product is labelled, including elements such as net quantity of the pre-packaged product, its identity or generic name, and so forth.

Processing and Food Safety

To make almond butter, almond is harvested and hulled and the almond meat is removed from the shells separating the almond meat. The almond meat is then “blanched, sliced, diced, roasted, salted, or smoked” and the almond meat can be transported for processing into almond butter (https://www3.epa.gov/ttn/chief/ap42/ch09/final/c9s10-2a.pdf)

The almond used should be “shelled, blanched or unblanched, raw or roasted”. the almond is then ground and ingredients like “salt, honey, evaporated cane syrup, corn maltodextrin, flax seed, wheat germ, cocoa powder, cocoa butter, vanilla, etc.” Stabilizing ingredients like palm oil or peanut oil can be added to the almond butter. The almond butter has to contain a minimum of 90 percent almonds. (https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/CID%20Nut%20Butters%20and%20Nut%20Spreads.pdf)

Nut butter can be contaminated during processing and/or storage by microorganisms like salmonella which can develop heat resistance( in the environment provided by the nut butter –low moisture and low fat) however if the nut butter has been produced under Good Agricultural Practices and Good Manufacturing Practices contamination the risk of contamination can be reduced (https://www.inspection.gc.ca/food/chemical-residues-microbiology/food-safety-testing-bulletins/2017-09-20/bacterial-pathogens-on-in-shell-nuts-and-in-shelle/eng/1513147581367/1513147581913)

Storage and Shelf Life

Refined almond butter available for commercial purchase in Canada contains a number of added emulsifiers and stabilizers – these stabilizers prevent rancidity of the unsaturated fatty acids found within the almond butter, allowing for shelf stable storage times of up to two years (https://www.almonds.com/sites/default/files/the_chemistry_of_almond_quality_understanding_rancidity_development%5B1%5D.pdf).

However, once the container is opened refined almond butter varieties must be refrigerated to prevent rancidity, resulting in a safe to consume product for 4-6 weeks post opening. Homemade or “raw” almond butter varieties do not have any added stabilizers or preservatives, thus cannot be deemed shelf stable due to rapid deterioration/rancidity. These raw varieties of almond butter must be refrigerated and will last for 2-3 weeks (https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/food-features/almonds/).

Variations

There are multiple variations of almond butter which are available to consumers. Raw or roasted almonds can be used to provide different flavour. Most almond butter available for purchase only contain either raw or roasted almonds ground up, where oil separation is normal and to be expected. Ingredients such as salt, sugar and sweeteners can be added to alter the taste profile. Usually these variations of Almond butter are slightly less expensive than their 100% almond butter counterparts due to higher quality of almonds selected.

Sources:

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Almond#Origin_and_history

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=20#historyuse

https://archive.aramcoworld.com/issue/200604/cooking.with.the.caliphs.htm?fbclid=IwAR106bRsSU5x7-KWhv0A__fpRfRNmE8ISIiM9OItIi3CB73-u3ICwwRtCAM

https://www.reuters.com/brandfeatures/venture-capital/article?id=82896

https://www.inspection.gc.ca/food/requirements-and-guidance/labelling/eng/1299879892810/1299879939872

https://www3.epa.gov/ttn/chief/ap42/ch09/final/c9s10-2a.pdf)

https://www.ams.usda.gov/sites/default/files/media/CID%20Nut%20Butters%20and%20Nut%20Spreads.pdf

https://www.inspection.gc.ca/food/chemical-residues-microbiology/food-safety-testing-bulletins/2017-09-20/bacterial-pathogens-on-in-shell-nuts-and-in-shelle/eng/1513147581367/1513147581913