Everyone thinks they understand food. Founders have opinions on ingredients. Investors ask about “clean labels.” But once you try to make a product, you realize how little of the conversation reflects how food actually works.
Hydroxide is a food scientist and content creator with over 450,000 followers and seven years in the industry, from plant-based meat and chocolate to food safety and quality. She translates the science, the myths, and the mechanics behind products people eat every day.
In part two of our discussion, she breaks down what’s actually going on inside the ingredient lists of modern “functional” foods.
* Note: Text answers have been edited for length and clarity. Full answers are in video. (We highly recommend watching!)
Can we walk through a few ingredient lists and what they’re actually doing?
1. Beyond Immerse
The base starts with carbonated water, followed by hydrolyzed pea protein. Hydrolyzing the protein breaks it into smaller pieces, which helps it dissolve in liquid and prevents the drink from separating. Protein also acts as an emulsifier, helping keep everything suspended rather than ending up with powder floating in water.
Then comes soluble tapioca fiber, which adds fiber but also improves texture. Fiber holds water almost like a sponge, which helps create a smoother, more stable drink.
Other ingredients manage flavor and stability:
- Citric acid helps with acidity, flavor, and preservation
- Malic acid adds the sour note people associate with sour candy
- Stevia and monk fruit provide sweetness
- Ascorbic acid (vitamin C) helps maintain color
- Beta carotene adds color
Most of the formula is doing structural work, helping the drink stay smooth, stable, and drinkable.
2. David Bar
David organizes its formula into systems, something many modern food tech companies do.
The protein system includes milk protein isolate, collagen, whey protein concentrate, and egg white. Isolates have a higher protein percentage, while concentrates contain less protein but can improve texture.
High-protein bars tend to become dry and chalky, so the next layer is the binding system:
- Maltitol, allulose, and glycerin retain moisture
- Soluble corn fiber adds structure
- Tapioca starch contributes elasticity and chew
- Soy lecithin helps emulsify and stabilize the mixture
The fat system includes EPG (esterified propoxylated glycerol) and coconut oil. EPG behaves like fat but contributes far fewer calories, which helps David maintain very low calorie counts while still creating a rich mouthfeel. Most of the ingredient list is there to engineer the texture and structure of the bar.
3. Olipop
Olipop’s key innovation is its proprietary OliSmart fiber blend, which includes ingredients like cassava root fiber, chicory root inulin, Jerusalem artichoke inulin, nopal cactus, marshmallow root, calendula flower, and kudzu root. Some of these ingredients function primarily as fiber sources, while others may be included for additional functionality or differentiation.
The main challenge with high-fiber drinks is texture. Fiber can easily make beverages thick or sludgy. Olipop’s formula manages to keep the drink light and soda-like while still delivering significant fiber.
The sweetening system includes:
- Cassava root syrup
- Apple juice concentrate
- Lemon juice concentrate
- Stevia
Interestingly, Olipop uses slightly different fiber systems depending on whether the product is refrigerated or shelf-stable, since different fibers help control stability and water activity in different environments. The real achievement is that they created a high-fiber soda that still tastes like soda, which is much harder than it sounds.
If a founder came to you and said, “I want to make a sauce,” what are the first things you’d need to know?
The first question is whether the sauce will be refrigerated or shelf stable. That decision influences almost everything about the formula.
Refrigerated sauces usually cost more because cold storage is expensive, but they often require fewer preservatives and less salt or sugar. Shelf-stable sauces are more complicated. You have to control water activity and pH so bacteria can’t grow, and you also need to think about packaging — whether it’s going into a bottle, pouch, or jug.
For certain products, especially creamy sauces, you also have to follow low-acid canned food regulations, since acidity alone might not be enough to keep the product safe.
Another big question is whether the sauce is fully mixed or designed to separate, like a vinaigrette you shake before using. If it’s fully mixed, you’ll almost always need an emulsifier to keep the sauce stable. Garlic can act as a natural emulsifier, but in large-scale production it usually isn’t strong enough on its own. Companies often use ingredients like soy lecithin, sunflower lecithin, proteins, or mono- and diglycerides to keep everything consistent.
Once the structure works and the sauce stays stable without separating, that’s when the fun part starts: playing with flavor.
Any final advice for founders getting into food?
Don’t underestimate how much food science you already understand. If you cook or even just pay attention to how food behaves, you probably know more than you think. Also be ready for things to fail. Recipes won’t work. Products will taste bad. That’s just part of building in food.
But when you finally make something people genuinely love, it’s incredibly rewarding. Invest in understanding the science early, and combine it with strong marketing without letting either one stifle the other.
Missed Part 1? Hydroxide explains the food science terms founders should know, and her dos and don’ts for working with food scientists. Watch it here.
Hydroxide is a food scientist and content creator with seven years inside food manufacturing, spanning plant-based meat, chocolate, kombucha, and meat processing. She's built products from scratch, managed them through scale-up, and watched founders make the same avoidable mistakes at every stage. Now she shares that world for her 450,000+ followers online.