Foodle Noodle has been in business with its organic rice noodles for over a decade, selling products under its own brand to major supermarkets in Thailand such as Tops and Lotus’s, and under private label to various international markets including Europe, UK, USA, Dubai and Singapore.
Its signature rice noodles come in a large variety of flavours, from the more conventional brown, red, white and black rice noodles to more unique variants such as turmeric, mulberry and riceberry.
“We have many rice noodle products, each with different benefits – e.g. turmeric is good for immunity, mulberry is high in antioxidants and anti-cancer compounds, riceberry is high in fibre, brown and red rice is low-GI – but all our ingredients are organic,” Foodle Noodle Managing Director Vipada Sriseangboon told FoodNavigator-Asia.
“Our rice is sourced from contract farmers that plant specially for us, so there is that guarantee of cleanliness and being pesticide, chemical and fertiliser-free.
“All our products thus far have required cooking in the kitchen, but this new range of instant cup noodles has been designed to appeal to consumers looking for a more convenient option, especially younger consumers leading busy lifestyles.
“It is one of the first of its kind in Thailand to be organic and clean label, not just in terms of the noodles but also the flavouring pastes, for example the green curry paste is made with organic coconut milk powder.”
The new instant cup noodles range will come in three main flavours – Green Curry, Tom Yum and Miso, and there will also be an instant organic Pad Thai product that using organic tourmaline salt and sugar to flavour.
“The focus will always be on organic and clean label – our factory has already been certified to be allergen-free, gluten-free and we also have the BRC certification for being clean label,” Sriseangboon said.
“Cup noodles are a very popular item here in Thailand, with MAMA being one of the iconic brands, and many younger consumers including children like to eat these even dry – but there are rarely any brands made without chemicals or MSG, which is unhealthy for them, and this is what inspired us.”
‘In time’ technology to replace chemicals
A common gripe consumers have about cup noodles is the use of chemicals and preservatives to give these a long shelf life – but Foodle Noodle has found a low-tech yet innovative way to replace these, making the product healthier.
“The main issue with making instant noodles without chemicals lies in the development of mold,” she added.
“So after facing mold issues in the factory several times, we did studies and checks on microorganism growth at various points of production, and realised that the issue really was in the time of production.
“Mold tends to develop in 36 hours, so we realised the important point was to develop a means of shortening the processing time, so we could avoid this even without using any chemicals such as sulfur dioxide or benzoates – the key is really to dry the noodles in time, and we developed our own specific technique to do this and still preserve all the nutrients and texture of the noodles.”
Foodle Noodle has perfected this technique over the years so it is used for its various rice noodle products, not just for its cup noodles, but found the technique to be seamlessly transferable in the development of its new range as well to allow for the creation of a healthy instant cup noodle alternative.