Category: Gelling agents

While visually similar in their final set state, a staggering number of people are unaware that agar agar and gelatin are fundamentally different substances. The core distinction lies in their source, with agar agar derived from red algae and gelatin originating from animal collagen, making them distinct in their chemical composition, properties, and applications.

Food-grade carrageenan has been safely used for centuries, though confusion often arises from the existence of multiple types and a degraded form. The primary difference between "carrageenan" and "carrageenan" is that the single term refers to a family of sulfated polysaccharides, while specific types like kappa, iota, and lambda possess distinct functional properties due to their varying chemical structures.