Citric acid is described as “nature's acidulant”, occurring in a wide variety of plants, citrus fruits, animal tissues, micro-organisms and fluids, holding an important role in metabolism. Citric acid is in great demand as acidifying agent with great solubility nature that hardly could be substituted. It is widely used to impart tartness, pH adjustment, sourness, and also for enhancing flavors. Citric acid is widely used in food and beverage industry. Apart from this it also used in pharmaceutical products, personal care, cleaners & detergent and others. Moreover, citric acid is used for food safety and preservation, preparation of ready-to-made processed beverages and food products. In pharmaceutical industry citric acid is used as stabilizing & flavoring agent and in medical products such as soluble aspirin, antacid and also in dentifrices. Also, it is used in shampoos and conditioners, toiletries and detergents considering the personal care market.
The main consumer is the food industry, where citric acid is particularly used as an acidifying agent, pH buffer and, in combination with other compounds, as a preservation agent. In the detergent industry it is the sequestration characteristics of citric acid and its biodegradability which make it an ideal substitute for phosphate. Because of the growing worldwide significance of environmental concern and the consequences of this for the composition of domestic and industrial chemicals, it can be assumed that there will be a disproportionate growth in this range of applications over the next few years. Any entrepreneur venture into this field will be successful.
Few Indian Major Players are as under
• Anil Bioplus Ltd.
• Bharat Starch Inds. Ltd.
• Citurgia Biochemicals Ltd.
• Diviya Chemicals Ltd.
• Parry & Co. Ltd.
• Parry Enterprises India Ltd.
• Vantech Industry Ltd.