Caromic - Animal Feed - A natural ingredient for good health

Caromic is a natural ingredient for animal feed and derived from the carob tree which is grown in the Mediterranean. Carob pods are widely known as Locust Beans and are available either broken (kibbled) or roasted to produce carob powder. The carob bean & powder is a valuable product for 3 main reasons; tannin content, sugar composition and chocolate type flavour. Caromic is used as a cocoa and sugar replacer to produce chocolate flavoured products because not only does caromic taste and smell like chocolate but it is a pure natural ingredient and does not contain caffeine. Caromic is also a very cheap alternative to cocoa powder.

Feed manufacturers and farmers are recognizing the benefits of Caromic. The sugar composition and the presence of tannins in carob powder make it a unique natural ingredient to prevent scouring in young animals. Carob powder has been found to inactivate e.coli bacteria and promote the development of a well balanced bacteria population. Carob powder is the natural solution to prevent stress induced diarrhoea.

Alternative names for Carob
Locust Beans, Kibbled Beans, Carob Pods, Carob Meal, Locust Meal, Ribbled Locust Beans, St. John's Bread

Origin of Caromic
Carob or Locust trees have been grown around the Mediterranean for thousands of years. The tree itself is an evergreen and produces carob pods up to the size of 15cm long. The pods - locust beans are harvested during September and October each year. The kernels from the pods are separated and used for the production of locust bean gum. This gum is used around the world as a thickening agent and stabiliser in many food products such as mayonnaise and within the textile industry as a print thickener.

Once the seed has been removed from the carob pods which are high in sugars and are extremely palatable, these pods can be fed in two different ways. Firstly they can be fed direct to animals, particularly in coarse mixes or processed further as carob powder. Carob powder is produced from carefully selected dried fruits which are then roasted and milled. Caromic is available in different colours depending on the grade of roasting.