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Mix stabilisation and crystallisation control. Rice and heat-treated flour, gluten content below 20 ppm.
In ice cream production rice flour goes into the mix as an ingredient that raises viscosity and binds free water. It does not replace a hydrocolloid stabiliser and is declared in the finished product as flour.
Ice cream is the most complex system flour ever enters. It is a frozen emulsion of four phases at once: fat, air, ice crystals, and a concentrated unfrozen phase holding the dissolved sugars and milk solids. The entire texture of the product is decided in that last phase — how much water stayed free, how much of it turned to ice, and how large the crystals grow over storage and transport. A small crystal is imperceptible; a large one is read by the tongue immediately, and it is what makes a product icy instead of creamy.
Kaskad LLC has been producing gluten-free flour since 2001 and ships it in industrial batches — sacks of 30 and 50 kg, minimum order one sack. This page is written for the technologist selecting raw material for ice cream mixes, soft-serve dry mixes and the dessert group, and obliged to evidence the normative basis of that ingredient at incoming inspection. Below: the products in our range for this industry, the role of each, our four processing lines, particle size in microns, certificates with numbers, and entry terms. There are no prices here — they are contractual.
Raising total solids and mix viscosity. On hydration the starch in the flour binds water and raises the viscosity of the mix before freezing. A viscous mix holds the air phase more evenly, so the structure survives hardening and subsequent storage better.
Binding free water. The less free water there is in the system, the less of it is available for ice crystals to grow on. This is not a matter of locking water away for good — some of it will freeze regardless — but bound water is less mobile, and water mobility plus temperature fluctuation are exactly the two reasons small crystals merge into large ones over time.
Resistance to temperature fluctuation. Ice cream rarely travels from the freezer to the consumer without a single warm spell: in the warehouse, during transfer, in the display cabinet. Each such cycle partially thaws and refreezes the system, and that is when crystals grow. A viscous, well-bound unfrozen phase slows the process down.
And the line we do not cross. Flour is not a hydrocolloid stabiliser and does not replace guar gum, locust bean gum or xanthan on a one-for-one basis. These work by a different mechanism and at a different level: a hydrocolloid works at tenths of a per cent, flour at units of per cent. Technologically flour does stabilising work through total solids and starch. Legally, though, flour remains an ingredient and not a food additive: it carries no E number and is declared in the finished product as flour. For manufacturers shortening the additive list on the label, that is the whole motive; for anyone looking for a direct gum analogue, it is a reason not to spend time here.
For ice cream this is the key section of the page — it is where it is decided whether flour will work in your process at all.
Native starch binds the bulk of its water only after gelatinisation, meaning the mix must go through full heating. Heat-treated flour has travelled part of that road in advance: the starch granules have been altered by prior heating, so they swell at a lower temperature and do it faster. For ice cream that means:
The degree of change depends on the treatment regime and the base grain, so the specific parameters are fixed in the batch specification rather than declared here as universal.
One terminological fork worth settling before your first enquiry. TXT is a processing mode available for several products in the range — rice, corn, buckwheat, oat, chickpea and red lentil flour. Heat-treated flour is a separate catalogue product whose base grain is chosen by the customer; composition and nutritional data follow from it and are stated in the batch specification. For incoming inspection the two are not synonyms and must be named precisely in documents.
Table: Kaskad LLC processing lines
| Line | What it defines | Key parameters |
|---|---|---|
| STD (Standard) | controlled milling, consistent particle size batch after batch | moisture up to 15% |
| TXT (Texture) | heat treatment — water binding and texture | heat treatment: yes; moisture to specification |
| SUP (Super / Super+) | enhanced microbiological limits | specification agreed with the customer |
| SPC (Special) | parameters to a technical brief | milling, moisture, microbiology, pack format — from a trial batch |
Table: Kaskad LLC gluten-free raw materials for ice cream production
| Product | Lines available | Role in ice cream production | Shelf life |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heat-treated flour | TXT, SPC | Hydration without cooking the mix out, moisture to specification — dry mixes and cold processes; base grain agreed with you | to specification |
| Rice flour | STD, TXT, SUP | Neutral base: 81.0 g carbohydrate per 100 g, white colour, no flavour of its own | 18 months |
Two products are the industry's core list in our catalogue, and the list is short not for want of range but because in the mix itself other flours offer no advantage: what is needed there is the maximum starch base together with a complete absence of flavour and colour, and that combination lives in the rice base.
Why the rice base. Rice flour carries the highest starch base in the range — 81.0 g carbohydrate per 100 g — with 6.0 g protein, a neutral taste and a white colour. In premium dairy, vanilla and cream mixes any foreign tint reads immediately, so neutrality here is not a general virtue but a formulation requirement.
Why heat-treated flour is listed separately. In the classic scheme with mix pasteurisation the heat is there, and native flour works too. Heat-treated flour is needed where the heat is absent or insufficient: soft-serve dry mixes, dessert bases, and fillings added after pasteurisation. That is precisely the part of the industry where the choice of line decides whether the formulation works.
Ice cream as a finished product is more than the mix. The cone, the cup, the wafer sheet and the biscuit base are a separate technological node of the same plant — and usually the one that makes gluten-free ice cream impossible: the mix may well be gluten-free while the wafer is not.
Table: Products for the wafer and biscuit component
| Product | Lines available | Role | Shelf life |
|---|---|---|---|
| Corn flour | STD, TXT, SPC | Wafer sheets, cones, cups; colour and crunch; milling to brief in the SPC line | 12 months |
| Sorghum flour | STD | Cake layers and biscuit bases, flour blends | 18 months |
The baking technology of the wafer component is covered in more detail on the bread and bakery and confectionery pages — here these two products appear as part of the complete raw material list for ice cream production.
Table: Nutritional data per 100 g (from the product labelling)
| Product | Protein, g | Fat, g | of which saturates, g | Carbohydrate, g | of which sugars, g | Energy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sorghum flour | 10.6 | 4.1 | 0.48 | 60.0 | 1.87 | 1351 kJ / 323 kcal |
| Corn flour | 7.2 | 1.5 | 0.2 | 72.1 | 1.3 | 1385 kJ / 331 kcal |
| Rice flour | 6.0 | 1.4 | 0.4 | 81.0 | 0.1 | 1531 kJ / 366 kcal |
Average nutritional values are given. Depending on the origin of the produce, actual values may differ.
The note is quoted verbatim from the product labelling and applies to every row. Heat-treated flour is deliberately absent: its composition depends on the base grain and is stated in the batch specification — we do not publish calculated values.
For ice cream label recalculation the sugars column matters: rice flour carries 0.1 g per 100 g against 1.3 g in corn flour. At inclusion levels of a few per cent the contribution to total product sugar is small, but in formulations where sugar is controlled it is accounted for.
Sandiness is a classic ice cream defect, and the tongue detects it long before the laboratory does. Any particle of raw material that has not had time to swell in the mix stays in the finished product as a discrete body. So we give milling as a figure rather than the words "fine" and "uniform".
Table: Particle size of Kaskad LLC gluten-free flour
| Milling parameter | Limit |
|---|---|
| Passing a 160 µm sieve | not less than 60.0% |
| Retained on a 250 µm sieve | not more than 2.0% |
The first parameter sets the fine fraction: at least 60% of the mass passes a 160 µm sieve, so the flour distributes evenly through the mix and hydrates without local lumps. The second caps the coarse fraction: no more than 2% is retained on a 250 µm sieve — and it is that fraction which produces perceptible inclusions. Together they give a narrower particle distribution than a general-purpose mill, so mix viscosity does not drift from delivery to delivery and the formulation needs no re-tuning for every new batch.
Milling is done to the customer's brief. If your system needs a finer distribution — for a dry mix with rapid reconstitution, or for a particular freezer type — that is agreed as a technical brief in the SPC line. It starts with a trial batch and testing on your own equipment; series supply follows confirmation of the results.
We do not publish dosage. The proportion of flour depends on the mix composition, the fat and sugar levels, and the pasteurisation, ageing and freezing scheme. The working level is established by a trial mix; our staff technologist takes part in selecting the material and the processing parameters.
AOECS — the Crossed Grain trademark. Licence certificate No. UA0012026, licence number UA-001, valid to 06.02.2027. In practice: gluten content under 20 ppm, controlled as a system on the production site, with annual re-licensing. Kaskad LLC was the first company in Ukraine to obtain this right. For ice cream with a wafer component this is the decisive document: without it you can call the mix gluten-free, but not the product.
ISO 22000:2018. Certificate No. ODS-397/QS, certification body ICEC, valid to 19.09.2028. Scope, document numbers and limits — quality and certification.
Kosher. Certificate from The Jewish Community of Dnipro, Kosher Department, dated 17.02.2026.
The grain we use is Ukrainian. We import only what is not grown or produced in Ukraine.
Packaging. Industrial packaging is sacks of 30 and 50 kg. Non-standard formats are agreed as a technical brief, including for private label production.
Batch documents. A batch is accompanied by a quality passport or a manufacturer's declaration. A certificate of analysis (COA) is produced where required, by separate agreement.
Storage conditions. Verbatim from the document: store in dry, well-ventilated premises free from grain storage pests.
Table: Entry terms for a new customer
| Stage | Terms |
|---|---|
| Validation samples | free of charge, up to 5 kg |
| Sample lead time | 5 days |
| Minimum order | one sack (30 or 50 kg) |
Five kilograms is enough for a full incoming-inspection cycle and a trial mix run on your own equipment. There is no minimum-tonnage barrier between a free sample and a series contract.
Looking for flour for your household rather than raw material for production?
Kaskad LLC ships raw materials in industrial batches in 30 and 50 kg sacks and does not handle retail orders. Products under the Ms.Tally brand in 0.2–1 kg packs are available in our Ms.Tally retail shop. Same manufacturer, same production site — a different supply format.
Technologically flour does stabilising work: it raises total solids and mix viscosity and binds free water, and the less free water there is, the less material there is for ice crystals to grow on. But it is an ingredient, not a food additive: it carries no E number and is not a direct analogue of guar gum or xanthan — the mechanism and the dosage differ.
Rice flour, for the highest starch base in the range (81.0 g carbohydrate per 100 g), a neutral taste and a white colour that leaves the mix unchanged. Where the mix does not receive enough heat — in dry mixes and cold processes — heat-treated flour from the TXT line is used.
Hydration without cooking the mix out, and predictable viscosity across the heat–ageing–freezing cycle. Moisture in the TXT line is to specification.
Both, and a specification has to keep them apart. TXT is a mode available for rice, corn, buckwheat, oat, chickpea and red lentil flour. "Heat-treated flour" is a separate catalogue product whose base grain is chosen by the customer, with composition and shelf life stated in the batch specification.
Not if the particle size limits are met: at least 60.0% passes a 160 µm sieve and no more than 2.0% is retained on a 250 µm sieve. Perceptible inclusions come from the coarse fraction, and that fraction is capped by the limit in our technical specifications. A finer grind is produced to a technical brief in the SPC line.
Yes, and this is where heat-treated flour is most often chosen: it hydrates without boiling.
Yes, otherwise only the mix is gluten-free, not the product. Wafer sheets, cones and cups are made with corn flour and biscuit bases with sorghum; the baking technology is covered in more detail on the bread and bakery and confectionery pages.
We do not publish recommended percentages: the level depends on the mix composition, the fat and sugar levels, and the pasteurisation, ageing and freezing scheme. The working level is established by a trial mix on your equipment, with our staff technologist taking part.
Below 20 ppm — the Crossed Grain threshold.
Sacks of 30 and 50 kg, minimum order one sack. Samples are supplied free of charge, up to 5 kg, within 5 days. Kaskad LLC does not supply retail packs: 0.2–1 kg packs are produced under the Ms.Tally brand on a separate site, mstally.ua.
Phone: +38 099 977 74 43, +38 050 595 75 62 · Email: office@tovkaskad.com · Personal data
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