DSM’s TensGuard receives top innovation prize at HIE

The company launched the peptide in February of this year, but first started talking about it with the industry at last year’s FIE in London. It is produced using advanced enzyme technology and contains dairy peptides, including Lactotripeptide Il-Pro-Pro (IPP), which is responsible for the blood-pressure lowering effect.

While normal dairy products do contain lactotripeptides, they are inactive in this form. They are released by enzymatic predigestion.

Luc van der Heyden, business manager for health health at DSM Nutritional Products, told NutraIngredients.com that the award is significant because the judging panel included manufacturers (Unilever and Kelloggs Europe) and retailers (Albert Heijn).

​

Applications ​

He said that TensGuard is already “moving fast”​ in dietary supplements in markets such as the UK, Spain, Italy and the US.

For food products, it would most logically find a place in products that are already perceived as healthy, such as yoghurt drinks and cereals.

DSM has also revealed at HIE this week that it has successfully conducted tests into the use of the ingredient in a blood pressure-lowering chicken soup, in combination with some of its other savoury ingredients which allow for a lower salt content.

Excess salt consumption is a major contributing factor in high blood pressure (hypertension). Thus, the soup application opens the way towards products that could not only reduce hypertension risk by curtailing salt consumption, but lower blood pressure as well.

In bakery products, van der Heyden said that there is a need to check the active ingredient levels, since the heat process may render the peptides unstable.

Once DSM has cornered all the healthier application formats, it will also start looking at TensGuard’s use in more indulgent products.

Health claims ​

Van der Heyden said that peptides are included on the article 13 positive list of the new health claims regulation, which means manufacturers may use the blood-pressure lowering claim on packs.

“We are in the comfort zone,”​ he said, pointing out that there have been more than 20 studies on the peptide’s effect in the last 10 years, and meta-analyses to confirm it.

Silver and gold awards ​

Despite being pipped to the top award by DSM, Kemin Health Europe was also celebrating receiving the silver award for its Slendesta potato extract.

​

“This award recognises the effort we have put into developing a product that is scientifically proven and offers customer a sign of our commitment to developing high-quality, effective and safe products,”​ said technical service manager Samanta Maci.

Brudy Technology won the bronze award for its antioxidant ingredient Algatrium, which was eight years in development.