Guest Blog
Exploring novelties at Vitafoods Europe 2014
The European nutraceutical and supplements industry is gathered in Geneva to sell and buy, but also to meet friends and exchange ideas. The words “innovation” and “new” are frequently repeated in the show communications, so we at Invenire decided to start our visit by exploring the novelties in the Finished Products area.
1: “Made by nature”
The nutrition business is constantly searching for new ingredient sources. It is particularly trendy to find new and more natural sources for known ingredients. By this we mean sources that contain the desired ingredients naturally without a need to process or purify the ingredient greatly, or to synthetize it chemically.
Browsing through the New Product Zone at Finished Products Europe “made by nature” is already a prominent trend within vitamins and minerals. But also other
ingredients that we are used to seeing as highly purified ingredients are taking steps into this same direction.
A twist is added into this natural source concept, when the actual place of origin is clearly communicated. An example is “Seaweed harvested in Scotland (Seagreens ®/ Gee Lawson Nutritional)”. Another position to add is responsibility. Not just by buzzing the buzzword sustainability, but by actually demonstrating it by third party verification. In Invenire’s review, the winner of the best new ingredient product is Bioriginal’s MSC certified fish oil from Alaska Omega, the ingredient being the first fish oil in Europe with an MSC certificate.
2: Let it melt! Product format news
Traditionally nutritional supplements have been tablets or capsules, which some people just simply hate to swallow. One answer to this problem is to let the product melt and absorb already in the mouth e.g. through so called sublingual or buccal administration.
In some markets, such as Germany, these types of products have become more popular during the past years, whereas other markets are just seeing the start of novel delivery forms. UK-based PharmaCare was showcasing their VitaMelts dissolvable tablets in the Finished Products New Product Zone – also said to be tasty.
3: A concept with a soul makes a difference
Engaging stories as well as unique philosophy and values are definitely under-utilized in the nutrition business. One exception today was Belgian Innerme and their pure and simple sports nutrition products.
A real story with real people was the capturing moment in the novelty exploration at this year’s Vitafoods. It contained which ingredients? Ingredients? Which ingredients? That’s not a relevant question thinks the consumer as she has the trust that this brand delivers the right ones to fulfill their promises.
Passion. Drive. Purpose. Connection. Shared with the like-minded consumers. That is the simple recipe for novelty in nutrition business by Innerme style.
A recap of the first day is available in video format. You can also keep up with our consultants via twitter throughout the show! Just follow: @vvarjonen, @jtanhuanpaa & @invenire or follow the hashtag #VFE14.
