Valio is to launch its probiotic cheese in Belgium, the first
country outside its home market, where cheese is a fast-growing new
application area for the health-promoting bacteria, writes
Dominique Patton.
Synbiotics, a combination of prebiotic and probiotic bacteria,
appear to reduce the risk of colon cancer, the most common form of
cancer in the European Union, revealed researchers last month.
Nutritional ingredients producer DSM is to launch an improved
version of its Lafti probiotics in the USA, which are said to offer
superior survival through the GI tract, writes Wai Lang Chu.
Japanese probiotics pioneer Yakult and French yoghurts and biscuits
maker Danone said today they will set up a new alliance to push
growth of their functional foods businesses and cement their
leading positions in the probiotics market.
A major, randomised trial to assess the effectiveness of probiotic
bacteria in reducing infections in intensive care patients, the
first such study to be carried out in the US, may help to expand
applications for the supplement to...
Swedish probiotics developer BioGaia, made significant progress
towards profitability in the past year thanks to a take-off in
higher margin sales in Japan.
A number of probiotic products available in South Africa do not
live up to the claims on their labels, report researchers in the
February issue of the South African Medical Journal (94:
121-124).
Sourdough bread containing select bacteria may be tolerated by
patients with a rare digestive disease that causes gluten
intolerance, say Italian and Irish researchers. The new research
could provide new opportunities for food producers...
Belgium's Orafti group is investing €165 million in a second
chicory-extraction plant in Chile to respond to fast-growing demand
for inulin and oligofructose.
Ingredients giant Danisco moves into the lead in the global
cultures business with its acquisition of the food ingredients arm
of ailing French chemical firm Rhodia.
Infant formula with added probiotic bacteria appeared to reduce
irritability in infants and lowered the frequency of antibiotic
use, report US researchers.
Probiotics, the bacteria thought to help gut health disorders,
allergies and even some forms of cancer, contain immune
system-stimulating DNA, which makes them just as effective when
inactivated as when consumed as live microorganisms...
Strong growth in cultures and human health products partly driven
by developments in the dairy industry, as well as rises for colours
and flavours, helped first quarter ingredients sales at Danish firm
Chr Hansen.
Combining prebiotic and probiotic ingredients, commonly known as a
synbiotic, has different effects from those of the individual
supplements and does not simply result in additive or synergistic
effects, report German researchers...
Dutch ingredients producer Sensus has significantly expanded its
presence in the South American market through new agreements with
distributors in Argentina and Chile.
Uncertainty about recent EU proposals for health claims legislation
presents a major challenge to players in the probiotics market,
suggests a new market analysis.
New Jersey-based Bradley Pharmaceuticals is to market a new
probiotic product, supplied by Danish probiotics leader Chr.
Hansen, to the North American physicians market.
In response to an increasing worldwide demand for pectin, Danish
ingredients company Danisco is to expand its Czech production
capacity by 40 per cent to accommodate an expected growth rate of
5-6 per cent on the world market.
The rye grain, and rye bran in particular, is rich in dietary fibre
and also contains a significant fructan concentration, which may
have important prebiotic properties, suggests a new publication.
Experts meeting at a symposium on probiotics this autumn said that
further scientific support is needed to explore the strong
potential for health benefits of these bacteria.
Danish ingredients company Chr. Hansen has teamed up with dairy
manufacturers to develop a new yoghurt culture - Yo-Flex - designed
to be used in products with less fat and fewer additives.
Products that promote benefits for gut health are driving sales of
functional foods in Europe, shows a new report, outpacing those
foods targeting consumers at risk of heart or bone diseases.
Regular consumption of the sugar replacer Isomalt appears to have a
prebiotic effect on gut bacteria, according to preliminary findings
of a study being carried out in Germany.
Leading Swedish dairy firm Skanemejerier has gained the rights to
use BioGaia's probiotic Reuteri bacteria in milk products for
launch on the Scandinavian market at the end of next year.
Leading ingredients firm Danisco has announced its second licensing
deal for the Howaru probiotic strain with Chile's biggest dairy
processor Soprole. The agreement looks set to generate significant
interest among food makers...
Lifeway Foods, the Illinois-based producer of kefir and other
probiotic foods, has continued to lift sales and profits in the
third quarter of the year, helped by the launch of a new product
and effective marketing.
Swedish probiotics firm BioGaia has taken over the marketing of its
Reuteri bacteria to the international dairy industry, formerly
managed by Denmark's Chr. Hansen, allowing it to boost revenue from
new dairy customers. It has...
Sales have continued to slide at German chemicals firm Degussa
during 2003 and lower volumes continue to drag down food
ingredients business. A one-off charge to restructure the fine
chemcials unit impacts profits.
An overview of the Korean market for nutraceuticals suggests that
it is growing by 20-30 per cent annually, representing a
significant opportunity for foreign companies.
A probiotic cheese and products with high CLA levels are among the
foods being developed at a new €16 million functional food research
centre, recently opened in Ireland. One of its goals is to boost
the competitive advantage of Irish...
Limited consumer awareness threatens to restrain the development of
probiotics markets, finds a new Frost & Sullivan report, yet
sales of the healthy ingredient are still set to almost triple in
value over the next six years.
Food makers could one day face demand for fructose-free products as
preliminary findings link the sugar found in fruits to a role in
gastrointestinal disorders.
Nutritional products company Natrol has introduced a new
triple-shell beadlet technology, BioBeads, designed to improve
delivery of active probiotics in supplements to the intestinal
tract.
Belgian firm Cosucra Groupe Warcoing is exiting the sugar beet
processing business to concentrate entirely on added value
ingredients for health foods, it announced this week.
Scientists have identified significant antibacterial and
antioxidant activity in two plant extracts, used traditionally in
Ghana to heal wounds, they reported at a conference last week.
A faster way to measure quantities of vitamin B12, both in foods
and in dietary supplements, has been developed by scientists in the
US. The discovery will improve data for commercial vitamin
supplements.
UK firm Provexis looks set to release a novel heart-healthy drink
next year after recent human trials on its tomato-based product
proved successful. CardioFlow is a concentrated tomato extract but
it contains no lycopene.
Pioneering Belgian ingredients supplier Orafti Active Food
Ingredients is the first, and only, producer of inulin and
oligofructose to get the GMP stamp of approval from the American
Institute of Baking.
The Danish Consumer Council has given a damning indictment of
Danisco's fat replacement product Salatrim, prompting the
ingredients group to issue a statement reiterating its confidence
in the product.
Seaweed species have been found to defend themselves from specific
pathogens with naturally occurring antibiotics, which could present
oppportunities for future nutraceuticals, report US researchers.
Danish probiotics maker Chr. Hansen reported flat sales in its food
ingredients division for the first six months of the year although
there was good growth in cultures.
Danish ingredients company Danisco announced this week that it is
use new production facilities in Denmark to produce Natamax - a
natural, biological preservative.
The Food Standards Authority of Australia and New Zealand confirms
that milk is safe and nutritious, despite arguments suggesting that
some types of milk can lead to diseases such as autism and
diabetes.
Flat sales at Chr. Hansen's food ingredients unit in the first
quarter, as a slight rise in sales in Europe, South America and
Asia/Pacific failed to account for the 6 per cent drop in North
America.
Scientists at the University of Southampton in the UK have received
funding to study whether genes can influence the benefits gained by
some people from dietary antioxidants. The team is hoping to find
out why some people benefit...
As the most recently defined category of biotics, postbiotics hold significant potential for innovation across a wide variety of applications in the Health...
1 billion people struggle with sleep, impacting 72% of them severely, reports Euromonitor. In a world prioritizing “mental wellness” and “having a healthy...
