Prepared Foods and its NutraSolutions brand present this annual “Ingredients for Health” reference. It offers market data and information about commercially available ingredients that assist developers and formulators with products targets various health benefits. From ingredients such as chia seed and red tomato for antioxidant supplementation, to the colors, flavors and textures that make functional foods and beverages products attractive and palatable, this section offers a comprehensive range of new offerings.
Categories include:
Energy and/or Sports Performance
Products claiming to help bolster the immune system have become relatively numerous during recent years, particularly in baby foods, soft drinks and dairy products. Launch numbers continued to rise in 2013, despite ongoing regulatory issues with regard to health claims having a potentially adverse effect in some countries and regions.
Key ingredients for immune enhancement include a range of probiotic strains and blends, vitamins, particularly the so-called ACE vitamins, and zinc, although many of the products using these do not make specific claims, relying on consumer association of the product ingredients with these benefits.
Key product sectors using this type of claim include baby foods, soft drinks and dairy products, with the strongest individual categories in 2013 including baby formulas/milks (35%), juice and juice drinks (5%), baby cereal and biscuits, tea and drinking yogurt all 4%. In the EU, where probiotic claims for immunity are no longer allowed, Danone has taken the step of adding high vitamin C superfruits to some of its products, in order to still be able to make an immunity claim.
—Lu Ann Williams, Innova Market Insights, helpdesk@innovami.com, www.innovadatabase.com
Natural Ingredient
Wellmune is a natural food and beverage ingredient clinically proven to safely boost the immune system to help keep the body healthy. It is ideal for everyday use year-round for everyone in the family. A beta 1,3/1,6 glucan derived from a proprietary strain of yeast, Wellmune helps mobilize billions of innate immune cells that are part of the body’s natural defenses. Wellmune’s ability to help the body stay well is clinically proven in 10 human clinical studies conducted with marathoner runners, medical students, children and others experiencing physical and lifestyle stress. Available in products in more than 60 countries, Wellmune is patented, Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) under U.S. FDA regulations, kosher, halal, non-allergenic, gluten-free and GMO-free.—Biothera, www.wellmune.com
Natural Immune Support
Lonza’s ResistAid is a proprietary natural immune support ingredient made from U.S. larch trees, which grow in abundance. ResistAid consists of the soluble polysaccharide arabinogalactan and bioactive polyphenolic flavonoids, and thus has antioxidant capacity.
ResistAid supports both the innate and adaptive immune responses as well as gastrointestinal health. Clinical study results indicate that ResistAid has the ability to modulate and support both arms of the immune system and provide benefit from antioxidant capacity. ResistAid has a number of technical properties that make it easy to incorporate into dietary supplements and functional foods. ResistAid
is highly soluble, dissolving completely in hot or cold water. It is stable at a wide range of temperatures and pH. In beverages, it keeps its functionality and neither degrades or hydrolyzes.
ResistAid is certified kosher and self-affirmed GRAS with US FDA notification.—Lonza Group Ltd., www.lonza.com
Probiotics
DuPont Nutrition & Health offers a full line of probiotics—many with immune enhancing benefits. HOWARU Protect probiotics are clinically documented to help maintain natural immune defenses. There are three ready-to-market formulations HOWARU Protect Kids, HOWARU Protect Adult and the most recent addition to the line, HOWARU Protect Sport (which helps physically active adults stay healthy for optimal sports performance). Based on a study published in Clinical Nutrition, the formulation promoted a greater level of physical activity; significantly extended exercise duration; significantly improved training intensity and delayed the onset of respiratory infection.—DuPont Nutrition & Health, www.danisco.com
