Beyond The Headlines: AIP to buy Aker BioMarine feed ingredients, USDA launches US$100M children’s meal program

12 Jul 2024 --- This week in nutrition news, American Industrial Partners (AIP) announced it will acquire Aker BioMarine’s krill fish feed ingredients business, while Lallemand Bio-Ingredients partnered with Exter North America to explore culinary innovation. UK-based companies dominated the 2024 Sustainable Food Awards, which was held in Amsterdam, Netherlands.

In health and nutrition news, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) introduced its US$100 million social program SUN Bucks to assist families with children in purchasing nutritious food during the summer. Weight loss medication provider Ivím Health introduced a first-of-its-kind corporate weight loss program and the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) updated seven entries of botanicals listed in its online Botanical Safety Handbook. The US Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) expressed gratitude to the US Chamber of Commerce and three other national associations for their strong support for its ongoing lawsuit.

In nutrition science, researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NIH) in the US found that the consumption of fruit juices before six months increases the chances of poor cardiovascular health as children grow. Researchers in China showed evidence that prediabetic patients may reduce their chance of mortality by ensuring they do not develop diabetes four years following the diagnosis. Also in China, new research into citrus biology could open the door to healthier and more resilient fruit sorts.

Business news
Global industrial investor AIP shared plans to acquire Aker BioMarine’s feed ingredients business, which will now be held by the newly established Aker BioMarine Antarctic Holding II AS. The new company will be owned for 60% by AIP and 40% by Aker BioMarine. The business is the world’s only industrial-scale harvester of krill fish, a natural source of sustainable and healthy nutrients for animals and human food. The krill is sourced at three purpose-built Antarctic harvesting and processing vessels and one support vessel and processed at a shoreside operation in Uruguay.

Exter North America and Lallemand Bio-Ingredients partner to research and develop new culinary flavor technologies.Exter North America, specializing in the production of oven-baked savory snacks, and Lallemand Bio-Ingredients, a producer of yeast, bacteria, fungi and enzyme solutions, launched a strategic North America-focused joint venture focused on the development of culinary flavor technologies. The partnership aligns with Exter’s long-term strategic goals, which emphasize regionalization and the expansion of its geographical footprint. Lallemand’s goals for the joint venture include working on solutions for targeted markets to meet industry and consumer needs. 

UK companies came out on top at the recent 2024 Sustainable Food Awards held in Amsterdam, Netherlands, according to Ecovia Intelligence, global organics specialist. Aduna Superfoods received the gold in the New Sustainable Product category for its Superfood Blends. Pact Coffee won Best Sustainable Ingredient for its Cenicafé 1 Arabica coffee variety, which is resistant to disease and pests. The event was held on July 4 as part of the European edition of the Sustainable Foods Summit (July 4–5).

Health and nutrition news
The USDA shared plans to invest US$100 million to assist families with children in purchasing nutritious food during the summer. The new, permanent SUN Bucks program aims to improve food and nutrition security during the summer break when kids lose access to school meals. SUN Bucks allows families US$120 benefit per eligible school-aged child to buy food at grocery stores and farmers markets, among other retailers. The USDA estimates that when it is fully implemented, the program will reach more than 30 million children.

GLP-1 provider Ivím Health introduced a corporate weight loss program focused on improving the health, well-being and productivity of employees. The program was made possible through collaboration with Xevant, a custom data analytics and insurance claims processing solutions provider. Nicknamed “Ivím at Work,” the initiative includes personalized GLP-1 weight management therapies and a care team to offer support. Ivím Health strives to address society’s need for a GLP-1 benefits program that addresses supply chain constraints and lowers GLP-1 medication pricing.

The AHPA updated seven entries of botanicals listed in its online Botanical Safety Handbook, 2nd Ed., while also adding a new entry — Lion’s Mane mushrooms. The revisions include the adding of references to FDA releases, newly conducted studies and trials offering insights about toxicity, history and application of Atropa belladonna (belladonna), Azadiracta indica (neem bark and leaf), Boswellia spp. (boswellia), Bupleurum spp. (bupleurum), Buxus semperivens (boxwood) and Cetraria islandica (Iceland moss). The new entry Hericium erinaceus (Lion’s Mane) documents its food use, clinical trial and adverse event reports, pharmacology studies and toxicity studies.

GLP-1 provider Ivím Health introduced a corporate weight loss program focused on improving the health, well-being and productivity of employees.Regulatory news
The CRN shared its gratitude to the US Chamber of Commerce and three other national associations for their support for the CRN in its legal challenge against New York’s General Business Law, which poses restrictions on the sale of some dietary supplements based on  labeling and marketing. The Consumer Healthcare Products Association, The Food Industry Association and the National Association of Chain Drug Stores filed an amicus (“friend of the court”) brief with CRN in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

Scientific studies
Children who received fruit juices as part of their diet before turning six months are more likely to have high blood pressure and other signs of cardiac risk at the age of eight to ten years old, according to research conducted by the NIH in the US. The research team analyzed data from the Upstate KIDS study, including 5,000 mothers and more than 6,000 infants. The scientists behind the study are calling for further research into how the consumption of fruit juices and other sugar-containing beverages affects the cardiovascular health of young children.

Newly released research into the well-being of prediabetic patients conducted at the China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing, China and published in PLOS offers new evidence of the long-term health and longevity of preventing the onset of type 2 diabetes through diet and exercise. The study is based on a six-year trial with 540 pre-diabetic participants conducted in Qing City in China, which started in 1986. The research concluded that participants who remained non-diabetic for at least four years after their prediabetic diagnosis had a notably lower risk of dying and experiencing a cardiovascular event compared to those who did develop diabetes. The observed protective effect is referred to as the “four-year threshold.” 

A breakthrough into the biosynthesis of flavonoid glycosides in citrus could improve the nutritional potency and disease resistance of such fruits. The study by scientists at the Nanjing Agricultural University, China, published in Horticulture Research, considers the role of specific flavonoid 7-O-glucosyltransferase genes in the synthesis of flavonoid glycosides, revealing a previously unknown level of complexity in citrus biology. According to the researchers, their findings demystify a critical aspect of citrus flavonoid production, which can offer a genetic roadmap to enriching the health attributes of citrus and improve their defense mechanisms.

By Milana Nikolova