Beyond The Headlines: Soul Strips’ nanotech-enabled vitamin offering, Pumpkin Spice collagen peptides

04 Aug 2023 --- This week in nutrition news, Soul Strips unveiled its “hyperconvenient” vitamin-delivering tooth strips – for humans and pets. Meanwhile, Vital Proteins unveiled new fall-flavored collagen peptides. Also, Royal Avebe was found by Ecovadis to be among the top 5% of companies certified for sustainability within its supply chain.

In brief: Nutrition news
Vitamin brand Soul Strips says it aims to provide simple and easy nutritional support for maintaining health and is looking to create stress-free health care by offering oral strip vitamins that help achieve wellness goals while being extremely convenient. It has developed nano-technology formulations that enable nutrients to absorb through the oral cavity and into the bloodstream in under a minute. These edible film strips come individually packaged, making them “hyperconvenient” for adults, kids and pets. With a wide range of offerings, from immunity to gut-health, the company says it is poised to “revolutionize health maintenance,” turning it into a simple and hassle-free daily routine.Vital Proteins has unveiled two fall-themed collagen peptide flavors, including Pumpkin Spice. (Image Credit: Vital Proteins)

Collagen brand, Vital Proteins introduced two new seasonal flavors – Salted Caramel and Pumpkin Spice Collagen Peptides – in order to capture “the essence of fall.” The company says the flavors offer the “warm and comforting taste of the season” while providing the health benefits of collagen. The collagen peptides have been shown to have beauty-from-within effects like promoting healthy hair, skin and nails, as well as supporting bone, joint and muscle health. The company says consumers can easily incorporate these new flavors into their daily routine by adding them to coffee, smoothies, oatmeal or fall-inspired recipes.

Dutch cooperative Royal Avebe has received a gold medal from Ecovadis, a global platform that assesses sustainability performance in supply chains. This recognition places Avebe among the top 5% in sustainability within the industry. Avebe claims its commitment to sustainability is evident in its efforts to reduce water usage, CO2 emissions and waste, as well as its focus on chemical reduction in factories and energy consumption. The cooperative also established a sustainable cultivation program with its members, leading to a decrease in crop protection agents’ use. Moreover, the company says its purchasing conditions prioritize sustainability, with a reduction in truck transport and the use of RSPO-certified palm oil-based ingredients.

Greenfilled, a Spanish nutraceutical brand that focuses on developing clean and effective supplements, is emphasizing the health benefits of its key ingredient, phytoplankton. The company highlights that phytoplankton contains the essential enzyme superoxide dismutase (SOD), a potent antioxidant that supports cellular health, healthy aging and overall physical and mental performance. Additionally, it says its SOD ingredient, TetraSOD, is sustainably sourced from land-based farms with high SOD concentrations, avoiding disruption to the ocean ecosystem. The company also says it is committed to eco-friendly practices and recently switched to sustainable bottles for packaging.Greenfilled’s TetraSOD is packed with nutrients and made with sustainable “land-sourced” phytoplankton.

In Brief: Product launches
Hi-Tech launched Krank3D, a pre-workout supplement that the company says it has been developing for 15 years. Furthermore, it says the supplement utilizes a proprietary compound called Citrulline Silicate (Nitro Rx), a nitric oxide compound. The supplement also incorporates Arginase Inhibition technology, leaving an abundance of L-arginine to increase muscular vasodilation and accelerate muscle growth by enhancing training intensity, work performance and promoting rapid recovery during the pre-workout window. The formula also includes a stimulant blend and is available in six flavors, including Rocket Pop, Fruit Punch, Peach Rings, Tutti Fruiti, Snow Cone and Blue Razz.

Else Nutrition is introducing a ready-to-drink (RTD) product – Kids Nutritional Shakes in vanilla and chocolate flavors. This marks the company’s expansion from its successful powdered product range into the larger and fast-growing RTD market. According to the company, the new offerings are designed to address the growing concern of children’s nutrition and offer a nutrient-rich alternative for busy parents. It further highlights that the drinks are free from harmful chemicals, gluten, dairy, soy, corn syrup and GMOs and contain over 20 essential nutrients and less sugar than many leading brands. Else Nutrition’s products have also been approved for US federal insurance billing, making them more accessible to families nationwide.

Pet Honesty partnered with PetSmart to sell its pet supplements both in-store and online.In brief: Pet nutrition
Pet Honesty is celebrating its fifth anniversary by launching its veterinarian-recommended pet health supplements at PetSmart, making it available at the top three pet retailer stores in the US, including Petco and Pet Supplies Plus. The company says the move means the brand’s natural pet health supplements are now accessible at over 7,000 stores nationwide and online, helping pet owners who are seeking supplement options for their pets. PetSmart is the first retailer to feature Pet Honesty’s cat health supplements, including Calming, Hairball Support and Hip Plus Joint Health. The brand has also achieved significant growth, earning over 110,000 five-star reviews and donating US$1.05 million in in-kind donations to non-profit pet organizations.

Global pet care and nutrition producer Compana Pet Brands has partnered with Smart Cups – a sustainability-driven technology company specializing in precise ingredient dosing through printing – and entered an exclusive two-year deal. The companies say the partnership aims to revolutionize the pet care industry by utilizing Smart Cups’ printing technology to directly print accurate doses of pet supplements onto recyclable pet bowls, providing convenience and precision in pet care. The collaboration “combines technology with supplements to enhance the well-being of pets, allowing pet owners to deliver precise dosing and nutrients for optimal health.”

In brief: Scientific studies
A study found that even small changes in school meal nutrition could decrease mortality and lower future healthcare costs for school-aged children.Despite the improved nutritional quality of today’s school meals compared to the past, one in four school meals still lacks proper nutrition, according to a recent study. Conducted by investigators from Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, the results highlight the potential positive impact of fully aligning school meals with the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans. By implementing updated school lunch guidelines with less sugar, salt and more whole grains, the researchers state that even partial compliance by schools could lead to significant reductions in short- and long-term health issues for students of all ages. Published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, the study estimates that these changes could prevent over 10,600 deaths per year due to diet-related diseases and save over US$19 billion annually in healthcare-related costs during later adulthood. Aligning school meals with the new guidelines could also have modest but important short-term health benefits for children, including lower body mass indexes and blood pressure. The study’s findings highlight the potential for even small changes in school nutrition policies to have a positive impact on students’ long-term health and healthcare costs.

Researchers from the University of Gothenburg and probiotic producer BioGaia AB say they have made a breakthrough in developing future probiotic treatments by making oxygen-sensitive gut bacteria oxygen-tolerant. The study focused on Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, an anti-inflammatory gut bacterium that is reduced in conditions like Type 2 diabetes and in many cardiovascular diseases. By co-isolating it with the bacterium Desulfovibrio piger, which has beneficial effects on its growth and function, and “training” the oxygen-sensitive bacteria in a favorable electrochemical environment, the researchers say they were able to isolate more oxygen-tolerant Faecalibacterium prausnitzii. The study, published in Nature, reveals that the advancement could lead to the development of probiotics that improve glucose control in individuals with prediabetes. The researchers plan to further study the impact of supplementation with these bacteria on sugar control in future research.

By William Bradford Nichols