Digestive health: Naturex and Olene partner on ginger extract powder

30 Oct 2017 --- Naturex and India-based Olene have partnered through Ingenium, Naturex’s Open Innovation Program, to bring Gingest to the global market. Gingest is a new, highly standardized ginger extract powder for natural digestive health applications.

Gingest was developed using Olene’s innovative and patented new technology, Aqueosome. The company notes that the solvent-free and safe process makes it possible to obtain ginger oleoresin powder while retaining a high level of standardization of active compounds.

“Ginger is well known for its health benefits (especially for the digestive system) mainly due to the documented benefits of two major bioactive compounds – gingerols and shogaols,” Alexis Manfré, Global Category Manager Health & Nutrition for Naturex, tells NutritionInsight. “Until now the big challenge has been to concentrate them in a convenient powder format. What’s so exciting about Gingest is that by reaching a standardization of more than 26 percent of gingerols and shogaols, it allows manufacturers and brands to deliver to consumers all key ginger actives in a small powder serving size (smaller than 200mg) that can fit in a single capsule.”

“Digestive health has long been a major concern for consumers and increasingly they want solutions that are efficient, safe, natural, convenient, and sourced from an ingredient they recognize,” Manfré continues. “They also increasingly care about how products are sourced. Gingest is obtained using a solvent-free and safe process but also guarantees traceability, purity, high levels of active compounds in a small serving, and ease of use in multiple applications to answer main trends of this dietary supplement category.”

Ginger set to succeed
Ginger, which is “set to be the next big thing in botanicals” according to the press release, could be an answer to digestive health issues, which remain a major concern for millions of consumers worldwide. The companies point out that ginger has been known for centuries to relieve nausea, to calm and soothe digestion and to promote gastrointestinal comfort.

“There are three main keys to success in botanicals: consumer’s awareness, level of science and innovation. Ginger is set to be the next big botanical because it ticks all the boxes,” Manfré tells NutritionInsight. “Ginger is a familiar food ingredient (a traditional Asian spice), but it has also been known for centuries in traditional Ayurveda and Chinese medicines that it relieves nausea, calms digestion and promotes gastrointestinal comfort.”

“The level of science on ginger’s benefits has increased in an exponential manner over the past 20 years, reaching in 2017 more than 1,500 scientific articles and more than 120 clinical studies, including more than 40 on digestive health,” Manfré adds. “With Gingest, we are contributing to filling in the innovation pipeline for Ginger extracts.”

Innovative natural solution for digestive health
“Our partnership with Olene enables us to bring to market a new natural digestive health solution that delivers on all of the dietary supplement industry’s key priorities: traceability, purity, efficacy, high levels of concentration in small volumes and ease of use in multiple applications,” says Manfré.

“Our goal with Gingest is to set a new benchmark for highly standardized ginger powder and to begin educating the public about the documented benefits of gingerols and shogaols for digestive health,” Manfré adds.

“Through Naturex, we found a very strategic and resourceful partner in bringing our Aqueosome technology and in particular, Gingest, to the market,” says Vivek A. Parachur, Co-founder and CEO of Olene. “We are very happy to be partnering with Naturex, a company that embodies the same values as us in its work culture to ensure that the consumer gets the most scientifically validated product.”

“We are most certain that Naturex’s credibility, market insights and global presence will make Gingest the best-in-class product in its category,” Parachur concludes.

By Paul Creasy