FrieslandCampina Ingredients boosts production of active and early-life nutrition ingredients

10 Oct 2023 --- Global protein and prebiotic giant FrieslandCampina Ingredients is doubling its total whey protein isolate and milk fat globule membrane (MFGM) production capacity with the expansion of its facility in Borculo, the Netherlands. The new ingredient expansion will begin commercial production in early 2026. 

"Proven, high-quality nutritional ingredients are in high demand, and dairy-derived ingredients tick this box for many markets. In recent years, we’ve seen an explosion in consumers seeking products like sports bars and waters fortified with whey protein, a known and trusted source of high-quality protein,” Herman Ermens, president of FrieslandCampina Ingredients, tells Nutrition Insight. 

A huge driver of the demand is increasing health-consciousness among consumers who take a more proactive interest in their well-being. These consumers recognize the benefits of adding health-boosting ingredients such as protein to their diets. 

“Whey proteins aren’t just for working out. It helps fuel consumers’ busy days, keeps them full for longer, and helps them build physical strength and resilience. The future of dairy lies in specialized, high-performing ingredients that make the most of dairy’s nutritional profile,” Ermens explains.

Champions of nutrition
The demand for high-quality whey protein ingredients has grown significantly, especially in specialist applications such as protein bars, shots and waters. There is also a strong demand for specialized nutrition in the early life and performance nutrition sectors. 

“Innovation in nutritional solutions is all about meeting consumer needs so people can lead healthy and fulfilling lives. That’s why R&D is so essential — from enhancing infant milk formula with a wider range of scientifically-proven ingredients and improving child nutrition after infancy to specialized applications like those that power athletes’ personal bests or support people leading active lives,” Ermens notes.

“Our goal is to understand consumer needs and provide ingredients that empower brands to meet them, whether by adding additional benefits that support immune, brain or gut health or enhancing ingredient capabilities to enable new, appealing product formats.”The demand for whey protein has grown exponentially and continues to do so.  

Production at the improved facility will comply with the most advanced manufacturing techniques. FrieslandCampina Ingredients is actively working on an integral reduction of CO2 emissions for the Borculo plant in line with its 2050 climate plan ambitions. 

As capacity grows, FrieslandCampina Ingredients will use a unique combination of filtration processes to preserve the whey’s bio-functionality, ensuring the quality and efficacy of the final ingredients. 

Ingredients that have an edge
FrieslandCampina Ingredients’ investment will allow more brand owners to offer the advantages of whey protein isolate and MFGM in their products. Whey protein isolate has a strong amino acid composition and can be incorporated into various beverage and powder applications. 

MFGM, which has traditionally catered to the early life nutrition market, is supported by a growing body of scientific evidence that allows premium brands to offer appealing brain and immune health benefits in their product propositions. In addition, MFGM has gained considerable interest in adult nutrition due to its suggested cognitive health and gut health benefits.

“Parents are increasingly informed about how good nutrition can support their children’s health and development, and they’re looking for specialized ingredients that can deliver the best for their babies,” Ermens underscores.

“MFGM is increasingly recognized as an ingredient that delivers the benefits parents want for their children, such as improved immune system and healthy brain development. By increasing our capacity of these two sought-out ingredients, we’re playing a key industry role in meeting these growing consumer needs.”

Keeping pace with R&D
Dairy is considered the nutritional gold standard because its nutrients provide health benefits for people at all life stages and a wide range of needs.FrieslandCampina Ingredients’ boosted production of ingredients will begin in 2026. 

“We strongly believe in continued research into dairy’s potential to uncover more possibilities to help people get the most out of life through products they love and trust. That’s why we’ve spent decades pushing the potential of this precious natural resource to new heights,” Ermens says. 

The FrieslandCampina Ingredients team leverages a century of application and production expertise to design highly complex, global production processes at scale and guarantee that ingredients meet nutritional quality standards and functional properties. 

“This means that customers partnering with us to leverage our whey protein or MFGM ingredients can benefit from working with a team that is experts in the industry, as well as an unrivaled understanding of how these ingredients can be formulated effectively to meet consumer needs,” Ermens concludes.

In 2022, the company extended its Vana-Sana range of micro-encapsulated long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acid ingredients for infant milk formula. The new ingredients – Vana-Sana DHA algae 20L, Vana-Sana ARA 20L and Vana-Sana DHA algae 11N include arachidonic acid developed from fungi oil and two docosahexaenoic acids products based on algae oil.

By Inga de Jong