Kalsec and Willow Biosciences collaborate on savory functional ingredient program

21 Jul 2023 --- Biotech company Willow Biosciences and global natural taste producer Kalsec are advancing their functional ingredient development program for a large-volume savory foods initiative. The two companies also joined forces in 2022 to develop and commercialize a precision fermentation production process that harnesses the metabolic properties of brewer’s yeast.

Following a successful phase one feasibility program that applied Willow’s BioOxi platform, Kalsec will continue full development toward commercialization, including additional R&D and scale-up work. 

“Our team has identified a number of savory food and beverage ingredient targets where we can potentially engage with Willow to help bring the best products possible to Kalsec’s customers with a keen focus on innovation and sustainability,” says Dr. Roger Nahas, executive vice president, global R&D and chief innovation officer at Kalsec. 

Strategic focus
Willow Biosciences will continue generating revenue from research fees aligning with its business focus for near-term revenue generation on programs. Negotiations of commercial terms will be ongoing as the program advances.

Kalsec provides taste and sensory, natural food protection, natural colors and advanced hops solutions to F&B industries, while Willow Biosciences produces precision fermented functional ingredients for health and wellness, food and beverage and personal care.Functional ingredients such as protein feature significantly in ready-to-drink offerings.

“We are excited by the opportunity to engage with Kalsec’s team in bringing to market what could potentially be a number of sustainably sourced innovative ingredients that favorably enhance customers’ products and the consumer experience,” says Dr. Chris Savile, president and CEO at Willow Biosciences.

Industry developments
Consumers are increasingly looking for nutrition supplement offerings to increase their performance abilities. The market for new solutions in these areas continues to grow from sports and cognitive performance to healthy aging and vitality.

For example, at this year’s Vitafoods expo, protein, nutrients and nutraceuticals were heavily featured in ready-to-drink and ready-to-mix drinks. The functional ingredients used in these offerings included astaxanthin, calcium, carotenoids, vitamins and next-generation protein solutions.

Younger generations are proactively seeking products that can help maintain health in a world where overall well-being is continually prioritized as consumers want to be in their best shape, physically and mentally. Historically, the target demographic for health food focused on older generations. 

Formulating functional and enjoyable products can be challenging, especially when combining taste and efficacy. To meet this demand, companies are turning to innovative solutions that retain ingredient bioactivity while being cognizant of the importance of delivery format.

Edited by Inga de Jong

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