Beyond The Headlines: Charitable prebiotic pet nutrition, Enzyme engineering unlocks rare sugars

This week in industry news, Natac’s Innovaoleo introduced Omega 3 Star, marketed as containing the highest concentration of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) fish oil tailored for food, nutraceutical, and pet use with neutral taste and smell. Meanwhile, Cuddly debuted a functional dog food line that doubles as a charitable initiative, donating a meal to shelters for every bag sold. On the science front, Allozymes and Bonumose are making strides in enzyme engineering to unlock more efficient, plant-based production of rare sugars from starch.

New product launches

Innovaoleo launched Omega 3 Star, a fish oil specially designed for applications in food, nutraceuticals, and pet nutrition. After several months of research and development, the company partnered with suppliers to produce an oil that has the highest concentration of essential fatty acids EPA and DHA at its factory in As Somozas (A Coruña), the largest in Spain. The product offers neutrality in terms of taste, smell, and color.

Animal welfare funding platform Cuddly launched a line of pet food benefitting a give-back initiative for US shelters (Image credit: Cuddly).Cuddly, a fundraising platform supporting nonprofit animal welfare organizations, unveiled its food product line, Cuddly Food. Launched with Salmon & Rice Dog Kibble, the line’s “gentle” formula prioritizes pet nutrition and is made with natural prebiotic ingredients that support pet health and boost immune systems. The food line also supports US pet communities through a give-back initiative. With every bag of food purchased, Cuddly says it will donate a meal to a shelter or rescue pet in need. Purchasing with a purpose with Cuddly Food benefits animal welfare organizations and pets in need, especially during a crucial time when 6.3 million companion animals are brought to shelters across the US and the cost of veterinary care increased by 7.6% in the last year alone.

Scientific research

Protein engineering specialist Allozymes and sugar tech innovator Bonumose announced promising early results from their collaboration to enhance enzyme performance in the production of rare monosaccharides from starch and sugar feedstocks. Bonumose developed novel enzyme combinations that convert plant-based inputs into high-yield, high-purity sugars using energetically efficient processes. Allozymes fine-tuned the key enzymes for industrial scalability using its advanced microfluidics-based platform, capable of screening up to 20 million enzyme variants daily — accelerating development timelines.

A large European clinical trial published in JAMA Network, involving 1,105 patients found that intravenous ferric carboxymaltose, while well tolerated, did not significantly reduce the risk of cardiovascular death or heart failure hospitalizations in patients with heart failure and iron deficiency compared to placebo. Despite a modest reduction in some outcomes, none of the primary endpoints met the statistical thresholds for significance. The findings suggest limited benefit of ferric carboxymaltose for improving clinical outcomes in this patient group.

Brand engagement and initiatives

Gnosis by Lesaffre rebranded its non-animal chondroitin sulfate. Chondroitin is a natural component of human cartilage, bones, and connective tissues. It is a key structural element of cartilage, providing cushioning and lubrication for the joints. Gnosis launched Mythocondro in 2016. MyCondro is a shorter name, with “My” signifying the ingredient’s “closeness to human chondroitin sulfate — crafted through fermentation technology to offer superior bioavailability.” “Condro” directly links to chondroitin sulfate and is a reference to how the ingredient biomimics what is naturally found in the human body. Gnosis highlights that the problems plaguing animal-derived chondroitin have not changed, with suppliers facing challenges to demonstrate efficacy due to the heterogeneity of the actives sourced from animals, which caused chondroitin to lose momentum with consumers. However, it adds that consumers shopping for joint health support have widened — a category once dominated by traditional senior shoppers has grown.

Bone health charity, the Royal Osteoporosis Society (ROS), teamed up with California Prunes for a fourth year to highlight the positive effects prunes can have on maintaining healthy bones. Prunes are high in vitamin K and a source of manganese, both of which contribute to the maintenance of normal bones. They became the first natural food to be awarded “Bone Health Approved” status by the ROS in 2022. A series of recent studies reveal the impact a daily serving of prunes can have on bone health at every age, including research among 18- to 25-year-old women published last year by the American Society of Nutrition. It showed that a handful of prunes per day may reduce the risk of bone loss associated with oral contraceptive use (50 grams of prunes daily over 12 months). Statistics from the charity, which recently announced it is scaling up its work to get early diagnosis services set up across the UK, reveal that 2,500 people die from hip fractures each year.

Next Health, heading health optimization and longevity centers, teamed up with wellness cafe Sunlife Organics to launch a superfood smoothie, the Limitless Smoothie. The drink blends ingredients designed to energize and support cellular health, such as resveratrol, maca, MCT oil, coconut water, and vitamin C by Cymbiotika. The limited-time smoothie comes with a Next Health cap and is available through May 4 at SunLife Organics in West Hollywood, Century City, and Nashville, US.

New hires and leadership

Stratum Nutrition appointed Marie Parks as its new ingredient science specialist, bringing an extensive background in ingredient research and product development within the nutraceutical industry. In her new role, Parks will work closely with the commercial side of Stratum’s operations, delivering in-depth analysis of Stratum’s proprietary ingredients and the broader competitive landscape. Her insights will support strategic initiatives to further differentiate Stratum’s ingredient portfolio within the raw ingredient market. Parks held prior roles at Life Extension, GNC, and Healthy Directions, where she contributed to the development of science-backed supplement products.

PLT Health Solutions, supplying ingredient solutions for supplement, beverage, and functional food markets, joined the Natural Products Association based in Washington, DC, US, as a voting board member. Joe Weiss, PLT’s global head of brand management, will assume a position on the association’s board of directors — a seat he held during his previous tenure as president of Nutrition21. The Natural Products Association is the largest and oldest nonprofit organization representing the interests of consumers, manufacturers, and retailers of natural products. The organization has more than 1,900 members and represents more than 10,000 retailers, manufacturers, wholesalers, and distributors of natural products.