Vitafoods Europe 2023 live: Balchem and Kappa Bioscience present joint nutrition portfolio

11 May 2023 --- At Vitafoods Europe, Balchem Human Nutrition and Health and its recently acquired Kappa Bioscience are showcasing synergies between their portfolios and opportunities for innovation. 

“We defined a joint vision for the future with a five-year strategy and we decided to go as one face to the customer, with a joint portfolio,” Frederic Boned, SVP and general manager at Balchem, tells NutritionInsight at the Vitafoods showfloor.

He notes that the company’s recent acquisitions added two new products to its portfolio, K2Vital and OptiMSM, which Balchem is showcasing in Geneva, Switzerland. 

“We’re expanding our portfolio,” adds Boned. “We have a portfolio with ingredients recognized by the market as having consumer benefits. We are unlocking this potential by cross-selling, offering formulation proposals to our customers and innovations from our existing portfolio.” 

“In the next five years, we will bring new science and new products to the market. For example, we have eleven ongoing clinical studies to bring additional science on vitamin K2 to the market.” 

Vitamin K2 in the spotlight 
At the trade show, Balchem highlights the innovation opportunities with K2Vital Delta, Kappa Bioscience’s patented microencapsulated vitamin K2 preparation, which is optimally stable (supported in over 400 tests) for mineral formulations.

Boned notes more companies at Vitafoods offer vitamin K2 but warns that, typically, “vitamin K2 is not highly stable in the formulation.” Kappa Bioscience’s vitamin K2 is made from organic synthesis and is marketed as having the highest purity on the market. 

Boned expects the supplement and nutrition industry to have a bright future ahead. Due to its cold water dispersibility features, K2Vital Delta can be incorporated into functional food formats such as dairy and plant-based drinks, canned energy drinks and smoothie powders.

“We’re shining a spotlight on how our K2Vital range can be combined with the wider Balchem product portfolio to address a multitude of on-trend health segments that are all centered on the themes of longevity and performance,” comments Dominik Mattern, VP of Science, Business Development and Marketing at Balchem Human Nutrition and Health.

Product range at Vitafoods 
Other products Balchem is showcasing at the fair this year include its Albion Minerals portfolio, which provides for chelated and specialty minerals covered in over 200 scientific studies, dozens of patents and nearly 80 completed clinical trials regarding several health benefits.

The company notes its organic mineral amino acid chelates allow a reduced cost in use for CPGs, are highly bioavailable and have a greater tolerability than inorganic minerals. They offer solutions in cardiovascular and bone health when combined with K2Vital Delta. 

Balchem also presents its branded methylsulfonylmethane ingredient, OptiMSM, known for its purity, safety and consistency standards. The product can be used in products that meet consumer trends in joint health, beauty from within and exercise recovery.

Finally, the company’s VitaCholine supports normal lipid and homocysteine metabolism and liver function is also included in prenatal and infant products. The product contains choline, an essential building block of acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter that helps the brain send messages.

Balchem is expanding its portfolio through synergies from Kappa Bioscience’s range and innovations in existing products (Image credit: Balchem). International expansion 
Boned says that with the recent acquisitions, the companies have added capabilities in science, innovation, R&D with a “strong science pipeline and competencies.” 

In its five-year plan, the company will focus on “growing consumer awareness around its nutrients, which is lacking globally, by communicating about the ingredients, explaining their benefits and showing the value of our portfolio.” 

Balchem will also continue its international expansion, states Boned. “Balchem has a large exposure in the US, while Kappa Bioscience has a large exposure in the European market. These complement each other perfectly.” 

Potential in supplements and nutrition 
Boned expects the supplement and nutrition industry to have a “bright future ahead.” 

“For decades, nutrition has been an underrepresented form of healthcare strategy. It’s time for nutrition to be recognized as a mainstream strategy and toolbox for health care.” 

He sees that different forces drive the industry, noting an “increasing science on nutrition and what it can bring to health and consumers.” 

“Doctors are promoting the importance of nutrition in wellness and health, while social media helps them to amplify their messages and reach out to a wider range of consumers globally.” 

By Jolanda van Hal, with live reporting from Missy Green at Vitafoods Europe