Weekly Roundup: Barentz to distribute Roquette’s nutraceutical products, Australian gov requires sports supplements to be labeled as therapeutic goods

25 Sep 2020 --- The nutrition industry welcomed two major distribution agreements this week. Barentz and Roquette signed a strategic partnership to bolster their position in the nutraceutical industry, while Quimdis will distribute Fermentalg’s vegan DHA product range in the German market. Research strides found that lower-income households still do not have adequate access to affordable healthy foods in the US. Moreover, tree nut allergies are more prone to peak around cultural holidays, according to a Canadian study.

In brief: Business news
Plant-based ingredient provider Roquette appointed Barentz as its strategic partner to distribute pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products in the US. Roquette highlights that this appointment brings their collaborative technical expertise to the US, where both companies will benefit from partnering to grow in the pharmaceutical market. 

Vegan DHA oil manufacturer Fermentalg will have Quimdis distribute its range of omega 3 called DHA Origins in the German market. DHA Origins is a premium plant-based DHA based on Fermentalg’s R&D activities in bioindustrial microalgae production. The technology developed allows the company to target highly varied markets with “high value” for human nutrition, animal feed and the health industry.

Quimdis is to distribute Fermentalg’s range DHA Origins in Germany, a premium plant-based DHA.

The Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) will require certain sports supplements to be therapeutic goods, ensuring they are appropriately regulated as medicines in terms of advertising, safety, quality and efficacy. Coming into effect on November 30, 2020, sports supplements with therapeutic claims that are presented as tablets, capsules or pills will have three years to comply with the requirements. The aim is to help protect Australian consumers from the unsafe use of certain sports supplements. 

Cellular nutrition company Usana became a member of the Utah Sustainable Business Coalition in its fight to protect the environment. The company has pledged to reduce plastic waste in 2020 and beyond as part of its coalition efforts. Its first step in this pledge is to move to smaller bottles to reduce wasted space and switch from plastic bottles to 25 percent post-recycled material bottles. The Utah Sustainable Business Coalition consists of Utah businesses and community partners that want to help improve Utah’s environmental health and sustainability.

In brief: Research and study
The UK Food Foundation released its flagship annual Broken Plate report, revealing ten metrics that show high inequality levels, which are damaging to health. The report showed that healthy foods are three times as expensive as less healthy food per kcal. Moreover, 20 percent of households with the lowest levels of disposable income would have to spend 39 percent of their disposable income on consuming a healthy diet, as defined by the UK government’s recommended Eatwell Guide.

Peanut and tree-nut anaphylaxis commonly spikes in Canadian children around Halloween, Easter and other cultural holidays. A study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ) found that most anaphylactic reactions to tree nuts, in contrast to peanuts, occurred in children not known to have a tree nut allergy. Notably, the researchers flag that pre-packaged one-bite snacks and candies often distributed on Halloween and Easter, if sold individually, are exempt from common allergen labeling requirements. This observation highlights the need for vigilance regarding first exposures to tree nuts during holidays.

A study published in Sage Journals analyzing 16 years of data on tens of thousands of US products found that the adoption of nutrition data on front of package labels (FOPL) is associated with the improved nutritional content of those foods and their competitors. For this study, the researchers evaluated nutritional data on 44 categories of food products from 1996 through 2011. Altogether, the researchers looked at data on 21,096 products, representing 9,083 brands, covering everything from energy bars to soup. The researchers’ findings suggest that voluntary, highly visible nutritional labeling can be an effective tool for encouraging change on an industry level.

Heavy SSB drinkers declined significantly among both children and adults between 2003 and 2016. (Credit: Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics).The percentage of heavy sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumers, meaning those who drink more than 500 kcal of SSBs daily, trended downward in the US between 2003 and 2016. A study published by Elsevier found that among children, the percentage of heavy SSB consumers declined from 11 percent to 3 percent consistently across age group, sex, family income level and most race/ethnicities. For adults, the percentage of heavy SSB consumers declined from about 13 percent to 9 percent overall, but there was variation among different age, sex and racial/ethnic groups. The researchers state that their research contributions “tell a public health success story.”

In brief: Awards and accreditations
Lief Labs was honored as the Latino Business Alliance Business of the Year recipient, hosted by the Santa Clarita Valley Chamber of Commerce at the Hispanic Heritage Virtual Celebration. Lief Labs has donated over 1,000 bottles of immune support nutritional supplements to Californian first responders and 2,500 bottles to Southern California-based field workers in highly impoverished areas. CEO and founder Adel Villalobos takes “great pride” in his Hispanic heritage and the diverse culture at Lief Labs that has contributed to its growth in an “extremely challenging year,” he said, commenting on receiving the award.

The Mother-Milk-Infant Center of Research Excellence (MOMI CORE) restarted its application rounds for MOMI Seeds pilot grant funding. In the field of human milk research, the research priority areas lie in gut health, analytical technology, social and educational studies and other creative ideas. Applicants can be awarded up to US$50,000 each for a year of funding.

By Anni Schleicher