Weekly Roundup: BASF marks sales spike in Nutrition & Care division, Gelita invests in collagen biotech center

29 Jul 2022 --- This week in nutrition news, BASF reported solid earnings within its Nutrition & Care division, which increased by 30.9 % to €2.1 billion (US$2.14 billion). Gelita established a center for biotechnology in Frankfurt, Germany. Meanwhile, a US-based study found that green tea extracts lower blood sugar and promote gut health.

In brief: Business news
Despite ongoing high prices for energy and basic materials, BASF reported solid earnings in its second quarter of 2022. Sales in the Nutrition & Care division increased by 30.9 % to €2.1 billion (US$2.14 billion) compared to the second quarter of 2021. Significant contributions came from both divisions. Higher pricing across all business areas, which included higher prices for energy and raw materials, was the primary driver of sales growth. The segment’s EBIT before special items amounted to €213 million (US$217), which was much higher than in the same quarter last year. The Care Chemicals division’s EBIT brought this on before special items significantly rose.

Plant Precision is a curated collection of edibles and a topical gel designed to target specific wellness categories.Sun Genomics, the company behind Floré – a personalized precision probiotic – and NZMP, the ingredient-solutions division of multinational dairy corporation Fonterra, expanded their current collaboration to understand the various health advantages of probiotics better. Sun Genomics and NZMP are starting the second round of their collaborative clinical trial known as “Project Happy” with the continuous objective of conducting thorough consumer research. The six-week trial, which will start on September 1, 2022, is intended to validate further findings from the companies’ first consumer pilot study, which examined 52 Floré customers’ mental well-being and happiness with NZMP’s LactoB HN001 strain to see whether there were any notable changes.

To give the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) families who require formula more options, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) extended its crucial funding flexibility in the WIC program. This flexibility has enabled state agencies and their infant formula producers to collaborate. To make it financially sustainable for states to permit WIC participants to purchase alternative sizes, forms, or infant formula brands, USDA is covering the additional cost of non-contract formula under this flexibility, which has now been extended through the end of September.

Digestive Support is a complete digestive solution that features digestive enzymes and probiotics.Gelita established a center for biotechnology in Frankfurt, Germany. The investment in the new site represents a milestone for Gelita on its way to a broader, sustainable product portfolio. The company also plans to expand its expertise in biotechnology systematically – a move that will secure its core business in the long term and open up new market segments. In the new research laboratory, the researchers will develop and optimize microorganisms that can produce almost unlimited varieties of organic compounds. Their initial focus is on proteins for the food and cosmetics industries and companies in the pharmaceutical and medical sectors. 

In brief: Launches and releases
Curaleaf Holdings, a provider of consumer products in cannabis, introduced Plant Precision, a curated collection of edibles and a topical gel designed to target specific wellness categories. The Plant Precision line includes Balance: an apple-flavored gummy containing 2.5 mg THC and 10 mg CBD for waking up, winding down, or providing a moment of calm. Additionally, Slumber is a cherry-flavored gummy containing 2.5 mg THC and 10 mg CBN, which could be a helpful addition to a nighttime routine to help fall asleep. The line also has Soothe: a pineapple-flavored gummy containing 2.5 mg THC and 10 mg CBG for rebounding after travel, long workouts, or long weekends. Meanwhile, Boost is a lemon-flavored gummy containing 2.5 mg THC and 10 mg THCV for starting the day with energy. Lastly, Relieve is a high-absorbing topical gel with 100% THC designed to ease tension with a 30 to 45-minute onset time rapidly.

Bariatric Fusion, a nutraceutical brand, released Digestive Support, targeting the bariatric market, featuring digestive enzymes plus probiotics. The product was formulated to support postoperative metabolic and bariatric surgery patients who experience digestive discomfort. The enzyme and probiotic combination product is designed to work better than other stand-alone enzyme solutions at relieving occasional gas, bloating, indigestion, and irregularity when taken with a meal. The supplement contains 110 mg of Biocore Optimum Complete, a blend of digestive enzymes that helps all types of food break down over a wide pH range.

Research unveiled that ingesting green tea extract can lower blood sugar levels and enhance gut health by reducing inflammation.To help alleviate some of this pressure, Intoleran – a health company – was developed. Dietary supplements from the company are described to give the body the enzymes required to digest meals. They can be consumed right before a meal and greatly ease the navigation of dietary limitations, especially while dining out. The brand’s digestive enzyme supplements expand the variety of foods allowed on a diet and lessen or eliminate uncomfortable symptoms by facilitating digestion. This comes when dietary restrictions are used as a standard approach for avoiding some potential food-related adverse effects. 

In brief: Research and studies
According to US-based Ohio State University research, ingesting green tea extract for four weeks can lower blood sugar levels and enhance gut health by reducing inflammation and “leaky gut.” The study was conducted on individuals with a cluster of heart disease risk factors. According to researchers, the study is the “first” to examine whether the anti-inflammatory properties of green tea may have a preventive role against the health risks associated with metabolic syndrome. This condition affects around one-third of US citizens.

A University of Bristol, UK, study unveiled that in Europe, the development of lactose tolerance was influenced by famine and disease. The researchers were able to show that lactase persistence genetic trait was not expected until around 1,000 BC, nearly 4,000 years after it was first detected around 4,700-4,600 BC, by mapping patterns of milk use over the last 9,000 years, exploring the UK Biobank, and combining ancient DNA, radiocarbon, and archaeological data using new computer modeling techniques. The research found that when populations and settlement sizes increased in later prehistory, inadequate sanitation and an increase in diarrheal infections, particularly those of an animal origin, would have had a more significant negative influence on human health. Consuming milk under these circumstances would have increased death rates, with those lacking lactase persistence being particularly at risk.

By Nicole Kerr