Weekly Roundup: BioGaia Q1 sales up 7 percent, Barentz expands US reach

08 May 2020 --- In nutrition news this week, BioGaia reported a good start to the year in its Q1 2020 results. OptiBiotix Health launched high-fiber gummies featuring SlimBiome technology. Barentz’s acquisition of Ingredients Inc will enable the distributor to offer broader products to more US customers. Meanwhile, PLT Health Solutions appointed Quimdis as a sales and distribution partner for France and Monaco. In research news, a high intake of flavonoid-rich foods was linked with lower rates of dementia, while coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) was found to help reverse the harmful effects of exposure to bisphenol A (BPA). 

In brief: Business news
BioGaia has reported a good start to 2020, with sales increasing by 7 percent to SEK 182.8 million (US$18.7 million), excluding foreign exchange effects. The Paediatrics and Adult Health segments both also saw 7 percent growth. The company’s Gastrus food supplement containing patented lactic acid bacterium is also now available in Australia through BioGaia’s distribution partner, Bio-Practica. Meanwhile, Swedish partner Medhouse has launched BioGaia Protectis vegan capsules in Sweden. “Regardless of how the COVID-19 pandemic develops, the situation will require that we continue to adapt during the year in order to meet the challenges it brings. We are convinced that our products play a key role in these times as well, and we will do everything in our power to make them available globally,” says Isabelle Ducellier, President and CEO of BioGaia.

OptiBiotix Health, a developer of compounds to tackle obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, has launched high-fiber gummies featuring its proprietary SlimBiome technology. SnackSmart Fruit & Fibre Gummies are part of a new range that focuses on offering healthy and functional snacks that provide digestive health and weight management benefits from the life sciences company. Featuring no added sugar and more than 50 percent fruit, one serving – approximately 14 gummies – contains 40 percent (12 g) of an adult’s recommended daily intake of fiber. “Backed by scientific principles, the weight management ingredient features a blend of non-digestible prebiotics, dietary fibers such as glucomannan, and a trace mineral, which synergistically work in combination to stimulate the growth of healthy bacteria in the gut. This approach not only aids consumers by helping them steer clear of eating unhealthy snacks, but also helps to regulate the body’s insulin response to support an effective metabolic breakdown of carbohydrates and fats,” says Steven Riley, Head of Online Sales and Marketing at OptiBiotix.

Water brand Flow Alkaline Spring Water has completed its Series D capital raise, securing US$45 million in funding, which provides the company with long-term capital and support for continued growth, sustainability efforts and innovation as it establishes the brand as “the next generation’s premium water of choice”. Investors in this financing round include a mix of personalities from the world of technology, sports, and entertainment. They include Canadian singer-songwriter Shawn Mendes, an ongoing partner and sustainability ambassador to Flow, and his manager Andrew Gertler, both leading the round with American singer-songwriter Post Malone and his manager Austin Rosen, Coldplay’s longtime manager Dave Holmes, former professional baseball star Chase Utley, and former Uber director of engineering, Curtis Chambers. Institutional investors in this fund include Ruttenberg Gordon Investments.Flow’s alkaline mineral water comes from proprietary natural artesian spring water sources in Virginia, US and Ontario, Canada.

Emerging nutraceutical company Bonne Santé Group has launched a major new line of nutraceutical products designed to enhance immune system functions under the brand Bonne Santé Natural Immunology. The line is composed of a vitamin E product, a product containing echinacea, vitamin C and zinc, and a Complete Response formula. This latter offering features a blend of handcrafted nutritional supplements, antioxidants and vitamins to support the immune system on a holistic basis. All of these formulas will be marketed through multiple channels worldwide with an emphasis on online sales.

Bonne Santé Group has launched a major new line of nutraceutical products designed to enhance immune system functions.In brief: Collaborations and acquisitions
Barentz International, a Netherlands-based distributor of life science ingredients, has acquired US-based Ingredients Inc., a developer and supplier of high-quality ingredients to food and beverage, pet food and nutraceutical manufacturers. The move diversifies Barentz’s sources, enabling it to offer a wider range of high-quality ingredient solutions in the US market and strengthen its US coverage. The companies say they share a proven track record in developing, formulating, manufacturing and producing ingredients and custom-blends for their clients. Both companies add value by developing new ideas and innovative solutions through their expertise and network of specialized application laboratories.

PLT Health Solutions has appointed Quimdis as a sales and distribution partner for France and Monaco. The company will represent a select portfolio of PLT ingredients, including Slendacor Weight Management Complex, zümXR Targeted Release Caffeine and Artesa Chickpea Flour & Protein. According to Jay Martin, Managing Director, Global Sales at PLT Health Solutions: “With Slendacor, Quimdis will now be able to bring slimming solutions to food and supplement brands within France in both pills and weight loss powder shakes forms. For the first time, zümXR will give Quimdis’ supplement customers the opportunity to design unique products that have customized energy release profiles. This need is especially necessary in sports nutrition and pure energy products designed to meet specific needs.”

The American Herbal Pharmacopoeia (AHP), a US-based non-profit research organization, has announced a formal collaboration with the Tehran University of Medical Sciences School of Traditional Persian Medicine (TUMS) on development of industry standards for chamomile-based ingredients. According to Roy Upton, AHP President: “Both AHP and TUMS share a common desire to foster a high level of integrity and quality in all aspects of botanical medicine. AHP can benefit greatly from the knowledge and expertise that the School of Traditional Persian Medicine has in select botanicals important to AHP and Persian medicine. They are already integral in the review of upcoming monographs for lemon balm and saffron. It is wonderful to have them taking the lead on similar work for chamomile.”

In brief: Research and study
Older adults who consumed small amounts of flavonoid-rich foods, such as berries, apples and tea, were two to four times more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias over 20 years compared with people whose intake was higher. This is according to a new study led by scientists at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging (USDA HNRCA) at Tufts University. The epidemiological study of 2,800 people aged 50 and older examined the long-term relationship between eating foods containing flavonoids and risk of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. While many studies have looked at associations between nutrition and dementias over short periods of time, the study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition looked at exposure over 20 years.

A combination of curcumin and exercise was found by researchers to improve cognitive function while attenuating endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress in diabetic rats. Published in the journal Nutrients, the study investigated whether a combination of exercise and curcumin supplementation ameliorates diabetes-related cognitive distress by regulating inflammatory response and ER stress. Rats that exercised in tandem with curcumin supplementation exhibited weight loss and improved glucose homeostasis and lipid profiles. Cognitive function was measured using a Morris water maze test. Exercise plus curcumin improved escape latency and memory retention. Furthermore, rats exercised and fed curcumin had lower IL6, TNFα and IL10 levels (indicators of inflammatory response) and lower levels of ER stress markers (BiP and CHOP) in the intestine. These observations suggest exercise plus curcumin may offer a means of treating diabetes-related cognitive dysfunction.

Exposure to BPA – an industrial chemical used to make certain plastics and resins, inner coatings for food cans and bottle tops, the thermal paper used in store receipts, dental sealants and so on – has been of concern due to potential adverse health effects, including a reduction in fertility. A study performed at Harvard Medical School (HMS) in the US has demonstrated that the harmful effects of BPA can be reversed by administering a supplement known as CoQ10, a substance naturally produced by the human body and found in beef and fish. The study, published in the journal Genetics, is the first to present this strategy for reversing the effects of BPA in the organism. In this study, the researchers tested the antioxidant action of CoQ10 in nematodes of the species Caenorhabditis elegans exposed to BPA. As an excellent antioxidant, CoQ10 is an electron donor. By donating its electrons, it stabilizes free radicals, reducing the oxidative stress and cell damage caused by BPA.

The idea of “calm” resonates with consumers of products for cardiovascular wellness, Lycored research has shown. A survey involved 505 men and women in the US and the UK – all of which were over the age of 50, the age group most likely to purchase supplements for cardiovascular wellness. They were asked what they saw as the most important ways to promote their cardiovascular wellness. Scoring highest was nutrition, with two thirds (67 percent) saying they had improved their diet to protect their cardiovascular health. This was higher than the number who had increased their exercise levels (53 percent). Four in ten (41 percent) overall, and 48 percent of those in the US, had made attempts to increase their calmness to protect their cardiovascular health, while 95 percent said they found the idea of being able to “calm your heart” appealing. Finally, over a third (35 percent) said they would be more likely to buy a product for cardiovascular health if its packaging included the word “calm.”Lycored research has revealed that consumers of products for cardiovascular wellness are also looking for calmness. 

In brief: Certifications and Announcements
Kappa Bioscience has achieved non-GMO certification for all K2VITAL MCC powder and MCT oil products produced globally. The final certificates for K2VITAL products produced in the US were granted in April through the non-profit Non-GMO Project organization. The company says this certification strengthens its market position, especially in North America. “'Achieving non-GMO status was a priority for Kappa because many of our customers have consumers who are passionate about the GMO issue. Certification of K2VITAL removes any doubt, allowing the consumer to focus on K2’s important bone and heart health benefits and how K2 works with vitamin D3 to balance calcium in the body.'” says Garnet Pigden, President of Kappa US.

The Botanical Safety Consortium (BSC), a forum established by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and the Health and Environmental Sciences Institute (HESI), will hold its first annual meeting on May 29. The objectives of the meeting include recruiting new members and soliciting input into current scientific challenges and opportunities related to botanical ingredient safety. The BSC was announced in the FDA’s February 2019 statement when the agency highlighted new steps it was taking to modernize dietary supplement regulation. It was officially convened in November 2019 through a memorandum of understanding between the FDA, NIEHS and HESI. The consortium’s mission is to provide a forum to generate a sound scientific basis for integrating existing safety data and the latest toxicology tools to evaluate safety in botanical dietary supplements.

By Benjamin Ferrer