Weekly Roundup: Glanbia acquires Foodarom, Symrise dives into dermocosmetics

14 Aug 2020 --- This week in nutrition news, Glanbia acquired Foodarom in a move to expand its flavor capabilities. Meanwhile, Stratum Nutrition and Atacama Bio entered a distribution agreement for the latter’s astaxanthin ingredient. Symrise launched a skin hydration ingredient, while Gerber unveiled a teething chew-stick for infants. In research strides, US scientists are one step closer to learning more about Crohn’s diseases-related bacteria with a new research tool. Moreover, NattoPharma supported a study that found new evidence that vitamin K2 is beneficial for cardiac health.

In brief: Business news
Glanbia Nutritionals has agreed to acquire flavor designer Foodarom. The deal – pegged as a “strategic acquisition” – seriously scales the flavor arm of Glanbia’s business and is expected to be completed in the second half of this year. The move was announced as Glanbia published its financial results for the six month period ended July 4, 2020 (H1 2020). The company revealed that the EBITA of its business segment Glanbia Performance Nutrition (GPN) was impacted by COVID-19, with international market disruption and challenges in the North American specialty and distributor channels. As a result, adjusted earnings per share declined in the period by 17 percent on a constant currency basis. The issues encountered by GPN were most pronounced in Q2 with performance improving as the period ended, the company highlights. Adapting to these changes, GPN also stated that it now has 34 percent of its sales in online channels. 

Atacama Bio and Stratum Nutrition entered into a value-added distribution agreement for NatAxtin brand astaxanthin, manufactured exclusively by Atacama Bio. Both companies regard this alliance as adding “strategic value” to their respective businesses within the dietary supplement marketplace in North America. NatAxtin is a competitively priced astaxanthin that “meets or exceeds the high standards demanded by conscientious dietary supplement manufacturers,” Stratum Nutrition underscores.

The firm texture of the Soothe ‘n’ Chew softens slowly while the baby chews (Credit: Gerber).Arla Food Ingredients spoke to FoodIngredientsFirst about how there is a growing production demand for organic food products with a healthy nutritional profile. Generally, European consumers perceive organic food products as healthier, tastier and more nutritious than non-organic products, the company notes ahead of its webinar about Nutrilac milk proteins. These ingredients can provide high-protein and low-sodium options in all cheese types. Registration for the webinar is now open. 

In brief: Launches and releases
Gerber introduced Soothe ‘n’ Chew teething sticks – a “first-of-its-kind natural product” for babies made with real dried bananas. “The overall firm texture, complemented by an inner air bubble and sponge-like structure, comes from our corn, wheat and rice flours. It is specially designed for babies to chew, salivate and massage their gums. We think the banana taste helps keep babies interested in chewing on the long-lasting stick,” Gerber shares with NutritionInsight. The Gerber Soothe ‘n’ Chew teething stick is made in compliance with applicable US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) food regulations for young children and is currently available in the US at Walmart.

Active in the dermocosmetic space, Symrise launched its pharmaceutical-grade Pentylene Glycol, Hydrolite 5P. The skin hydration ingredient uses a by-product of the sugar cane industry and helps reduce the number of preservatives used in a product. A Drug Master File (DMF) is available for this product, which will introduce the benefits of Hydrolite5P green to the pharmaceutical and dermocosmetic industries.

In brief: Regulation and guidance
In a move to aid understanding in the gluten-free space, the FDA issued a final rule to establish compliance requirements for fermented and hydrolyzed foods, or foods that contain fermented or hydrolyzed ingredients, and that bear the “gluten-free” claim. The rule pertains to soy sauce, yogurt, sauerkraut, pickles, cheese and green olives. Distilled foods, such as distilled vinegars, are also included in the final rule. “These new compliance requirements for labeling a product ‘gluten-free’ will protect individuals with celiac disease,” says US Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar. “The FDA’s final rule helps to ensure common products labeled ‘gluten-free’ really are gluten-free, equipping consumers to make the best choices for their health and their families.”

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) published guidance for food businesses to safeguard consumer health from potentially harmful levels of vitamins and minerals in food supplements. The guidance clarifies the upper intake level and maximum safe level for vitamins and minerals in food supplements for population groups in Ireland. The seven nutrients that the guidance provides maximum safe levels are vitamin A, B6, C, and D, beta-carotene, folic acid, and magnesium. Guidance for Food Businesses: The Safety of Vitamins and Minerals in Food Supplements was published amid rising popularity of food supplements in Ireland. 

In brief: Research and study
F. prausnitzii bacteria (blue, at top of image) grow above a layer of human mucosal barrier cells (green and blue) (Credit: Jianbo Zhang, MIT).Scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) developed a tool for modeling the human gut microbiome. With this device, the team can research bacteria associated with Crohn’s disease outside the human gut for up to four days. “Four days is long enough to conduct our experiments. While it is not thoroughly tested where the upper limit of culture length is, we believe the co-culture can go longer as needed,” MIT postdoc Jianbo Zhang tells NutritionInsight. This is important as some bacteria are extremely intolerant to oxygen, whereas human cells usually require oxygen. “This controversial requirement makes it very challenging to grow them together to study their crosstalk. For many bacteria, we still don’t know their nutrition requirements, so researchers have not been able to culture them in the lab,” Zhang explains.

A Danish population study conducted with 491 consecutive participants examined the link between inactive matrix Gla protein (MGP), a known biomarker for K-vitamins status, and cardiovascular risk. The research concluded that high levels of this inactive protein were positively associated with a history of cardiovascular disease due to the role vitamin K2 plays in vascular calcification. NattoPharma states it is “encouraged by these findings” as they provide “another level of evidence” that vitamin K2 is an essential cardio-protective nutrient.

A study published in the JAMA Network Open examined the association of family income and family risk of food insecurity with iron status in healthy young children attending primary care. In this cross-sectional study of 1,245 children aged 12 to 29 months, those with a family income of less than CA$40,000 (US$30,222) had three times higher odds of having iron deficiency and iron deficiency anemia than children in the highest family income group. The risk of food insecurity was not associated with iron deficiency or iron-deficiency anemia. The study authors suggest that targeting income security may be more effective than targeting access to food to reduce health inequities in the prevention of iron deficiency.

Nutritional information displayed prominently on food products that give consumers information on salt, sugar, and calorie content plays a significant role in nudging people toward better dietary choices. The study conducted by health economists at the universities of Bath and Bristol, UK, evaluated the impact of front-of-pack nutritional labeling on retailers’ store-branded products. Their results find a reduction in the quantity of labeled store-branded food purchased, for example ready meals, pizzas and burgers, as well as an overall improvement in the nutritional composition of consumers’ shopping baskets where labeling was displayed. Significantly, these improvements in food shopping habits were most prominently observed across poorer households.

Long-term R-α-Lipoic acid (R-LA) supplementation results in Body Mass Index (BMI) loss, greater antioxidant enzyme synthesis and less potential for inflammation in overweight adults. This is the main finding of a study published in The Journal of Nutrition. Eighty-one overweight adults with elevated plasma triglycerides were enrolled in a 24-week trial, assigned to either R-LA (600 mg per day) or a matching placebo, and advised not to change their diet or physical activity. R-LA did not decrease triglyceride concentrations, but individuals on R-LA had a greater reduction in BMI at 24 weeks than the placebo group. The effect of R-LA on BMI was correlated to changes in plasma triglycerides. 

By Anni Schleicher