Weekly Roundup: Gnosis by Lesaffre wins NIE award, ACTX offers year-round sustainable farming solution

14 Oct 2022 --- This week in industry news, Gnosis picked up a new ingredient award from the Nutrition Industry Executive (NIE). Also, Advanced Container Technologies announced a sustainable solution for year-round farming, and Barrington Nutritonals revealed a distribution partnership with RedLeaf Biologics for red sorghum extract. Meanwhile, Armra introduced a clinically-backed colostrum powder it says can be mixed into any drink.

In brief: Business moves
France-based ingredient player Gnosis by Lesaffre announced that its vitamin K2 matrix that the company launched in 2021 won a first-place NIE award in the excipients, non-actives and delivery systems category. The new protective ingredient is able to stabilize menaquinone ingredients in complex product formulations.

US-based Advanced Container Technologies announced that its controlled-environment, sustainable farming solution, GrowPods, can increase farmers’ incomes, protect fruit and vegetable crops from weather events like drought, and reduce degradation and nutrient depletion in soil. The company said its solution can also grow an acre of crops with about one-third the water usage of traditional farming.

Barrington Nutritionals revealed that it has partnered with RedLeaf Biologics to distribute its polyphenol- and 3-deoxyanthocyanidins-rich red sorghum bioflavonoid complex. Representatives for RedLeaf said the partnership will allow the company to introduce its novel ingredients to consumers and brands across the F&B, health & wellness, and cosmetics and personal care spaces.ACTX announced a solution for year-round, sustainable and protected farming.

Armra released a superfood colostrum supplement, which it states is clinically backed and physician-developed to provide over 200 functional and bioactive nutrients in each serving. The company holds that the colostrum powder is ethically sourced from grass-fed cows and processed with proprietary cold-extraction technology. The company further stated the powder can be mixed into drinks, juices, smoothies or water. 

To celebrate its tenth anniversary, Gimme Seaweed launched two products and new packaging for all offerings. The California, US-based company sources its seaweed from the coasts of South Korea and specializes in seaweed chips. The new products are Non-Dairy White Cheddar and Chili Lime flavors and come in 10 g singles, 5 g six-package multi-packs, or the new “grab and go” 4 g 5-package multi-packs.

In brief: Nutrition regulation and research
US-based California Prune Board, in cooperation with the Royal Osteoporosis Society, highlighted a recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. The two organizations stated that this new study backs up years of research linking the consumption of prunes with healthy and strong bones. The study was a 12-month, randomized, controlled clinical trial that included 235 post-menopausal women.

Researchers from Ingredients by Nature recently conducted an experiment on the company’s citrus flavonoid ingredient, Eriomin, using a simulator of human intestinal microbial ecosystem (SHIME). The SHIME simulates the compartments of the human digestive system, and the study found that the ingredient may help to manage inflammation, reduce oxidative stress and maintain blood glucose levels in diabetic and pre-diabetic patients. The full results will be presented at the Second International Congress of Bioactive Compounds conference in Brazil this November.

A study published in BMC Medicine released findings it says reveal study design biases in randomized, controlled nutrition trials involving subjective outcomes. The study, conducted using meta-analysis of 25 studies and 77 other meta-analytical studies, found an estimated 18% bias rate. The researchers state that further studies will need to be done to confirm their findings.

By William Bradford Nichols