Weekly Roundup: Nexira opens new spray-drying facility in India, ADM showcases health-focused bakery ingredient solutions

13 Sep 2019 --- In nutrition news this week, Nexira announced that its new spray-drying tower located in India is fully operational. Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) showcased baking ingredient solutions that appeal to health-conscious consumers at the 2019 International Baking Industry Exposition (IBIE), while Arcadia Biosciences raised nearly US$10 million in its latest round of financing. EPI Ingredients announced that its French-based industrial facility is now certified Kosher and Seanova gained a certification for the sustainable production of Epax fish oils.

In brief: Presentations and inaugurations
ADM showcased ingredient solutions to help baking industry professionals appeal to health-conscious consumers at the 2019 IBIE (September 8-11, Las Vegas, US). ADM ingredient experts hosted in-booth tastings and learning sessions to share the latest industry trends and educate customers on how to develop wholesome, sustainably sourced bakery products. “In today’s food culture, the focus is shifting towards conscious consumption and balance, as consumer demand increases for products with simple ingredient lists, positive nutrition values and sustainable sourcing,” says Paula Labine, Marketing Director at ADM. “Not only does ADM offer solutions to help developers create products that meet these requirements, but we can also help customers anticipate and prepare for the challenges that come next,” she adds.

At IBIE, ADM showcased ingredient solutions for baking industry professionals appeal to health-conscious consumers.In brief: Expansion and investment
Ingredient supplier Nexira has announced that its new spray-drying tower located in Marudur, Tamil Nadu, is now fully operational to serve all its customers in India. The tower was built in partnership with Synthite, the world’s largest producer of spice oleoresins which offers a wide array of natural ingredients for the food, health and fragrance industries. With this new state-of-the-art production facility, Nexira can supply large quantities of spray-dried gum acacia dedicated to this growing Indian market. Nexira opened its office in Mumbai in 2012 to serve the requirements of both global and local customers in one of the fastest-growing markets in the world. With India as the world’s largest consumer of gum acacia, Indian food and grocery industry ranks as the sixth-largest in the world. 

Arcadia Biosciences, Inc., a food ingredient company, has announced the closing of its previously announced registered direct offering of 1,318,828 shares of its common stock, raising nearly US$10 million. The offering was priced at-the-market at a purchase price per share of US$7.52, for gross proceeds of approximately US$9.92 million. Additionally, in a concurrent private placement, Arcadia issued unregistered warrants to purchase up to 659,414 shares of common stock, representing 50 percent of the shares of common stock purchased in the registered direct offering. Arcadia intends to use the net proceeds from this offering for general corporate purposes and to pursue a range of near-term growth opportunities, including, but not limited to, hemp germplasm acquisition, breeding and research activities, the scale-up of GoodWheat and general and administrative expenses. “The proceeds of this financing, coupled with just over US$5 million in cash we received from warrant exercises over the past week by investors from prior financings, meaningfully improve our cash position and better enables us to pursue a broad range of growth opportunities in the near term,” says Matthew Plavan, President and CEO of Arcadia.

In brief: Awards and certifications
Seanova has earned a certification for sustainable production by “Friend of the Sea”.The dry ingredients division of French dairy cooperative Laïta, Epi Ingredients, has announced that their industrial facility located in Ancenis (France) has been certified by the Orthodox Union Kosher certification service. The certification allows the company to now offer its customers fermented powders that are both Kosher and Halal certified. Leveraging decades of expertise in the transformation of milk, the company was able to fine-tune a manufacturing process that allows it to dry blends of milk and live cultures, keeping the cultures alive throughout the process and into the finished powder. The resulting range of premium fermented powders (yogurt powder, quark powder and fermented milk powder) is a good fit for new developments carrying the healthful halo of yogurt, delivering the same live cultures and nutrition as their traditional counterparts but without some of the hurdles of fresh yogurt. 

Marine ingredients supplier Seanova – the exclusive distributor of Epax fish oils in France, Spain and Portugal – has earned a certification for sustainable production by “Friend of the Sea”. Friend of the Sea is a certification standard for products and services that respect and protect the marine environment. With this certification, Seanova can display the Friend of the Sea eco-label on its Epax” products. 

By Kristiana Lalou