28 Nov 2019 --- Plant-based hybrid proteins can provide a complete nutritional profile and a more environmentally friendly approach to nutrition. This is according to Mindy Leveille, Marketing... Read More

26 Nov 2019 --- As the move toward plant-based diets continues to gather pace, interest in how athletes can thrive without consuming animal-derived foods is piqued. This is being bolstered by The... Read More

21 Nov 2019 --- As the days draw shorter and shorter, winter is no doubt just around the corner. Coming with the season is a barrage of consumers seeking to fight off seasonal sniffles, as immune... Read More

18 Nov 2019 --- Sugar reduction has become a hot topic in the food and beverage industry as growing pressure from consumers and governments alike forces manufacturers to focus on reformulation.... Read More

13 Nov 2019 --- US dairy brand Good Culture has launched organic shots combining the efficacious probiotics in cultured kefir with functional ingredients like turmeric, matcha, chaga mushrooms and... Read More

Functional foods innovators must look beyond the complexities of achieving health claims by communicating directly to early adopters. Furthermore, platforms such as personalized nutrition will accelerate and solutions to reduce stress and enhance sleep quality hold vast potential for growth. This is according to Albert McQuaid, Global Chief Technology Officer at Kerry Taste & Nutrition.

Personalized nutrition is a broad term, which could encompass considering from on one side personalizing to someone’s gender, age or health condition, or you could go right to the other end of the spectrum where you can personalize based on genetics or gut microbiome. For Aoife Marie Murphy of Kerry, it is open to the consumer and what they really feel like. "We know that millennials are very interested in technology and are very interested in these customized solutions and want to have products that are unique to them. They want to have products that are targeted to themselves, so this area of personalized nutrition does feed into this need for inherently healthy products," she notes.

Technological advances, including wearable nutrition tracking devices and microbiota mapping tools, present new potential to address an aware consumer, who is interested in tailored nutrition concepts that specifically work for them. “Technology has made people aware of their own behavior for the first time, as people are wearing these devices and using them,” Dr. Lisa Ryan, Head of the Department of Natural Sciences at Galway-Mayo (GMIT) in Ireland, tells NutritionInsight. “One of the targets of public health in the past was to make people more aware of what they were doing. It is now about harnessing that awareness and driving it into further good. People are really engaging with their health and wanting to try to do something to address it. Our challenge is to be able to allow them to do so.”

At HiE 2018, NutrititionInsight spoke with Laura E. Collins of Kerry about the expanding market potential of the company's Wellmune ingredients. Wellmune’s immune health halo was recently expanded with a study highlighting its potential for marathon runners. The study found that consuming beverages fortified with the yeast beta-glucan ingredient can reduce the severity and impact of upper respiratory tract infection (URTI) symptoms associated with intense exercise stress. 

At Vitafoods Europe, Kerry presented its ProDiem 7304 plant protein which offers a clear solution for adding plant protein to low pH beverages. NutritionInsight spoke with Albert McQuaid, Kerry Chief Innovation Officer, about the opportunities and challenges for plant-based proteins.

14 Aug 2019 --- Kerry Health & Nutrition Institute’s appointment of a nutrition and probiotic expert to its Scientific Advisory Council highlights the company’s focus on probiotics and gut health.

29 Apr 2019 --- Personalized health platforms have expanded beyond gut health to encompass anything from sleep quality to cognitive health.

07 Aug 2018 --- Key suppliers offer their thoughts on the nutritionals industry. How can the sector meet the health concerns of an aging global population?

01 Dec 2016 --- Key suppliers offer their thoughts on key food industry trends to watch. What will be the key consumer trends driving the food industry forward in 2017 and how are they impacting supplier R&D development?

01 Oct 2016 --- With sales to over 140 countries worldwide, Kerry, the Taste & Nutrition company, has grown to become a highly successful public company, having achieved sustained profitable growth with current annualized sales in excess of €6 billion. "We clearly see that future growth in the market is going to be driven by combining taste with nutritionally optimized food."

Ball Corporation said that it and Rexam had agreed to sell a number of assets in Brazil, Europe, and the US to the packaging company Ardagh Group for $3.42 bn to satisfy regulatory concerns about Ball's takeover over of the British maker of aluminum cans. Other companies mentioned this week are Tesco, Glanbia and Kerry Group.

Consumers are often unaware of the energy density of the foods they consume, making them vulnerable to excess calorie consumption.  As a result, initiatives to reduce the number of calories in foods and beverages are emerging globally, either voluntarily or government-led. Watch this webinar to learn how specific sensory cues can support calorie reduction and maintain the sensory appeal of food and beverage products, and how this comes to life in real product applications.

There can often be a disconnect between what consumers perceive as healthy in a food or beverage, what science shows is healthy, and what claims can be made. How can you deliver on-trend foods with a strong health halo, while ensuring consumers get the health benefit they expect from a product? Watch the Kerry Health and Nutrition Institute ‘Proactive Health’ webinar, where we share original research.

Digestive discomfort and its links to wellbeing, the gut-brain access, mental health and social confidence mean that consumers across all psychographics and life-stages are seeking better digestive wellness. Yet the media and store shelves are flooded with many quick fixes, which may or may not be supported by science. In this webinar, learn about established claims and dive into what consumers are seeking out in each region from Stephen Quinn, and get a crash course on the background and scientific merit of some popular digestive health solutions such as probiotics and prebiotics from Dr Mary Ellen Sanders.

Nutrition science is making itself heard in the beverage category. Protein coffees, probiotic juices and turmeric teas are common sightings as the demand for convenient, functional foods increases with consumers. This leaves many of us asking the questions like: “What is the future of nutrition for beverages?” and “How can products continue to be differentiated?”In this webinar, learn about up and coming nutrition ingredients and how sensory science can be used to influence food intake across age groups.

Sugar ranks at the top of the list when it comes to consumer nutrition concerns. Sugar reduction poses a challenge across all product categories. The responsibility and cost of helping consumers reduce their sugar intake is being pushed onto the food and beverage industry by legislation like sugar taxes. Hear from nutrition and applications experts on how to succeed with sugar reduction. Find out what makes healthier products likeable while fitting into labelling and tax legislation across the world.