	Consumer awareness continues to grow of the potential eye health benefits of the carotenoids lutein and zeaxanthin. A growing range of eye health and general health supplements feature these ingredients. Still, lutein and zeaxanthin’s use in food and drinks remains very limited and fragmented.

	In the supplements sector, the number of products launched on an eye health platform last year accounted for 3.4% of total supplement introductions, according to Innova Market Insights data. This is an increase; five years ago, eye health supplement launches represented only 2.1% of total supplement launches. New products included general supplements that feature eye health as one of their benefits, as well as eye health–specific products.

	The United States had the highest number of supplement introductions with an eye health positioning, probably reflecting the popularity of dietary supplements in the country overall. On a global scale, U.S. launches accounted for over 45% of total eye health supplement launches, ahead of Europe (which represented just over 27%), Asia (10%), and Australia (just over 9%).

	So far, lutein and zeaxanthin remain the biggest stars of the eye health supplements market. In products, they are usually combined with other beneficial eye health components, such as antioxidant vitamins A, C, and E; B vitamins such as B6 and B12; blueberry extracts, as a source of anthocyanins; omega-3 fatty acids; and minerals such as zinc and selenium.

	In the United States, many products tout eye health marketing claims. Perhaps to be expected, specialist eye-care companies have linked their names with supplements. Bausch & Lomb, one of the world’s leading contact lens and eye-care companies, offers its Ocuvite range of eye health supplements. Ocuvite includes Adult 50+ products, featuring lutein, zeaxanthin, and omega-3; as well as Lutein and Lutein & Zeaxanthin lines. More recently, Bausch & Lomb expanded into multivitamins with its Ocuvite Eye & Multi line, which provides the benefit of a complete multivitamin plus eye health protection.

	Aside from specialist eye-care companies, recent U.S. launch activity includes Vitafusion Daily Vision Lutein & Multivitamin Gummies and Lifeseason’s Visibili-T eye health complex. Some products are even more specific, such as Visivite Smokers Formula for Macular Degeneration.

	Over in Germany, the supplements company Doppelherz recently launched an entire range of eye health products under the name Aktiv Vital Eyes. The line includes Vital Eyes with Lutein and Zeaxanthin, Vital Eyes Night & Day, Vital Eyes Blueberry, and Vital Eyes Blueberry Plus. Blueberry extract, lutein, zeaxanthin, omega-3 EPA and DHA, vitamins A and C, folic acid, and B vitamins are just some of the ingredients in the line.

Food and Drinks: Mostly for Babies and Pets

	Launches of food and drinks marketed on an eye health platform are much more limited-particularly if baby food and pet food are excluded. While the number of food and drink launches positioned on an eye health platform did rise sharply in 2013-13% of launches using lutein-three-quarters of those launches were in baby food or pet food, according to Innova Market Insights data.

	The focus in the baby food market is eye development as well as brain development; thus, products containing omega-3 fatty acids, particularly omega-3 fatty acid DHA, dominate the category. The use of carotenoids such as lutein is much less prevalent in baby food. More than 70% of the baby food launched on an eye health platform in 2013 had DHA as an ingredient, while less than 20% featured lutein.

	Baby food and pet food aside, beverages stood at the front of food and drink eye health launches. Drinks represent 30% of total eye health food and drink launches. This probably reflects promotion of the high lutein content of certain fruits and vegetables. The next leading category is dairy, accounting for just under a quarter of total food and drink launches. Dairy launches make wider use of omega-3 fatty acids and blueberry eye health ingredients, rather than lutein or zeaxanthin.

	The United States again led launch activity, thanks to introductions in the drinks category. U.S. drink launches took advantage of eye health claims based on the carotenoid levels in fruits and vegetables. In 2013, such launches included Lassonde’s Oasis Health Breakfast Smoothie, marketed as high in antioxidant vitamins and lutein and “contributing to the health of vision and skin;” as well as Mulberry Love organic mulberry juice with organic coconut water, marketed as rich in superfruits and describing lutein and zeaxanthin as “carotenoids absorbed by the eyes” and touting the product as “helping to safeguard vision.”

	Despite apparently rising levels of interest in eye health claims and ongoing promotion of lutein, zeaxanthin, and other carotenoids for their eye health benefits, product launch activity still tends to focus on supplements rather than food and drinks. Even if awareness of and interest in these specific ingredients continues to rise, and concerns among an aging population over issues such as Age-Related Macular Degeneration grows, it remains to be seen whether consumers may prefer using traditional supplements for their eye-care needs, rather than food and drinks.

Articles

Three-quarters of eye health food and drink launches are in baby food or pet food. When will we start targeting the adults?

The Eye Health Market: Still focused on supplements?

	Bioavailability is a big seller. Shoppers “get” it. They understand why a more absorbable nutrient is better. But bioavailability, as discussed in industry circles and by 

, is only a glimpse of an ingredient’s potential.

	As N. Kalyanam, PhD, Sabinsa Corp.’s president of R&D, eloquently states: “Bioavailability is only a path, and not the destination.” Why? Because bioavailability doesn’t ensure a health benefit. Efficacy studies, and not absorption studies, prove that an ingredient benefits health. So, while bioavailability studies are valuable and informative, efficacy studies carry the most weight.

	Two new curcumin bioavailability studies made headlines in January. One 

 compared Frutarom’s curcumin micelle to micronized curcumin and native curcumin powder; the 

 compared OmniActive Health Technologies’ new CurcuWin ingredient, which utilizes a water-soluble carrier, to curcuminoids combined with turmeric volatile oils and unformulated, standard curcumin. Both companies’ ingredients triumphed.

	OmniActive calls the CurcuWin study unique in providing a true “apples to apples” comparison, pitting bioavailable curcumin ingredients against each other instead of just against standard curcumin. While this is commendable, it also made me wonder whether we-industry members, researchers, and media alike-do enough to help consumers contextualize bioavailability data. Or, do we simply throw data at the shopper and see what sticks?

	Is there a way to stack up all existing curcumin bioavailability comparative data and tell consumers, without bias, what they really want to know: Which is the most bioavailable ingredient of them all?

	We can’t, because comparing data across studies is more difficult than it seems. “The only way to objectively compare bioavailable ingredients against each other is in a single trial subjecting each ingredient to the same standards,” says Lynda Doyle, OmniActive’s vice president, global marketing, adding that this is just what the CurcuWin study did, albeit for just a few ingredients.

	“Because of the variability between study designs and parameters, it is difficult to make any direct comparison between the enhanced bioavailable ingredients across studies,” she continues. Think of all the variables that could skew results, including whether subjects consumed dietary fat, which would aid the absorption of oil-soluble curcuminoids. The list goes on.

	“The strict comparison between different studies is really not valid,” says Sabinsa’s Kalyanam. “The choice of subjects is also important. A study done on a young population will yield a different result from a study on older subjects. The comparison becomes still more complex depending on liver health of the subjects, since liver metabolizes xenobiotics extensively. Hence, a single study should compare all the ingredients on the same set of carefully selected subjects.”

	Also, not all studies are high quality, says Wouter Haazen, product manager, Frutarom Health. For instance, some lack double blinding, placebo control, or a sufficient number of healthy subjects. And not all provide data for the area under the curve, for 24 hours, like Frutarom’s study did.

	Also, for what it’s worth, it’s possible that bioavailability studies don’t always look at what they need to, says Kalyanam. For instance, he says, most of today’s curcumin bioavailability studies measure the metabolites of curcumin-mainly curcumin glucuronides. But, as mentioned earlier in regard to efficacy studies, research would need to show that these metabolites are responsible for any of curcumin’s health benefits. He says that, so far, research shows that the metabolite tetrahydrocurcuminoids, such as in Sabinsa’s new Curcumin C

 Reduct ingredient, do have health benefits.

	“If a study were able to be structured so that all comparable products were delivering the same amount of bioactive material (e.g., tetrahydrocurcuminoids) and that a heterogeneous subject pool was used, one could get a better view of if there were any superior bioavailability between the products,” says Douglas Kalman, PhD, director BD, nutrition and applied clinical trials, Miami Research Associates.

	So maybe there isn’t an easy way to compare bioavailability data. Maybe, then, we should bring consumers into the conversation once we have 

 data to present. Consumers may not understand the nuances of bioavailability data, but most consumers would understand these words from a marketer: “Yes, this works for this health condition. This study showed it.”


	Editor-in-Chief
	Nutritional Outlook magazine

Comparing bioavailability data isn't as simple as it seems.

Dietary Supplements: It’s Bioavailability, Stupid

	Nestled within the many pages of the new U.S. Farm Bill is a provision authorizing 

. Insignificant as it may sound, the provision is a likely first step towards U.S.-grown hemp products.

	Right now, 100% of U.S. hemp products are imports, but the benefits of growing hemp, for nutritional purposes alone, are perhaps too great to still ignore. In fact, hemp oil, seeds (

), and protein are all enjoying good market status on their own.

	The provision for hemp pilot programs allows these programs to take place, under state or university management, in the nine U.S. states where hemp cultivation is legal: California, Colorado, Kentucky, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Vermont, and West Virginia. Pilot programs can study the growth, cultivation, and/or marketing of industrial hemp. And it turns out that Canada’s now-thriving hemp business started in much the same way.

	“The legalization process here in Canada started with agricultural research trials,” says Mike Fata, CEO of the hemp products brand Manitoba Harvest. “Data sourced from the trials, and the associated comfort levels of the farmers involved, were essential in convincing the government to legalize industrial hemp on a national level. We’re encouraged the same will be true for the United States.”

	If a domestic hemp market does one day take place in the United States, it will realistically be years in the future-and it will require new legislation (to legalize production). Until then, and still after, manufacturers eager to sell hemp products will likely rely on established hemp companies in places like Canada. GFR Ingredients (Barrhead, AB, Canada) is one company happy to benefit.

	“This opens up huge economic opportunities for GFR Ingredients as owners of infrastructure and processing technology to manufacture 

, which has the highest concentration of protein available in the market,” says GFR president Richard Pierce. “GFR Ingredients is well-poised to realize the market opportunities as hemp expands into the mainstream."

	Industrial hemp should not be confused with marijuana. They are different varieties of the same 

plant. To make the distinction clear for consumers, the Farm Bill defines industrial hemp as the plant 

L., and any part of such plant, that contains no more than 0.3% delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)-a compound that may induce munchies.


	Ã¢ÂÂ¨Associate EditorÃ¢ÂÂ¨
	Nutritional Outlook magazineÃ¢ÂÂ¨
	

A new U.S. Farm Bill legalizes hemp agricultural pilot programs. But what does that mean?

When Will U.S. Hemp Arrive?

By Markus Lipp, PhD, and Kristie Laurvick, PhD,
		

		The use of probiotics as both food ingredients and dietary supplements is not novel. The potential positive role of probiotics in the human gut flora was observed more than a century ago, when Russian Nobel laureate Eli Metchnikoff suggested that useful bacteria could replace harmful ones

	Since then, numerous probiotic-type food cultures have been described and introduced in the food chain and widely accepted as beneficial. Products containing probiotics are becoming more common in the marketplace, and, with that, questions are increasingly asked by the food industry and consumers alike about the identity, viability, and purity-hence, the quality-of these probiotic ingredients.

GBI-30, 6086, became the first strain from the family of 

 (Generally Recognized as Safe) and receive no questions from the FDA. 

was reportedly first described in 1915 at the Iowa Agricultural Experiment Station

. The strain that received the GRAS notification is a patented organism described as a Gram-positive, spore-forming bacterium and classified as a probiotic for its purported support of good digestive and immune health. It can be used in a variety of foods, including baked goods and baking mixes, breakfast cereals, coffee and tea, dairy products, and grain products and pastas.

	In December 2013, the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), a global health organization that develops quality standards used worldwide for medicines, foods, and dietary supplements, proposed a new monograph for 

a compendium of public standards that helps ensure the integrity of food ingredients by helping to determine their identity, quality, and purity. The 

aims to bring confidence and consistency to the food ingredient supply chain by making suitable and reliable test methods publicly available.

	The newly proposed probiotic standard is open for public comment at 

until March 31, 2014. Comments are specifically encouraged on including alternate rapid testing methods appropriate for food ingredients.

	One of the main reasons why USP decided to include a probiotic monograph in the 

 is the lack of substantive, publicly available standards for probiotics in general. Because of their associated health claims, probiotic ingredients are a very high-profile type of microbial food culture. USP’s mission is consistent with calls to develop public standards to fill this gap. New monographs allow all stakeholders in the food supply chain to independently verify the identity and viable microbial count of their ingredients, without being forced to rely solely on information provided by the manufacturer. 

	USP has been very proactive in communicating with the probiotic industry to develop other monographs for probiotic strains in addition to 

 For now, however, because of the unique characteristics of food ingredients comprising live microorganisms, the newly proposed monograph is only 

and represents only food ingredients that are labeled as this specific strain of 

. Identifying the microorganism to the strain level is critical to the probiotic purchaser because safety and efficacy studies are typically connected to a specific strain, rather than the whole species.

	From a technical standpoint, the interest in 

GBI-30, 6086, lies in its spore-forming characteristics. In simplified terms, a spore is a dormant form of the microorganism, which is able to survive more adverse conditions than in its so-called “activated” form. In the case of this product, for example, the spores can withstand the high temperatures needed in baking, which allows food manufacturers more options for incorporating this potentially beneficial microorganism in food products.

	Because spore-forming microorganisms typically require some activation step to initiate the transformation of the organism from the dormant form into the active form, typical laboratory enumeration techniques for microorganisms are often unsuccessful in giving accurate total plate counts. These plate count techniques are critical in determining how many microorganisms are present (typically per gram of product) and allowing manufacturers to accurately formulate with the desired microbial count. The proposed 

 GBI-30, 6086, includes a validated enumeration procedure with the activation step necessary for producing accurate and reliable plate counts of the microorganism in its viable, non-dormant form.

	Another unique aspect of the proposed monograph is the inclusion of a nucleic acid–based identification technique, which is critical to identifying the microorganism to the strain level-the strain level being the level to which efficacy and safety studies have been performed, according to the information provided in the GRAS notifier's documentation to the FDA. This test allows purchasers of the ingredient to ensure that the microorganism they are using in their formulation is the same as the microorganism that was successfully GRAS notified and not some other strain. This level of identification is optimal in the use of any probiotic microorganism, and the existence of the public standard in the form of the proposed USP monograph adds a degree of transparency that can benefit the probiotic industry, as well as customers and consumers.

	USP’s newly proposed monograph for the probiotic microorganism 

 is the organization’s first publicly proposed documentary standard for a probiotic ingredient. The unique nature of both the food ingredient and the proposed monograph represent true benefits to purchasers and users of the ingredient and, ultimately, to consumers who wish to buy foods formulated with this probiotic microorganism.

The Prolongation of Life: Optimistic Studies.

 (Translated and edited by P. Chalmers Mitchell.) London: Heinemann, 1907.

www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/fcn/gras_notices/grn000399.pdf

Markus Lipp, PhD, is the senior director of food standards for the U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP), responsible for the Food Chemicals Codex. Kristie Laurvick, PhD, is the senior scientific liaison for foods, dietary supplements, and herbal medicines for USP.

How USP's newly proposed (and first ever!) probiotic monograph will help.

Spore-Forming Probiotics Like Bacillus Coagulans Require Unique Testing Standards

	AstaPure astaxanthin now has the green light for an even longer shelf life-four years at room temperature-due to stability data announced by supplier 

 (Kibbutz Ketura, Israel). The company says this shelf life surpasses those of other astaxanthin brands.

	The recommendation comes from more than four years of the company’s own real-time stability studies. It tested how various environmental conditions, including air, heat, and light, affect the concentration of astaxanthin in finished products.

	“In light of the impressive results of the study, we are able to extend AstaPure’s shelf life at room temperature with complete confidence, providing that the packages remain sealed in their original containers,” said Oran Ayalon, PhD, the company’s R&D director, in a press release. He said refrigeration helps improve shelf-life conditions even further.

	AstaPure is a microalgae-derived, 10% astaxanthin oleoresin.

AstaPure astaxanthin now has the green light for an even longer shelf life-four years at room temperature.

AstaPure Astaxanthin’s Recommended Shelf Life Extended

	Few companies offer organic stevia, let alone certified-organic stevia, but stevia supplier 

 (SGF; Bellingham, WA) is one company that does. SGF gained 

 (NOP) certification for its stevia extracts late last year. The company recently harvested its first, full-scale commercial certified-organic stevia crop. It describes how it had to adapt its stevia processing to meet NOP regulations.

	Standard stevia production typically uses chemicals that do not meet NOP guidelines, Mel Jackson, SGF’s vice president of science, tells 

“Standard stevia processing procedures use chemicals that are not listed on the USDA NOP’s national list of acceptable processing aids. Therefore, other methods and processing aids must be found and used that do comply.”

	A few years ago, SGF began exploring alternatives. For instance, it needed to find an organic source of the ethanol used in its extraction process. NOP allows only the use of organic chemical production and cleaning aids. But this was easier said than done, Jackson says. “One of the challenges we overcame was the apparent complete lack of USDA certified-organic ethanol in China.”

	The company doesn’t disclose the proprietary processing modifications it made to meet NOP standards, but Jackson says the company “has achieved means to clarify crude extracts and has developed downstream processing and cleaning technologies that allow complete compliance.”

	Other challenges included going through the NOP inspection process itself, including “informing the authorized organic inspectors on the stevia-specific nuances of complying with the USDA NOP regulations,” Jackson says. “This involved inviting and hosting inspectors on numerous occasions to see processes as they were developed in order to gain their understanding and their ultimate approval of this truly organic process and product.”

	SGF now offers both USDA certified-organic stevia, as well as non-organic stevia extracts. Supplying certified-organic stevia fills a current industry gap, the firm says. “The vast majority of stevia extracts currently marketed are not organic [but] we have received many requests from companies looking for an organic line of stevia extracts,” Jackson says.

	Organic certification is also a verifiable way to confirm the ingredients’ origins. “Certified-organic products offer companies the ability to make confident ‘organic’ product claims that can easily be validated, as opposed to ‘natural’ product claims where there is no FDA definition, which has resulted in litigation over product labeling,” Jackson says.

	The company is also calling on companies to carefully vet their stevia suppliers and “look well beyond the paperwork.” In a press release, the firm said, “Full compliance comes, as most will know, with using certified-organic stevia leaf, but not many will know that the production stages where the clarification of crude extracts occurs, and the column chromatography, need to be overhauled from existing practices.”

	Is there a taste difference between organic and non-organic stevia? No, says SGF. The company says its organic product line has the same “great taste profile” as its non-organic Puresse 100, Optesse HPX, and Optesse HPS stevia extracts.

	SGF says it took years of research and development to refine its organic processing techniques. “It has taken several years to develop the technology and protocols to both conform to USDA NOP organic regulations and produce crops that will economically compete on a global scale,” the company said in the press release.

	“When you commit to providing a seed supply that is certified organic and move that to a commercial certified-organic growing environment (that doesn’t afford the opportunity to utilize inorganic fertilizers, or agrochemicals), while at the same time you’re working to mechanize every phase of crop production, there is much to learn with several years of trials to get commercially viable results,” added Hal Teegarden, SGF’s vice president of agriculture. “At SGF, we are very fortunate to be able to work with some of the best growers and Land Grant research partners in the world to collectively build a new USA agriculture crop.”

Stevia's Next Generation: Reb D and nature-identical stevia

Will Consumers Still Be Sweet on Stevia if Stevia's Not "Natural"?

The company is also calling on firms to carefully vet their stevia suppliers and “look well beyond the paperwork.”

Organic Stevia Is Rare, But Sweet Green Fields’ Process Makes It Possible

 (La Mirada, CA) is now the exclusive North American stevia distributor for China-based herbal extracts supplier Chenguang Biotech. Chenguang operates 12 agricultural facilities worldwide.

	GWI says the global stevia market stood at $304 million in 2012 and is expected to grow to $409 million by 2016, according to market researcher Zenith International.

	Chenguang’s president Qingguo Lu says the company has already grown its stevia market share in Asia and is now looking to expand to the U.S.

	GWI already supplies green coffee bean, grape seed, lutein, lycopene, and red yeast rice from Chenguang Biotech.

GWI Named North American Distributor for Chenguang Biotech's Stevia

 brand can now boast a number of functional health claims in the Canadian market. In January, Health Canada issued KSM-66 ashwagandha a Natural Product Number (NPN) and approval three claims, for stress and anxiety, athletic support, and healthy testosterone production.

	Finished products that include KSM-66 at a 300-mg dose can use the following claims:

		Helps increase resistance to stress/anxiety in individuals with a history of chronic stress, thereby improving their overall quality of life

		Athletic support or workout/exercise supplement

		Helps promote healthy testosterone production in males

-including clinical study evidence-and deemed it safe, effective, and of high quality.

	Because KSM-66’s extract comes from the root of the ashwagandha plant 

, it meets specifications of Health Canada’s own ashwagandha monograph, as well as specifications of the U.S. Pharmacopeia and the British Pharmacopeia.

	“Because KSM-66 uses only the root and no other part of the ashwagandha plant, and because Health Canada’s own ashwagandha monograph similarly specifies only the root, these [newly approved health] claims are over and above what is available to formulators who reference the generic Health Canada ashwagandha monograph,” said KSM-66’s supplier Ixoreal Biomed (Hyderabad, India), in a press release.

	Also, because the root is what’s most often referenced in clinical ashwagandha studies, “this probably puts KSM-66 on more familiar ground in the minds of governmental regulators across the world,” adds Kartikeya Baldwa, director, Ixoreal.

Finished products that include KSM-66 at a 300-mg dose can use the claims for stress and anxiety, athletic support, and healthy testosterone production.

Health Canada Approves KSM-66 Ashwagandha Health Claims

Those lucky enough to attend this week’s 

 in Salt Lake City have already been gifted with details of a novel approach to omega-3 stability testing in fish oil products. Because today’s test methods are only intended for measuring omega-3 stability in pure fish oil, 

 (Mississauga, ON, Canada) is designing one for 

Why is there a need for this kind of later-stage testing?

Today, industry relies on a short list of omega-3 stability test methods, most notably the p-Anisidine Value test. It’s recognized by many scientific bodies-including USP–NF, the European Pharmacopeia, and the AOAC-and its required of various fish oil certifications. For simple oils, this test method has no problem. But it turns out that the various additives employed to alter the color, flavor, and smell of fish oil can interfere with the p-Anisidine Value test. A conventional p-Anisidine Value test is apparently incapable of separating the many oxidation compounds from pure omega-3s at this level, says Steve Li, MD, Msc, manager of lab operations at Diteba.

Li and Diteba developed what they say is a reliable, novel p-Anisidine Value test with a HPLC-UV method. They say other advanced technologies are available, but if they can quantify and identify these complex oxidized compounds at the formulation stage, they are too expensive for realistic use for the average manufacturer. So far, Li says his company’s technology appears to work for most capsule products. His team is trying to evaluate its reliable use against all of the fish oil industry’s commonly used flavoring agents, such as lemon flavors.

Many national governing bodies enforce thresholds for oxidation in marine oils-using p-Anisidine Values-but once Diteba’s method is 100% confirmed, it should give fish oil manufacturers a reliable test method for testing omega-3 stability in not just the base, raw material fish oil, but in finished fish oil products made with additives.

Conventional test methods only evaluate the raw material, but oxidation can occur with additives such as flavors.

GOED Exchange: Omega-3 Stability Testing for Finished Fish Oil Products

	The first certified-organic tablet coating meets demands for natural-ingredient dietary supplements. The clear coating is USDA organic certified and approved for use in North America, says supplier 

	Made with plant-derived ingredients-and no synthetic polymers or GMO materials-the Opadry NutraPure tablet coating also excludes allergens typically associated with gluten, wheat, eggs, soy, nuts, yeast, or dairy, Ali Rajabi-Siahboomi, PhD, Colorcon’s vice president and chief scientific officer, tells 

. All Opadry NutraPure ingredients are approved for food and dietary supplements.

	Opadry NutraPure answers industry calls for a more natural coating system, said Cornelis van de Muyzenberg, Colorcon’s vice president of global business development, in a press release. Most tablet-coating systems use cellulosic polymers like hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC), “which do have plant-based origins but have been chemically altered or further processed in some fashion,” Rajabi-Siahboomitells us.

	The coating gives tablets exceptional shine and gloss and makes tablets easier for consumers to swallow.

	Finding the right, alternative, high-performance materials was challenging, Rajabi-Siahboomitells 

	“In traditional film coatings, the polymers that are used produce strong films on a wide variety of tablets. Since these traditional polymers cannot be used in organic applications, it was very challenging to develop a coating with only food materials that would not only adhere to the surface of the tablet, but also provide gloss and shine to the tablets,” Rajabi-Siahboomisays. “We were also constrained in our choice of materials, as we wanted them to be non-GMO and free of allergens.”

	Achieving USDA organic certification was a way to assure customers that Opadry NutraPure’s ingredients are natural-especially because the word 

 currently has no formal regulatory definition, the company says.

	“As consumer awareness of food ingredient labeling has increased, we have had increased interest from our customers in more label-friendly ingredients in our coatings. Interestingly, while some of our customers have asked us for ‘natural’ coatings, there is no statutory definition of the term 

 in the marketplace. We took that on board and said, ‘We could have our own internal definition of what 

 means, but what would that mean for the market?’” Rajabi-Siahboomi explains. 

	“One way we could show that the product is natural is to go through the certification process for organic, where we looked at the origin of the substance (coming from natural sources) and manufactured/processed by methods considered to be minimal, which do not intentionally modify the chemical nature of the substance,” Rajabi-Siahboomi says. “We felt that the requirements set out by the USDA Organic program best met these criteria.”

	Simply put, Opadry NutraPure gives formulators-and consumers-more options. “The consumer-friendly product label ingredients will provide supplement manufacturers an edge in marketing their products in this highly competitive market,” van den Muyzenberg says.

	Colorcon worked with Quality Assurance International to earn the USDA certification. The company says it plans to pursue similar alternative coatings for capsules.


	Editor-in-Chief
	Nutritional Outlook magazine
	jennifer.grebow@ubm.com

The clear coating is USDA organic certified and approved for use in North America.

Certified-Organic Tablet Coating Is an Industry First

 (Afton, MN) now offers its ingredient in a high-maltose nectar that complements nutrition bars, cereal, granola, jellies/jams, beverages-and even craft beer.

	The company leverages purple corn’s many benefits. Derived from Andean maize, Suntava’s purple corn can be used to boost whole grains in products like chips and tortillas. Its high antioxidant content also benefits dietary supplements, cosmeceuticals, and functional foods, supporting heart, vision, and brain health. Suntava’s purple corn extract boasts three antioxidants specifically: cyanidin-3-glucoside (C3G), peonidin, and pelargonidin. Additionally, the company offers a red-spectrum liquid colorant called Sayela, based on purple corn’s anthocyanins, to replace Red 40 in food and beverages.

	The new purple corn nectar also offers these antioxidant benefits. Plus, it provides sweetness and color.

	Terry Howell, Suntava’s business development director, describes the nectar’s taste as “mildly sweet and yet slightly tart, without a typical corn taste.”

	As a sweetener, “the purple corn nectar might not be the primary sweetener, but it contributes to what we would describe as a sweetener system,” Howell tells 

. “It would mix well with rice or agave syrup and other minimally processed sweeteners to provide a unique sweetness and color profile.” Suntava describes the ingredient as a “42-45 dextrose equivalent.”

	Although Suntava already offers its Sayela colorant, Howell says the nectar also provides naturally rich purple color for those seeking the hue.

Its high antioxidant content supports heart, vision, and brain health. 

Purple Corn Nectar Lends Antioxidants, Sweetness, and Color

	Soluble dietary fiber oligofructose can help mask stevia’s bitter, “off” taste. Supplier 

 (Lawrenceville, NJ) has developed a computerized model to determine the optimal combination of stevia and the company’s Frutalose oligofructose when formulating reduced-calorie products.

	The company recently unveiled the analytical tool, which determines the optimal taste profile when combining stevia and oligofructose. It then put its results to the test in food and beverage samples and served those to a tasting panel, with good results. Sensus can now use the model to optimize the taste of each marketer’s unique stevia-oligofructose product.

	When combined with stevia in the right amounts, Frutalose can help maximize the percentage of stevia in a product, without sacrificing taste-especially in dairy products like plain, low-fat spoonable yogurt and plain drinking yogurt.

	Matthew de Roode, innovation manager, says Sensus is the first company to promote and test oligofructose’s stevia masking in such a “structured” way.

	“We’ve seen products on the market where oligofructose was predominantly used as a so-called filler (next to erythritol, etc.). Although this has an effect on the ‘off’ taste, this was not promoted as such,” he tells 

	How does oligofructose mask stevia’s bitter notes? De Roode says that the exact mechanism is still unknown, although “a lot of literature research is devoted to discovering the specific bitter receptors on the tongue.”

	“In some research, it is shown that the difference in bitter taste of the different steviol glycosides is due to the sugar moieties around the central steviol group. Maybe an interaction with the oligofructose on this specific receptor has a similar positive effect on the taste of stevia,” he posits.

	Oligofructose’s effect on ‘off’ notes is not limited to stevia alone. De Roode says the company’s early research showed oligofructose had a positive effect on the bitter aftertaste of other high-intensity sweeteners like aspartame, acesulfame-K, and sucralose.

	But, the company soon realized that “there is no ‘one size fits all’ solution,” which is why it developed its analytical model. “The same combination of oligofructose with stevia that tasted great in one application tasted horrible in another,” he says.

	Sensus’s optimization tool makes precise calculations possible-and easier. “If today, our client wants to reduce 30% of sugar and desires the best taste possible, we can provide him with a recipe,” de Roode says. “If, for the next product launch, an even higher sugar reduction is desired, we can use the same model to show him where the trade-offs for this new product are.”

	The company hopes to expand its techniques to other products beyond yogurt. De Roode says Sensus has done experiments with a chocolate spread-“which is a fat-based system in contrast to the water-based yogurt system”-with good results. “This gives us the confidence that an optimum ratio of oligofructose and stevia does exist for a lot of products,” he says.

	As an added bonus, oligofructose is a prebiotic dietary fiber. Sensus’s oligofructose, as well as its inulin ingredients, are derived from chicory root and serve as sugar and fat replacers.

, Editor-in-Chief, Nutritional Outlook magazine
	jennifer.grebow@ubm.com

Soluble dietary fiber oligofructose can help mask stevia’s bitter, “off” taste. 

Masking Stevia’s Bitterness with Oligofructose Is Now Easier, Thanks to a New “Optimization” Tool

	Kosher-certified enzymes are now part of the 

 (Bensenville, IL) lineup. The company was recently certified by 

, enabling it to manufacture kosher enzymes without a Rabbi present. The certification extends to Biocatalysts’ new enzyme production plant.

	The company also produces halal and vegetarian enzymes. More than 50% of the company’s standard products can be produced halal.

	Biocatalysts says the new certification meets growing demand for kosher ingredients.

The company also produces halal and vegetarian enzymes. 

Kosher Enzymes from Biocatalysts

	Ready to build a collagen market in the United States, Nippi Collagen (Burnaby, BC, Canada) has named Stauber Performance Ingredients (Fullerton, CA) as its official 

	TruMarine collagen peptides is a virtually odorless, taste-free, and certified kosher ingredient. The ingredient is purported to support beauty and skin health by improving skin moisture and reducing deep wrinkles. Joint and bone health may also benefit from collagen peptides as these ingredients may repair joint matrix degeneration while restoring bone mineral density. The collagen market is already substantial in Japan, where it is found in various product formats, and suppliers like Nippi are hoping the ingredient’s popularity will catch on in North America.

	A recent partnership with Unistraw to market 

 could make the transition that much easier.

	Globally, collagen is supplied from a variety of animal sources. But Nippi says its marine source consists of small type-1 collagen peptides that have enhanced bioavailability and digestibility.

The California-based company will market Nippi's collagen peptides in the United States.

Nutritional Outlook Vol. 17 No. 2