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Modeling Sustainable Development in New Zealand
Insights from Terese Mansell
Specialty Ingredients Product Manager, Stratum Nutrition
“At Stratum Nutrition, we are always on the lookout for new ingredients
that can contribute to human nutrition and help people achieve a better
quality of life. I joined Stratum just as we were consolidating our
partnership with Anagenix in New Zealand for bringing ACTAZIN™ to market
and this has been my main role over the past couple of years. It’s been
quite a journey with a key milestone in July 2012, when we signed an
international distribution and partnership agreement with Anagenix. I have
become enamoured with our kiwifruit ingredient and the way we have managed
to achieve success in a relatively short time. ACTAZIN™ has exceeded all of
our forecasts to date and is poised to become a truly global digestive
health supplement with unique beneficial properties.
ACTAZIN™ is a new digestive supplement ingredient, manufactured from New
Zealand’s own ‘superfruit,’ the kiwifruit, which has been clinically proven
to support gut health by improving regularity and other long-term digestive
health benefits. There is historical knowledge of the benefits of kiwi in
food providing a wide variety of nutrients such as vitamins C, K, E, as
well as potassium, magnesium and dietary fiber. Due to the beneficial
prokinetic enzyme contained in kiwifruit, ACTAZIN™ has a unique prebiotic
ability to selectively feed bacteria known to enhance a healthy gut. Also
the high level of polyphenolics (phytonutrients and antioxidants) in New
Zealand kiwifruit act as a prebiotic, supporting beneficial bacteria to
maintain long-term digestive health.
I think that the launch of ACTAZIN™ could be a model for sustainable
development. It starts with turning a local ingredient into a high-value
product which generates zero waste – we use the flesh of the kiwifruit for
ACTAZIN™ and the peel is routed for animal feed. We developed the
ingredient using science and clinical research to exploit its beneficial
properties and manufacture ACTAZIN™ using a gentle process which maintains
its efficacy. The business supports the investment of the local Māori
people and aligns with their values. And all this is in the framework of a
private-public partnership with the New Zealand government, local experts
and the Novus Stratum Nutrition team. ACTAZIN™ is not only a win for human
health, it’s also a win for sustainability.”
Insights from Michele Raynor
Director Product Research, Healthy Directions
“Our dietary supplement industry has grown into a very significant
market with a wide variety of products available, a huge array of
information and widespread availability.
Even grocery store shelves are lined with probiotics. People talk about
the supplements they take and share information with friends and family.
Even family physicians now are opening up to suggesting supplements with
probiotics. This is a big market shift and it is going to continue. People
want a solution to the challenges of aging, especially in the over-fifties
age range, which is our prime market.
We were happy to take ACTAZIN™ and formulate it with probiotics into an
effective product that has done very well, with a high rate of repeat
purchases. Aside from the digestive properties of ACTAZIN™ and the
scientific evidence that it is effective, we felt that it had a wonderful
story. The fact that the product comes from New Zealand with its special
climate advantages helps catch the attention of our customers. It’s a
little exotic and people like that, but only if the product has effective
quality and efficacy. This is what makes our customers trust what we
offer.”
Insights from Melissa Yiannoutsos
Chief Operations and Sales Officer, Anagenix, New Zealand
“I have spent more than a decade commercializing science for
industrial, medical, biotechnology and food and beverage applications with
New Zealand research institutes, universities, industry and individuals.
Working in partnership to commercialize kiwifruit-derived products has been
one of the most exciting developments for me and for
Anagenix.
The attractive thing for us is a commitment to developing the branded
ingredients which are inspired by nature and developed by science, in a way
which is consistent with the Māori concept of ‘kaitiaki’ which refers to
‘guardianship of the land.’ We try to run our business in line with this –
redeveloping ingredients from nature in a trustworthy and responsible way.
There are many examples of how the Māori community has taken land ownership
and agricultural capability and utilized them to move into high-value
crops. We help by creating the right connections and building them into
lasting partnerships with the scientific community, high-quality
manufacturing sources and commercialization partners. Expanding high-value
exports is critical for the New Zealand economy and a priority for the
government. In fact, our first connection with Stratum Nutrition was during
a New Zealand Trade and Enterprise forum. Since then, we have been able to
move forward quickly through open discussion and a trusting partnership
approach. We share the same values and also, we are delighted to help the
unique New Zealand kiwifruit gain the global recognition it deserves!”
Advancing Oral Health with Probiotics
Insights from Ingomar Middelbos
Manager, Specialty Products and Pet Market, Stratum Nutrition
“Our work in oral health has continued to expand and move forward and we
see this as an important part of contributing to improving the health and
the quality of life for many people. One of our key probiotic product
ranges, BLIS®, recorded a major milestone, receiving a non-novel food
opinion in Europe. It is non-novel because the probiotic strains in BLIS®
based on Streptococcus salivarius were known to regulators due to uses in
other food products in the past. We already are starting to see interest
and have several customer developments with products in different forms in
the pipeline in Europe that will be on the shelves during 2013.
A significant breakthrough for the BLIS K12® product was the publication of
the full genome sequence during 2012. We saw the genome as the key to
gaining regulatory acceptance based on trust in our product and our
knowledge of the clear identity of the probiotic strains. Knowledge of the
genome enables scanning for certain DNA sequences that are linked to
pathogenicity or antibiotic resistance, which is a critical step in
ensuring the safety profile of the product. Our investment in developing
and publishing the genome gives us the edge on credibility, safety and
consistency of our products over time.
In 2012, two critical research papers were published in Italy after trials
in adults and children proved that BLIS K12® is very effective. Trials on
sore throats in children age four to five found that supplements with BLIS
K12® delivered a 92 percent reduction and ear infections were reduced by 42
percent. When I first saw the data, I asked, ‘Are you sure that these
numbers are right?’ But, the science is there. This is a major advancement
and can help child health significantly, improving the quality of life
while reducing healthcare costs. In adults, we looked at sore throats only
and got similar results. I think we are going to see BLIS® ingredients
formulated into many different oral health care and functional food
products in the coming months and years.”
Improving Joint Health
Insights from Micah Osborne
President, ESM Technologies, Stratum Nutrition
“Our biggest breakthrough this past year has been that one of our Canadian
customers launched a mass market product in the U.S. that is carried in
8,400 Walgreen’s stores. This is a major step forward for advancing the
contribution that natural eggshell-derived products can make in improving
joint health for millions of individuals. Part of this breakthrough is
based on the fact that we were able to achieve regulatory product licensing
in Canada. In Canada, a license is issued for a finished product, not for
its individual ingredients, so products have to be ready to launch before
they can apply for regulatory approval. We actually have more than ten
companies now working on products formulated with NEM® and we expect there
to be more choices on the market in the coming year.
We also published a safety manuscript for NEM® in the technical journal,
Food and Chemical Toxicology, comprised of many different peer-reviewed
studies. Many companies in our industry don’t publish safety data and
sometimes the research doesn’t meet scientific expectations. This published
manuscript significantly helped the credibility of our product and advanced
its approval.”
Insights from Frank Lucchetta
Executive Vice President, Marketing, Jamieson Vitamins
“Each geographic region has its own trend nuances in this industry
segment. Consumers want to fight the normal aging process. They value safe,
natural alternatives and they will seek early interventions and prevention
concepts to ensure optimum health. Consumers are not, however, willing to
waste time and money on something that does not work or meet a product
promise.”
“In bringing new products to market, we must meet consumer demand and
expectations first and foremost. Secondly, we must meet our strict
protocols for ingredients: purity, traceability, sustainability and
clinical efficacy. These are the foundational starting points. Beyond this,
the more obvious commercial aspects take hold: retailer demands/logistics,
competitive landscape, media influence, consistent source of ingredient
supply, exclusivity options and other proprietary opportunities, reduced
cost and delivery format options. NEM® nutritional supplement is
a good fit for our product portfolio as it meets a consumer trend need and
our core foundational demands as an ingredient.”