DSM enters olive polyphenol market; hard launches high-dose algae omega-3

Swiss-based DSM Nutritional Products (DNP) has entered the olive-sourced hydroxytyrosol market that has been hot since the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) issued a rare plant polyphenol health claim approval in 2011.

That article 13 opinion rejected many health associations like blood pressure and anti-inflammation but backed hydroxytyrosol to protect LDL (low-density lipoprotein) particles from oxidative damage at 5 mg of hydroxytyrosol per day.

DNP global marketing manager Ruedi Duss told us the firm’s ‘elaVida’ offering was sourced using only olive fruits and was being sold in 15% and 40% versions.

“We are about the olive fruit, not by-products,” he said, after the launch at Vitafoods Europe last week.

To arrive at the EU-backed claim Duss said 33 mg of 15% elaVida was needed. That would deliver 5 mg of hydroxytyrosol in foods, drinks and supplements and cost, “below €0.05 per dose.”

DNP is also targeting jojnt health and energy claims in other regions like Asia.

While it has just entered the sector commercially, DSM has filed several patents around hydroxytyrosol dating back to 2008.

Duss said the company was engaged in further research on the compound, which DSM said, “complements the activity of vitamin E and vitamin C.”

Players in the sector include Italian supplier Indena, US supplier Creagri and Spanish supplier Genosa.

The EFSA-approved claim states: “Olive oil polyphenols contribute to the protection of blood lipids from oxidative stress.”

High-dose algae DHA-EPA omega-3

The firm also gave its high-dose, algae-sourced EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid

algae-istock.jpg

) andDHA (docosahexaenoic acid) omega-3 oil a hard launch at Vitafoods, after a soft launch at SupplySideWest in Las Vegas late last year.

Joe Agnew, global marketing manager, told us the 2:1 DHA:EPA 60% blend (life’sOMEGA 60) debuted commercially in January and has been picked up by both omega-3 and vegetarian supplement makers on both sides of the Atlantic.

He said experimentation around the same family of algae strains that underpinned the DHA-focused, infant formula-dominated Martek Biosciences business DSM paid more than €800m for in 2010, had yielded the new form.

Pricing was at the premium end, Agnew relayed, lying somewhere between traditional fish oils and pure algae DHA.

Food supplements would remain the focus for the immediate future.

“We need to collect further sensory data for foods,” he said.