Nutraceuticals International articles from August 2004

Nutraceuticals International archives from August 2004

Future of EU food supplement legislation viewed at Prague meeting.(future aspects)
August 1, 2004... For the first time, and within weeks of the creation of the enlarged European Union, senior government representatives from the food and health sectors of existing, new and candidate member states met together with the European Commission,...

Major changes in EU herbal market - particularly in the UK - by Peter Berry Ottaway.(changes)
August 1, 2004... Over the next few years, the landscape of the herbal products market in Europe will change significantly. Although much has been written and many conferences held on the subject, there is still a large number of companies which appear to be...

European project to produce antibodies and vaccines from plants.
August 1, 2004... A team of European researchers plans to perfect techniques for producing antibodies and vaccines, obtained from plants, to prevent and treat major human diseases such as AIDS, rabies and tuberculosis. The idea is to use genetically-modified...

US consumers choose oat-based prods.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... A new research report prepared by the US Natural Marketing Institute shows that oat-based ingredients are the first choice of American consumers in managing high or borderline cholesterol. Based on a survey of over 64 million US...

New foundation to develop US nutra industry self-policing programs.
August 1, 2004... An independent organization through which the US dietary supplement industry may ultimately police its own actions was unveiled at a meeting of industry leaders held in conjunction with the US National Nutritional Foods Association 2004 trade...

US poll finds consumers confused over supps.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... 78% of women and 68% of men find it challenging to decide which dietary supplements are necessary for optimum health, a US-wide survey conducted for Life Force International by the Market Enhancement Group has found. Although the dietary...

Metabolife founder indicted, pleads not guilty, to lying to US FDA about ephedra.(investgations)
August 1, 2004... Michael Ellis, founder of San Diego-based Metabolife International, has pleaded not guilty to six counts of making false, fictitious and fraudulent representations to the US Food and Drug Administration and two counts of corruptly endeavoring...

US FTC staff respond to FDA call on health claims.(health care)
August 1, 2004... Permitting health claims to be made for certain foods would help consumers make informed dietary choices and promote competition among manufacturers to develop and market healthier food products, says a comment filed with the Food and Drug...

US Food Guide review: implications for industry.
August 1, 2004... The US Department of Agriculture's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion has initiated a broad-based review and update of its current food guide, the Food Guide Pyramid, which was first introduced in 1992 to interpret and help people use...

US FDA warning over Chinese infant formula.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The US Food and Drug Administration has warned consumers not to feed their infants infant formula from China because its safety and nutritional adequacy is unknown. Recently, infant formula from China under the name Guan Wei Yuan was...

Nutramax settles with US FTC over Senior Moment unsubstantiated claims.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Dietary supplement maker Nutramax has settled US Federal Trade Commission charges that it violated federal law by making unsubstantiated claims that its Senior Moment supplement could prevent memory loss and restore memory function in adults....

US injunction against unapproved new drugs.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Judge William Bassler of the US District Court for the District of New Jersey has found that three products sold by Lane Labs-USA and its president, Andrew Lane, as dietary supplements and a cosmetic are, in fact, unapproved new drugs under...

Codex takes major decision on guidelines for vitamins and minerals.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... At its last meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, the Codex Alimentarius Commission, the global advisory body on food regulations created by the World Health Organization and the United Nation's Food and Agriculture Organization, made an important...

Misleading "green" claims undermines consumers' trust, says CI report.(Consumers International )
August 1, 2004... "Natural, bio, traditional farming and animal welfare" are just some of the terms used on food labels that mislead and confuse consumers, according to a new eight-country survey from Consumers International of self-declared "green" claims on...

FSANZ advises on tagatose use.(Food Standards Australia New Zealand)
August 1, 2004... Food Standards Australia New Zealand's Chief Medical Adviser, Bob Boyd, has issued advice for people who are fructose-intolerant to avoid the novel food tagatose. "Tagatose is a new food ingredient that has recently been approved by...

Australia/China unis' sign herbals accord.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Australia's Griffith University and Beijing University, China, have signed a commercial agreement to research and develop a complementary medicine program based on Chinese herbal remedies.The herbal cures of the east will be examined using...

Japan to revise herbal medicines' approval.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... For the first time in around 30 years, the Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is considering the revision of marketing approval standards for non-prescription herbal medicines. The Ministry has indicated that it is hoping to...

Indian firms form herbal association.(Federation of Indian Herbal Industry)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Some 60 Indian companies have joined forces to form the Federation of Indian Herbal Industry to promote the ayurvedic system in international markets. Based in Chennai, the FIHI is being chaired by Narendra Bhatt, chief executive of Zandu...

Japan's FOSHU market quadrupled since 1997.(Foods for Specified Health Use)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... In Japan, the market for health and functional foods is currently worth around 1,300 billion yen ($12.0 billion), according to estimates by domestic food and beverages giant Suntory. Within this, the value of FOSHU (Foods for Specified...

Argentine potential for US energy drinks.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The Argentine market "holds enormous potential for American-made energy drinks," according to a report from the US Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service. The report noted that Argentina has reduced its average duty on...

Indonesia asks China to open up on TMs.(traditional medicines)(Indonesia Ministry of Health)(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Speaking at the dedication of a Beijing, China, Tong Ren Tang clinic and drugstore in Jakarta, Indonesia, H Sampurno, chief of the Drug and Food Control Agency at Indonesia's Ministry of Health, called on China to allow traditional...

Japanese consumers attracted to jelly drinks with vitamins and minerals.
August 1, 2004... In Japan, a wide range of jelly drinks containing vitamins and minerals, packed in aluminium pouches, is becoming popular, as they allow consumers easily and speedily to supplement their daily nutrients. Companies have been quick to exploit the...

Acceptable to add VIMs to food, says Australian Food and Grocery Council's FSB.(Food Science Bureau)(Vitamins)
August 1, 2004... The Australian Food and Grocery Council's Food Science Bureau, in a statement, has declared: "it is acceptable to add vitamins and minerals to food products and that it may improve and maintain nutrition. The products, however, must be...

Natural carbohydrate may help in killing cancer cells, US researchers report.
August 1, 2004... Researchers have identified a natural carbohydrate that recruits innate immune cells to assist monoclonal antibodies in the killing of cancer cells, providing a third mechanism by which this immunotherapy destroys tumors. The results were...

Broccoli antioxidant protects eyes.
August 1, 2004... Carrots may be the first vegetable that people think of for protecting their eyesight, but a new study shows broccoli and broccoli sprouts should be added to the list. Researchers at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, USA, have...

Omega-3s may be produced via biotech.
August 1, 2004... Long-chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 LC-PUFAs) have benefits regarding cardiovascular and inflammatory function, certain types of cancer and maternal and infant health, according to recent peer-reviewed studies. These beneficial...

Carotenoids restore cell communication.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... New evidence presented at the Bioscience 2004 conference in Glasgow, Scotland, suggests that dietary carotenoids stop tumor growth by restoring communication between cells. Furthermore, by keeping cells communicating with each other, they may...

Resveratrol increases activity of SIRT1.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Researchers from the USA's Oregon State University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Ottawa, Canada, have found that a gene called SIRT1 can not only reduce the development of new fat cells but also increase the...

Controversy over antioxidant use.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Consumers should get their antioxidants from food rather than dietary supplements in order to decrease the risk of heart disease, according to conclusions published in this month's edition of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart...

Aloe vera may help trauma victims.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The herbal extract aloe vera may be able to prolong the amount of time a trauma injury patient can survive before receiving treatment such as a blood transfusion, say researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, USA. In the study, 10...

Niacin may protect against Alzheimer's.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... A new study published in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery and Psychiatry suggests that dietary niacin (vitamin B3) may protect against Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive decline. The investigation involved nearly 4,000...

Fortified milk prevents childhood diseases.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Findings from a large-scale clinical trial, commissioned and funded by Fonterra's international consumer goods business New Zealand Milk, indicate that giving children, aged one-four years, milk fortified with vitamin and minerals, with or...

L-carnitine could help male infertility.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Research published in the journal Fertility and Sterility suggests that the widely-used dietary supplement L-carnitine, in combination with a related chemical L-acetyl-carnitine, appears to improve sperm motility in men with fertility...

Eating veggies together better against cancer.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Eating tomatoes and broccoli together may provide better protection against cancer than eating either vegetable alone, say researchers at the University of Illinois, USA. Results of the study showed that rats given a combination of broccoli and...

Walnuts "a natural source of omega-3s".(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Walnuts are recognized by health experts as the easiest way to incorporate omega-3 fatty acids into a daily diet since they can be enjoyed conveniently as a snack or included in any meal and they are recognized as a whole-food alternative...

Burcon completes key development milestone on canola proteins.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Canada's Burcon NutraScience Corp says that it has, in conjunction with its alliance partner Archer Daniels Midland of the USA, completed a key milestone in the path towards the commercialization of the canola proteins Puratein and...

ADM gets rights to Korean phytosterols.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... USA-headquartered agricultural processing multinational Archer Daniels Midland has acquired European and North American marketing rights to Korean company Eugene Science's Euchol phytosterol technology, according to a report by...

Daily vitamin pill may slow AIDS progress.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine suggests that multivitamin supplements may delay the progression of HIV disease and provide an effective, low-cost way of delaying the start of antiretroviral therapy in HIV-infected...

Positive new data for Sabinsa's ForsLean.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Herbal extracts manufacturer and supplier Sabinsa has reported promising new safety and efficacy data for its weight management product ForsLean (Coleus forskohlii extract). The 12-week, double-blind and randomized trial involved 60 obese...

Omega-3s protect against prostate cancer.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... A new study published in the July issue of the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition suggests that men with higher intakes of the omega-3 fatty acids, eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, could be at lower risk of developing...

Micap's product to be tested for MRSA in UK.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Micap says it has received clearance from the Manchester Local Research Ethics Committee, UK, to begin a Phase I trial of its Micap encapsulated biocide and essential oil product for the control of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus....

Boiron to expand on international market.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... French homeopathic drugs producer Boiron is planning to use its acquisition of Pierre Fabre's loss-making subsidiary Dolisos as a launch pad for expansion on the international market. Boiron has said that, given the sympathetic view of...

Royal Numico sells baby food unit in S Africa.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Netherlands-based Royal Numico NV has entered into an agreement with South Africa's Aspen Pharmacare for the sale of its baby food business, for an undisclosed amount. The deal is subject to usual closing conditions and is expected to close...

Chr Hansen's 9-month revenue up 7%.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Chr Hansen of Denmark has posted a 7% rise in sales of its food ingredients business to 2.50 billion Danish kroner ($418 million), from 2.47 billion kroner for the same period last year. Earnings before interest, tax and amortization, however,...

Besins launches into nutra market.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... The French medical products specialist Besins International, a company which focuses on the women's health market, has entered the nutritional supplements sector with the sale of isoflavins of soy, known as Compleal, which it intends to...

Life Source sold.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... SkyVax Corp, a holding company owned by affiliates of Opus8, a private US investment firm, has announced the acquisition of Maryland-based Life Source, a developer and marketer of supplements. Opus8 added that it is "actively seeking...

Strong revenue rise at PepsiCo.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... US food and beverages giant PepsiCo has posted a strong set of financials for the second quarter ended June 30 which show an 8% increase in revenues to $7.07 billion. Net income was $1.06 billion, or $0.61 per share, a rise of 12% over the...

NBTY posts net income fall and faces up to law suits alleging insider trading.
August 1, 2004... US nutritional supplements behemoth NBTY says that sales for its fiscal third quarter ended June 30 increased 30% to $400 million, though net income, for the first time in a long while, declined. Earnings were down 10.3% at $26 million, or...

Natraceuticals' 1st-half profit jumps 44%.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Madrid, Spain-headquartered functional foods firm Natraceuticals has achieved a 44% leap in first-half 2004 net profit to 1.5 million euros ($1.8 million), driven by strong sales and new commercial deals. Turnover increased to 13.0...

Boiron's 1st-half 2004 sales climb 5%.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Boiron, a leading French producer of homeopathic drugs, saw its first-half 2004 sales climb 5% to 149.1 million euros ($173.3 million). Revenues were driven by 10% growth in international markets to 49 million euros and a 3% rise in...

Ebro's 1st-half profit passes 1B-euro mark.
August 1, 2004... Spain's Ebro Puleva saw its profit for the first half of 2004 cap 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) for the first time, climbing 2.8% from the like, year-earlier period. The company recorded an ordinary profit of 81.4 million euros, up...

Danisco posts slight growth for full year.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Danish firm Danisco saw its full-year profit inch up to 1.03 billion Danish kroner ($166.8 million) from 1.01 billion kroner recorded for the prior year, beating expectations of 925-975 million kroner, the firm said. Sales rose 7.2% to 4.38...

Fonterra's full-year sales hit record high.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... New Zealand-based dairy cooperative Fonterra saw its revenues reach new heights for the 2003-4 season, hitting $5.1 billion compared to the previous season's $4.4 billion. The company collected over 14 billion litres of milk, equating to...

Maarbarot Products to buy Altmann.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Materna manufacturer Maabarot Products of Kibbutz Maabarot, Israel, has entered into an agreement in principle to purchase 100% of natural products producer Altmann Natural Pharmacy, for NIS 26-28 million ($5.8-$6.2 million). The final...

Good 1st results from new Arla Foods UK.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Arla Foods UK has reported its first set of interim results following its merger with Express Dairies, and they show a strong performance across the new business. Pretax profit before exceptional items and goodwill amortization, was...

Weider supplement deal with Unigen.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Weider Nutrition International of Salt Lake City, Utah, has entered into a collaboration agreement with fellow US firm Unigen Pharmaceuticals to develop and commercialize dietary supplement products. No financial details of the deal were...

Bio-One shopping for Chinese firms again.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Florida, USA-based nutritional supplements company Bio-One Corp has hit the acquisition trail yet again, having announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire a 51% interest in a Chinese herbal medicine company based in Henan Province....

Neptune completes private placement.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Neptune Technologies & Bioresources of Canada has completed a private placement which has raised over $655,000. The Montreal-based firm develops and exploits marine biomasses in order to offer its products to the nutraceutical market, among...

Orbit buys Malibu Beach Beverage.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Orbit Brands, a Los Angeles, USA-based firm which acquires early-stage development companies in the technology, health and fitness and consumer goods industries, has acquired Malibu Beach Beverage Group, a manufacturer of low-carbohydrate...

Pharmanex drives growth at Nu Skin.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Nu Skin Enterprises says that, for the second quarter ended June 30, revenues rose 18% to $284.2 million, while net income was up 20.8% on the like, year-earlier period to $20.3 million or $0.28 per share (+33%). For the six-month period,...

Sharp revenue rise at Nature's Sunshine.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... USA-based herbals and vitamins manufacturer Nature's Sunshine Products says that, for the second quarter ended June 30, its revenues increased 25.2% to $79.6 million, while net income shot up to $4.8 million, or $0.31 per share, compared...

Sales up 43% at USANA Health.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... USANA Health Sciences, a Salt Lake City, USA-based firm which specializes in nutritional and weight-management products, says that sales for the second quarter ended July 3, were $67.2 million, a rise of 43% compared with the like, year-earlier...

Allied invests in International Fiber.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Allied Capital Corp has invested $23.5 million in International Fiber Corp, a New York-headquartered firm which specializes in high-value functional ingredients. Explaining the move, Robert Monk, principal at Allied Capital, said: "IFC...

Disappointing year at Galaxy Nutritional.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Galaxy Nutritional Foods, which produces plant-based dairy alternatives, has posted a net loss of almost $3 million for its fiscal year ended March 31, compared with net income of over $1 million the year before. Net sales decreased 9.5%...

Forbes increases revenue guidance.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Canada's Forbes Medi-Tech says that it has increased projections for its sterols sales as a result of securing agreements that would generate revenues of up to $16Emillion over an 18-month period. This includes the renewal of a major...

Forthcoming meetings/events.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Soy & Health 2004 - Clinical evidence and dietetic applications, takes place in Bruges, Belgium, October 7-8. For further details and registration, contact: Soy & Health 2004, PB 220, B8500 Kortrijk, Belgium. Fax: +32 (0)57 46 95 25; e-mail:...

People on the move.(Brief Article)
August 1, 2004... Michael Broll has joined Galaxy Nutritional Foods of the USA as chief executive, replacing Christopher New who has resigned to pursue other interests. US nutritional supplements maker Life Force International has appointed Phillip Harvey...