Nutraceuticals International articles from August 2008

Nutraceuticals International archives from August 2008

EU Novel Food authorization process completed for Congis' Tonalin CLA.
August 1, 2008... Global specialty chemicals supplier Cognis, which was the first company to seek European Novel Food approval for conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), has announced that the Spanish authority for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN) has finalized its...

EP adopts new school milk scheme.
August 1, 2008... In response to the requests and suggestions of European Union member states and the European Parliament, the European Commission has adopted a new version of the EU School Milk Scheme with simple and clear implementation rules that provides a...

Vietnam and USA sign accord on safety of food and medical products.
August 1, 2008... The USA and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance the safety of food, feed, drugs and medical devices traded between the two nations. The plan is the product of discussions between US...

NZ natural therapies exemption from Act.(New Zealand)(Medicines Act 1981)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... New Zealand's Medicines Act 1981 sets out controls on the manufacture, supply and advertising of medicines and also defines the term medicine. Apart from a few limited circumstances that are set out in the Act, medicines cannot be advertised,...

Naturex' Rosemary extract EFSA certified.
August 1, 2008... Avignon, France-based Naturex says that it welcomes the recent opinion issued by the European Food Safety Authority regarding the safety of the use of rosemary extracts as a food additive (antioxidant), which it is now hoped will pave the way...

Probi to launch Lp299v in Poland.
August 1, 2008... Sweden's probiotics R&D-based company Probi says that it has signed a distribution agreement giving Sanum Polska, a leading company in the market for natural, science-based products, the right to sell a Probi dietary supplement on the Polish...

GoodBelly probiotic debuts in USA.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... Through his new company NextFoods, US organic and natural foods industry pioneer Steve Demos is launching GoodBelly, a new nutritious fruit drink featuring powerful probiotics and antioxidant-rich fruit. Probiotics - which are "healthy...

Spectrum prods use Martek's Life'sDHA.(docosahexenoic acid)(Martek Biosciences Corp.)
August 1, 2008... Maryland, USA-based Martek Biosciences says that its life'sDHA, its patented, vegetarian form of docosahexenoic acid (DHA), a long-chain omega-3 fatty acid essential for brain, eye and heart health, is now available in four new products from...

Probi signs Lp299v up with Serbian firm.
August 1, 2008... Sweden's Probi continues to expand its dietary supplement business and has now signed a distribution agreement with Proton System, a Serbian pharmaceutical company. The deal gives Proton System the right to sell a Probi dietary supplement in...

Lipid Nutrition's Betapol OKed in China.(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... The Chinese Ministry of Health has officially approved Dutch company Lipid Nutrition's Betapol as an additive in infant formulas. The product, a vegetable fat blend developed to closely mimic the structure of the natural food found in human...

Coffee reaches innovation highs.
August 1, 2008... Market research service Productscan's new drinks review focuses on new coffee launches, as a plethora of new beverages have been launched that contain coffee extracts. Some of these capitalize on the new positioning of coffee as a healthy...

New Productscan food review: developing a more cultured approach.
August 1, 2008... The latest roundup of innovative functional food products from the Productscan database includes further evidence of the increasing appeal of probiotics. These active cultures are being included in numerous products, including savory snacks,...

China-Biotics posts strong sales and earnings growth for FY 2008.(Financial report)
August 1, 2008... Nutritional supplements and biotechnology firm China-Biotics increased sales 51.5% to $12.7 million during its fiscal fourth-quarter ended March 31, 2008, compared with the like, year-earlier period. The rise was primarily the result of...

Cognis sells its Pulcra Chemicals business to strategic investor for 26.3 million euros.
August 1, 2008... Specialty supplier Cognis has signed an agreement to sell its Pulcra Chemicals subsidiary to Germany-based Fashion Chemicals GmbH & Co for 26.3 million euros ($41.8 million). The sale is in line with Cognis' strategy of focusing on its core...

Naturex revenues rise 29% at CER.(Financial report)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... France's Naturex says that it had an excellent second quarter with revenues up 28.7% at constant US dollar rates (rising 17.1% at current US$ rates). Over this period, pro forma organic growth (including HP Botanicals, Chart Corp and...

Judge validates Mannatech patents.
August 1, 2008... USA-based Mannatech, a developer and provider of dietary supplements and skin care solutions, say that on July 9, Magistrate Judge Jeff Kaplan in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, issued a Memorandum...

Danone and Wahaha both claim wins.(Group Danone v. Hangzhou Wahaha Group Company Ltd.)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... France's Group Danone and Chinese joint venture partner Hangzhou Wahaha have both claimed victory in an arbitration panel's recent ruling on a side issue in their long-running legal dispute, reports the Herald Tribune. Their legal battle over...

Tabebuia extract can reduce triglyceride levels.
August 1, 2008... Scientists from Germany have recently discovered that extracts of a traditional herbal remedy, derived from Tabebuia impetiginosa, can delay the absorption of dietary fat in animal models. They believe that the extract could be incorporated...

Resveratrol could help prevent breast cancer.
August 1, 2008... Early laboratory research has shown that resveratrol, a common dietary supplement, suppresses the abnormal cell formation that leads to most types of breast cancer, suggesting a potential role for the agent in prevention. Published in the...

Greater LDL drop with "naturopathic" therapy.
August 1, 2008... Daily fish oil and red yeast rice supplements can help reduce low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, according to data published in the July issue of Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Researchers from Pennsylvania followed 74 patients with high blood...

Vitamin A can cut infant death risk in LDCs 15%.
August 1, 2008... A single, oral dose of vitamin A, given to infants shortly after birth in the developing world, can reduce their risk of death 15%, according to a study conducted by researchers at the USA's Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health,...

The European Union fish oil crisis; a compromise reached - by Peter Berry Ottaway.
August 1, 2008... For the past year, the relevant industry associations have been involved in a very intensive campaign to retain fish oils on the European market. Enormous resources have been expended in gathering data and in discussions with the European...

Homeopathy prescriptions plummet in the UK.
August 1, 2008... General Practitioner prescriptions for homeopathy in the UK have almost halved in two years, figures obtained by Pulse reveal. The number for homeopathic preparations dropped from 83,000 in 2005 to 49,300 in 2007, statistics from the...

Danone progresses Alzheimer's supp.
August 1, 2008... The Netherlands-based Danone Research, part of France's Groupe Danone, says that it has taken an important step forward in the development program for its Alzheimer's product Souvenaid with the successful completion of a first clinical trial....

Pregnant women taking fish oils reduce asthma risk in their children; EU research.
August 1, 2008... According to European Union-funded researchers, taking fish oil supplements in late pregnancy might reduce the risk of children developing asthma In the context of European research on early nutritional programming, a team of researchers...

Sanofi buys Symbion of Australia.(Sanofi-Aventis S.A. acquired Symbion CP Holdings Pty Limited )(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... France-based pharmaceutical major Sanofi-Aventis revealed that it has entered into a binding agreement with Primary Health Care Limited to acquire Symbion CP Holdings Pty Limited in Australia. Symbion Consumer manufactures, markets and...

Pharming's lactoferin deal with Aslan.
August 1, 2008... Netherlands-based biotechnology company Pharming Group NV says that it has signed a commercialization and supply agreement with Aslan Group AS in Turkey for the marketing and distribution of both food or food supplements containing Pharming's...

Probi's first-half sales rocket 77%.
August 1, 2008... R&D-based Swedish probiotics company Probi AB has reported first-half 2008 turnover of 35.7 million kronor ($5.9 million), a rise of 77% on the like, year-earlier period. Pretax profit more than doubled to 4.9 million kronor, from 1.9 million...

AMA ups national fats awareness campaign.
August 1, 2008... Fewer than half of Americans know that the "better" fats (monounsaturated and polyunsaturated) can help reduce their risk of heart disease, according to a recent survey by the American Heart Association. "Heart disease remains the number...

IoM reports on supps use by US military.
August 1, 2008... The development of an information-sharing and educational forum comprised of military and non-military government and non-governmental organizations and industry is one of 12 recommendations the Institute of Medicine has made to the Department...

Health Canada warns on foreign products.
August 1, 2008... The regulatory body Health Canada is advising consumers not to use the following product listed in the table below due to concerns about possible side-effects. Source of alert: the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency...

Latin America focus for IADSA workshop.(International Alliance of Dietary/Food Supplement Associations)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... Regulators from Argentina, Chile and Brazil have taken part in workshop in Argentina organized by the International Alliance of Dietary/Food Supplement Associations (IADSA) to address global, regional and national regulatory trends. Held in...

Australia's CHC defends CM regs.(Complementary Healthcare Council)(complementary medicines)(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... The Australian industry body, the Complementary Healthcare Council is strenuously resisting calls for major change to the regulation of complementary medicine. While the CHC supports enhancements to the existing model to ensure consumer...

Benefits of tea drinking extend to brain cell health and genetics in cancer.
August 1, 2008... Drinking four to five cups of tea a day may help maintain a healthy mind and body, according to new research published in a supplement to the August issue of the Journal of Nutrition. One study's results suggest that four to five cups of tea a...

Accura debuts de-tox supplement in UK/USA.
August 1, 2008... International pharmaceutical company Accura Health is launching its natural vitamin and mineral supplement, branded am angel, in the UK, in parallel with the US product launch. am angel is the first product to combine all the essential...

French customs seize banned milk supp.
August 1, 2008... The Customs and Excise Duties Directorate of the French Ministry of Finance (DGDDI) has seized over four metric tons of food supplements from Sri Lanka which the authorities consider dangerous to public health. The 456 parcels of a powdered...

UK ban for Pink Patch advert on MySpace.
August 1, 2008... An advertisement for a slimming patch aimed at young women in the UK via the social networking site MySpace has been banned by the Advertising Standards Authority, following an on-line campaign. The regulator described as "irresponsible" claims...

Forthcoming meetings/events.(Calendar)
August 1, 2008... The US Council for Responsible Nutrition's Annual Symposium on Dietary Supplements will take place October 2-5 at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort & Spa in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico. For further details and program, visit: www.crnusaa.org/...

People on the move.(briefs)(appointments of )(Brief article)
August 1, 2008... - US Nutritional formulas specialist Millennium Biotechnologies has promoted Mark Mirken to chief executive and board chairman, replacing Jerry Swon who has resigned to pursue other interests. - GCI Nutrients, a USA-based global supplier of...

Laboratoire Mergens, a novel partner for nutraceutical development, marketing.
August 1, 2008... Mergens SA, a Geneva, Switzerland-based company focused on contractmanufacturing and specializing in formulating products on demand, the firm - now further down the lake near Lausanne and called Laboratoire Mergens SA - has transformed into a...

Sesame seed extract and konjac gum may help ward of solmonella and E. coli.
August 1, 2008... Sesame seed extract and konjac gum may help ward of salmonella and E. coli A new study in the UK-based Society of Chemical Industries' Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture shows that konjac gum and sesame seed extract may offer...

5-LOXIN proven to reduce the symptoms of osteoarthritis in human study.
August 1, 2008... New Jersey, USA-based PL Thomas, in alliance with Laila Nutraceuticals of India, have jointly announced the publication of a new study using their exclusive dietary supplement ingredient, 5-LOXIN (Arthritis Research & Therapy 2008,...

Cranberry vs probio in cutting ulcer bacteria.
August 1, 2008... New research suggests that cranberry juice can be as effective as probiotics in maintaining good digestive health. The double-blind trial at the University of Chile found a regular 6.8 oz serving of 25% cranberry juice was as effective as the...

Skin carotenoids and antioxidant health.
August 1, 2008... Scientists from Nu Skin Enterprises presented results and consistency of findings from two large studies at the 15th International Symposium on Carotenoids in Okinawa, Japan. The research concludes that skin carotenoid levels measured with the...

Reversitall "secret to aging gracefully".
August 1, 2008... Scientists now have evidence that the answer to aging gracefully could be Reversitall with resveratrol. The ingredient Reversitall is a unique blend of red wine and the skin, stems and vines of Muscadine grapes and has proven to contain the...

EFSA contaminants panel gives opinion on toxicity indicators on PAHs.
August 1, 2008... The European Food Safety Authority's CONTAM Panel has adopted an opinion on suitable indicators for the occurrence and toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in food. PAHs are chemical compounds that are primarily formed by...

EAS crash course on EU supps regulations.
August 1, 2008... Food supplement companies looking for strategic solutions for launching food supplements across Europe can find answers at a one-day intensive workshop organized by international food and nutrition policy consultancy EAS. The workshop, which is...

Careful positioning required for satiety-enhancing products, LFI research finds.
August 1, 2008... Preliminary research by the UK-based Leatherhead Food International (LFI) suggests that manufacturers need to carefully position satiety-enhancing products in order to avoid alienating consumers. With the world's expanding waistline showing...

USA: fast-food menu rules in SF should be upheld, Public Citizen et al urge.(San Francisco)
August 1, 2008... A federal court should uphold US city San Francisco's requirement that fast-food restaurants disclose nutritional information on their menus, according to a brief submitted by Public Citizen and the Center for Science in the Public Interest...

US NPA explains integrity of its "seal".
August 1, 2008... Helping consumers clearly understand and identify natural products is a key element of the USA's Natural Products Association Standard for Personal Care Products. That is why, it says, a seal has been developed for all personal care products...

US CRN members adopt voluntary program for DHEA marketing.
August 1, 2008... The US Council for Responsible Nutrition says that its members have adopted a new voluntary program for responsible marketing of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) which, according to Nutrition Business Journal quoted by the Council, has annual...

USA's CRN adds three new voting member.
August 1, 2008... The US Council for Responsible Nutrition, the dietary supplement industry's leading trade association in the country, has announced the addition of three voting members to its roster - Dow Chemical Co of Midland, Michigan; Lipid Nutrition of...