Nutraceuticals International articles from January 2005

Nutraceuticals International archives from January 2005

EU health ministers discuss ways forward on functional food health claims.(European Union)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Meeting last month in Brussels, Belgium, the European Union's health ministers appeared largely in favor of a new regulation aiming to provide EU citizens with more accurate health and nutrition information on food labels. Luxembourg, the...

Practical guide to EU functional food filing.(European Union)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Estimated to be worth 10 billion euros ($1.31 billion) last year, the European functional foods market is forecast to double in value over the next few years, and foods with a "health benefit" are regarded as one of the few sectors that could...

EU rules against Dutch fortification law.(European Union )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Current national food law in the Netherlands requires that foods fortified with vitamin A or D, folic acid, selenium, copper or zinc may not be marketed unless they do not pose a public health risk and that such products must meet an actual...

EMEA Herbal Medicinal Products Committee adopts procedure rules.(European Medicines Agency)
January 1, 2005... The report of the European Medicines Agency's Herbal Medicinal Products Committee meeting, held November 11-12, 2004, has now been released. The meeting was deemed as having been very useful by observers, who said that it had created a good...

UK's drive for better regulation of complementary medicines.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A new drive to improve the regulation of complementary and alternative health care has been unveiled by the UK's Health Minister, Lord Warner. Firstly, funding totaling L900,000 ($1.9 million) will be made available to The Prince of Wales'...

European health claims law - progress slow but relentless.
January 1, 2005... The failure to agree and adopt the proposed regulation on nutrition and health claims for foods in 2004, makes this legislation the most delayed in the history of European food law. Luxembourg, the member state that currently holds the...

UK govt caving in to EU supplement ban.(European Union Food Supplements Directive )
January 1, 2005... UK government ministers have been accused of hypocrisy over the European Union Food Supplements Directive (NIs passim) that could force health food shops to stop selling a number of remedies and food supplements used by millions of people in...

CDC Foundation sets up $3.5M program on health impact of supplements.(Optimal Nutrition and Long-Term Health Project )
January 1, 2005... In the USA, the CDC Foundation (a non-profit enterprise founded by Congress seven years ago) has established a $3.5 million program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to conduct data analysis and educational activities focused on...

GNC launches "wellness" goals campaign.(General Nutrition Centers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... General Nutrition Centers, the USA's largest specialty retailer of nutritional supplements, has launched a multimillion-dollar integrated marketing campaign focused on helping Americans achieve their health and wellness goals. A series of...

UK FSA gives green light to chromium picolinate as safe dietary supplement.
January 1, 2005... The UK Food Standards Agency announced last month that consumers can be confident that chromium picolinate is a safe dietary supplement, revising earlier recommendations (NI vol 8, no 5). The new advice, based on the balance of scientific...

UK banned saskatoon berry and it took Brussels to stop the govt looking silly, says MP Boris Johnson.(member of parliament)
January 1, 2005... Taking a somewhat caustic view of the UK government's regulation of novel foods, Conservative Member of Parliament and Daily Telegraph columnist Boris Johnson has written about the saga concerning the saskatoon (Amelanchier ainifolia), also...

US "phood" market "set to reach $20B by 2007".(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... US retail sales of "phoods," or products which combine the health benefits of foods with pharmaceuticals, are experiencing healthy market gains and are set to reach $20 billion by 2007, says The New US Phood Market, a just-published report from...

US NIH/FDA conference views effects of dietary supps on anti-thrombotic drugs.(National Institute of Health)
January 1, 2005... After this issue of NI went to press, the US National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute was due to convene a conference to evaluate the risks of interactions between dietary supplements and prescription blood-thinning medications, which are used...

New poll shows 18% of Americans may stop taking vit E on negative studies.
January 1, 2005... A new national poll demonstrates that 18% of Americans are less likely to take vitamin E based on the news suggesting high doses "may increase the risk of dying" among older, high-risk patients (NIs vol 9, nos 10 and 11). Many experts are...

US cosmeceutical demand to reach $7B in 2008.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... US demand for cosmeceutical products is expected to increase 11.0% per year to $7 billion in 2008 and it will be propelled by a stream of new and technologically-advanced product introductions offering age-defying and other appearance-enhancing...

DSHEA must be amended to assure diet supplements' quality and safety, says IoM.(Institute of Medicine)(Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994)
January 1, 2005... Complementary and alternative medical therapies should be held to the same standards for demonstrating clinical effectiveness as conventional treatments, says a new report from the Institute of Medicine of the US National Academies. The...

Global nutra market worth $60.0B in 2003.(nutraceuticals)
January 1, 2005... The worldwide nutraceuticals market reached a value of $60.9 billion in 2003, having risen at a compound annual growth rate of 9.1% in the 1999- 2003 period, according to a new report from business information supplier Datamonitor. Some of...

Nutrition and supps "to prevent, reverse disease".(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Many diseases including cancer, diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis and depression can be prevented and even reversed through fundamental changes in nutrition and food choice, according to The Seven Laws of Nutrition, a downloadable e-book by...

US FDA ginseng seizure on pesticide concerns.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... At the request of the US Food and Drug Administration, the US Marshals Service has seized imported ginseng from FCC Products of New Jersey. Given the uncertainty over the product's distribution, the FDA has issued a US-wide warning. FCC's...

US dieting/weight control in 2005: smaller portions, reduced "calorie density, " etc.
January 1, 2005... 33% of Americans, or 71 million people, are currently on a diet, the highest number of dieters in the past 15 years, says a recent survey by the Calorie Control Council, an international non-profit association representing the low-calorie and...

India's new ayurveda marketing code.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A code for the manufacturing and marketing of ayurvedic products has been developed by the newly-formed Indian Ministry of Ayush, D R Garg, Commissioner of the Ministry, told the Indian Financial Express. The code is being implemented as of...

Australian state to allow banned TCMs.(traditional Chinese medicine )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Sellers of traditional Chinese medicine in the Australian state of Victoria may be allowed to use four powerful toxic herbs to treat patients. Ma huang, bing lang, ban bianlian and zhi fu zi are presently listed as poisons. Their use is...

World nutritional news in brief.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... - The government of Kazakhstan has passed a decree under which vitamins are exempt from value-added tax from the start of the year, according to BISNIS, a part of the US Department of Commerce. Previously, vitamins and drugs containing such...

Low use of omega-3s in Australia.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Over half of Australians consume less than 30mg of DHA and EPA omega-3 daily but recent recommendations from two leading international authorities say this should be 450-500mg, according to leading dairy products maker Jalna's national sales...

Canada: govt task force aims to cut trans fat.
January 1, 2005... Health Canada and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada have begun work, through a multi-stakeholder task force, to develop recommendations and strategies for reducing trans fats in Canadian foods to the lowest levels possible. The...

World functional foods market to 2010: Study.(Nutraceuticals)
January 1, 2005... The worldwide functional foods market continues to be a dynamic and growing segment of the food industry, with rapid growth set to continue for several years. However, this will taper off by 2010, by which time functional foods are expected to...

Soy baby formula and intestinal development.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Two studies by University of Illinois, USA, food science and human nutrition professor Sharon Donovan show that the soy isoflavone genistein, in amounts present in commercial soy infant formulas, may inhibit intestinal cell growth in babies. So...

Small study shows SAMe may improve treatment of depression.(S-Adenosy-L- Methionine)
January 1, 2005... Researchers at USA's Massachusetts General Hospital have found that adding the nutritional supplement SAMe to a standard antidepressant may be helpful to patients who have not responded to single-drug treatment for clinical depression. The...

Including cranberries in diet may prevent breast cancer, new study indicates.
January 1, 2005... In laboratory experiments, Canadian researchers found that isolated compounds in cranberries, called flavonoids, may inhibit the growth of breast cancer cells when consumed in sufficient concentrations. These naturally-occurring flavonoids may...

Vit B for dementia to be trialled in USA.(Vitamin B)
January 1, 2005... A vitamin B pill that drastically lowers blood levels of the toxic amino-acid homocysteine could one day be used to prevent dementia, and save health services billions of Ls annually. Clinical trials, starting in January 2005, will seek to...

Potential weight loss and vision benefits found in eggs, reported in JACN.(Journal of the American College of Nutrition)
January 1, 2005... A scientific review article published in the Journal of the American College of Nutrition supplement reports that leucine, an essential amino acid found in high-quality protein like eggs, potentially provides a weight-loss advantage during...

Unique Nutrition debuts new vit C pill.(Vitamin C)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... UK-based Unique Nutrition has launched a novel vitamin supplement, Crystal C, which not only stays in the body for longer but is also absorbed more efficiently than other currently-marketed products, according to the firm. Crystal C...

Soiken and drinks maker in research deal.(biotechnology industries)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Japanese biotechnology venture Soiken has entered into a research agreement with an undisclosed, Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed beverage manufacturer, to develop a specified health food that helps to improve vascular endothelial functions. ...

New OTC supplement for PMS launched.(premenstrual syndrome )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A novel over-the-counter supplement which reduces the physical and emotional symptoms of premenstrual syndrome has been launched by New York, USA-based DannMarie. PremCal is an all-natural product which restores the body's calcium and...

Sarah Lee introduces fortified bread in USA.(Sara Lee Bakery Group introduces grain bread)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... USA-based Sara Lee Bakery Group has expanded its whole-grain range of foods with the launch of its new Heart Healthy Plus whole-grain breads which are fortified with fiber, calcium, vitamin D and folic acid. These new breads contain twice...

Naturade's celadrin products hit the market.(health foods)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... California, USA-based Naturade has begun shipping a new line of celadrin joint-health products to rival gluosamine alternatives currently on the market for joint mobility, reports NutraIngredients.com. The line of products will be sold under...

Thorpedo on target.(health drinks)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... So Natural Foods Australia says that its Thorpedo drink is achieving sales goals in spite of a lower-than-expected number of retailers offering the product, according to FoodIngredientsFirst.com. Thorpedo is an advanced hydration drink that has...

UK's Glisten to buy Halo Foods in L6M+ deal.(take over)
January 1, 2005... UK confectionery maker Glisten will take over ownership of the Wales- based business of the Halo Group towards the end of this year, although the day-to-day running of the latter will remain with its individual management teams. The deal is...

National Starch unveils new identity.(National Starch Food Innovations)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Effective January 1 this year, UK-based National Starch's food products division will be known as National Starch Food Innovations, a move which the firm says will more accurately reflect its offering to the food manufacturing and processing...

EU approves Roche OTC sale to Bayer.(mergers and acquisitions)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... German drugmaker Bayer AG says the European Commission has approved its plans to acquire the consumer health activities of Swiss drug major Roche. A condition of the approval is the sale of regional rights to three Roche drugs which...

DSM eyes deal with North China Pharma.(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Netherlands-based chemicals group Royal DSM NV has confirmed that it is in talks with the vitamins and antibiotics manufacturer North China Pharmaceutical Group Corp of Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province, China, with regard to a potential strategic...

Pharming funding to accelerate portfolio.(Pharming Group NV has placed three million new shares )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Netherlands-based Pharming Group NV has placed three million new shares with professional long-term investors to accelerate development of its product portfolio. The gross proceeds from this placement of 6 million euros ($7.8 million) will...

Unilever buys p57 from Phytopharm.(licensing)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Anglo-Dutch food giant Unilever, owner of the SlimFast brand of weight- loss products, has stepped away from its usual strategy of in-house R&D by obtaining the exclusive global rights to p57, an appetite supressant extracted from the Hoodia...

Logic Juice 4 Joints a natural alternative.(The Health Company)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... As concern over the safety of the class of COX-2 inhibitor drugs mounts, initially sparked by the sudden withdrawal of Merck & Co's blockbuster Vioxx (rofecoxib) in September last year, health-conscious consumers are increasingly looking...

Unigen showcases Univestin at CPhI.(pharmaceutical industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Unigen Pharmaceuticals has show-cased its proprietary polyphenol compound Univestin at the CPhI exhibition, held in Brussels, Belgium, on December 7-9, 2004. The product offers both manufacturers and consumers an aid to improve joint...

Cholesterol-lowering beer hits US market.(Sweden Lund University )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... A cholesterol-lowering beer, developed by Sweden's Lund University through a patented process that results in heart-healthy beta-glucan fibers, has been launched for the first time in the USA by Beverage Marketing USA. According to Richard...

Health Sciences buys Swiss Research.(maergers and acquisitions)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Health Sciences Group has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Swiss Research, a fellow Los Angeles, California, USA, firm which markets nutraceuticals for weight management, arthritis and cholesterol reduction. Financial details were...

United Natural takes over Select Nutrition.(acquisition)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... United Natural Foods of Dayville, Connecticut, has announced the acquisition of fellow US firm Select Nutrition Distributors, a privately-owned group founded in 1975 which specializes in the distribution of vitamins, minerals and supplements....

Efficas financing raises $3 million.(Finance)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Efficas financing raises $3 million Efficas, a US biotechnology company that focuses on natural bioactives for health and wellness markets, says that it has secured $3 million in its latest round of funding. The financing was led by the Bay...

Biotec Foods sues Vitarich Labs.(trademaks)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Biotec Foods, a division of Agrigenic Food Corp, a manufacturer and distributor of dietary supplements, has filed a law suit in California alleging that Vitarich Laboratories, a Florida-based nutraceutical company, and its founder Kevin Thomas,...

Naturex to go for new capital.(finance)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Naturex, the French producer of natural ingredients for the nutraceuticals and food industries, is to increase its capital by at least 9.2 million ($12.0 million) in order to pursue its strategy of external growth and finance two to three new...

Spanish food giant Ebro Puleva is nowviewed as a takeover target.
January 1, 2005... Spain's biggest food company Ebro Puleva, which owns the functional foods franchise Puleva Biotech, could become an international takeover because of its "healthy" finances, local analysts have predicted. The Madrid-based company, one of...

Lonza opens new R&D center in China.(pharmaceutical industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Swiss life sciences firm Lonza is strengthening its presence in China with the construction of an R&D center in Guangzhou, focused on active substances and intermediates for custom manufacturing. Lonza says that the new laboratories are...

Sichuan Jiufeng in deal with Shanghai Longii.(Sichuan Jiufeng Natural Pharmaceuticals)(Financial services)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Sichuan Jiufeng Natural Pharmaceuticals of China has signed an agreement with Shanghai Longii Investment Management Co that will take the form of a reverse acquisition in order to speed the listing of the former group on the US stock market....

Sunwin partners with Shandong Uni.(university)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Sunwin International Nutraceuticals, an industry leader in Chinese herbs, veterinary medicines and low-calorie natural sweeteners in China, is partnering with Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which focuses on research and...

Uni-President to launch iFirm in Thailand.(Food industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Taiwanese beverage giant Uni-President hopes to create a new beverage segment in Thailand with the introduction of a fruit juice-based casual sports drink, iFirm, which it believes will lure drinkers away from sports beverage brands such as...

Danone launches probiotics info web site.(information management)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... In conjunction with the Third International Convention on Probiotics, a two-day gathering of more than 110 physicians, researchers and experts from 30 countries, sponsored by Danone Vitapole in Paris, France, the dairy group has launched The...

Martek celebrates strong fiscal year.(Martek Biosciences Corp)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Martek Biosciences Corp, which has its headquarters in Columbia, Maryland, USA, says that for its fiscal fourth quarter ended October 31, 2004, revenues leapt 54% to $59.7 million, while net income soared to $35.3 million, or $1.16 per share,...

HQSM and American River in nutra link-up.(HQ Sustainable Maritime)(Food industry)
January 1, 2005... HQ Sustainable Maritime, a Delaware, USA-based company which focuses on aquatic product processing at its Hainan base in the South China Sea, has signed a letter of intent with American River Nutrition to cooperate in the development and...

Nutraceutical division drives Zila growth.(pharmaceutical industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Zila of Phoenix, USA, has announced its results for the first quarter of fiscal 2005 ended October 31, 2004, which show that revenues decreased 2% to $11.8 million. Net loss rose 68.8% to $2.7 million, or $0.06 per share, which the company said...

Nutra International eyes acquisitions.(Nutraceutical International Corp reveals financial data)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Nutraceutical International Corp has reported its financials for the fiscal fourth quarter ended September 30, 2004, which show that sales edged up 2.3% to $36.1 million, while net income was flat at $3.3 million, or $0.28 per share. For the...

Chr Hansen to sell food ingredients unit?(divestment)(Chr. Hansen Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Denmark's Chr Hansen is considering a possible divestment of its global food ingredients division, which includes its cultures, enzymes, colors, sweeteners, animal health and human health activities and sites, according to just-food.com. ...

Glanbia buys Kortus for 14.5M euros.(dairy products industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Anglo-Irish dairy ingredients group Glanbia says it has bought privately-held, Germany-based nutrient-delivery systems firm Kortus Food Ingredients Services GmbH for 14.5 million euros ($19.0 million), in a move designed to strengthen its...

Loders Croklaan wins patent appeal.(European Patent )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Dutch firm Loders Croklaan Lipid Nutrition has emerged victorious in its defense of European Patent 0866874, "Process for the preparation of materials with a high content of isomers of conjugated linoleic acid," granted in 2001, which had been...

National Starch offers resistant starch resource.(Novel dietary fibers)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... US firm National Starch has reported the publication of "one of the most comprehensive references on resistant starch and dietary fiber available," in a supplement to the May/June 2004 edition of the Journal of Association of Official...

Efficas financing raises $3 million.(biotechnology industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Efficas, a US biotechnology company that focuses on natural bioactives for health and wellness markets, says that it has secured $3 million in its latest round of funding. The financing was led by the Bay Area Equity Fund, which is managed by...

Forthcoming meetings/events.(Pharmaceutical industry)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... The International Life Sciences Institute - Europe is to hold its annual general meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on February 23-24. The main objectives of the event will be to identify emerging issues in nutrition and food science and to develop...

People on the move.(GNC Corp promoted David Heilman)(Mannatech Inc promoted Colin Jones)(Merck KGaA appointed Peter Shotter)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... - USA-based GNC Corp, a global specialty retailer of nutritional supplements, has promoted David Heilman to the post of chief administrative officer and executive vice president. - NutraCea, a US biomedical foods and nutritionals company,...

Capacity increased at Forbes JV facility.(Forbes Medi-Tech Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Canada's Forbes Medi-Tech says that the expansion of its joint venture's manufacturing facility in Pasadena, Texas, USA, is now complete. Capacity at Phyto-Source, the Vancouver-based firm's JV with Chusei of the USA, has been upped 50% from...

Zuellig acquires NY ingredients group.(ZGNI, Premium Performance Ingredients)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... California, USA-based Zuellig says that its recently-formed nutritional group ZGNI has acquired Premium Performance Ingredients, based in Long Island, New York. Financial details were not disclosed. David Turner, chairman of Zuellig Group...

Endovasc in talks with big nutra distributor.(Nutraceutical Development Corp.)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Endovasc of Texas, USA, says that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Nutraceutical Development Corp, is holding talks with "a leading marketer and distributor of nutraceutical and wellness products" about the potential roll-out of its natural muscle...

Mosaic distribution deal with AHB.(Mosaic Nutraceuticals, AHB Trading )(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Mosaic Nutraceuticals of Dallas, USA, has signed an international distribution deal with AHB Trading that gives the latter firm exclusive rights to sell Mosaic's products in Mexico, Central and South America. Under the terms of the deal, AHB...

Net loss down at Canada's Vitality.(financial reports of Vitality Products of Canada)(Brief Article)
January 1, 2005... Vitality Products of Canada, which is focused on the development of "new condition-specific formulated products and whole food nutraceuticals" has posted a net loss of C$28,643 ($23,539) for the third quarter ended October 31, 2004,...