Weight Management With Chicory Root Fiber and More Ingredient Supplier News

RESEARCH

Weight Management With Chicory Root Fiber

A new systematic literature review with meta-analyses, published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, demonstrated that chicory root fiber intake promotes a significant reduction in body weight, body mass index, fat mass, waist circumference, and, to a certain extent, body fat percentage.

Thirty-two randomized controlled trials and almost 1,200 participants were included in the systematic review with meta-analyses. Commenting on the findings in a press release, Raylene Reimer, a professor and associate dean of research at the University of Calgary, Canada, said, “Prebiotics have been investigated for their ability to modulate the gut microbiota and affect various aspects of metabolic health. This systematic review and meta-analyses show that inulin-type fructans, specifically those derived from chicory root, beneficially impact multiple facets of body weight management. Given the positive outcomes seen across a wide range of participants, chicory root prebiotic fiber could be an important tool to help promote improved weight management.”

BENEO’s prebiotic fibers, Orafti inulin and oligofructose, are inulin-type fructans. As proven prebiotics, chicory root fibers (inulin, oligofructose) support a healthy gut microbiota and selectively promote the growth of beneficial microorganisms, such as Bifidobacteria, in the gut. Being prebiotics, they also trigger a cascade of metabolic effects, resulting in the promotion of satiety.

SPONSORED CONTENT

White Paper Explores Butyrate Role

NutraShure is a supplier of premium functional ingredients, including its recently launched BIOMEnd. BIOMEnd is a superior form of butyrate, delivering benefits to solve palatability and solubility issues seen with traditional butyrate ingredients currently on the market. BIOMEnd delivers superior benefits for gut health, GLP-1 support, and immune health without the unpleasant taste often associated with other butyrate products on the market.

A NutraShure white paper, The Potential of Butyrate for Endogenous GLP-1 Secretion, takes a deep dive into the connection between butyrate, a short-chain fatty acid produced in the gut, and its role in enhancing glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) production. Learn about the mechanisms involved in which butyrate promotes gut health and stimulates the release of GLP-1, a hormone that is critical for regulating glucose metabolism and appetite. In addition, find out how butyrate plays an important role in human health and obesity by regulating gut hormone release, suppressing food intake, and protecting against diet-induced obesity.

To access the white paper please visit https://content.ift.org/0325-nutrashure-whitepaper .

INDUSTRY UPDATE

ICL announced a follow-on investment in Plantible Foods, participating in the company’s Series B funding round. This investment builds on ICL’s initial participation in Plantible’s Series A round and furthers the strategic collaboration between the two companies. In October of 2023, ICL Food Specialties, in collaboration with Plantible Foods, launched ROVITARIS Binding Solution powered by Rubi Protein.

Tate & Lyle and BioHarvest Sciences announced a pioneering new partnership to develop what they describe as the next generation of proprietary plant-based molecules to address increasing consumer desire for affordable, nutritious, and more sustainable plant-derived food and beverage ingredients.

BioHarvest’s Botanical Synthesis platform produces non-GMO plant-derived ingredients in a sustainable and economically viable way, helping to scale up the production of beneficial botanical ingredients. This proprietary process delivers patentable molecules by growing targeted plant cells that can mirror and magnify the phytonutrients contained in specific plants, delivering all the benefits of the plant, without having to grow the plant. The new partnership will focus on developing these botanical sweetening ingredients using plant-derived molecules.

MycoTechnology has appointed Jordi Ferre as its new chief executive officer. Ranjan Patnaik, chief technology officer, who has been acting as interim CEO, will continue in the chief technology officer role.

Ohly announced the opening of its new Customer Innovation Center, located just outside Chicago. The cutting-edge facility is designed to accelerate close collaboration with customers and partners through on-site concepting and solution development across the food and nutrition space. Equipped with a modern sampling lab and state-of-the-art test kitchen, the new center stocks Ohly’s entire range of yeast ingredients and specialty powders. Ohly’s Customer Innovation Center boasts an array of commercial equipment to mimic industry processes, including combi convection cooking, frying, meat processing, snack coating, and blast chilling. In addition, there is an analytical lab for testing the key parameters of ingredients and formulations.

Upon an application by AIDP, the European Union authorized the use of magnesium L-threonate as a novel food, which means that it is now fully approved for inclusion in products sold to consumers throughout the European Union, offering a new and highly bioavailable option for magnesium supplementation. The European Union determined that use of the proprietary data on which the authorization depended is exclusive to AIDP.

Only AIDP, its partner company and licensee ThreoTech, which markets magnesium L-threonate under the trademark Magtein, and sublicensees are authorized to market magnesium L-threonate in the European Union for a period of five years, according to the regulation, which took effect on Nov. 7, 2024, unless a subsequent applicant obtains an authorization without reference to the protected proprietary data.

HOWTIAN turned 25 and marked the occasion by announcing several key milestones in its production, sustainability, and service efforts globally. A key component of HOWTIAN’s success is its production of over 30,000 metric tons of stevia over the past 25 years. In addition, within that time frame, HOWTIAN has produced 100,000 metric tons of inositol—enough to nourish 300 million babies for an entire year. And by employing innovative extraction techniques at its Dongtai, China, factory, HOWTIAN saves 450,000 cubic meters of water annually. In addition, HOWTIAN’s energy conservation initiatives have resulted in annual savings of 3 million kilowatt hours of electricity.

Yeastup secured CHF 8.9 million in Series A funding, enabling the company to establish a large-scale production site in Switzerland with the capacity to upcycle over 20,000 tons of brewers’ spent yeast annually. The company extracts highly functional ingredients from brewers’ spent yeast using its patented process. The company’s innovative approach isolates protein, beta-glucan, and mannoprotein in a single industrial process.

NEW PRODUCTS

FlavorSum is expanding its formulation solutions portfolio to include flavors with modulating properties (FMPs), which help address food and beverage taste challenges. The new flavor systems can mask bitterness, enhance mouthfeel, and mitigate off-notes. Applications include alcohol, bakery, beverage, cannabis, dairy, and nondairy products.

Three new web resources focused on bitterness maskers, protein maskers, and sweetness optimization, provide information on trends and insights into the role of FMPs when formulating with protein, functional ingredients, and reduced sugar. Food and beverage companies can use these web pages to determine which FMP solutions may be best suited for their product/s and to request samples from FlavorSum’s R&D team. The company shared the following insights:

• Bitterness maskers can play an essential role when formulating functional beverages, a category in which sales shot up by 54% between 2020 and 2024.

• As food and beverage companies continue to develop portfolios of high-protein products, maskers can help deliver benefits without the aftertaste. High-protein claims are prominent in categories including ready-to-drink coffee, snack and energy bars, and spoonable yogurt.

• Sweetness optimization is gaining traction in North America as launches with low-, no-, and reduced-sugar claims showed a 7% compound annual growth rate over the past decade.

Kemin Industries is highlighting its clean label mold inhibition solutions for bakery applications. SHIELD V, the newest addition to the Kemin line of food safety ingredients, delivers protection against mold spoilage with no significant difference in taste—all while meeting today’s consumer demand for clean, simple ingredients. SHIELD V is a unique mold inhibitor that combines the preservation properties of buffered vinegar with a botanical extract that is a source of sorbic acid. Outside of baked goods, SHIELD V is also an ideal mold-inhibiting solution for a variety of applications, including sauces, dressings, and other highly aqueous foods.ft

Do you have any innovations or updates to share? Please send news to suppliercentral@ift.org.