The human health benefits of probiotics merit consideration by public health policy makers. Dairy processors need to keep up with the research on this important ingredient.
Someday, science may show that particular prebiotic, probiotic, and synbiotic ingredients help prevent certain age-related disorders and lengthen lives. Although the anti-aging effects of pre- and probiotics are plausible, supporting science is scant and inconclusive to date. However, scientists have developed several hypotheses about how aging may alter the intestinal microbiome and how certain pre- and probiotics may help prevent or reverse these changes.
DuPont Nutrition & Health and AB-Biotics have signed a global collaboration and licensing agreement on AB-Life®, a probiotic that is clinically documented to maintain healthy levels of cholesterol in at-risk individuals.
The study of probiotics takes guts — real or manufactured. A British outfit created a computer-controlled, mechanical simulator of gastric digestion.
The study of the gut might lead to glory.
Concentrated milk or whey protein ingredients are often added to cultured dairy beverages to boost the protein level and to contribute to viscosity and mouthfeel.
Greek introductions continue to dominate growth in the yogurt category, but the other cultured segment to watch is drinkable yogurt. Volume sales in 2012 were 211 million pints and the latest IRI data for 2013 showed yogurt drinks experiencing double-digit growth in the United States.
Consumer’s acceptance of the idea that yogurt, a fermented (cultured) milk, is “good for you” has been so widespread that it has attracted other marketers who are trying to figure out how to capitalize on its popularity.
Chr. Hansen, Hørsholm, Denmark, received the “2012 European Product Leadership Award in Probiotics” from Frost & Sullivan, a global research and consultancy company.
Start with something healthy, and then make it better. That’s the basic recipe for creating a value-added milk-based beverage. Traditionally, the three largest and most active claims about dairy beverages regarded digestive/gut health, heart/cardiovascular health and bone health. But, in recent years, the market has seen many novel dairy beverages that tout energy, immune health, weight control, satiety, anti-aging, skin health, beauty, eye health, joint health, mental acuity and concentration.