Recent years have seen Danish-based Novozymes making a string of acquisitions in the area of probiotics, in North America as well as Europe. “We recognise that probiotics have come on a huge journey over the past 10-to-15 years, offering both strong science and unique consumer health benefits,” says Isermeyer. Success stories for Novozymes in this area include the Pylopass probiotic (or technically, a postbiotic), available as a supplement for several years now in around 50 countries, and used to alleviate symptoms of the Helicobacter pylori bacterium in the gut. These bacteria can cause gastritis or ulcers if left untreated. The company points to this and other probiotics, including those addressing the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which not only target gastrointestinal issues in general, but also take aim at specific issues.
Isermeyer is sceptical when it comes to probiotics which claim to address more than one health indication—even though consumers may like the idea. “We see their potential as being rather limited,” he says. “You want strong and credible science, whatever the health area. You want the best strain for a specific, measurable benefit.”
With the newer generation of prebiotics, there are many more delivery options ... [which] opens up significant VMS opportunities.”
There is an opportunity for companies to meet shifting consumer needs by developing products with probiotic, prebiotic and postbiotic ingredients.
The consumer perspective on this could be more nuanced, as AIDP’s Ford points out in relation to prebiotics. “Recent surveys suggest that digestive health is one of the top reasons why people take prebiotics,” she says. “But then, new users are commonly aware of other potential benefits: immune health and brain health are often mentioned.” Alongside probiotics, Novozymes is, naturally enough, just as interested in the ways in which enzymes can support digestive health. “They have been quite neglected over recent years, and we feel they have a unique role, not only in breaking down food but also in disease prevention,” Isermeyer says. Among other projects, his group has been developing combinations of enzymes and probiotics. “We’re not ready to launch publicly, but we’ve been looking at the two working together synergistically: enzymes faster-acting, with a high specificity, and probiotics offering longer-lasting effects,” he explains. Lonza, too, lists blends of enzymes such as amylase, lactase, cellulase, lipase, galactosidase, bromelain and protease among the classes of ingredient which have been shown to relieve gastrointestinal discomfort. Botanicals such as ginger and turmeric also have digestive health benefits, Durkee adds.
Monheit at the GPA is understandably bullish about the prospects of prebiotics, in particular. “This market is going to do ten times what it’s doing now, and it’s not going to be in inulin, for example,” he says, indicating just one example of an earlier generation of prebiotic fibres. “With the newer generation of prebiotics, there are many more delivery options, as substantiated efficacious doses have dropped,” he says. “This opens up significant VMS opportunities, some met with prebiotics alone, some with a combination of pre-and probiotics.” The issue of efficacious dosage is far from trivial, particularly in the context of prebiotics. Prenexus makes much of the fact that its ingredient requires low usage levels of just 1g daily while, at the opposite end of the scale, some prebiotic sources may have usage levels of up to 25g.
Nutrients such as probiotics, prebiotics and—increasingly—postbiotics are being shown to positively impact the gut-immune health connection.
But the advantages go beyond dosage. “You’re starting to see terms such as ‘smart’ and ‘precision’ being applied to prebiotics,” says Monheit. “You can trigger them for action on specific probiotics, even when they’re not in the formula, or in relation to particular short-chain fatty acids.”
Prenexus spells out this specificity in different terms. “Ours is a highly selective prebiotic, as it does not support the growth of ‘bad’ bacteria, and produces virtually zero side-effects, as compared to more traditional prebiotics which require much larger serving sizes,” says Bush. Brand-owners and consumers are more keenly aware of the differences between one prebiotic source and another, just as there has been a growing awareness of different probiotic strains and strengths.
In relation to its own research results, AIDP, too, talks about ‘precision’. “Some prebiotics ferment very early, while we ensure that ours carry all the way through to the end of the gut, and have a high degree of specificity in the bacteria they feed,” says Ford. “We also look at what specific health outcomes are linked to that.” In XOS, for example, the benefits of the prebiotic can be influenced by the chain length and degree of polymerisation, she says. Among other low-dose bioactives proving popular in different types of formulation, says AIDP, are its GutGard liquorice-based ingredient and green kiwi, which combines soluble and insoluble fibre, enzyme activity and a prebiotic function.
Consumer awareness of microbiome opens market opportunities