Features

Cosmetofood: eating for beauty!

In diverse forms (capsule, yoghurt, milk, soup, fruit juice, mineral etc.), any “transformed” - i.e. so-called “functional” - food, and any food supplement which has the express objective of beautifying the external appearance (anti-age, firmness, slimming, fortifying, hair, sun preparation, hair and nail beauty etc.), becomes a multi-faceted product, combining beauty, health and nutrition.

Being closely linked, cosmetics have been largely inspired by the world of nutrition, borrowing from it textures, raw materials and vocabulary.

As food is more and more considered as similar as cosmetics, making the same promise of beauty, in a favourable context where the link between nutrition and health is clearly identified, and consumers are increasingly concerned with their appearance and well-being.

This article is available in full in the Spring 2010 issue of Nutraceuticals Now

COPALIS has been inspired by the natural wealth of the sea for 50 years to develop marine bioactives for food supplements, cosmetics and animal nutrition.

Interest in the impact of ageing on the function and appearance of the skin has been increasing. While a new study has recently highlighted the association between daily diet and skin conditions, there is a growing demand for beauty-from-within actives. With 50 years experience in developing marine bioactives, COPALIS research and development team has focused its research for the last few years to design new Sea Solutions® with oral cosmetics activity.

At Vitafoods 2010, the France based company will be glad to introduce its range of marine actives for inner beauty.

While aging skin is a factor of many things-genetics, sun exposure, environmental insults, stress, and more, COPALIS offers beauty-from-within ingredients with targeted activity.

This article is available in full in the Spring 2010 issue of Nutraceuticals Now

Urinary Tract Infection (UTI) is the most common infection among women: it has been shown that nearly one in three women will have had at least one episode of UTI requiring antimicrobial therapy before they reach the age of 24. Moreover, UTI is characterised by a high reoccurrence rate: it has been estimated that nearly half of the women who have had UTI will experience another one within 12 months. The main causative agent is Escherichia coli (E. coli), normally present in the colon. Symptoms are both uncomfortable and debilitating and associated healthcare costs are high.

UTIs are traditionally treated with antibiotics, however, scientists believe that antibiotic treatments can disrupt the natural occurrence of beneficial bacteria in the body, leading to higher recurrence of UTI. Furthermore, repeated antibiotic treatments can give rise to antibiotic-resistant strains of harmful bacteria. Cranberries are widely documented for their preventive effect against UTI due to their unique anti-adhesion activity against pathogenic bacteria, which is linked to the presence of key phytochemicals: proanthocyanidins (PACs). Today, there is a growing demand for high quality cranberry extracts with high amount of proanthocyanidins to support urinary tract health. Lallemand Health Ingredients, in partnership with leading cranberry expert Decas Botanical Synergies have joined their marketing and R&D efforts to develop high quality cranberry ingredients solutions aimed at meeting this demand.

This article is available in full in the Spring 2010 issue of Nutraceuticals Now

At Danisco, we are committed to developing value-added ingredients that address today’s concerns for a healthier diet. Based on documented science, our range of health and nutrition ingredients provides physiological benefits and enables our customers to significantly enhance the health and nutritional positioning of their products.

At this year’s event, we will be presenting our portfolio of innovative ingredients that contribute to overall health and well-being and also offer specific solutions in the areas of digestive, immune and bone health, antioxidants and general well-being.

This article is available in full in the Spring 2010 issue of Nutraceuticals Now

This year is a very special one for everyone in the dietary supplements functional foods and functional drinks industry. Why? Because after four years of consistent annual growth, Finished Products Expo is going solo in 2010. During this period, the show has proven time and again that it is a serious player in the arena and so for the first time, it is moving into a hall of its own, with a dedicated entrance and marketing campaign to boot.

This couldn’t have come at a better time for the event, which believe it or not, began as a pavilion within Vitafoods. Since it started, Finished Products Expo has been gradually gaining momentum with both exhibitors and visitors alike. It has taken time, like all events of its nature, but we wanted to ensure we were creating an offering that was tailored perfectly to the needs and requirements of the industry.

Although it has its own hall and entrance, there will still be those valuable cross-over points with Vitafoods to provide exhibitors and visitors with those all-important networking opportunities which, lets face it, are what makes shows like these tick.

One of the comments that always comes back to me after a stint in Geneva is about how great the shows are socially, which is truly refreshing to hear. So a couple of years ago we decided to capitalise on that even further by actually setting- up a bespoke service for Finished Products Expo – The Distributors Wanted Scheme – so that visitors can search and even be contacted by potential distributors before the event. It’s been described as an online matchmaking scheme, which saves visitors valuable time and money.

Nevertheless, there is far more going on than simply networking with industry peers and catching-up with old contacts at Vitafoods and Finished Products Expo. Both shows are known industry-wide as the venues for large-scale innovation launches. All of the major players from the functional foods, functional drinks, dietary supplements and nutraceutical markets converge annually on GENEVA PALEXPO, each one competing healthily with the next for the most cutting-edge product launch. The features that we have at the shows complement this too, with the New Products Zone for example, giving an insight into the next big thing to take the market by storm.

And with innovation the key focus for both Vitafoods and Finished Products Expo, its no surprise that some great business deals have taken place on both show floors over the years. In a niche industry like ours, it’s not impossible to get the majority of the leading players together under one roof and when that happens, it becomes the perfect place to conduct serious business deals, many of which can – and have – shaped the industry forever.

So hopefully this year we’re on course to achieve more of the same. With the recession behind us and a mood of optimism sweeping the industry, there’s no reason why the 2010 installments of these shows can’t be the biggest and best yet. All the initial signs are there that both are set to break records – so watch this space!

Finished Products Expo and Vitafoods take place on 18-20 May 2010 at the Geneva Palexpo, Geneva, Switzerland. Visit www.finishedproductsexpo.com or www.vitafoods.eu.com for more information.
Chris Lee
Event Director, Finished Products Expo