Across the Nutra-verse: Robertet's new JV for hemp, Akkermansia potential, and more

08-Jul-2019 - Last updated on 08-Jul-2019 at 15:40 GMT

It’s a global industry and there’s a lot happening. We know it’s not always easy keeping up with everything that’s happening around the world. The answer? Our weekly round-up of key news from across the globe.

USA

Robertet forms JV for broad spectrum hemp extracts

France’s Robertet has formed a joint venture with Oregon-based Klersun to develop broad spectrum hemp extracts focused on the US market.

While Robertet is well-known as a fragrance and flavor house, the company also has a long history in natural materials, with Bob Weinstein, PhD, head of Robertet USA, telling our US edition that the company’s business is about 37% in fragrance, 37% in flavor and 25% in natural raw materials.

“In the past two or three years we began another business division in health and beauty,” said Weinstein. “Around the same time we started thinking about CBD. We decided to partner with Klersun, which is a relatively new company but with great management.”

“We can create something that is very easy for customers to use,” he added. “We do all that work and provide that solution that includes the CBD along with the fragrance and the flavor including the CBD along with the fragrance and flavor. They don’t need to create their own supply chain for CBD.”

For more on this story, please click HERE.

Europe

Akkermansia supplements to tackle metabolic-related disorders?

Belgian scientists reported that supplementation with Akkermansia muciniphila may improve insulin sensitivity and cholesterol levels.

The study, published in Nature Medicine, also found that Akkermansia may reduce marker levels for liver dysfunction and inflammation in humans.

Further findings reveal the overall gut microbiome structure is unaffected, and provides a “promising start for the supplementation with A. muciniphila in overweight or obese insulin-resistant individuals”, wrote the authors, led by Clara Depommier and Amandine Everard, from the Université catholique de Louvain.

A. muciniphila has attracted growing interest for its health-promoting effects. In rodents, treatment with A. muciniphila reduces obesity and related disorders, such as glucose intolerance, insulin resistance and gut permeability.

For more on this study and for reaction to its findings, please click HERE.

Asia

Blackmores unveils new CEO

Alastair Symington, a top executive from beauty and cosmetics brand Coty, has been announced as the new CEO and MD of Blackmores, Australia’s leading dietary supplements brand.

Symington, the SVP of consumer beauty at Coty, previously worked for companies such as Nestle, Gillette, and P&G, will take over from interim CEO and executive director Marcus Blackmores on October 1.

Symington will become Blackmores’ third CEO in less than three years, following Richard Henfrey (who resigned unexpectedly about 1.5 years into the role in February this year), and Christine Holgate, who left in September 2017 to lead Australia Post.

For more on this from NutraIngredients-Asia, please click HERE.