Brand new: Herbs of Gold, Shinryo, Jerôsse, Fiji Kava, Swisse in the spotlight

Targeting mothers: Herbs of Gold to debut in Vietnam via mum-and-baby chain stores deal​  ​

Herbs of Gold, a brand from ASX-listed Vita Life Sciences, will debut in Vietnam after securing a deal with mum-and-baby chain store Con Cưng.

CEO of Herbs of Gold ANZ, Shaun Rutherford told NutraIngredients-Asia​ that there has been strong interest in breastfeeding support in the Vietnamese market.

This is why the brand plans to penetrate the market by establishing itself among mothers, since they are also the key decision makers for household purchases.

Solubility solution: Shinryo to repackage and relaunch hydrogen-rich jelly sleep supplement in Japan as FFC​  ​

Japanese firm Shinryo Healthcare has overcome application challenges posed by hydrogen molecules to develop a jelly supplement that claims to improve sleep quality.

The company, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Chemical Group, has announced that its “high-concentration hydrogen jelly” will go through a packaging revamp before a relaunch in June.

The product has been accepted by the Consumer Affairs Agency in Japan as a Food with Function Claims (FFC) – also the first time a product containing hydrogen molecules as a functional ingredient is accepted as a FFC.

More firepower: Fiji Kava’s on its new China’s distribution strategy and name change to The Calmer Co​

ASX-listed Fiji Kava says that it is preparing for ‘more firepower’ in the China market as it also explores increasing its product range across the beverage category.

One of the plans, is to expand its presence in China from e-commerce to brick-and-mortar stores, which would be led by its new distribution partner RooLife.

The company also recently changed its name to The Calmer Co, which CEO Anthony Noble said would better reflect the firm’s product range and strategy.

No store, not MLM: Taiwan supplement brand Jerôsse to expand in Singapore, Malaysia with novel distributor model​  

Jerôsse, a supplement and skincare brand from Taiwan firm Biotech Lab Inc, has embarked on an expansion mission in Singapore and Malaysia.

Unlike the usual brick-and-mortar or e-commerce retail, the brand heavily relies on social media marketing in selling its products.

Without the need for a retail store, this mode of business has become a hit amongst full time housewives, Kevin Lu, CEO of Biotech Lab, told NutraIngredients-Asia ​at Beauty Asia Fair held in Singapore’s Marina Bay Sands between April 17 and 19.

‘The next gummy’: Swisse opens product development kitchen to drive sensory, packaging innovation​

Swisse has opened a product development kitchen in its effort to drive innovations across new functional food formats, ingredients, packaging, and sensorial experience.

The kitchen, located in Melbourne, is on the site of its packing facility and is approximately 20 minutes’ drive away from the company’s head office. 

As part of its R&D, Swisse will be inviting customers, ingredient suppliers, and contract manufacturers to the kitchen to supercharge its innovation pipeline, said Evan Scicluna, director, product design and delivery at H&H Group – the parent company of Swisse.