Brand new: Ildong Bioscience, Haleon, Moom Health in the spotlight

New formulation? Protein and probiotics combination shown to aid amino acid absorption – Ildong Bioscience​​

Adding certain probiotics to protein have shown to increase protease activity and in turn facilitate a higher rate of amino acid absorption, which could be a new point of market differentiation for the crowded protein supplement market, said South Korea’s Ildong Bioscience.

Speaking to NutraIngredients-Asia ​at Healthplex Expo 2023 / Natural & Nutraceutical Products China 2023, regional manager Joon-Eon Chun said that the company was interested in the protein supplement market and was hoping to use probiotics as a point of market differentiation.

For instance, the co-administration of its proprietary strain Lactobacillus rhamnosus IDCC 3451 ​and legumin protein mixture in mice for eight weeks showed that the concentrations of branched chain amino acids and essential amino acids were 1.36 and 1.41 times higher than those that were only fed with legumin protein mixture.  

Asia Pacific growth offsets US’s VMS revenue decline – Centrum, Caltrate maker Haleon​

Haleon, the company behind vitamin brands Centrum and Caltrate, said VMS revenue was down 0.5 per cent in the first six months of this year, with a decline in the US offset by growth in Asia Pacific and Europe.

Vitamins, minerals and supplements (VMS) revenue was down to 816m euros (US$893m), as demand for immunity related products starts returning to pre-COVID levels. This was especially the case for the US, where sales were down double digits, said the London stock exchange listed company.

In Asia-Pacific and Europe, however, the VMS category was propped up by mid-single digit growth.

Star power? Actress-owned health food brand LYASNU eager to break into SEA markets following record sales in South Korea​

South Korean brand LYASNU has attributed the popularity of its enzyme powder sticks to young consumers with digestion troubles, whom it seeks to further appeal to with new products targeting facial puffiness, immunity improvement and fatigue relief.

The products are targeted at women in their 20s to 40s, who often feel bloated after meals, suffer from indigestion and constipation, consume fast food regularly, binge eat or drink, have unbalanced or irregular diets, or are constantly in a state of fatigue.

Since the debut of its first products, Active Enzyme and Sprout Enzyme powder sticks, LYASNU has reportedly seen a 140 per cent growth every month, with a repurchase rate of 30 per cent.

Pain-free period: Singapore’s Moom Health extends supplements line-up to battle PMS and menstrual woes​

After more than a year of development and 13 versions of the prototype, Singapore’s Moom Health has completed the formulation of a new supplement that is specifically targeted at relieving premenstrual symptoms (PMS) and painful period cramps.

The product named cramp/less was made available since July 4.

Based on data that the firm has gathered via their expert-backed quiz and consumer engagement, it is observed that one in every three women suffer from period cramps, PMS-related mood swings, and menstrual bloating.

Ease of entry: High consumer acceptance for varied formats behind US launch of vitamin spray range – Australia’s Henry Blooms​

Australian supplements brand Henry Blooms has launched its vitamin spray range in the US, citing that high consumer knowledge and acceptance enabled ease of entry into the market.

The range, known as VitaQIK liposomals, made its way into US in health food retailers such as Lotus Light and UNFI, as well as Amazon US in April.

First launched in 2020 in Australia, the range spans vitamin B12, D3 and K2, turmeric, and vitamin C; and is available in a 50ml pump spray bottle.