GNT Preps Unique Experience for IFT 2025
For those planning to attend this year's IFT tradeshow in Chicago, plant-based color manufacturer, GNT USA, invites you to participate in their interactive "Color Your Snack Adventure" experience. With colors made from non-GMO fruits, vegetables, and plants, visitors can stop by Booth #S1825 and enjoy from sweet and savory snacks that can be customized with options like pizza ranch (orange), honey miso (yellow), dill pickle (green), hibiscus chile (purple), and passionfruit orange guava (pink). Interested participants will also have the opportunity to speak with GNT technical and application experts who will be at the booth discussing the company's pioneering plant-based color innovations, expanding U.S. manufacturing, state-of-the-art Customer Experience Center in Dallas, NC, and their working relationship with over 300 farmers to ensure full supply chain transparency.
“At GNT, we go beyond supplying clean-label colors" shared Jeannette O'Brien, VP of Sales and Marketing at GNT USA. "We collaborate closely with manufacturers to help them succeed at every stage of development and commercialization. With the conversation around FD&C dyes intensifying, we’re uniquely positioned to guide brands through this pivotal moment. We’re excited to welcome visitors to Booth #S1825 for a firsthand taste of what plant-based color can achieve."
HTBA Announces Platform Debut IFT FIRST 2025
HealthTech Bio Actives (HTBA) is gearing up to unveil its exclusive flavonoid-powered taste modulation platform, OptiTaste, during next month's IFT FIRST 2025 event in Chicago. From July 14-16 guests can stop by Booth S3046 to experience the new food and beverage prototypes enhanced by the OptiTaste Sweetness, Balance and Masking solutions. Designed as a solution for brands facing formulation challenges while looking to deliver taste the way it should be, the platform provides a one-stop natural origin taste modulation solutions, including a selection of Upcycled Certified ingredients.
Other platform solution features include:
- Optimizing overall sweetness profiles while reducing the need for added sugar
- Enhancing mouthfeel and finetuning bitterness, harshness, flavor top-notes, overall savory, spicy flavor profiles.
- Masking solutions to suppress astringency and bitterness, off-notes and aftertastes.
“We’re excited to introduce our new taste modulation platform to the US food and beverage market. This latest initiative aligns with our ongoing investment in enhancing our food and beverage offering, following the completion of our brand-new state-of-the-art production plant in Murcia, Spain, and a broader €25 million research, development and manufacturing modernization project,” said Tom D'Hoore, Chief Commercial Officer of HTBA. “We’re looking forward to exploring the potential of our flavonoid-powered innovations to enhance our customers’ food and beverage creations for outstanding consumer taste experiences.”
For more on HTBA's new product and happy hour event to showcase prototype solutions, visit htba.com. And stay tuned for our coverage from IFT Chicago!
Aker Biomarine Focuses on Antarctic Marine Protection
Aker BioMarine and Aker QRILL Company have announced plans to establish one of the largest Marine Protected Areas in the world. The proposed 455,957 km² Marine Protected Area (MPA) around the Antarctic Peninsula was announced during the 2025 UN Ocean Conference. The suggested MPA is a combination of years of negotiations that address conservation needs and sustainable fishery management. Red zones would be permanently closed to all extractive activities, while blue zones would have seasonal closures to protect critical breeding and feeding periods for marine wildlife. With the world's population expected to grow by nearly 2 billion by 2050, the Antarctic krill industry is committed to conservation through science-based approaches.
"This is about taking responsibility for the future of Antarctica," said Matts Johansen, Chairman of the Board at Aker QRILL Company and CEO of Aker BioMarine. "We believe that science-based management and genuine dialogue across nations can create progress. The industry is ready to act for conservation – closing off vast fishing areas with direct impact on our operations, but necessary for the long-term preservation and management of Antarctica. With this MPA, 12% of Antarctica is fully protected compared to 2,3% of oceans globally."
Hear more from Johansen in the Move Nutrition podcast Finding Leadership Lessons on the Back of a Dog Sled.
LANDKIND Achieves Two Major Milestones
LANDKIND Pure Salidroside now has allowable structure-function claims for the sports/active nutrition market and Informed Ingredient Certification by LGC. The comprehensive and global banned substance raw material testing and certification program, Informed Ingredient, has deemed LANDKIND is an ingredient that meets the standards for acceptable use in sport supplement products. Analyzed for over 285 banned substances, which have been excluded by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), LANDKIND meets the strict standards required for products that can be used for elite competition.
Following the publishing of its proprietary, peer-reviewed study, LANDKIND Pure Salidroside now has established structure-function claims that cover four benefits that athletes and active consumers consider critical:
- Oxygen Uptake
- Exercise Performance
- Muscle Support
- Mood and Stress Response
“The publication of our important clinical study in the peer-reviewed Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition1 has been central to securing both Informed Certification and a range of structure-function claims dedicated specifically to the branded LANDKIND Pure Salidroside,” shared Hélène Charier, Gnosis Regulatory and IP Director. “This is also the first study to demonstrate that supplementing with salidroside—an active compound in the adaptogen Rhodiola rosea—exerts positive impacts on exercise performance.”
BLS Receives Two New U.S. Patents
Bioenergy Life Science (BLS) has been award two new patents by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for its AMPk-activating technology, available as RiboActiv. The patents cover:
- The use of D-Ribose (Bioenergy Ribose) as a method of upregulating AMPk, PGC-1a and Citrate Synthase.
- The method and composition for enhancing AMPk in mammals.
An ideal product for weight management, energy, metabolic health and active lifestyle support, research has shown it can support fat burning, reduce inflammation, and improve mitochondrial health. RiboActiv can also be easily incorporated into modern, consumer-friendly formats such as oral strips (melts), mints, time-release tablets, gummies, and functional foods and beverages, allowing for companies to formulate freely without compromising performance.
“These patents, based on our proprietary research, give brands formulating with Bioenergy Ribose and/or RiboActiv a powerful marketing and scientific edge,” explained Michael Crabtree, ND BLS Director of Scientific Affairs. "RiboActiv is our low hormetic-dose of Bioenergy Ribose, which is still the only patented and scientifically proven D-Ribose on the market. For forward-thinking formulators, this means the opportunity to stand apart with a truly unique AMPk activator.”
Dole Honors National Recycling Program CEO
In honor of International Pineapple Day, the Dole Food Company has recognized Evan Ehlers, Founder & CEO of Sharing Excess, a national produce recycling program, with its Spirit of 'Ohana Award. Based on the Hawaiian concept of extended family, hospitality, and community service, and part of Dole's "Spirit of 'Ohana" initiative—offering themed recipes, digital downloads, family activities and in-store merchandising inspired by Disney’s Stitch, from the Lilo & Stitch film, the award is presented to individuals or groups who exhibit the well-established themes of the phrase. To date, Sharing Excess has distributed 135 million pounds of food, feeding 10 million Americans across 36 states. Ultimately the company hopes to expand to every major U.S. port city and agricultural hub to irradicate the 9.1 billion meal gap in the United States.
Award recipients will be featured on Dole.com and receive a one-year supply of succulent DOLE Tropical Gold Pineapples in honor of June 26 as International Stitch Day and June 27 as International Pineapple Day. “By creating this nationwide model for surplus food rescue and distribution, Evan is the epitome of the idea of the extended ‘Ohana as not letting anyone get left behind,” said William Goldfield, Director of Communications for Dole Food Company. “What’s even more remarkable is that he recruited Dole as one of the earliest Sharing Excess partners at one of our inbound ports of entry, the Port of Wilmington, and has since helped us rescue 800,000 pounds of fresh produce and redistribute it to the hungry in Delaware, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.”
For more on the "Spirit of 'Ohana" program, which will continue through mid-September, please visit dole.com/disney
Nutriventia Finalist for NutraIngredients USA Awards
Prolanza and TurmXTRA 60 N have been recognized by the NutraIngredients USA committee for their ongoing contributions to the areas of mental wellness and healthy aging, respectively. The two signature ingredients from nutraceutical ingredients manufacturer, Nutriventia, are finalists for "Ingredient of the Year" in their corresponding categories, with winners being presented during a special ceremony in Chicago on July 14, 2025. “The market success of Prolanza and TurmXTRA is a testament to Nutriventia’s proprietary technological delivery platform, Nutriventia E.D.G.E. system which enables precise, consumer-centric solutions that address real-world needs," shared Nutriventia Co-founder Vishal Shah.
According to Nutriventia, Prolanza is one of the most efficient ashwagandha solutions available with benefits beginning at just 150 mg and 300 mg per day. With its low-dose efficacy, the clinically validated, root-only, sustained-release ingredient supports mental clarity, stress reduction, and emotional balance throughout the day. Similarly, TurmXTRA 60N has been recognized for its clinically validated benefits for consumers interested in healthy aging. Good for joint health support, mobility, and overall vitality, TurmXTRA's benefits were experienced at a low daily dose of just 250 mg. “The healthy ageing category is gaining unprecedented momentum as the global population ages and health priorities shift. The World Health Organization has declared 2021–2030 the ‘Decade of Healthy Ageing,’ emphasizing the need for interventions that support not just longer life, but improved quality of life; health span over mere lifespan," continued Shah.
AUTUMNCRISP Preps for Summer Fancy Food 2025
The 2025 Specialty Foods Association Summer Fancy Foods Show is taking place from June 29-July 1 in NYC's Javits Center. The team from Sun World International will treat visitors to their crisp texture, balanced sweetness, fresh produce commodity, AUTUMNCRISP Grapes. Booth 5140 located at the Plant-Based Pavilion will host the fresh produce brand as they share insight on the popularity of grapes within the beauty, gut health, and wellness space.
“For decades, fresh produce has been treated as a commodity—transactional, unbranded, and often overlooked in conversations about food innovation. But that’s changing. Produce is becoming culture. It’s showing up in consumer trends, premium retail experiences, and lifestyle conversations. Our brands are helping lead that shift—proving that fresh fruit can have flavor, identity, and loyal fans, just like any top-tier specialty food,” shared Director of Global Marketing Insights at Sun World, Elena Hernandez. “The success we’re seeing with AUTUMNCRISP is proving that branded fresh fruit can compete in the same arena as the most celebrated specialty foods — and win.”
Laird Superfood & Bluestone Lane Announce Collaboration
Functional coffee, creamers, and superfood products brand, Laird Superfood, is partnering with Australian-inspired specialty coffee roaster and café chain, Bluestone Lane, to offer Laird Superfood Latte and Laird Superfood Mocha, iced coffee drinks with functional mushrooms. Customers can purchase the drinks for $7.45 and $7.95, respectively at all 50+ U.S. Bluestone Lane locations. Depending on the selection, the drinks will combine espresso with Laird Superfood Sweet & Creamy Creamer with Functional Mushrooms or Laird Superfood Mocha Creamer with Functional Mushrooms. Both will contain the organic mushroom extracts Chaga (to support stress defense), Lion’s Mane (to support cognition), Maitake (to support immune function), and Cordyceps (to support energy).
“Partnering with Bluestone Lane is a natural extension of our mission to make functional, plant-based energy accessible in everyday moments,” said Jason Vieth, CEO of Laird Superfood. “By aligning our premium, functional mushroom creamers with Bluestone Lane’s commitment to quality coffee culture, we’re offering customers a delicious way to fuel their day with real, nourishing ingredients that have functional benefits for the mind, body, and overall well-being.”
An additional original hot beverage will be announced later on in the fall.
Cosmax NBT Moves Manufacturing Site to Korea
Beauty and health manufacturer Cosmax NBT is looking to strengthen its supply chain efficiency and elevate its product quality by relocating its Texas-based dietary supplement manufacturing site to Korea. Given the country's advanced manufacturing infrastructure, rigorous quality standards, and cutting-edge innovation in nutraceuticals, Cosmax NBT hopes to streamline production timelines and increase delivery of high-quality, science backed supplements to consumers across the world. The move will also enable the company to offer its clients:
- Stronger supply chain stability, with proximity to key ingredient suppliers and research partners
- Enhanced quality assurance, meeting Korea’s stringent GMP and safety regulations
- Increased speed to market, with reduced transit and production delays
- Greater access to innovation, through integration with Korea’s thriving biotech and functional food ecosystem
“This move allows us to offer even greater control over quality, faster production turnaround, and more seamless collaboration with our customers,” stated Jay Ahn, CEO, Cosmax NBT. “Korea is a global leader in health and wellness innovation, and we’re proud to anchor our supplement manufacturing here to better align with our long-term growth and sustainability goals.”
