FrieslandCampina Ingredients has announced the approval by Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ), of its Aequival® 2′-Fucosyllactose (2′-FL) ingredient for infant milk formula. The company will be granted a 15-month exclusivity for its specific strain. As a result, infant milk formula producers in the region now have access to a 2’-FL provider with a leading experience in early life nutrition ingredients.
2′-FL is a type of human milk oligosaccharide (HMO). HMOs are the third largest component of human milk, and 2’-FL is the most abundant of these HMOs. Thanks to its bifidogenic effects, which science continues to reveal, it is an ingredient of increasing interest to consumers, professionals and infant milk formula brands alike. 2’-FL and other HMOs help provide the optimum conditions for beneficial gut bacteria, particularly Bifidobacteria, to thrive.
Researchers continue to discover and validate the health benefits enabled by this ingredient, which include immunomodulatory activity, reducing the risk of respiratory tract infections and inhibiting the adhesion and infectivity of diarrhoea pathogens in-vitro. Pre-clinical research has shown 2’-FL may also have a role in brain development, cognition and learning.
Said Sophie Nicolas, marketing manager, Early Life Nutrition, FrieslandCampina Ingredients: “While this is exciting news both for us as a business, and for infant milk formula producers in Australia and New Zealand, it’s actually only part of the story. 2’-FL is a great start, but we believe that including a variety of HMOs in infant milk formula may offer a wider range of health benefits. That’s because each has a different mode of action. Some play a role in the establishment of the infant gut microbiota and its metabolism, while others can prevent pathogens attaching to intestinal cells and causing infection. As a result, our focus is on expanding our HMO portfolio, launching LNT, 3’-SL, 6’-SL and 3-FL. In fact, samples of Aequival LNT are already available for customers to trial. The size of our ingredient portfolio, and the rate of its expansion, are attributable to our 75year history in early life nutrition ingredients. Our long heritage is also extremely valuable for infant milk formula brands when it comes to formulation advice, analytical expertise and technical support.
“We’re proud to have been a world-leading expert in oligosaccharides for over 20 years with our Vivinal GOS, and we entered the HMO market in 2019. That means we hold unique experience in designing and developing infant milk formula that leverages the nutritional potential of all these oligosaccharides. We’re extremely excited about the possibilities FSANZ’s approval opens up for our customers in this region – and beyond – as we strive to bring forward the very bright future of early life nutrition ingredients.” For more visit FrieslandCampinaingredients.com
