NZMP and Sun Genomics establish partnership to validate probiotics in real-world settings

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NZMP (Chicago, IL), the ingredient solutions brand by the global dairy company Fonterra, and Sun Genomics (San Diego, CA), a made-to-order probiotics company, have established a partnership to conduct consumer studies that will help elucidate the many health benefits of probiotics. Sun Genomics is the maker of the precision probiotics brand Floré, which has individuals test their gut microbiota so that Floré can customize a “precision probiotic” supplement to address that person’s specific needs. NZMP supplies Sun Genomics with its clinically proven HN001 and HN019 strains of probiotics.

With Sun Genomics validating their products through consumer lifestyle studies, and NZMP testing its ingredients through human clinical studies, the two companies found that they could complement one another. This has led to more in-depth consumer research that will add value to each of their products. These consumer studies include testing the HN001 and HN019 strains with Floré customers through a Fonterra-sponsored consumer project to determine whether they have any significant improvements in health and mental wellness. The results of this consumer testing will provide complementary evidence to existing clinical trials on the ingredients. This is valuable because they offer evidence that NZMP probiotics’ benefits extend beyond a clinical setting and can withstand being subjected to the rigors of normal consumer lifestyles.

“Sun Genomics is both a customer and business partner. We chose Sun Genomics because we were impressed by their consumer-centric approach, which closely aligns with our desire to intimately understand the consumer,” explained Chris Ireland, US Probiotics business manager, Active Lifestyle, NZMP, in a press release. “Working with Sun Genomics to tap into their consumer base is an innovative way to directly validate our probiotics effectiveness, and build a deeper understanding of what consumers truly need. These consumer studies will bridge the gap between meticulously designed scientific studies and the day-to-day realities of consumer life, allowing us to marry the strengths of consumer and clinical research when positioning our probiotics in the market. This work also opens up opportunities to explore potential new formulations together, which reflects our broader efforts in addressing health benefits across physical, mental and inside-out wellness. Our focus on probiotics reflects the expansion of our classic health & wellness portfolio through our specialty ingredients.”

“We chose to work with NZMP not only because of the quality of their probiotic strains, but also because of their ability to provide clinical data and their excitement to partner and explore new spaces with us,” said Neal Gidvani, the COO of Sun Genomics. “We are expecting results from some of our initial studies later this year and look forward to sharing the results with the NZMP team.”