NZMP to expand range of applications for its proprietary probiotic strains

Nougat caramel chocolate bar. Image courtesy of NZMP.

NZMP (Chicago, IL), the ingredient solutions brand of the global dairy company Fonterra, is expanding the application range of its probiotics strains to include a variety of snack options, and certain types of confectionery and beverages. NZMP’s unique strains of Bifidobacterium animalis subspecies lactis HN019 (BifidoB HN019) and Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus HN001* (LactoB HN001) are isolate from microbial cultures used in manufacturing yogurt and cheese. The dairy-free strains are suitable for various applications including ready-to-mix powdered beverages, supplements, chocolates, coated protein or snack bars, yogurts, ice-creams, cheeses, fresh juices or fermented milk drinks.

“For a few years now, we have been seeing probiotics delivery formats rapidly moving away from just supplements into the likes of cereals, chocolates and ready-to-mix powdered beverages – an area we are very familiar with due to our proteins business,” said Chris Ireland, US probiotics business manager, Sports & Active Lifestyle, in a press release. “Fonterra is traditionally a dairy food company, which means we have complementary expertise in regard to how probiotics can be paired with other ingredients in our portfolio for food and beverage applications. In fact, we are one of the few probiotic suppliers with evidence of probiotic stability data for chocolates.”

The company is also targeting additional health benefits. “NZMP’s Sports & Active Lifestyle unit has been expanding its portfolio to include specialty ingredients that are complementary to core protein offerings, including things like milk phospholipids for mental wellbeing, milk minerals for bone health or Lactoferrin for immunity,” said Victoria Lam, senior marketing manager, Sports & Active Lifestyle. “Market trends tell us that consumers are increasingly seeking more health benefits from their food and with more than 90% of probiotic products making health claims in the US, it makes sense to add probiotics into food or beverage formats, which can be carriers for various health-boosting ingredients.”