Plant-based vitamin D ingredient Earthlight approved for Brazilian market

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Earthlight, a whole-food vitamin D ingredient provided by PLT Health Solutions (Morristown, NJ), has gained approval from the Brazilian Health Regulatory Agency (ANVISA) allowing its use as an ingredient in food, beverages, and dietary supplements sold in Brazil, the company announced in February.

The new approval comes as vitamin D supplement sales are growing rapidly. “Earthlight is the right ingredient at the right time for food and beverage producers and over-the-counter supplement formulators in Brazil, as well as multinationals seeking to create global formulations,” said Jay Martin, managing director, global sales, PLT Health Solutions, in a press release. “ANVISA’s approval of Earthlight is timely considering the rapidly growing interest in vitamin D supplementation. Interest in vitamin D and its role in supporting immunity, bone health, healthy aging, and overall good health has increased dramatically in the last three years.”

Earthlight vitamin D is produced using a patented process that exposes mushrooms to UV light, causing the mushrooms to produce vitamin D. The ingredient is a non-GMO, whole-food ingredient said to be clean label and “minimally processed without any extract solvents,” and is available in both conventional and organic versions. It offers 40,000 IU of vitamin D per gram of the ingredient. In addition, “Low use levels mean that it won’t affect the organoleptics of a food or beverage product,” the company says.

“PLT worked with Earthlight innovator Oakshire Naturals and PLT’s exclusive Brazilian distributor for retail products, Tovani Benzaquen Ingredientes (Sao Paulo), to compile the information for the dossier and respond to comments and questions from ANVISA. The approval process for Earthlight took nearly two years,” says PLT. Earthlight also holds Novel Food approval in Europe and a Food Additive Petition (FAP) in the United States.

According to Moses Benzaquen, director presidente of Tovani Benzaquen, “Vitamin D has been a subject of intense interest in Brazil over the last two years. Earthlight is a perfect way to introduce a high-quality vitamin D into products for health-conscious people. Made from high-quality mushrooms, it is organic, non-GMO, minimally processed, and sustainable. We look forward to working with PLT in bringing these benefits to the Brazilian market,” he said.