The China contract manufacturer said it could provide plant-based solutions for its entire portfolio of gummies, soft gel capsules, hard shell capules, tablets, powders, and liquids.
Some examples of these plant-based solutions include the use of pectin in place of gelatin for gummies and red algae for soft gel capsules.
Speaking to NutraIngredients-Asia, Doug Brown, sales and marketing director in charge of the firm’s operation in the Americas, said that at present, the trend in the North America, was “plant-based for everything.”
He revealed that the firm’s plant-based business in the Americas had been growing by around 100% from last year to this year, with most customers “switching parts, or all of their portfolios to plant-based ingredients whenever possible,” especially for the gummies products.
The firm anticipates that many customers, particularly those in North America and Europe, will now look at ways to move their entire product portfolios across to plant-based solutions.
It believes the demand for plant-based nutraceuticals is being largely driven by the millennials, who prefer products that are environmentally friendly.
“What used to be a marketplace that was geared towards vegetarian and vegan has now morphed into a powerful trend that is being led by an entire generation of consumers who wish not so much to be vegetarians and vegan, but to be more planet friendly and sustainable.
“We became a complete provider of all plant-based solutions within the last three years, and now we are fully operational on all of these formats,” Brown said.
Plant-based nutraceuticals is gaining traction among other companies.
For example, ingredient supplier DuPont Nutrition and Biosciences is building its presence in the Latin America through its plant-based and probiotics products.
Gummy probiotics
Besides plant-based ingredients, Sirio will also officially launch its gummy probiotic solution at the upcoming Supplyside West show in the US.
Brown said that the new solution, which was a proprietary technique, allowed live probiotics incorporated in gummies to be protected throughout the manufacturing, storage, and transportation processes.
“The manufacturing of gummies traditionally require a considerable heat or temperature, which is not friendly for probiotics…What we have been able to solve is to deliver a meaningful dose of the CFUs into the gummies that remain active when the consumers are taking them.”
The company has converted its existing manufacturing site in Shantou to focus solely on this application.
Other non-probiotic gummy portfolios are shifted to the firm’s new manufacturing site in Ma’anshan.
Brown said that the Shantou plant was in the final stages of the conversion, and the firm was expecting to manufacture probiotic gummies from the site by the end of this year.
