Swisse launched its hemp seed oil softgel capsules developed with Bod Australia in March. The raw, cold-pressed hemp seed oil is said to provide both omega-3 and 6.
Vitality Wellness, on the other hand, introduced its Omega Health capsule product made from blackcurrant seed oil last year. The product subsequently took home the Omega-3 Product of the Year award during this year’s NutraIngredients-Asia awards.
Both companies have lauded how the unique ratio of omega-3 and 6 have provided benefits not seen in marine sources.
“What makes hemp seed a particularly interesting ingredient is that it is considered to be perfectly balanced with regards to the ratio of omega-6 and omega-3, specifically having a 3:1 ratio,” said Dr Beata Silber, group director research at H&H Group – the parent company of Swisse.
“Recent evidence suggests the optimal n-6 and n-3 ratio is somewhere between 2:1 and 3:1, which actually reflects ratios that are found in traditional Japanese and Mediterranean diets where the incidence of cardiovascular disease is historically low,” she added.
For Vitality Wellness, the firm said its blackcurrant seed oil contained a balance of omega-3,6,9 which has shown in three clinical studies to reduce the bad cholesterol levels.
Other benefits include how blackcurrant omegas could relief menopause symptoms in women and dermatitis in young children, Michael Dunsire, business development director Asia said.
The firms also pointed out how the cost of making the product was linked to the level of sustainability.
“In terms of cost, blackcurrant seed oil is the by-product of the other processes that we do, other than the cost of extraction to extract the seed oil from the seed, it is a very [price] competitive product,” Dunsire said.
“Because we control the supply chain where our blackcurrants are sourced from, we can identify the farms, the varieties, the fields in the factory where the batch varieties have come from, so it’s a very sustainable and traceable supply chain.”
Dr Silber added that the hemp plant could grow easily without large amount of water or chemicals, while serving as an air purifier at the same time.
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