'Dr. Pong effect': AstaReal’s new initiative to keep out fake astaxanthin from burgeoning Thai market

The authentication program, known as AstaReal VeriReal program, was officially launched at Vitafoods Asia held in Bangkok last month.

Consumers will be able to identify whether a supplement contains astaxanthin – specifically AstaReal’s astaxanthin – by scanning a QR code printed on the product labelling.

The code will then lead consumers to AstaReal’s website that shows the list of products that contain AstaReal’s astaxanthin.

AstaReal’s astaxanthin has seen a revival in Thailand in the past two years, thanks to the popularity of Dr. Pong Astaxanthin 6mg capsules which are made using AstaReal’s astaxanthin, Dr. Vincent Wood, president at AstaReal Pte Ltd told NutraIngredients-Asia.​

More industry players have since entered the scene, further driving the growth of the category.  

Calling it the Dr. Pong effect, he said that sales of AstaReal’s astaxanthin in Thailand grew at a CAGR of 41 per cent before and after their partnership with Dr. Pong.

AstaReal has been working with Dr. Pong for about two years.

The success of Dr. Pong, however, has also brought challenges to the industry especially in the past one year.

One of which is the rise of supplements that claim to contain AstaReal’s astaxanthin, just like those from Dr. Pong, when it is not the case.  

Other problems include the mismatch between the labelling and the actual content.

There were even instances when no astaxanthin was detected, although they appeared to contain the ingredient because capsule shells in red – the colour of astaxanthin – were used.

There are concerns that these opportunistic brands could undermine the entire astaxanthin category, which is why AstaReal has come up with its authentication program, said Dr. Wood.

In fact, it was Dr. Pong the brand itself that has requested AstaReal to do so.

“Dr. Pong effect has created a huge demand for the AstaReal astaxanthin and naturally, with his marketing success has created a huge demand for all astaxanthin in the market in Thailand. ​

“And what happened was that people wanted to launch their own brands of astaxanthin, whether it's AstaReal or some other brands and as a result, the market is overcrowded with astaxanthin.​

“However, some of them aren't authentic, some don't even contain astaxanthin and that was brought to our attention from our key customer, Dr. Pong,” ​he said.

The authentication program is currently only available for the Thai market since this is a bigger issue there.

The auditing process ​

As of October 8, there are three supplements that have passed the authentication process and are recognised on AstaReal’s website. They are 1) Dr. Pong Astaxanthin 6mg AstaReal, 2) Vistra Astaxanthin Plus Vitamin E, and 3) AstaMD.

“Ideally, we want all partnering brands to come on board, because we are worried about the way products are being made and corners can be cut.​

“If more people join, that will just raise the standards of manufacturing, quality, and trust and I would like us to act as a beacon and lead that direction, especially as an initiative from an ingredient manufacturer,” ​said Dr. Wood.  ​

The auditing process, he explained, comprised of two stages.

The first involves a paper audit and the brand owners would need to submit documents such as records of purchase and delivery of AstaReal’s astaxanthin raw material, stock inventory card, batch master record, finished product CoA etc.

The documents are proofs showing that the manufacturers have received or have used AstaReal’s astaxanthin during their production.

The second stage involves an analysis of the final astaxanthin product.

To ensure that the brand owners are not involved in this process, the products would be randomly picked from the marketplace and send for laboratory testing conducted by the Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (TISTR).

This will assess whether the products’ content matches information printed on the label and if it contains 100 per cent astaxanthin using high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC).

Companies will need to pass both stages before they are verified as products containing authentic AstaReal astaxanthin.

Once verified, AstaReal will issue the AstaReal VeriReal QR seal and Certificate of Authenticity, and their products will be listed on AstaReal’s website.

The QR seal could be printed on their products and marketing communications materials. The QR seal also leads to AstaReal’s website showing the list of authenticated astaxanthin products.

What do Thai consumers use astaxanthin for​

Astaxanthin supplements are mainly used for skin, eye, and immune health among Thai consumers, said Dr. Wood.

For instance, it is positioned as a skin health ingredient as studies have shown its moisturising effect and improvements in transepidermal water loss (TEWL).​

For Dr. Pong, a lot of its success is attached to savvy social media marketing on the science and efficacy of astaxanthin.

The ingredient, however, is not entirely new to the Thai market.

In the past decade, brands such as Time Capsule and Sharisma were once partners that have worked with AstaReal.

The newfound success with Dr. Pong, nonetheless, is “the third wave and by far, the biggest wave”,​ said Dr. Wood.