The lactoferrin-enhanced coffee will not be making any health claims, but the benefits of lactoferrin will be listed on the front of the cans.
These benefits include supporting immune health, gut health, and iron regulation.
The company is expecting to launch the lactoferrin-enhanced coffee in the middle of next year, starting from supermarkets and convenience stores in Singapore and Australia.
Lactoferrin is a scarce protein found in dairy. Currently, it is most used in infant formulas in small amounts to support babies’ immune system.
TurtleTree, however, has managed to manufacture vegan-certified lactoferrin using precision fermentation.
Commercially available as LF+, TurtleTree said its lactoferrin has secured the self-GRAS for the US in November 2023. It is looking to get the full FDA Letter of No Objection (LONO) and Singapore Food Agency approval by mid-2025.
Speaking to NutraIngredients-Asia, Angelique Teo, co-founder and creative head at MAD Foods, said that the company was at the midst of refreshing and rejuvenating its product range. Adding lactoferrin will offer consumers coffee with functional benefits.
The new product development plans will increase its current SKUs from three to 10.
These new products will include lactoferrin-enhanced ones, as well as localised special flavours catered to the Singaporean, Malaysian, Australian, and the US markets.
MAD Foods currently sells 200-ml canned coffee in three SKUs: double shot, single shot, and decaffeinated options in about 5,000 points of sales, including supermarkets and convenience stores across Singapore, Malaysia, and Australia.
The range is dairy-free and has no added sugar, with the double shot SKU its bestseller.
Teo said that the idea of enhancing coffee with lactoferrin was first brought up by the company’s investors.
“At MAD Foods, we go by our slogan ‘Tomorrow, Today’, which means helping our consumers make tomorrow stronger, starting from today.
“That is why when our investors gave us the idea of a possible partnership between TurtleTree and MAD Foods, it was almost like a no-brainer, because we wanted to help our consumers and community healthier and stronger for tomorrow starting from today.
“Having LF+ in our range will allow us to offer our community plus future consumers more than just their favourite coffee,” she said.
The company is also seeing growing opportunities in the functional beverage market, which it hopes to leverage on.
“To be able to tap into the functional beverage market will be beneficial not just for us, but also for our current consumers, and those who are currently on energy drinks to keep them going,” said Teo.
Fengru Lin, CEO of TurtleTree, agreed that coffee would be a suitable choice when making functional beverages.
“Coffee is one of the most sought after on-the-go beverages, so it only makes sense that if consumers can have their coffee with some added health benefits.”
R&D and price
The partnership with TurtleTree will involve a three-month R&D period which will determine the dose of lactoferrin to be added without altering the products’ flavours and texture.
“The R&D process is going to focus on how much LF+ can be added to our drinks without changing them too much in terms of the flavours, texture etc.
“We want to be able to give consumers the same texture, richness, and creaminess that they have fallen in love with, but adding to it functional benefits at the same time.”
Asked the impact on price, Teo said the lactoferrin-enhanced versions would not deviate to far from the current average price of SGD$4 (US$2.98) per can.
“We have not determined the price of each can yet, but we don’t want to deviate too far away from our current average of SGD$4 per can… We don’t see it going past more than 10 or 20 cents from the current price.”
According to Lin, lactoferrin is typically taken at 100 to 400 mg per day, or 100 mg per serving.
“Our team plans to complete clinical trials in the future to better understand the most effective dose necessary,” she said.
Popular requests
TurtleTree has received most interest in the use of lactoferrin in sports nutrition, adult/elderly nutrition and women’s health, said Lin.
For example, the company is in discussions with a global not-for-profit (NFP) in using recombinant bovine lactoferrin (rBLF) to help iron-deficient expecting mothers in low-income areas.
“When expecting mothers are iron deficient, their infants can carry long-lasting impacts to their health and wellbeing through adulthood. This NFP wants to support the mothers from pregnancy.
“While iron supplements can help, they do cause the mothers more nausea, but when coupled with lactoferrin, it helps alleviate the problem and promote iron regulation much better,” she explained.
She added that the team recently published a paper showing the structure and function of TurtleTree’s rBLF, which she said supported its applications in both infant and adult health products.
