Most Trusted Nutritional Manufacturers in 2022

Modern Medicine

Most Trusted in 2022

Savior Good Nutrition can be the of Your Life

Enhancing the Fundamentals of the Global Healthcare Sector

The global healthcare industry in the modern era of

advancements is increasingly shaping up to be a patient-centric niche driven by the principles and core fundamentals that are transforming the traditional value chain and the enhancement of healthcare systems.

Information and Technology is also transforming the modern age healthcare system through convergence. Today, the systems are being driven by automation and supported by collaborations with a primary vision that is focused on enhancing health and wellness. One instance that plays a major role in enabling the advancements is the prevalence of electronic health records.

However, in the past few years, people have become health conscious and comprehend the importance of taking a proactive approach towards their health. Adding to this scenario, the prevalence of chronic diseases (such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease) is also increasing the demand for nutraceuticals .

Looking at the busy and hectic lifestyle of the fast-paced world, nutraceutical products are being used across a wide segment of the population, targeting various health conditions, and playing a large role in the ‘wellness’ movement, empowering consumers to manage their health proactively. The world is moving to condition-based nutrition, where nutraceuticals play a large role.

Nutritional manufacturers are experiencing a paradigm shift from traditional formats to integrated products addressing specific conditions. This helps the consumers to select the right nutraceutical product based on their demographics, health benefits, and purpose.

This expansion of the wellness industry is expected to outgrow further as well. People are more aware of disease management and prevention now started using Nutraceuticals has further increased the demand. At the same time, manufacturers and marketers of nutraceuticals educate customers by releasing thorough information about product advantages and functions, as well as establishing transparency and confidence among consumers. Moreover, these nutritional manufacturers keep on embracing patterns and try to bring something more productive, eventually proving beneficial and more effective in terms of nutritional value.

On a quest to embrace the significance of nutritional manufacturers, Insights Care mapped the journey of prominent organizations that are reshaping the future of the healthcare industry through its latest edition, “ Most Trusted Nutritional Manufacturers in 2022 .”

Flip through the pages and have a delightful read!

-Saloni Agarwal

C O N T E N T CONTENT

Most Trusted Nutritional Manufacturers in 2022

Featuring Person Company

Bang Energy bangenergy.com

Jack Owoc CEO

Florida Food Products floridafood.com

Huisong Inc huisongpharm.com

Maypro maypro.com

President & CEO

Meng Zheng CEO and Founder

Isabel President

Nutra Soluons USA nutrasoluonsusa.com

Rae Wellness raewellness.co

Saputo Inc. saputo.com

Sultana Haque Execuve Director

Angie Tebbe CEO and Co-founder

Lino A. Saputo CEO

Tree Of Life treeoflife.ca

Vit-Best Nutrion drbvitamins.com

Brief

Bang Energy is always at the forefront of innovaon, which comes from an unrelenng commitment to research.

Beverly's me tested nutrion & training plans for real world results. Beverly Internaonal products have been trusted by natural athletes, bodybuilders and healthconscious individuals for more than 50 years.

Florida Food Products specializes in the creaon and manufacturing of fruit and vegetable-based concentrates and funconal derivaves, tea, coffee and herbal extracts and flavors that are used across the food and nutrion industry.

For more than two decades, Huisong has partnered with world-leading companies in the R&D and manufacturing of premium-quality natural ingredients used in pharmaceucal drugs, health supplements, and other applicaon areas.

Maypro has grown into one of the largest global suppliers of nutraceucal ingredients and fine chemicals.

Nutra Soluons USA is a global supplier and developer of premium dietary supplements, nutraceucal, sports nutrion, and funconal nutrional products.

Rae's universe of pure and powerful wellness soluons is designed with you in mind.

Saputo produces, markets, and distributes a wide array of dairy products of the utmost quality, including cheese, fluid milk, extended shelf-life milk and cream.

Lisa MacNeil President

Gale K. Bensussen Chairman

Tree of Life is among the top distributors of natural & Organic food, on-trend products that meet the needs of Canadian customers.

Vit-Best offers a wide range of producon capabilies for tablets, capsules, and powders to accommodate the expanding array of nutrional products.

Beverly Internaonal Nutrion beverlyinternaonal.com

Sandy Riedinger Co-owner

Jim Holdrieth

Cover Story

Vit-Best Nutrition

Contract Manufacturing for a Growing Supplement Market

The core of the Vit-Best Nutrition manufacturing capability is its high-volume mixing and blending capacity – one of the largest in the industry.

Gale K. Bensussen Chairman Vit-Best Nutrion

The awareness of supplementation as an important part of a healthy lifestyle has never been greater. In fact, the Council for Responsible Nutrition estimates that in 2021, over 80% of adults were supplement users. The growing demand as measured in sales increased 7.5% in 2021 on top of a 14.5% growth in 2020 to $59.9B. That’s a lot of growth and a big demand. The Food and Drug Administration estimates that there are over 29,000 dietary supplements on the market, with over 1,000 added every year.

It’s a major category for marketers with new science-based products. Yes, internet marketers benefited from COVID, and all marketers benefited from the increased awareness of supplements to build immunity and support a healthy lifestyle.

The wave of new products, the rapidly growing internet channel and increasing consumer demand have stressed the most important link in the supply chain - contract manufacturing . It is the contract manufacturer that produces most of the products bearing some of the most recognized consumer product names and found in the nation's leading retailers. There is one company that is investing to meet the expanding demand and the ever-increasing quality standards required - Vit-Best Nutrition , Tustin, California .

Vit-Best Nutrition's operations are based in one location in the United States, providing one-stop formulation, manufacturing, quality assurance, branding & packaging, and supply chain management services. The company operates both domestically and internationally across multiple channels, including Food/Mass/Club, DirectSelling, and E-commerce

Enabling Vit-Best Nutrition to be the best at what it does is its seasoned leader, Gale K. Bensussen . As the Chairman of the company, he ensures that the product quality stays true to the client’s demands to enable them to stay true to their brand's communication.

Let’s learn more about the successful journey of Vit-Best Nutrition in becoming a top-class contract manufacturer of nutritional supplements.

About Vit-Best Nutrition

With almost 70 years of experience in contract manufacturing for some of the largest brands in the industry, Vit-Best Nutrition is building on that experience to meet the growing industry demand.

And with loyal employees, whose average tenure on the manufacturing/packaging floor is 8.8 years, Vit-Best Nutrition has a solid employee base dedicated to quality and customer service.

Vit-Best Nutrition's corporate leader, Chairman Gale Bensussen, knows that a solid foundation is fundamental to the ability to grow with its customers. With over 50 years of industry experience, including acquisitions, marketing, sales, and corporate management, Bensussen understands that standing still is not an option. He emphasizes, “ In the supplement industry, especially a growing industry such as this, we must be looking forward for months and years to be able to support our customers. This includes how we plan our raw material inventories, automate manufacturing and packaging, and improve accuracy and turnaround time for quality testing.”

“It takes time and investment to be able to earn the trust of our branded customers. Fortunately, we have been able to build that trust, ” he added.

Manufacturing Capabilities

Vit-Best Nutrition provides an extensive service to its clients. This includes formula development, material sourcing, cost engineering, and forecasting as well as full tablet, capsule, and powder manufacturing capabilities and

Communications, clear messaging of what is in the product and what it does, is essential to build consumer trust and satisfaction.

bottling and powder packaging. Importantly, for many marketers, the company will build inventory to stock and provide distribution services to the nation's leading retailers in the food, mass, e-commerce, and club market segments.

The company has a wide range of capabilities and the experience to accommodate the expanding array of unique new products in both capsule and tablet form. In manufacturing, “scale” is important for run efficiencies. Vit-Best Nutrition has a wide range of capabilities, from moderate-sized manufacturing to very large-scale product runs.

Let’s talk about the company’s capabilities.

Sourcing : It starts with sourcing. With its parent company, Kingdomway , a raw material manufacturer (CoQ10, DHA, vitamin A, etc.) located in China, Vit-Best Nutrition is directly linked to world-class manufacturers with easy access to a wide range of materials.

Weigh-Up : Materials are received in a new 75,000 sq. ft. warehouse and distribution center. Within the new building are five environmentally controlled weigh-up booths with advanced individual dust collection. Upon receipt of material and during and after weigh-up, strict quality

processes are in place. The Quality Management System monitors each step throughout the manufacturing process.

Compounding : From weigh-up, the process moves to compounding. Vit-Best Nutrition has eight blenders: two large Bohle blenders, 428 cu. ft. (3,000 kg – 6,000 kg) and six others of varying sizes. The blending capabilities meet the variations in large and small demand.

Tableting : Meeting the needs of successful brands like Focus Factor requires large-scale tableting capabilities. High speed Korsch presses have kept up with this brand's rapidly growing business. With six tablet presses and only operating on a single shift, the company has the capacity to grow.

Encapsulation : Nine encapsulation machines address the consumer trend towards “clean” products with a minimum of binders and fillers. Vit-Best Nutrition's formulation expertise enables customers to differentiate their products.

Coating : Coating is an artform and requires precise attention during the coating process to ensure consistent results. Eight large coating pans and a continuous coater for long runs provide ample capacity.

Gale K. Bensussen is the Chairman of Vit-Best Nutrion. He has been in the supplement business throughout his working career since 1968. He is an experienced leader with a demonstrated history of working in the consumer goods industry. He is a strong business development professional skilled in business planning, consumer products, retail, dietary supplements, and team building.

Speaking about his inspiraon behind joining the industry, he says, “My college roommate, Dave Brubaker, and I, believed that personal responsibility for healthy habits would be a driving consumer force. So, aer over 50 years in the industry, it is sll rewarding to provide products with a purpose and a benefit.”

Most of Gale's professional journey was with Leiner Health Products, which was founded by his college roommate, Dave Brubaker. He and his team at Leiner pioneered the private label business at the country's leading retailers, including Walmart, Costco, Safeway, CVS, Walgreens, and others.

Packaging : Five bottling lines provide fast turnaround and flexibility. To meet the needs of the Club business and other mass merchandisers, the company has recently ordered a new, highly automated packaging line. The line will meet the special needs of the Club business and the long runs required by mass merchandisers and retail chains.

For the powder business, the company is investing in a gusseted bag filling line to replace the large and inefficient bottles. This saves cost and enables internet companies to provide more affordable shipping. The new line complements the existing powder bottling lines.

For Vit-Best Nutrition, it is about Team and responding to the requirements of those customers serving multiple channels of distribution. Bensussen advised, “ We cannot be everything to everybody, but we serve well those customers where our capabilities match their needs. ”

The Core Success Factors

The success of Vit-Best Nutrition is built on its strong foundational values. These values are not just portrayed in marketing communication but also within every operation to ensure that the company stays true to the promises it makes to its clients and consumers.

Elaborating on Vit-Best Nutrition's core values, Bensussen says, “ For Vit-Best Nutrition, quality and clear, transparent communication are the basis for our customer’s success and Vit-Best Nutrition's success. ”

Staying True to the Promises

The final verdict on value comes from the consumer. It's the second purchase that counts. Which is why nutritional suppliers have to deliver what is promised on the label.

Highlighting the importance of being trustworthy, Bensussen tells us, “ Over the years, major marketers of both national brands and store brands have learned to value quality manufacturing as a key element in protecting the brand and delivering on customer expectations .”

“ Communication, clear messaging of content ingredients and product benefits, are essential to build consumer trust and satisfaction ,” he added.

A Sharp Focus on Formulation

Adapting to customers’ needs can give a company a considerable advantage in the market. Discussing the unique benefits offered by the company, Bensussen says, “ Vit-Best Nutrition is big enough to serve the needs of large-scale customers, yet is small enough to adapt to a

The Veteran Leader

Exhibiting Excellence

Jack Ross, CEO of Synergy, the markeng company behind naonally adversed, Focus Factor: “Vit-Best Nutrion has been a great partner and we have grown together. We appreciate the investments they have made to support our growth. A great partner.”

Denise Fung, Vice President iHerb House Brands: “Vit-Best Nutrion has invested in services

meet customer needs. They are efficient communicators, professional and competent. I’m content with the quality of their operaons and look forward to a connued partnership”

customer’s unique needs, and help them better identify with their customers .”

“ We do this with a sharp focus on formulation - ensuring the product delivers what is promised in the most economical manner, ” he added.

Ensuring Quality

Nutritional product manufacturing starts with quality systems and in house quality facilities. To meet the increasing demand for quality substantiation and the requirements of multiple auditing agencies, Vit-Best Nutrition recently opened a new 10,000 sq. ft. quality testing laboratory complete with new state of the art testing equipment. This is core to the company's values, ensuring that every tablet, capsule and powder meets consumer expectations for quality while meeting all label claims.

Sharing Valuable XP

Bringing new products to the market is challenging. These challenges can be better countered with some basic advice.

Bensussen offered the following words of wisdom:

“The vitamin industry is highly regulated and compliance is part of the cost of entry. As new products are introduced, over 1,000 per year, it is important that product quality is built in. If a contract manufacturer is being used, make sure that the specifications for the product are complete, the facility has been audited, Good Manufacturing Procedures are being followed and the label copy matches exactly what is put in the bottle. There is no future in short-cutting quality. There is a big market for the right product. ”

Ken Tameishi, Senior Director of Trident Seafoods: “Vit-Best Nutrion has consistently met our demand for high quality and mely delivery of high volume of product. They are good to do business with.”

to consistently

Vit-Best Nutrition is big enough to serve the needs of large-scale customers, yet small enough to be able to understand our customers’ unique needs and create ways to help them beer identify with their customers.

The Long-term Goals

Vit-Best Nutrition has developed a strong Research and Development team headed by Jordan Lemerand, Vice President Corporate Technical Services and R & D. With Jordan, Vit-Best Nutrition is developing new products, based on science, to meet the growing interest and use of supplements. Each new product is specially formulated to address a health need utilizing unique ingredients and formulations. New products are the life blood of the industry and items developed by Jordan and her team are another way that Vit-Best Nutrition helps its customers grow.

In closing, Bensussen summarized, “This is a dynamic and rapidly growing industry. It meets the demands of consumers who are becoming more aware of the role good nutrition and supplementation play in a healthy lifestyle. At

Vit-Best Nutrition, quality is the responsibility of every employee. Meeting the needs of the customer is our priority. We don’t cut corners. We are transparent.”

“We take very seriously our responsibility to provide a high-quality product. And we ensure that labeling informs the consumer accurately about the content and benefits of the product. We have partnered with the industry for almost seventy years, and we will continue to invest as we look ahead to the next seventy years,” he added.

Need more insights about the company? Please find below the contact info for Vit-Best Nutrition.

Vit-Best.com 2802 Dow Avenue, Tustin, CA. 92780 info@vit-best.com

Meng Zheng, PhD CEO, Founder Huisong Pharmaceuticals

What if someone collected all the benefits of traditional natural medicines and combined its benefits into a product with the help of science and technology and delivered it globally?

It would be great, right?

Huisong Pharmaceuticals is one such company based in China that fulfills this need globally. The company offers a mature product portfolio that includes natural drugs of OTC and prescription, botanical APIs for pharmaceutical and active ingredients for nutraceuticals through scientific research to achieve purity, quality, potency, and safety. It is committed to advancing the world of health and nutrition by providing premium-quality natural ingredients with the harmonious integration of Japanese quality standards and modern manufacturing technologies while standing by its mission of protecting nature and fostering global cooperation in the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical fields.

It is driven by its Founder and CEO – Meng Zheng's passion and academic wisdom to provide the world with business and research in natural medicines from the past 40 years. Meng as an academician and a Ph.D. scholar in pharmaceutical economics has put a lot of emphasis on traceability, so that the entire production process of the company is traceable. This has helped the company achieve various awards like 2019 Qiantang Swift Enterprise, China's Top 10 Exporters of TCM Herbs and Prepared Slices, High-Tech Enterprises with Key National Support and many more in the past decades.

The company has curated a safe, research-based and digitized supply chain of premium-quality nature-based pharmaceuticals and currently has 4600+ products to offer turnkey business solutions to leading pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals, food & beverage and personal care industries world over.

But that's not it, in the company's list of innovations to provide for continuation of human health!

To know more about the company's journey let us delve into its story, highlighting its products, vision, mission and much more! We use digitalization to connect every step in the supply chain. Through the drive of production plan, the empowerment of approval flow and the association of customer credit line, we can realize the reasonable purchase in advance, scientific production, and effective risk control.

Key Offerings in Collaboration with Nature

The company amazes its clients with the wide variety of products it offers. The list begins from a wide range of pharmaceuticals, to fruit & vegetable ingredients, botanical extracts, medicinal herbs, bee products and concludes to include many others.

Along with this, Huisong has come to develop a mature product portfolio that includes natural drugs of OTC and prescription, botanical APIs for pharmaceutical and active ingredients for nutraceuticals through scientific research to achieve purity, quality, potency, and safety.

It is committed to advancing the world of health and nutrition by providing premium-quality natural ingredients with the harmonious integration of Japanese quality standards and modern manufacturing technologies. But what aids this process is, as Meng says, “Integrity, quality, and service, which will always remain at the foundation of our business.”

The company's Mission is – By the nature, protect our nature, based on scientific research, to create health and harmony of human beings.

While it rests is Vision in – Through globalization, collaboration and harmonious integration of nature, health, and science to create continuation of human health.

Achieving a Traceable Continuous Supply Chain

While Huisong is committed to advancing the world of health and nutrition by providing premium-quality natural ingredients, it establishes an unbroken supply chain with the marvels of technology. As it puts great emphasis on plantation for traceability to ensure the safety and liability, digitization is an important factor in simplifying the present complexity.

He explains, “We use digitalization to connect every step in the supply chain. Through the drive of production plan, the empowerment of approval flow and the association of customer credit line, we can realize the reasonable purchase in advance, scientific production, and effective risk control.”

Also, through digitization, the company is able to connect multiple bases to achieve information sharing among various departments and provide efficient services.

Leading with Strong Infrastructural and R&D Foundations

Stable inventory, price, supply, quality, service are the five aspects that Huisong follows to provide its clients with enriched product deliver experiences.

As Meng says that for natural products, whether cultivation or wild-grown, the yield varies from year to year as the climate changes, it is important for the company to maintain adequate stock and stable supply.

But what comes in handy is the company's vast experience in sourcing and inventory that helps prepare raw material inventory to meet the needs of customers for following several years. At the same time, they have many sourcing channels to guarantee the stable supply.

Shedding light on how Huisong ensures this, Meng elaborates, “To achieve stability quality, Huisong is equipped with a combined area of more than 30,000 square feetanalysis center, housing more than 50 advanced testing equipment, including large-scale precision instrument such as ICP-MS, GC-MS, UPLC, HPLC, etc.”

This infrastructure enables the company to detect more than 470 kinds of pesticide residues, antibiotics, heavy metals, content determination, microbial and other items.

Additionally, to provide stable service, as a “National High-Tech Enterprise” and “Hangzhou Patent Pilot Enterprise” , Huisong Pharmaceuticals established Zhejiang Health Research Institute in 2018 to set up a provincial high-tech enterprise R&D center. In addition, the company has formed a core R&D team undertaking a series of important scientific research tasks such as new product development and process improvement.

The Founder's Milestones

Meng's journey in the industry began after his graduation in pharmacy in college, post which he went on to obtain a Ph.D. in Pharmaceutical economics and engaged in pharmaceutical-related work. he says, “So far, I have been working in the field of traditional Chinese medicine for nearly 40 years and have obtained valuable experiences and grown through practice and challenges.”

Throughout the past 40 years in the business and research world of natural medicine, Meng has been grateful for the guidance, education, and cooperation he has gained from

his peers and colleagues in the industry. It has truly allowed him to obtain valuable experiences and grow through practice and challenge. He expresses, “Along the way, I have always been respectful and grateful to my predecessors and collaborators in the global industry, and I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude towards them.”

At present, he is the CEO of Zhejiang Huisong Pharmaceutical Co., LTD., President of Huisong Pharmahealthcare Research Institute, and a distinguished professor of School of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Zhejiang University of Science and Technology. He further informs, “ I own more than ten patents and have published several articles in national core journals.”

His persistence and dedication in this sector are witnessed through his constant commitment to global cooperation to achieve business success. Additionally, he says, “I also put a lot of emphasis on traceability, so the entire production process of the company is traceable.”

Words to Note – Promote Natural Wealth, Ensure Quality Control

Meng, while giving his valuable advice to budding entrepreneurs, emphasizes the fact that high quality traditional natural medicines are very effective in the treatment and maintaining of human beings and have been used for thousands of years.

Therefore, he says, “We should promote this wealth given by nature and make good use of it while protecting it. This field attaches great importance to safety. Starting quality control from the source is very important to ensure product quality.”

Goals of Future Expansion

In the ever-evolving world of healthcare, Meng asserts that global collaboration is important for traditional medicine. To attain this purpose, Huisong has set up offices in the United States, Japan, Indonesia, and other countries.

Talking about the future plans of the company, he says, “I hope to improve TCM's quality with modern scientific technology, and research based on tradition. At the same time, global cooperation should be strengthened to promote TCM's global influence and create health and happiness for all mankind”

Blending Practices with Modern Treat

Traditional and Modern Medical Practices have been in debate from a very long time. Since the development of modern medicine, there has been quiet a reduction in the use of traditional medicine in different parts of the world. Yet, somehow, there is a significant amount of population in the world that still believes in the use of traditional medicine to cure diseases. People in Asian countries like India, China, Malaysia, Korea, Japan and some other, still feel ecstatic about traditional medical practices. Many of them refuse to believe in modern medical science and continue to follow the traditional practices such as Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Kampo, Traditional Korean Medicine and Unani.

What is traditional medicine?

It is mainly a blend of knowledge, skill and practices based on specific theories, beliefs and experiences indigenous to different cultures. For example, Ayurveda is plant based medical science that originates from India. Its key ingredients mainly comprise of herbs like Tulsi (Indian Basil), pudina (mint), turmeric, ginger, chamomile, etc. Sometimes, traditional practices also include use of endangered species of animals such as slow loris in Southeast Asia. This is assumed to cause harm to the ecology. Pangolins are threatened by poaching and there meat is used in traditional medicine. Shark fins have also been used since ages even when their effectiveness is not proven.

In Africa and Asia, 80% of the population still uses traditional medicine over modern one for primary healthcare. In today’s world, developed nations are readily appealing the adoption of traditional medical practices. Reports say that approximately 80% of the world population has tried and accepted therapies like acupuncture and yoga. There are 300 million daily yoga practitioners in the world, which shows the increase in the acceptance of traditional healthcare methods.

What is modern medicine?

Although it involves the use of surgeries and drugs to treat a patient, modern medicine is not just about tablets and syrups. It includes more advanced practices such as physiotherapy, acupuncture, radiations and transplants. Modern medicine is also known as allopathic or western medicine. It is an alternative for the traditional medicine which rapidly came on to be in the mainstream medical th science. The beginning of the 19 century witnessed rapid growth of this alternative form and thus, modern medicine came to the forefront. In 1805, the first pharmacologically active compound morphine was isolated by a young German pharmacist, Friedrich Serturner, from the opium plant. Later on, numbers of active compounds have been separated from natural products to produce conventional medicine.

Modern medicine is developed using synthetic techniques. These pharmaceutical drugs are made using same procedures in labs or factories as they are targeted to be an ideal solution to same type of diseases. Modern medicine is standardized and prepared using standard operating procedures.

Recommending Way Out

As per the reports of the World Health Organization, in March 2022, the Government of India signed an agreement to establish the WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine. This global initiative is supported by an investment of USD 250 million from the Government of India. Its goal is to harness the potential of traditional medicine using modern scientific and technological methods. Both, traditional and modern medicine has its pros and cons in some way or the other; we can find better and effective solutions by blending both the practices together, just like cancer treatment. Doctors in various parts of the world use both traditional and modern techniques in the treatment of cancer, but of course, both the techniques

cannot be used simultaneously. Traditional medicine is largely experience based whereas modern medicine is science based. Extrinsically, while making a medicine, environment factors such as collection of raw material, cultivation, harvest, post harvest, transportation and storage, manufacturing practices, substitution and adulteration are contributing factors to the quality of herbal medicinal products in traditional method, whereas in modern medicine, maximum amount of bioactive phytochemicals is isolated.

Factors such as depletion of forests, land, unconventional agricultural methods and degradation of biodiversity affect the quality of yield of plants and herbs required to make medicine. Having a wider genetic base help prevent vulnerability to pests. We need to preserve the biodiversity and rely on conventional methods as much as possible to yield better quality of medicine may it be traditional or modern. Change in natural environment can be detrimental to human health. Plants and animals provide required medicinal and nutritional properties for indigenous societies to make traditional medicine, which are further useful in manufacturing of synthetic drugs. It is important to preserve the root source of raw material in order to have a healthy by-product. Plants and animals furnish over 50% of compounds required to produce commercially available drugs. Modern scientists could seek out traditional therapists for insights on their medicine. This may lead to broader medicinal applications of natural products to commercial modern medicine.

Specific examples of traditionally used compound used in modern pharmaceuticals include anti-malaria and pain management drugs. For example, indigenous populations utilized the bark of Cinchona tree found in South America for therapeutic purposes before the commercially active compound quinine was discovered. Overall, modern medicinal practices could be well served by researching traditional practices and tapping into shared discoveries from both worlds.

-Anish Miller

Adequate Protein

How to Ensure Intake for the GoldenagedPeople?

By- Fred Bergmans

Adequate protein intake among elderly is a growing

concern in healthcare. At the beginning of this century scientific studies signaled malnutrition in affluent countries up to 25% with hospital patients. Disease related protein deficiency due to acute or chronic diseases or decreased appetite and frailty were identified as the main causes for malnutrition.

General dietary advice focused on adding high protein snacks and oral nutritional supplements to the daily menu. The disappointing result was that still less than 50% of hospital patients would not meet the recommended protein intake.

A consortium, lead by Wageningen University and Research, started in 2012 to develop a new nutritional strategy and products to solve malnutrition. Scientific studies revealed that the standardized care focused both on supplementation of energy and protein. As satiation was the barrier for higher protein intake the current practice of both energy and protein supplementation did not work.

To solve this problem, new products were developed, focusing on protein enrichment instead of energy density.

These products were familiar basic foods, like bread and pastry, fruit juice and soups, and ice-cream and small meals. Al these products were tested in the foodhospital Gelderse Valley, in residential care and among patients at home. RCT

studies concluded that 79% of patients reached the recommended protein intake.

This study shows that the new nutritional strategy works: substitution instead of supplementation. Substitute regular basic nutrition with protein enriched basic nutrition. The essence of the substitution strategy is the range of familiar products people like to eat, replaced by the same products containing 2 to 4 times the amount of protein, tasting equally as good as their reference products.

The range of protein enriched products fits in all eating moments of the day. Spreading the intake in 3 main meals and 3 in-between moments results in an optimal protein intake per moment and the highest intake per day. This was all confirmed by RCT studies.

In 2015 Carezzo Nutrition, a start-up partner of the consortium introduced this range of products in the Dutch market. The success of the strategy was confirmed by winning the Accenture Innovation Award for Fair Food, and scientific proof of the effectiveness of the new nutritional strategy of substitution was presented.

We first entered the Dutch hospital market, which welcomed the good taste of these familiar products and the high protein density versus regular protein-rich food. It also adds to the quality of life as these products fit in regular eating habits and do not look like medicine.

Fred

Bergmans, Co-founder, Carezzo Nutrition

Fred Bergmans is Co-founder of Carezzo Nutrion, a Dutch start-up for protein enriched food & drinks for malnutrion. Fred started his markeng career in food companies, like Heineken, Mars, Kra Foods and Perfe/van Melle. He founded an innovaon strategy consultancy, where he first met the problem of malnutrion in healthcare. Passionately he founded Carezzo Nutrion.

Since hospital length of stay gets shorter, 'better in is better out' gets more important. Improving patients' nutritional condition before hospitalization and after discharge, called prehabilitation and rehabilitation, is seen as a direct contribution to efficacy of medical treatment. Less complications, shorter length of stay and successful recovery potentially leads to increased benefits at decreased

costs. A RCT study on pre-operative nutritional support on senior patients scheduled for heart surgery was conducted by Nina Zipfel PhD in collaboration with Carezzo. Participants received Carezzo products at home during 2 weeks. Their protein intake increased by 50-100%, due to the protein enriched products and the high motivation to self-manage nutritional condition improvement.

The group of people with a protein deficiency is much larger than discussed so far. Frail elderly people with low appetite tend to eat less. Since they are less physically active their portions get smaller and so does the energy intake. However, their protein intake recommendation is not related to their activity, but to their body composition. Knowing that their protein recommendation is 25% higher than that of young adults, there is a high risk of protein malnutrition. In practice we see that it is hard to finish a full hot meal, and that 10-20% is left behind on the plate, or worse one meal is consumed in two days, shared with a partner or thrown in the trash. Protein intake then drops under 20 g, as regular meals (500 g) contain 20-25 g protein. Carezzo developed small meals of 350 g, containing 30 g of protein.

Author Bio

Protein enriched products fit in maintaining the dietary habits. Just change products to address the different protein recommendations due to different circumstances.

To serve patients at home the Carezzo webshop was opened which facilitates the substitution strategy in the home setting and patients could continue the use of the products they received in the hospital during the total period of medical treatment; pre and post included. The webshop also serves people with chronic diseases, such as age related malnutrition, sarcopenia and COPD, which already used Carezzo products for multiple years.

The combination of global trends 'better for the environment = better for your health' boosts the shift towards plant-based products, reducing meat and dairy consumption. The protein quality for golden-aged people is, however, a major concern. The advice for them is to not go Vegan. Protein quality, defined by the amount and completeness of essential amino-acid profile, from plantproteins is lower than the quality of animal-based proteins.

There is a challenging goal, also for Carezzo, to improve the protein quality of plant-based products also for the older aged groups. We will develop new products combining fruit, vegetables and hybride proteins.

We now have 80% of all Dutch hospitals as clients, which is a fast-track record in institutional healthcare. It shows that the new nutritional strategy is well accepted. Unfortunately, due to healthcare insurance and governmental regulations, there is no level playing field with oral nutritional supplements. There is no reimbursement on Carezzo products by health care insurances, so people do not have an equal choice.

The 'Food as Medicine' theme acknowledges the importance of the functionality of food in the prevention and treatment of lifestyle related diseases. There is a huge opportunity to change towards 'the food solution' and reduce healthcare costs while improving the quality of life.

As a society we should embrace innovation to improve healthcare: Ÿ

The technological innovation for better food products Ÿ The social innovation for faster implementation Ÿ The governance innovation to reduce barriers in finance and regulation

We are committed to transfer academic insights into good tasting functional food products, that is our practice.

We are deeply touched by the gratitude of patients that finally reach their desired protein intake, because that is our purpose.

The Nutrition GAP in Modern MEDICINE

Unlike earlier days, routine checkups have become the most common part of one’s lifestyle in today’s world. People have started to visit a doctor in a period of every 15 days to one month. Keeping record of one’s blood pressure, hemoglobin, thyroid, heart rate, diabetes, etc have become most common among people. Earlier, one visited a doctor only when they felt ill. The doctor identified the illness based on the patient’s medical history, specific observation and questioning method. However, the times have changed now.

Opulence of working population with leading a luxurious life has reduced the affordability of health care all around the world. Factors such as food, balanced diet, improved housing and sanitation contribute to the disturbed lifestyle among millennial. Although antibiotics and vaccination largely overcome infectious diseases, modern medicine has become mainly preoccupied with terms and conditions. Many a times these conditions are not obviously caused by unidentified foreign agents such as organ malfunctions, cardiac arrest, cancer, and many others. These conditions are inherently natural or chronic in the ways that humans will eventually die from one or the other, exceptions being accidents, wars, murders and genocides.

It is not all wrong to say that the modern pharmaceutical company identifies the illness, keep a track on the target audience so that it can sell the required drugs. Of course it

is a form of competitive business. The modern medicine lack proper nutrition. It gives temporary relief from the illness and reduces the immunity power when consumed regularly. Dr. B. M. Hegde, who is a well-known cardiologist, professor of medicine and author, says, there is no pill for every ill, but there is an ill following every pill. The leading cause of death due to cancer or heart attack is Adverse Drug Reaction (ADR). When you consume a medicine regularly, your body becomes habitual to the drug. And it is fact that no type of medicine can kill the infected sell without killing the normal cell. Modern medicine leads to more illness rather than giving a permanent relief from the pain. The continuous dosage of drugs on daily basis can cause to death in maybe in next five years. Over diagnosis and over treatment is very harmful which people do not understand.

Lack of nutrition

According to a report by the Guardian, modern medicine through over prescription represents major threat to public health. Some say that failure of modern medicine is responsible for the treatment of cancer, tuberculosis or AIDS. This is not true because most of these life threatening diseases are now curable. However, modern medicine cannot give 100% assurance that it will suit a person or will be effective. People nowadays have become so reliable on modern medicine that they don’t realize the importance of reliability. Every human body has a specific body type and immune system. Earlier, Ayurveda in India was considered the most trusted and it did prove to be effective. Why? Reason being, it was herbal and natural. Unlike today’s medicine, there were no side effects. Ayurveda is called as the “science of longevity” because it offers a complete system to live a long, healthy life.

Unfolding the gap

We all know that ‘Food is Medicine’. We are impulsively healthy if we eat right and exercise right. Food and exercise is of utmost importance for humans to keep their body full of energy and disease-free. Unfortunately, in this fast growing world, we are relishing on fast-food which is proven unhealthy. It deteriorates our immune system and makes our body susceptible to infectious parasites. Above all, priority should be given to a balanced, healthy lifestyle practices. The current death rate of India as measured in 2022 is 7.3 deaths per 1000 population.

According to the WHO report, in India, 1.7 million deaths are caused every year due to heart attack and roughly 5.8 million Indians die because of diabetes, cancer, stroke and lung diseases. We need to interpret the logic of plant based, natural products when adopting modern tools in the production of drugs. Proper validation and thorough research is much needed. During the Covid-19 period, there were a large number of local, national and international companies that claimed their vaccine to be effective without proper evidence. Even though most of it was not authorized by the World Health Organization (WHO), it was circulated in countries and people went on to get vaccinated. This shows our desperation of temporary relief. We are ready to accept whatever is being sold to us only to get out of the pain.

Statistics show that in a single year, nearly 3.2 crores people in India go below the national poverty line by spending on healthcare out of their own pockets. Reports say that even after 75 years of independence, more than 65% of the Indian population lack access to generic medicines. This gap between the world and BPL Indians needs to be bridged by our pharma industry. Along with nutrition, price rates of medicines needs to be reduced in order for the poorest to afford it. There need to a transparency between the medicine sector and government to encourage shared decision making. Talking about the country, it is fascinating to know that in the past few decades, Indian pharmaceutical industries have become the pharmacy of the world.

-Anish Miller

AS A COMPANY, WE DEDICATE OURSELVES TO BEING MULTIPLE THINGS TO ONE CUSTOMER INSTEAD OF BEING ONE THING TO EVERYONE, OFFERING OUR PEOPLE WITH PRODUCTS THAT HOLISTICALLY SUPPORT MULTIPLE SIDES OF THEIR WELLNESS JOURNEY.

Rae Wellness

Approaching Care with a Holistic View

Once, “wellness” was presumed to be the absence of

a particular health concern. But, in contemporary times, entrepreneurs are found shifting this perspective and enabling the community to consider individual well-being as a symbiotic relationship between their surroundings and the associated care consciousness.

Taking this into account, Rae Wellness , a well-being company launched in 2020, takes a holistic approach, encouraging its customers to take responsibility for their health and well-being. Being an inclusive and socially conscious company, it is dedicated to providing affordable and powerful solutions that nourish the mind and body from the inside.

In addition, Angie Tebbe , the CEO and Co-founder of Rae Wellness – has been overseeing the company’s product development and innovation, community-building efforts, and fulfilling the vision for Rae Wellness successfully.

Under her leadership, this value-based company has meaningfully grown to more than two million customers in less than two years, with more than 20 wellness products, widespread customer enthusiasm, and thousands of five-star ratings.

Taking note of Angie’s wellness enthusiasm that stands at the foundation of the company’s operations, below are the highlights of the interview.

Please brief us about your company. What has been your source of inspiration for venturing into the nutrition industry?

At Rae, we stand for the well-being of all. We believe wellness shouldn’t have to be a full-time job, it shouldn’t be expensive, and it should inspire everyone wherever they are on their journey. We always say that whether you’re conquering the day or just making it through the week, we are here to help our customers shine.

Emerging science continues to show a deeper relationship between the body and mind. This has been our sole reason for venturing into the nutrition industry. We create products that have an impact on both mind and body through a holistic universe of pure and powerful supplements that support various wellness needs – stress, libido, hormones, digestion, skin, sleep, and more.

Kindly tell us about yourself and shed some light on your journey so far.

A few years ago, I had a wonderful corporate career as a key retail executive, two beautiful kids (and now three, as of a few months ago!), and a very full life. However, my well-being continued to decrease on the priority list. I had an opportunity to think about what that meant to me personally and professionally and how I could bring that together as my next chapter.

You see, I grew up in a very holistic household – my mom was a nurse, and my father was into reiki, and homeopathy, and we were the weird family meditating on the lawn in Fargo, North Dakota.

Hence, to honor what I knew so well, I left my corporate life in pursuit of my own well-being, where I discovered two things.

First, for the quality of product women deserve, there was nothing on the market for the price I was willing to pay – it was all expensive. Secondly, the products that did exist at the price point I was willing to pay were either not made for women or were not holistic in approach. So, I had this idea to create holistic and accessible products that did not exist.

Because of my 13-year retail career, I had an incredible toolkit for creating consumer-led brands, developing worldwide sourcing and supply chain strategies, and managing large P&L’s and teams. Hence, I used this toolkit to accelerate the creation and development of a communityled brand and products.

What are the core values that the company operates on?

What is its mission and vision statement?

Our company has four core values that help support our mission and vision.

At Rae, we are:

1.Brave: We talk about the things that are hard to talk about. We help remove barriers for our community.

2.Transparent: We are real, earnest, and have nothing to hide.

3.Fresh: We are a voice, not an echo, and we keep our eyes forward for our community.

4.Advocates: We are customer-obsessed and create safe spaces for our community.

What are the key products and services of the company, and what is its impact on the demographic concerned?

So much of the wellness industry is targeted at affluent consumers that have unlimited time and money to take care of themselves. At Rae, we support consumers that are typically underserved — through an inclusive ethos and accessible products.

Our community loves Rae because our product universe and approach are solution-oriented and dedicated to fitting into their existing life. Customers understand our evidencebased approach and how we holistically serve all her needs under one brand. For these reasons, retailers have recognized our value proposition as we have scaled from zero to over 7,000 stores in just over two years.

What measures are involved for the company to identify clients’ unique production requirements?

Having a digitally-led community allows us to have conversations directly about our brand, products, content, and more. For example, as we entered unprecedented times with COVID-19, it was ever more important to ensure the consumer was leading our decision-making around products. We saw needs like stress trend during the year of the pandemic; as we entered the second year of the pandemic, we saw needs like digestion and sexual wellness trend.

This direct feedback allowed us to gain nearly two million customers within our first couple of years as a company. This large customer base has allowed us to evaluate DTC

data to understand our customers’ omnichannel behavior, gaps in our product assortment, and how they are personalizing their routine with us.

What challenges do you face in the nutrition industry and how do you turn them into opportunities for your company’s growth?

The nutrition industry is constantly evolving to follow the consumer. Whether it is precision nutrition, personalization, or other solutions that consumers demand, our collective responsibility is to create platforms to help support these needs.

As a company, we dedicate ourselves to being multiple things to one customer instead of one thing to everyone, offering our people products that holistically support multiple sides of their wellness journey. This inclusive and accessible approach embeds us and creates long-term value for both the company and our customers.

What advice would you like to give to budding entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the nutrition industry?

To be successful as a founder, leader, or within any career, you must love the process and be motivated by the challenges and building blocks. You will not always know the answers or get the results you expected when leading a company, so you must enjoy the process and learning experiences that come with it.

When entering the nutrition industry specifically, there is a tremendous responsibility behind quality, efficacy, and transparency. Hence, it is critical to have the right chemists, quality and regulatory, supply chain, and sourcing teams to deliver the highest quality products.