Joint health has come under the media spotlight in recent weeks following the withdrawal Merck's blockbuster arthritis and pain-reliever drug, Vioxx, at the end of September. A study found that patients were twice as likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke as when taking this drug - worth $2.5 billion in sales in the US alone during 2003 - than when on placebo.
The news raised questions about similar products available to arthritis sufferers and is expected to prompt a surge of interest in natural joint care products.
"We have seen a significant pick-up in people looking to develop products with chondroitin," product manager at Cargill health food and technologies Lee Knudsen confirmed.
"There is increasing awareness that some of these drugs might not be available in the future and that we need to be preventative," he explained to NutraIngredients.com.
Chondroitin already rakes in up to $1 billion in retail sales in the US, with Europe estimated to generate around $400-600 million. And with price pressure on raw materials - bovine and other animal cartilage - the ingredient is becoming more expensive. It currently ranges from around $65 per kg to $150 for the higher quality material.
But the ingredient continues to grow at around 5-7 per cent, with new food applications likely to sustain this momentum.
"The majority of people consuming glucosamine are women, and rather than taking large doses in supplements, we would like to develop other applications to give them new options," said Knudsen.
Cargill is currently working with food and beverage companies to include its OptaFlex brand chondroitin sulphate, already available in Europe in supplements, in beverages or foods such as chews.
"An outside independent expert panel determined that our OptaFlex natural chondroitin product was Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) in July 2004. We are working with customers to develop joint health solutions in a variety of food and beverage categories," said Knudsen.
He added that the firm is also evaluating the European market for foods.
UK-based manufacturer The Health Company launched a juice-based product with added chondroitin and glucosamine, called Logic Juice 4 Joints, on the UK market earlier this year. It has recently signed new distribution deals in the US.
"Based on current contracts, we're on target to sell 2.5 million cans in the first 12 months [of the product's launch]," said Chris McNulty, director at the firm, adding that take-up from the US had come as a surprise.
"The aim is to open up the market to a much wider audience. People tend to be in their 40s or 50s before they start taking supplements. We wanted to make it easier for people with busy lifestyles to get the benefits of these ingredients," he added.
In the rest of Europe, food applications will be restricted by the current regulatory status of chondroitin, classified as a drug in countries like France and Spain.
However those countries where chondroitin and glucosamine come under food regulations - such as the UK, Netherlands and Italy (depending on quality) - could be significant enough to trigger a raft of new functional foods.