The Actiplants brand aims at strengthening cardiovascular and immune system in order to respond to the increasing demand from consumers for healthy products.
The first ingredient under the brand is a standardised extract of Vaccinium myrtillus – bilberry – which contains high levels of concentrated anthocyanins, which have been researched for their role in eye health, the function of capillaries and chronic and acute diseases of the GI tract.
“By expanding our competence in the field of functional, plant-based ingredients and combining functionality with our recognized taste competence, we are able to meet the expectations of consumers”, said Marcus Rudolf Götz, director medical innovation at Symrise.
The concentration of anthocyanins in the new bilberry extract was obtained using Symrise’s proprietary SymTrap cold extraction process, which keeps the components of fruit and vegetable concentrates intact.
In the past, this method could only be used to extract and concentrate volatile flavouring substances from the water used in distillation processes, but according to the company the new generation of the technique enables it to increase the concentration of bioactive ingredients in natural extracts such as bilberry.
“Our second generation SymTrap process delivers impressive evidence that established technologies for our flavourings are also suitable for producing botanical extracts with highly standardised bioactive agents”, said Hans Holger Gliewe, global president flavour & nutrition at Symrise.
New dedicated plant
Last week, Symrise opened a dedicated plant in Hamburg to SymTrap within the main production centre for functional ingredients. The plant will be the largest SymTrap plant operating within the Symrise Group.
“Our investment in and development of this proprietary technology strengthens our position as a manufacturer of functional ingredients”, said Dr. Heinz-Jürgen Bertram, CEO of Symrise, in a statement.
Standardised ingredients extracted using the SymTrap can be used in nutritional supplements, food and pharmaceuticals.