The acquired company – Vitan Ltd – has been extracting GMO-free, natural beta carotenes from the blakeslea trispora fungus since 1981, under its former guise of the Dneprovsky Starch-Treacle Industrial Complex until 2002, when it was privatised.
On its webpage, Vitan also lists lycopene as another nutrient it sources from the fungus.
Lycored trades in a range of carotenoids, most notably lycopene derived from tomatoes processed at its base in northern Israel.
Welcome to the family
"We are excited to add Vitan to the LycoRed family,” said Morris Zelkha, CEO of LycoRed.
“Vitan will add value to LycoRed, providing us unique access to sourcing and improving our ability to compete in the natural carotenoids global marketplace."
"LycoRed … will now have also a clear advantage offering natural beta carotene and being a fully backward-integrated manufacturer for natural colours, beadlets for dietary supplements and more, offering stability and quality throughout its supply chain."
Beta carotene is a vitamin A pre-cursor.
Lycored also trades in astaxanthin, lutein as well as vitmains, minerals and amino acids.