After receiving market authorisation from the European Commission in September 2021, following 17 years of research and development, the company made its “next-generation” of pasteurised healthy bacteria available in Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg just last month.
And next the company has revealed the product will be distributed in Italy from mid-December through the pharmacy and parapharmacy channel, all exclusively via Metagenics Europe.
Positioned for weight management with glycemic control, the product contains the pasteurised bacterium Akkermansia muciniphila, which is recognised as Novel Food by EFSA.
In addition to 30 billion pasteurised Akkermansia muciniphila, it also contains chromium for glycemic control and green tea extract for weight control, ingredients that allow it to use EFSA claims.
Pasteurised Akkermansia muciniphila was developed The Akkermansia Company, then known as A-Mansia, a spin-off of the Universities of Wageningen (Netherlands) and UCLouvain (Belgium).
The bacterium was isolated in 2004 from the human gut microbiota and characterised in the laboratory of Professor Willem M. de Vos (University of Wageningen), co-founder of The Akkermansia Company. Subsequently, the team of Professor Patrice D. Cani (UCLouvain), the other co-founder of the company, discovered the effects.
This bacterium is the guardian of the intestinal barrier, with many activities it carries out. A lack of this commensal bacterium is linked to multiple diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, fatty liver, and inflammation and several other clinical studies are being carried out to investigate other possible impacts.
Producing it and selling it as a probiotic, therefore alive, was practically impossible. But thanks to the pasteurisation process, the researchers managed to "free" the Akkermansia signal molecules, thus ensuring the same effectiveness as the live probiotic. The pasteurised form is more stable, has a long shelf life and is easy to administer.
The Akkermansia Company is produced in Italy by Sacco System. And thanks to the high technological level of the Italian company it was possible to find innovative solutions for the cultivation of the bacterium and the industrial production of the ingredient. A real revolution in the supplement sector.
Speaking of the partnership agreement with Metagenics, Michael Oredsson , CEO of The Akkermansia Company, said: “This distribution agreement is the first of many. It will make it possible to generate revenues that will be reinvested in R&D, as well as in the creation of new jobs."
Stijn Oste , CEO of Metagenics Europe, added: “We are very proud to be the first company to sign a partnership agreement with The Akkermansia Company. We plan to invest in research by promoting and conducting clinical intervention studies in close collaboration with health specialists and research institutions. Products formulated with Akkermansia muciniphila pave the way for a new generation of food supplements."