4GOLD to enhance personalised service after securing significant funding
The key investors in the brand include Els De Ceuster and Bart Claes, a prominent entrepreneur known for a number of ventures including Cashforce.
The company aims to use the investment to drive growth across Europe, with an expectation to soon achieve sales exceeding €10 million following significant interest in their DNA testing service to optimise sporting performance.
The service provides users with an at-home saliva sample kit and a questionnaire on factors such as sleep, diet and stress levels. the results are used to provide nutrition and supplement recommendations.
4GOLD’s CEO and co-founder, Brent Luyckx, tells NutraIngredients: “This funding will further expand our personalised service by developing new algorithms and linking more data. It will also drive progress in AI technology by conducting research on new ways to use AI to improve personalised nutrition.”
The company recently launched its LiFT product, combining long chain triglycerides (LCTs) and medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), developed using the insights gained from collected user data.
Describing how the new funding will advance innovation and technology, Lukckx said: “Over the past few years, we have helped many athletes and people to improve their health and performance. Some athletes have even credited us with helping them win world championships and/or world cups. However, we are always looking for ways to improve our services and products.
“Once people have their DNA profile, we can already link it to other data such as their age, gender, exercise, sleep, stress, gut health, diet, and goals. But we’re working on a more multi-omics approach that links other data (i.e. blood, wearables) to your DNA. This will allow us to provide even more personalised insights and supplements. To achieve this, we are hiring new people to expand our R&D team. Additionally, one of our investors is very experienced in AI, which will be a valuable asset to our team,” he added.
NutraIngredients Europe will host its newly branded Active Nutrition Summit in Amsterdam from October 9-11.
An evolution of the brand's prominent annual Sports & Active Nutrition Summit, this year’s event will provide delegates with insights into the increasingly holistic and mass market view of sports nutrition, from some of the leading names in the industry.
Content pillars will cover all the hottest topics in the industry today, including: cognitive health, women’s health, life-stages nutrition, and personalisation
Personalised nutrition
The company also provide a range of sporting supplements to enhance performance, including protein powders, caffeine gels, and ‘Pre-workout’ and ‘Recovery’ powdered drinks.
In addition, 4GOLD offers a strong nutritional range to optimise health, including vitamin D3, D-Ribose, Omega 3, as well as their ‘Gut Support’ powdered drink containing 2′-Fucosyllactose (HMO) and fibres.
Lukckx draws attention to the strong current performance of the personalised recommendation service for their product range.
He explained: “The market for personalized sports nutrition is undergoing rapid growth. We are witnessing a heightened level of interest from professional athletes and teams at present. This trend can be attributed to several key factors. Technological advancements, such as wearable devices, have simplified the collection and analysis of specific data.”
“It's widely acknowledged that people's responses to food vary, and this understanding is extending to the realm of supplementation and sports nutrition. The concept of a one-size-fits-all is being debunked. The reality is that each person is unique, necessitating the selection of appropriate supplements and sports nutrition tailored to their individual needs,” he explains.
