New Trends in Functional Foods and Beverages: The Promising Postbiotics - Foodnavigator Talks to ADM

Unlike probiotics, which are 'live' microorganisms,postbioticsare not 'live', thus their application range is broader. — ADM

01 2021 Annual High-Frequency Terms: Postbiotics

As a byproduct of fermentation, postbiotics do not require refrigeration or special processing conditions, which is very attractive to food and beverage developers. It is well known thatprobioticsare live microorganisms with health benefits, while prebiotics are the food for probiotics (usually dietary fibers selectively utilized by host microorganisms). So what are postbiotics? Since there is currently no official definition (postbiotics have appeared more frequently in scientific literature since 2014), they are sometimes described as fermentation byproducts, including metabolites such as short-chain fatty acids, proteins, and peptides, and/or metabolites of beneficial microorganisms; they are sometimes described as heat-treated or 'inactivated' probiotics.

02 'Heat-treated' BPL1: HT-BPL1

There have been human clinical studies showing that the probiotic BPL-1 can reduce visceral fat and waist circumference. The postbiotic HT-BPL1, as the 'heat-treated version' of BPL-1, is showing broader development space in the functional food and beverage field. Dr. Janice Rueda, Vice President of ADM's Nutrition Science Affairs Development, stated, 'Currently, there is growing interest in HT-BPL1 because it can be applied to a wider range of foods and beverages, and it seems to have effects similar to BPL1 (ADM is conducting a human clinical study on HT-BPL1, and more research is ongoing), even though it is in an 'inactivated' state. Under harsh processing conditions, HT-BPL1 still maintains good stability, making it easier to apply in processing. ADM has begun to combine it with a variety of product forms, especially in the fields of candies, snacks, baked goods, and beverages, as HT-BPL1 does not contain live microorganisms, thus it has stronger heat resistance and can withstand the heat treatment processes in these processing fields while maintaining good stability.'

03 How does HT-BPL1 'work'?

She added, 'For postbiotics, aside from confirming that they are not live, there is currently no widely accepted consistent definition. But what is truly interesting is how their mechanism of action works? Is it the cells themselves, components of the cell wall that are playing a role? Or polysaccharides in the cell wall? Or metabolites or other compounds? Through preliminary research, we found that the mechanism of action of HT-BPL1 may be related to lipoteichoic acid (LTA), which is a component of the cell wall and interacts in specific cell signaling pathways. This discovery allows us to be targeted in researching and developing component combinations to promote this effect.' Regarding whether 'HT-BPL1 improves the overall quantity of the microbiome' can be described as a prebiotic, Dr. Rueda stated, 'HT-BPL1 may have prebiotic properties, but we have not conducted related studies to confirm this.'

04 How do consumers view postbiotics?

June Lin, Vice President of ADM's Global Nutrition and Health Division, believes that although most American consumers are not familiar with 'postbiotics' at present, this situation will undoubtedly change over time with the launch of more new products. 'Today's consumers are more inclined to actively seek the health benefits of food and beverages, so when they are looking for statements such as supporting digestive health, they will browse the ingredients on the packaging and research online. This process enables them to self-educate about nutrition to understand the differences between microorganisms, prebiotics, or postbiotics.'

In terms of application, ADM's product portfolio already covers various health fields from skin health,digestive health,immune health, oral health to metabolic health, 'but what product developers currently want to see most is undoubtedly how to obtain claims related to immune health in their products,' Dr. Rueda further stated, 'ADM has prepared various convenient 'tools' for food and beverage companies to help them complete product development from processing agents to raw material applications.'

05 The shift in consumer health consumption demands

Mintel data shows that in the past five years, 2,000 new products containing probiotics have been launched in the United States. Based on this, Dr. Janice Rueda stated, 'Although we understand that what product developers currently want to see most is undoubtedly how to obtain claims related to immune health in their products, in the past two years, we have seen an increasing health consumption demand for joints, brain, andweight management.At the same time, even the consumption demand for gut health has shifted from initially focusing solely on gut motility to a more comprehensive gut health perspective. Consumers' understanding of probiotics, prebiotics, and postbiotics is also changing, as they gain a deeper understanding of the fundamental role of gut microbiota in individual health, such as metabolic health, immune function, and overall emotional health. The number of consumers purchasing probiotic-related products for general health needs, rather than specific health needs, has slightly decreased.'

Moreover, Dr. Rueda also noted that consumers are beginning to prefer purchasing functional foods andbeveragesthat contain added probiotics, prebiotics, and other ingredients, as these functional foods and beverages require almost no change to their existing dietary and consumption habits. 'Many consumers are consuming foods and beverages with added probiotics, prebiotics, and other ingredients to support a healthy gut microbiome. Research shows that among these consumers, 59% choose to purchase functional foods; 57% choose to purchase dietary supplements, and 51% choose to purchasefunctional beverages.''

06 From clinical research to human clinical trials

At this point, you may wonder how ADM identifies potential prebiotics and postbiotics before conducting human clinical trials? In 2017, ADM acquired the Spanish microbiome company Biopolis; in 2018, it acquired the UK probiotic company Protexin. This allows ADM to use various preclinical models and 'omics' technologies, including genomics, transcriptomics, and metabolomics, Dr. Rueda explained that these technologies can describe the interactions of specific nutrients and components with the host microbiome.

The Caenorhabditis elegans model (a type of small soil worm/nematode) is the core of our screening program, and it has several characteristics that make it very suitable as a screening target: short lifespan and reproducibility; easy to culture; and the genome has been fully sequenced. For example, a published paper describes the effect of HT-BPL1 on fat reduction in the Caenorhabditis elegans model in the matrix environment of infant formula. With this preclinical mechanistic understanding, we can proceed to human clinical trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of these unique ingredients.

07 Tips

What isprobiotics? According to the World Health Organization, "Probiotics are live microorganisms that, when administered in adequate amounts, confer a health benefit on the host." According to the International Probiotics Association, when selecting probiotics, you need to consider the species and strain (no two strains are exactly the same). For example, for Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (commonly referred to as LGG), the genus is Lactobacillus, the species is rhamnosus, and the strain is GG.

What are prebiotics? According to the International Scientific Association for Probiotics and Prebiotics (ISAPP), "Prebiotics are substrates that are selectively utilized by host microorganisms to confer health benefits to the host."

What are postbiotics? There is currently no formal definition, but according to a recent paper published in the journal Nutrients, "Postbiotics include any substance released or produced by microbial metabolic activity that has a beneficial effect on the host, either directly or indirectly."