Future in medicinal foods
The days when the word ‘‘food’’ was sufficient to describe what we ate for breakfast have long gone – at least in the scientific world.
Now, it subdivides and categorises with terms such as functional foods, nutraceuticals, and more recently pharma foods. Despite increasing usage, these new ways of describing food are commonly misused and misunderstood. So let’s start with some clear definitions to help us navigate the current and future role of dairy in a healthy diet.
Functional foods are foods that have been demonstrated to have a specific function additional to that of providing basic nutrition. They might promote mobility through the development and maintenance of bones, joints and muscles, with Fonterra’s Anlene range a good example.
Nutraceuticals are best described as ingredients isolated or purified from food materials that can be added to foods to make them functional, or sold as nutritional supplements. The lactoferrin that Fonterra isolates during the manufacture of milk protein concentrates is a good example of a nutraceutical. Lactoferrin has a range of biological properties including antimicrobial properties and is added to infant formula and also sold in supplements. In response to growing demand for this exciting nutraceutical, we have recently expanded our capacity to manufacture lactoferrin in New Zealand.
Another great example of a dairy nutraceutical came out of recent research Fonterra undertook, through the Transforming the Dairy Value Chain Primary Growth Partnership programme with the New Zealand Government, on complex milk lipids (CMLS) such as gangliosides. CMLS are found in breast milk and cow’s milk. Breastfed babies have a higher level of CMLS in their brains, which is associated with improved scores on a range of cognitive measures. Our research partnership has demonstrated that CMLS extracted from cow’s milk can also have cognitive benefits. Using Fonterra’s expertise in milk chemistry, dairy processing and nutrition we have been able to develop CMLS as a costeffective ingredient used to create functional foods such as our Anmum product range.
Pharma foods are being touted as the new frontier – although the concept has been around for millennia. Hippocrates in around the 4th Century BC said: ‘‘Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food.’’ Pharma foods directly target a disease either through prevention or treatment in a similar way to conventional pharmaceuticals.
What might pharma foods mean for the way we eat dairy in the future? Will our breakfast be milk, yoghurt and cereal – or a handful of dairy-based pharmaceuticals that cure whatever ails us?
Many countries are struggling to cope with rising healthcare costs, particularly as the world population ages. Better nutrition as part of healthier lifestyles is becoming increasingly important.
We know that dairy consumption can translate into substantial reductions in national healthcare costs. A study in the US concluded that 3-4 servings of dairy per day could translate into cumulative five-year savings of over US$200 billion. A similar study in Australia found that healthcare costs of AUD$2 billion annually could have been saved had Australians previously consumed the recommended quantities of milk and dairy products.
If that is what can be achieved simply by consuming natural dairy products, it is no surprise that some companies are investing heavily in pharma food research. Although there will undoubtedly be opportunities, in the short to medium term there are also some sizeable obstacles.
There will be huge costs in demonstrating that a pharma food has an effect, is safe, has limited side-effects, and conforms to what is currently a very tight regulatory regime.
The extent to which pharma foods become a significant part of a dairy company’s investment portfolio will depend upon the evolution of regulatory frameworks, and advances in research to create a much more cost effective and less restrictive environment for bringing such products to market. Finally, the market for such foods will probably take time and effort to develop, in an era influenced by the real food movement which prizes authenticity and products that can be traced back to their source. For those prepared to invest in meeting the requirements of consumers and regulators through quality science, robust supply chains, product traceability and transparency, there is a substantial prize.
That is why the opportunity for functional foods that build upon the natural goodness of milk remains so attractive – it is a way of offering additional benefits to our customers and consumers and creating additional value for farmers.
Consumers are looking for functional foods to help keep them healthy. But they are also looking for foods that are more natural, free from additives, and come from trusted sources. Safe products from trusted sources that match the values of consumers is probably one of the strongest trends in food today. Of course these foods must also taste great, be convenient to eat and fit into consumers’ lifestyle needs.
The opportunities for dairy right now are exciting because we can produce natural and functional foods at the convergence of both trends. The goodness of dairy nutrition can also be provided in so many tasty and convenient formats.
We can ‘have our (natural functional cheese) cake and eat it too’!
Looking to the years ahead, I doubt we will be eating a handful of dairy-based pharmaceuticals but I am confident that milk and dairy products will remain in the centre of the breakfast bowl, the dinner plate, and the beverage glass. I am also confident that Fonterra will continue providing the natural goodness of dairy in convenient formats with functional properties, so that consumers can choose our Anmum, Anlene and Anchor brands to help them perform mentally and physically during the day and over the rest of their lives.
Jeremy Hill is Fonterra’s chief science and technology officer.