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A privately held company is seeking technological solutions to preserve the viability of live probiotic strains (e.g., Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus rhamnosus, Lactobacillus plantarum, Bifidobacterium animalis, Bifidobacterium breve, Bifidobacterium longum, etc.) within conventional gelatin and pectin gummy matrices.
The ideal solutions should be compatible with the current gummy manufacturing conditions (temperatures above 80°C and water activity (aw) ranging from 0.6 to 0.7). Moreover, these solutions should have minimal impact on the sensory attributes of the product, avoiding significant alterations in texture or taste.
Solutions of interest:
- Encapsulation
- Novel ingredient processing technology
- Novel stability-enhancing excipients (e.g., functional matrices)
- Conventional and novel stabilizers
Must-have requirements:
- Improves the viability of probiotics in a gelatin/pectin matrix by reducing process and stability losses to allow for label claims through end of shelf life (typical probiotic overages can range from 100-1000%)
- Compatible with conventional gummy manufacturing processes
- Compatible with conventional gelatin/pectin formulations with minimal impact on taste and texture
- Holds Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) status or has a reasonable basis for achieving it
What's out of scope:
- Alternative ingredients to live probiotics (e.g., spore forming bacteria like Bacillus subtilis, prebiotic fibers, or inactivated probiotics/postbiotics). Note: Unless the alternative ingredient is one of the above and integral to conferring probiotic stability such as a protective prebiotic fiber.
- Novel gummy manufacturing processes
- Solutions required to be implemented at the time of microorganism manufacturing (e.g., probiotic preconditioning, specialized drying)