NUTRA NEWS: DTI grant awarded to functional ingredients firm

A UK-based company has been awarded an innovation grant by the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) to fund its joint project worth £243,000 with the world-famous Institute of Food Research (IFR).

Coressence, which is developing ingredients for the functional foods industry containing health giving nutrients from its own specially selected fruit varieties, has been working with the IFR since 2004.
The project, which began in October 2006, will last for 24 months. It will see the systematic testing and commercial development of fruit phytonutrients.
Building on previous work, the project will focus on the identification of new fruit varieties containing high concentrations of polyphenols, now known to provide cardiovascular, digestive health and cognitive health benefits.
Coressence will also supply selected fruits to the IFR which will be used in human intervention trials under the European Flavo project.
“The fact that this award was one of only three granted in the strategically important Bio-science and Healthcare technology area of the DTI Technology Programme is a clear indication of the growing recognition of the benefits of polyphenols in the modern diet, says Richard Wood, chief executive of Coressence.
“The science underpinning the health benefits of polyphenols is developing rapidly and we now have a close understanding of the benefits of fruit in our diet. We also know that many of these benefits are directly associated with polyphenols of the flavan-3-ol group. Each time we hear news of a new superfruit, be it purple grapes, cocoa or exotic Goji berries, it’s because of the flavan-3-ol polyphenols they contain, he said. Coressence’s first commercial product, Evesse, can be used to provide high polyphenol natural fructose to a wide range of foods including fruit drinks, smoothies, yoghurts, cereal bars and in the form of soft-gel supplements. Evesse will be available as natural fructose syrup containing selected polyphenols of the flavan-3-ol group.
DTI Grants are awarded on the basis of competitions in specific technology priority areas which are considered of critical importance to the UK economy.