Tate & Lyle invests £4.5m in research
Tate & Lyle has announced that it will contribute £4.5 million over a five-year period to King’s College London to set up a new centre for research into the link between nutrition and health. Collaboration between the company and the university dates back to the 1970s when research by scientists from King’s College London and Tate & Lyle led to the development of the no-calorie sweetener Splenda sucralose.
The new ‘Tate & Lyle Health Research Centre’ at King’s College will include a clinical research facility and a carbohydrate nutrition research laboratory. The research will strengthen understanding of how carbohydrates can promote gut health and how different types of carbohydrate can reduce risk of metabolic syndrome (the group of disorders associated with heart disease and type II diabetes). Tate & Lyle’s investment will support new appointments within the Centre, such as a Tate & Lyle Professor of Nutrition and Health and a Reader in Endocrinology and Diabetes.
King’s College London has a strong international reputation for its cross-disciplinary approach to nutrition and health, bringing together expertise in cardiovascular disease, gut health, reproductive health, molecular biology and
nutrition.
Tate & Lyle is currently developing ingredient solutions under its Enrich service which enhance the nutritional benefit of food and beverages without compromising on taste. These solutions will address current health issues such as gut health (prebiotics and probiotics), satiety, paediatric health and vitamin and mineral enrichment.
Iain Ferguson, chief executive said,“This partnership has particular relevance to the future development of our Enrich service, which has been created in response to increasing consumer demand for great tasting, good value products that enhance healthy lifestyles.
