Editor's spotlight: Startup focus
Millennial on a mission to boost mental health with dual-power probiotics
Caroline Beckman witnessed the culmination her six years in the health and wellness consumer product space when she launched her own probiotics brand Nouri just four months ago.
The brand sells what it describes as 'uniquely better' cutting-edge capsules which combine five of the most in-demand probiotic strains with the brain-boosting and probiotic protecting power of Omegas 3, 6 and 9.
The 24-year-old hopes the fusion will hit the spot for the growing number of consumers looking to boost their brain health through their guts.
“After beginning my career within the health industry I came to believe that the gut is the cornerstone of health. I’m fascinated by the gut-brain connection and the evolving research in this field.
"After spending a lot of time researching probiotics and the difficulties that manufacturers face, I realised the biggest challenge in making my own would be to ensure the probiotic strains reach the gut undigested.
"On further research I decided the best way to protect Nouri's probiotics until they reach the gut would be by encapsulating them with omega fatty acids which are also known to have benefits to brain health."
Previous research has shown When probiotic bacteria and omega-3 fatty acids are co-encapsulated in a single product, omega-3 lipids help probiotic bacteria attach to the intestinal wall.
Nouri capsules contain Ahiflower oil which, unlike other omega oil sources, contains GLA, an omega 6 associated with skin health, hormonal, balance and healthy inflammation response.
When it came to choosing the best strains of probiotics for the product, Beckman chose those most popular in the consumer market: Bifidobacterium longum, Bifidobacterium lactis, Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus brevis and Lactobacillus acidophilus
But the entrepreneur from Southern California says she wants do more than simply make money from health-conscious shoppers.
“In America, 85% of the health care system is devoted to health issues caused by lifestyle choices," she says.
“I want to focus on pro-active health rather than reactive health. By taking proactive versus reactive approaches to health, I believe we can reduce the symptoms of diseases that steal our loved ones each day. This is a product you take even when you feel healthy, in order to stay healthy.
“Nouri is going to concentrate on education and boosting awareness of how our gut health effects our brain which will provide a boost for the probiotic industry as a whole.
“So often businesses will just concentrate on the battle of raising awareness of their own brand but we want to win the war and that means raising awareness of gut health and benefiting the entire probiotics industry.”
Early days
The product is currently only available on pre-sale order but it will become commercially available in the US at the end of March.
Beckman is already on the search for international opportunities and, looking to the future, she plans to create products focused on women’s health as well as children's health.
“This is just our entry point product and the first of many. We see this first product as an entry level option appropriate for all ages and genders.
"There's a lot of opportunity within the women's health space and we know these products are more frequently bought by women.”
Probiota
Judges have selected Nouri as one of two pioneering startup companies to attend Probiota next month.
Caroline will attend the event in Copenhagen next month (February 13th-15th), and present her venture to a conference room full of health and business experts during the Pioneers presentation.
After sorting through many applications from gut-health startup companies, judges chose Nouri and Eat Troo as the winning Pioneers to take the stage to present their businesses and receive some advice from the esteemed conference attendees.
“To be at Probiota will be fantastic for me" Beckman told NutraIngredients, "to see recent clinical research and data and connect with all the big names in the industry will be a fantastic learning opportunity for me.”
