OptiBiotix grows microbiome presence after floating ProBiotix Health subsidiary
“With the global probiotics market estimated to be valued at $61.1 billion [£48.8bn] in 2021 and projected to reach $91.1 billion [£72.2bn] by 2026, OptiBiotix is well placed to take advantage of consumer-driven demand towards preventative healthcare that is safe, effective and backed by strong science,” said Stephen O’Hara, CEO at OptiBiotix.
“This admission for ProBiotix Health onto the AQSE market represents a landmark moment – not just for us but to aid the industry’s growth in microbiome-based science.”
The move follows the 2017 public listing of OptiBiotix’s SkinBioTherapeutics subsidiary on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange as part of a wider strategy to build a presence in multiple areas of the microbiome.
Growing the microbiome space
Established in 2012, OptiBiotix develops and commercialises microbiome modulators – microbial strains, compounds and formulations – for use across functional foods, supplements and biotherapeutics to tackle obesity, cardiovascular disease, cognitive health, high cholesterol, diabetes and skin conditions like psoriasis and eczema.
O’Hara says that the company’s prebiotic and probiotic subsidiaries are now doubling sales through strategic partnerships with Italian companies Alfa Sigma and Actial Farmaceutica, Indian healthcare group Apollo Hospitals and Saudi Arabian retail pharmacy chain Nahdi Medical in Saudi Arabia, as well as distribution deals with British retailers Holland and Barrett and The Hut Group.
He also emphasises the added value of the robust scientific research and studies behind OptiBitix’s portfolio in meeting market needs.
“As customers demand products with substantiated science, clinical studies and health claims to support the use of functional ingredients, we are leading from the front to ensure our extensive portfolio of patents and trademarks are underpinned by strong science and clinical studies to ensure product safety and efficacy,” he explains.
The UK-based company has nearly 100 patents and trademarks and has taken home multiple industry awards, including Ingredient of the Year at the 2018 NutraIngredients-Europe and 2019 NutraIngredients-Asia awards for its SlimBiome Medical weight management supplement.
Floating ProBiotix Health
Originally a R&D division of OptiBiotix working on probiotics to promote heart health, ProBiotix developed the patented probiotic strain Lactobacillus plantarum (LP-LDL), introduced as the featured active ingredient in its CholBiome supplement range.
“Independent clinical studies have shown that ProBiotix’s principal product, LP-LDL, can reduce key cardiovascular risk biomarkers, such as total cholesterol, LDL (bad) cholesterol, and blood pressure, by 36.7 %, 13.9 % and 5.1 % respectively,” the company states.
Since launching CholBiome in 2017, ProBiotix has signed over 41 agreements, with products currently available in 60 countries. Just last month, it unveiled a new probiotic yoghurt Yo-Life – containing LP-LDL to reduce cholesterol – developed in partnership with dairy producer Granja Pocha in Uruguay.
"This is significant company milestone and to our knowledge, the first time a cholesterol reducing probiotic has been launched in a commercial yoghurt with a pack claim stating: ‘helps reduce cholesterol’,” Mikkel Hvid-Hansen, Commercial Director at ProBiotix Health, said at launch.
“ProBiotix is currently working with a number of major food and beverage partners who value innovation, to extend LP-LDL into new product ranges and territories and help people around the world reduce their cholesterol levels and risk of cardiovascular disease."
ProBiotix Health reported £1.1 million in sales in 2021 before going public in March of this year.
