Sports nutrition

Eurolactis launches world's first carton-packed donkey milk

23-Jan-2015 By Mark ASTLEY

After years of development, Eurolactis has officially launched what it claims is the world's first carton-packed donkey milk. 

Gold medal Olympian talks supplement contamination and doping scandals

22-Jan-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

We need to work towards the point where there is no excuse for positive drug tests in professional sports, says Darren Campbell, the English gold medal Olympian and co-founder of nutrition firm Pro Athlete Supplementation (PAS).

On the spike: The curious case of a contaminated sports supplement

21-Jan-2015 By Shane STARLING

‘Don’t take sports supplements, they can’t be trusted’ was the takeaway message from Welsh track stars Rhys Williams and Gareth Warburton after the recent UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) tribunal agreed steroids got into their blood streams via contaminated sports...

Cambridge Commodities: “There was no contamination in any of the tested products or ingredients.”

Mountain Fuel drink maker says ‘doped’ products tested clean

19-Jan-2015 By Shane STARLING

The third party manufacturer of the Mountain Fuel sports drink that has been blamed in a UK Anti-Doping (UKAD) independent panel ruling for the ‘inadvertent’ steroid doping of two Welsh track Olympians, says the products were tested after the UKAD adverse...

EFSA caffeine opinion is not a green light

19-Jan-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) safety assessment on caffeine is not necessarily a green light for high caffeine consumption or for long-stalled health claims, according to industry commentators.

EFSA: 400mg of caffeine a day is safe

16-Jan-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

400mg of caffeine a day from all sources is not a safety concern, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has said in a long-awaited caffeine risk assessment. 

Where is the food ingredients industry going? HIE lessons and sessions

14-Jan-2015 By Patricia Wiklund

Despite  challenging times in the ingredient business there exist excellent opportunities particularly for mid-sized ingredient firms, concludes Nordic strategy and marketing agency Invenire. Analyst Patricia Wiklund unpicks key trends from the recent...

Leucine ‘significant’ tool against age-related muscle-mass decline: Review

12-Jan-2015 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Leucine supplementation could “significantly” increase muscle protein synthesis in elderly individuals, and therefore be useful in addressing age-related muscle wasting, according to meta-analysis.

Whey supplements help preserve muscle during weight loss: Study

22-Dec-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Adding whey to a short-term weight loss regime may prevent muscle loss, but the effects were not observed for soy protein, says a new study.

Health claim game changers of 2014

22-Dec-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

A health claim approval can spell good business for some, while rejections disaster for firms who have invested big to collect their supporting dossier only to be told their evidence is insufficient. So it's no wonder food firms keep one eye firmly...

The future of sports nutrition offers something for every taste

18-Dec-2014 By Anna Bonar

Sports nutrition market has been rapidly growing and will continue to so as it moves away from the elite sport to more mainstream and segmented markets, say experts.

Creatine may improve blood pressure levels and microvascular health

16-Dec-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Creatine may improve microvascular reactivity and capillary density amongst a health population, according to research. 

Polyphenol-enriched protein powder shows immune benefits for athletes: Study

15-Dec-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

A soy protein powder enriched with blueberry and green tea polyphenols may reduce exercise-induced susceptibility to viral infection, says a new study from North Carolina.

MuscleGenes introduces genetic testing for fitter future

12-Dec-2014 By Anna Bonar

UK start up MuscleGenes tests athletes for health and fitness related genes to determine nutritional approaches that may boost performance.

Research into amino acids' purported nitric oxide effects will help dispel clouds of protein pumping, experts say

10-Dec-2014 By Hank Schultz

Ongoing research into the effects of individual amino acids will both substantiate their possible effects and counteract the negative assumption that they have been added to sports nutrition products solely to alter the protein test numbers, experts say.

Dispatches from Hi Europe

‘Artificial’ caffeine is becoming a blacklisted ingredient: Mintel

08-Dec-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

With changes to labelling laws and a ban on sales to under 18s in Lithuania, ‘artificial’ caffeine is fast becoming one of the top ingredients in the health firing line, according to one analyst.

Dispatches from HiE, Amsterdam

Athletes may recover faster with HYDRO.365: Study

04-Dec-2014 By Anna Bonar

Endurance athletes consuming sports drinks containing whey protein hydrolysate could see an improvement in performance, a Danish study has found.

Future foods could mimic exercise benefits, claim Nestlé scientists

24-Nov-2014 By Caroline SCOTT-THOMAS

Future food and nutritional products could use the enzyme AMPK to mimic the effects of exercise on metabolism, Nestlé researchers have claimed.

European sports nutrition sector intensifies lobbying ahead of 2015 report

21-Nov-2014 By Shane STARLING

The European sports nutrition sector will promote dialogue with regulators at European level ahead of a Commission report due in mid-2015 that could alter the way the multi-billion euro sector is regulated throughout the 28-nation bloc.

Special edition: Functional Foods

What's driving functional food and beverage growth? Snacking, convenience, and consumer behavior

20-Nov-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

With sales of $176.7 billion this year functional foods are a hot growth sector. But which ingredients, sectors and countries are the best bets for product launches?

DMAA doping or contamination?

Food supplements fingered as German doping ban reduced

17-Nov-2014 By Shane STARLING

A German Winter Olympian has had her doping ban reduced from two years to six months, after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), agreed the DMAA in her system had likely come from a contaminated food supplement.

PUFAs may boost muscle strength in older people, but relationship is complex, says new study

13-Nov-2014 By Stephen DANIELLS

Increased levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) may be associated with bigger muscles and greater knee extension strength in older people, says a new study.

Coca-Cola Hellenic keen to take Monster Energy to ‘big markets’ like Russia

11-Nov-2014 By Ben BOUCKLEY

Coca-Cola Hellenic’s CEO says the firm is keen to take Monster Energy into new markets, as its lackluster performance in developed markets led by Italy hit summer soda sales. 

Kerry and Fonterra join EU sports nutrition group

04-Nov-2014 By Anna Bonar

Dairy ingredient giants Kerry and Fonterra have joined the European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance (ESSNA) bringing its total membership to 47.

Analyst predicts more European bans could follow

Lithuania bans energy drink sales to under 18s

04-Nov-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Lithuania has banned energy drink sales to under 18s - making the Baltic state the first European country to do so.

Denmark widens warning on weight loss herbal linked to brain haemorrhage

30-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

The Danish food safety authority has issued a second warning on the illegal herbal weight loss ingredient Acacia rigidula – which contains substances implicated in a brain haemorrhage case in Sweden.

Launching a baobab brand is about educating consumers and telling a story, says drink startup

30-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Consumers need to be taught what the ‘unknown’ baobab fruit is, according to beverage newbie Matahi.

‘We want to democratise spirulina’, says blue water start-up

28-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Start-up firm Springwave says it wants to bring spirulina to the masses with its blue bottled water.

Report card: French laud nutrivigilance success

27-Oct-2014 By Shane STARLING

France’s nutrivigilence work – launched in 2010 to ensure safety in food supplements and some foodstuffs – has improved the quality of the food supply, the country’s food safety agency has said.

Should energy drinks be age-restricted like alcohol? WHO official asks in report

24-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Energy drink consumption among young people, particularly in connection with alcohol, presents a significant public health concern that warrants further research and regulation, according to a report authored by World Health Organisation (WHO) officials.

Special edition: healthy ageing

Protein, leucine and muscle wasting: ‘It’s an on/off switch, not a dimmer’

23-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Protein and leucine may be a useful tool in tackling muscle wasting, but if individuals are already consuming enough of the nutrients, supplementation may not have much impact, according to a researcher.

Special edition: Healthy Ageing

Sports manufacturers ‘well placed’ to take advantage of growing healthy ageing market

23-Oct-2014 By Nathan Gray

Manufacturers in the sports nutrition space have the skills and knowledge needed to move in to the much larger and lucrative healthy ageing market, according to the chief technology officer at Lucozade Ribena Suntory.

GSK-MaxiNutrition loses protein health claims appeal

22-Oct-2014 By Shane STARLING

Sir Hayden Phillips, the man tasked with performing ‘independent reviews’ of UK Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) rulings, has backed a July ruling against GlaxoSmithKline sports brand MaxiNutrition for exaggerated protein-recovery claims.

Down in 1 (or 2 or 3): Resealable energy drink newbie encourages ‘responsible’ consumption

22-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Grenade Energy says it is taking a leaf out of the confectionery industry’s book by offering the option of controlled portion cans.

Coke's Net Income FELL 14% to $2.12bn in Q3 2014 ending September 26

Still waters run deep...and Coke eyes ‘value-added dairy’ growth potential

21-Oct-2014 By Ben BOUCKLEY

The Coca-Cola Company CEO Muhtar Kent will today identify value-added dairy as a top target category for still beverage retail value growth through to 2020.

Whey protein duty battle: 170 UK jobs on the line at CLF Distribution

20-Oct-2014 By Anna Bonar

 EU regulation on whey protein import duty will not be amended - a decision that will threaten business, says the MD of a large UK wholesaler.

Amino acid release matrix extracts maximum value from protein

17-Oct-2014 By Lynda Searby

Glanbia Nutrtionals has debuted an enzyme blend targeting release of branch chain amino acids (BCAA) and glutamine from whey protein sources.

NPD category busters: From ‘Teagurt’ to coffee fruit energy to Milo expansion

16-Oct-2014 By Shane Starling at FI-Asia in Jakarta, Indonesia

From tea yoghurt to coffee fruit energy, portable water enhancement  to Milo’s brand expansions, Mintel shared category-busting innovation at Food Ingredients-Asia in Jakarta, Indonesia, this week.

Hot political potatoes: DG SANCO head talks suspended caffeine and bowel botanical claims

10-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

The pending health claims for caffeine and bowel-function botanical hydroxyanthracene are the "hot potatoes" being dealt with by EFSA and the European Commission, according to the head of the Commission's unit for nutrition, food composition...

Cocktail flavors to cognitive enhancement: Zenith’s Top 13 energy drinks trends

10-Oct-2014 By Ben BOUCKLEY

Zenith International includes cocktail flavors and cognitive enhancement within a list of 13 top trends it says have driven innovation in energy drinks on the basis of post-2012 product launches.

Will protein work for Everton FC? Supplier provides personalised sports nutrition products

07-Oct-2014 By Anna Bonar

English Premier League football club Everton has extended and expanded its partnership with The Protein Works (TPW) with an emphasis on personalised nutrition.

Food-drug interactions may endanger mountaineers' health

07-Oct-2014 By Anna Bonar

Food and nutrients may pose a risk to mountaineers' health if combined with drugs not under strict control, according to a study conducted at the University of the Basque Country.

Beetroot shows heart health benefits for overweight older people: Study

03-Oct-2014 By Stephen Daniells

Daily consumption of beetroot juice may significantly reduce systolic blood pressure in overweight older people, says a new study from England.

“Try telling any marathoner or endurance cyclist that carb drinks and gels don't help them maintain performance over long distances and you'll be laughed out of the room..."

‘Controversial’; EFSA rejects sports gels for endurance

03-Oct-2014 By Shane STARLING

Data backing ‘carbohydrate solutions’ like sports gels to benefit 60-minute-plus endurance efforts have been rebuffed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), a decision one sports nutrition expert called, “controversial”.

Dutch authority detects pharma ingredients in herbal weight loss supps

03-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Herbal food supplements purporting to reduce weight may contain unlabelled pharma ingredients, according to a report from Dutch food safety experts.

Energy drinks increase sports performance – and insomnia and nervousness, says study

02-Oct-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Energy drink consumption improves sports performance by 3%–7%, but also increases insomnia, nervousness and the level of stimulation after a competition, according a study.

Special edition: Inside Europe's food supplement markets

Sports nutrition in Europe - market analysis

25-Sep-2014 By Anna Bonar

European sports supplements market is predicted to grow by 2.3% a year to 2018 as product awareness rises, say analysts.

Sports nutrition ads – do they have a place on the pitch?

24-Sep-2014 By Annie Harrison-Dunn

Sports nutrition products should not be allowed to sponsor sporting events, say two researchers from the Institute of Sport, Exercise and Active Living in Australia.

NutraIngredients Sports Nutrition 2014 round-table debate

Pro team nutritionist: We can’t get the sports nutrition products we need

19-Sep-2014 By Shane STARLING

The nutritional needs of professional athletes and the general sports playing population are clearly not the same but does the broad sports nutrition market reflect that diversity of need? The Arsenal FC nutritionist and other experts argued the toss...

Glanbia buys sports nutrition firm Isopure for £94M

12-Sep-2014 By Rod Addy

Glanbia has agreed to acquire US sports nutrition business The Isopure Company for $153M (£94.1M).