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Functional foods
Science programmes: Functional Foods & Health, Nutrigenomics, Formulation & delivery
As society evolves and our understanding of human heath advances, there is increasing demand for food and food products that enhance health, wellness and lifestyle. A new, global awareness of the role of healthy foods is emerging and consumers are responding by adapting their approach to health decisions, increasingly seeking a holistic approach to healthcare, and placing greater emphasis on prevention rather than cure.
The result is a new group of health conscious consumers, who not only demand more “Natural” foods – free of pesticides, sustainably produced, “safe” - but also functional foods that offer specific health-promoting ingredients.
Functional foods are similar to conventional foods that form part of a normal diet, but the difference lies in their demonstrated positive physiological benefits to overall health and their potential ability to reduce the risk of chronic diseases beyond basic nutritional functions.
Functional foods can also be called Nutraceuticals and Designer Foods.
HortResearch have a huge wealth of experience in fruit. By applying product development capability to fruit and food research, HortResearch, in collaboration with partners, is producing prototypes ready for commercialisation.
Our research responds directly to clearly identified market trends in functional foods. HortResearch is investigating this field through::
- Functional Foods & Health, focused on novel processing of fruit and vegetables, ingredient synergies and proof of efficacy.
- Nutrigenomics, customised foods tailored to the needs of individuals based on their genetic profile.
- Sport foods, natural based sports performance formulae developed around metabolic needs.
- Healthful Berries, understanding berryfruit health benefits and using this knowledge for breeding programmes and functional food development.
- Formulation & delivery, developing novel delivery processes for high value formulations using micro- and nano-scale encapsulation techniques.
And also:
- Mood Food: understanding how we can affect our mood with combinations of food.
- New Technologies: using enzyme treatments to enhance and change benefits of fruit components.
Our capabilities include:
- Extraction and concentration
- Bioavailability and efficacy testing
- Formulation and delivery
- Identification and characterisation
- Enzyme modification.
We welcome collaborators both within and outside NZ especially with an interest in fruit and vegetable benefits.
Contact:
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