Discovering how plant foods reduce appetite and keep people feeling fuller for longer is a new Plant & Food Research programme receiving investment from New Zealand food companies and government.
In 2010, the research programme secured $19.2 million over 6 years from the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) together with substantial financial backing from both ZESPRI and Sanitarium as well as Hansells Food Group, Comvita, NZ Extracts, Simplot, Bell Tea & Coffee and input from Yarrows.
The Plant & Food Research programme will also involve key scientists in this area from the University of Auckland and Massey University. In addition, overseas experts will have an important input into our understanding of the potential appetite control mechanisms triggered as food passes along the digestive1 tract.
Dr Kieran Elborough, General Manager of Science for Food Innovation at Plant & Food Research, says, “What we learn will be used to develop and support proprietary ingredients and food concepts for New Zealand-based companies. We will also use the knowledge to select fruits, vegetables and cereals with an enhanced ability to affect appetite as well. Ingredients and whole foods from this programme could also ultimately be combined with other non-plant or dairy-derived ingredients with similar appetite control effects.”
Kiwifruit varieties
Plant & Food Research has worked alongside the New Zealand kiwifruit industry for over 30 years breeding new varieties of kiwifruit from the genetic diversity housed in their germplasm collection. The most well known of these is 'Hort16A', known to the world as ZESPRI®GOLD Kiwifruit.
ZESPRI Food Science Advisor Lynley Drummond says, “We’re looking forward to the opportunity to support Plant & Food Research and better understand the role of fresh kiwifruit as part of a healthy diet, In particular, the role kiwifruit can have in making people feel full and the potential use of kiwifruit, either on their own or in combination with other foods, to moderate food intake.”
Marketing Manager at Sanitarium New Zealand Mark Roper says there is a demand for food products made from wholesome, natural ingredients that are good for us. “Sanitarium is interested in natural ingredients and foods that help people feel fuller and make it easier for them to manage their weight and maintain a healthy lifestyle. This programme will help us develop products that best meet these needs.”
This research has potential for New Zealand companies both domestically and through export offshore. The international weight management food market was worth $513 billion in 2009 and the appetite control portion of that market was worth $17 billion.
An exciting outcome
As part of the programme, the research team screened more than 900 plant extracts. They found a number of compounds that stimulated the release of hormones2 that help to regulate3 appetite. However, one compound4 stood out from the others – a plant extract5 now commercially known as Amarasate™. Plant & Food Research scientist Dr John Ingram and colleagues then worked to optimise6 the required dosage and to develop Amarasate™ into a supplement and functional food product.
Update 2018
Calocurb is the trade-marked weight-management supplement using the Amarasate extract. It is now licenced to a New Zealand company who released the product in 2018.
Plant & Food Research were awarded the 2018 Kiwinet PwC Commercialisation7 Award in recognition of their work to develop and commercialise this research.
Useful links
Read this North & South magazine article to learn more about the development and commercialisation of Amarasate.
To see how the product is marketed, take a look at the website — Calocarb.
This Science Daily article describes the randomised, double-blind8, placebo9 controlled study that demonstrated the effectiveness of Amarasate™ as an appetite suppressant: 'Bitter brake' activates gut hormones and suppresses food intake.
This podcast, from Plant & Food Research, features Dr Edward Walker, one of the lead scientists involved in discovering Amarasate™.
- digestive system: The group of organs that are involved in the breakdown of food in the body, which includes the stomach and intestines.
- hormone: A chemical substance secreted by an endocrine gland into the bloodstream. It acts on specific target cells to produce a given response to control and regulate the activity of certain cells or organs.
- regulated: Controlled by rules and laws. In biology: To adjust a bodily function or process. In genetics: To control the expression of a gene or genes.
- compound: A pure substance made up of two or more different elements chemically combined.
- extract: (Noun) A chemical preparation containing the active ingredient in concentrated form. (Verb) To separate out or remove.
- optimise: Modify to achieve maximum efficiency.
- commercialisation: To take an idea and turn it into a business in order to make money from it.
- double-blind: A clinical trial in which neither the participants nor the experimenters know who is receiving a particular treatment. This procedure is utilised to prevent bias in research results.
- placebo: A substance, usually a pill, having no pharmacological effect (it has no active medicinal ingredients in it). Placebos are sometimes used as a control in testing new medicines, where one person is given the real medicine and another not.
