European Regulatory Opportunities for the Next Decade


The first day of the digital summit kicked off with a presentation from Dr. Luis Gosalbez , Managing Director and co-founder of Sandwalk Bioventures on Regulation of Probiotics & Prebiotics in Europe: A survey among all Competent Authorities . Recently, Spanish authorities announced that they will allow the use of the term’s "probiotic" and "prebiotic" on food labelling. This is aligned with the position of some national authorities but deviates from the one of EU regulators and most EU member states. Luis presented the results of Sandwalk’s survey among all EU competent authorities to explore the potential effect of Spain’s decision on their respective positions.

Luis’ presentation was followed by a panel discussion with live Q&A. Chaired by Dr. Stephen Daniells, PhD , Editor in chief of NutraIngredients-USA , the panellists discussed Europe’s changing probiotics landscape and the big lessons to learn .

Panellists:

We continued this session with a presentation by Elaine Patterson , Senior Scientist and Technical Lead of the Brain Health Platform at IFF on HOWARU® Calm– for healthy mood support. Stress is a common occurrence for 65% of adults who report having some level of stress in their daily lives (Multi-sponsor Surveys, Inc. / 2018 Study of Energy Needs & Solutions). Millennials especially are most likely to be affected by this accelerated lifestyle we now see in this 24/7 society, leading to more stress. When we experience stress every day, it becomes chronic and this can have a negative impact on our mental and physical well-being and overall health. Daily stress can manifest itself as physical symptoms like headaches and gastrointestinal problems but can also lead to cognitive problems such as difficulty concentrating and behavioural problems such as loss of sleep – to name a few. Daily stress is also a major risk-factor for the development of mood and stress-related disorders such as anxiety and depression.

Elaine introduced HOWARU® Calm – the latest addition to the HOWARU® probiotics family, containing DuPont’s signature strain Lacticaseibacillus paracasei Lpc-37®, formerly known as Lactobacillus paracasei Lpc-37®.

HOWARU® Calm:

  • Helps adults manage the psychological response to stress
  • Supports brain health by reducing perceived stress in adults, and provides stress relief by helping to balance and regulate general feelings of stress
  • Promotes a balanced mood, a relaxed state of mind, and overall mental well-being

Day one wrapped up with a panel discussion with live Q&A again chaired by Dr. Stephen Daniells, PhD on Opportunities and ongoing regulatory challenges across Europe for probiotics and prebiotics . The shadow of EFSA and the Health Claims regulations is still present, but the recent landmark decision in Spain to allow the use of the term “probiotic”, the brave new world of a post-Brexit UK, and efforts by countries such as The Netherlands and Italy are offering opportunities for probiotics and prebiotics players across the Bloc.

This panel was made up of stakeholders from across the region to map out the state of play and what comes next.

Panellists: