Life science group Zaluvida announces 2016 “Innovator of the Year” awards

On September 28-29, global life science group Zaluvida hosted the first in a series of innovation meetings in Berlin, Germany. Throughout the one-and-a-half day Zaluvida Innovation Partnering Meeting 2016, several next-generation companies, entrepreneurs, scientists and early-stage start-ups in the field of health and nutrition presented their concepts and visions to a selected jury.

Starting a technical review and business screening process with more than 30 applicants in nutrition science, natural medicines, technology and botanical-based healthcare and wellness ingredients and solutions, the in-person meeting featured in-depth presentation by the finalists. Matthias Miller, Chief Scientific Officer at Zaluvida, highlighted the importance of new ideas and innovation, especially in the biotech and health sector: “I was very much struck by the degree of cutting-edge-thinking these companies were able to present, despite their relative inexperience in the market.”

Zaluvida cooperated with Nutrition Capital Network (NCN) on the Zaluvida Innovation Partnering Meeting 2016. NCN is an organization that connects investors with growing companies in health and nutrition. “Connecting successful market players and industry newcomers is our passion – and as we see in the growth of Zaluvida and we saw in Berlin, the cooperation of established resources with access to distribution and regulatory expertise with the innovative spirit of the entrepreneurial community is a winning combination,” said Grant Ferrier, CEO of Nutrition Capital Network who co-chaired the screening process with Miller. Further, Zaluvida and NCN are looking forward to the continuation of their partnership and the Zaluvida Innovation Partnering Meeting 2017. “It has been a rewarding experience to work together so closely with Zaluvida, and supporting their evolution as a life science platform defining the next generation of pharma with external innovation a key part of that.”

Seven companies were chosen to receive Innovator of the Year awards for 2016 from Zaluvida. “It has been with great pleasure that we welcomed the next generation of health innovators in Berlin. We see great potential for future collaboration and hope to build on the relationships that have been established at this conference,” said Matthias Miller. In addition to the recognition, award winners were assigned a Zaluvida team for advice, free consulting, research support and follow-up regarding investment or a formal partnership or joint venture. “We salute these seven winners,” said Ferrier, “but the real winners will be those that establish long-term relationships with Zaluvida and join their global mission to bring science-based natural solutions to the world's most challenging health problems.”

Zaluvida Innovation Partnering Meeting 2016 Award Winners

New Ingredient (Health Ingredient):

• ACTIVE’INSIDE for Memophenol a blended ingredient with applications in memory enhancement. Active’inside specializes in the development and commercialization of innovative botanical active formulations validated by clinical studies, including French grape and Iranian saffron
• EEVIA OY for PinX, an ingredient for eye health and age-related macular degeneration. Eevia is a Finland-based natural health company that produces ingredients and markets compounds extracted from natural and sustainable arctic plant raw materials with an initial focus on inflammation and oxidation in the eye

New Ingredient (Food Ingredient):

• EVOXX TECHNOLOGIES GMBH for Fibermalt. evoxx is a German industrial biotech company with a portfolio of proprietary ingredients in carbohydrate metabolism and enzymatic bioconversion.

New Product:

• LYCOTEC for esteChoc, a beauty-from-within chocolate. Lycotec is a UK-based biotech company focusing on the development and commercialization of proprietary bio-medical platform technologies for functional food and beverages, medical food and nutracosmetics
• NUCORP LABS for Celera, a gum with glutathione. Nucorp Labs is developing a new generation of functional foods and innovative delivery systems for glutathione

New Process Technology:

• MAZZA INNOVATION for scaling its proprietary, solvent-free extraction technology
• for botanical ingredients. Mazza is revolutionizing how high-value phytoactives and bioactives like antioxidants, polyphenols and antimicrobial compounds are extracted from plants by replacing alcoholic extraction by only using water

Achievements in Nutritional Science:

• PHYTONATURE an Italian company dedicated to research and development in the field of complementary medicine and nutrition and Dr Antonio Masini for the advancement of science around formulas for preventing and treating alzheimer's disease.