Going with the Flow

Provexis partners with Unilever with the hope that its Fruitflow heart healthtechnology will make a dent in global cardiovascular disease statistics.

By
Joanna Cosgrove
Online Editor

The American Heart Association estimates that more than 80 million people have one or more forms of cardiovascular disease—the number one killer of Americans. In an effort to battle this disease head-on, Unilever plc (London, U.K.) recently announced a long-term collaborative partnership with Provexis, a London-based developer of functional and medical foods, to develop a new format of its patented Fruitflow heart health technology for application in Unilever’s Food product portfolio.

Fruitflow is a natural extract derived from ripe tomatoes that’s been proven to inhibit platelet aggregation in trials in healthy humans. The benefit is focused on blood health, rather than cholesterol. According to Provexis literature, Fruitflow is said to “smooth” blood platelets to help blood flow without forming stroke and heart attack-inducing clots.

Platelets are important for normal blood clotting and normally circulate in the blood as disc-shaped structures. In this form, they are ‘smooth’ platelets and are inactive. Platelets can become activated or ‘spiky’ on a day to day basis due to factors such as smoking, being overweight and raised cholesterol. Spiky platelets are more likely to form an unwanted clot in a blood vessel.

Fruitflow was discovered by Professor Asim Duttaroy at the Rowett Research Institute in Aberdeen in 1999. Since then, Fruitflow has been tested in 220 healthy volunteers in four different studies. In addition to demonstrating the product’s effectiveness on platelet function, the studies also revealed the product to be effective on the same day of consumption, with daily consumption required to maintain the daily benefit; that the product works on platelets without disrupting the rest of the clotting process; and finally that the product imparts no adverse effects, such as gastric distress.

Provexis markets Fruitflow as easy to mask in foods and beverages, completely water soluble, protein free, fat free and highly stable with a long shelf life. A minimum of three grams of Fruitflow is required per serving per day.

Building a Stronger Presence

Thanks to its Flora/Becel spreads and drinking yogurts in the U.K., Unilever is no stranger to the heart health market. Under the terms of the partnership agreement, Provexis and Unilever will co-develop a second generation concentrated format of Fruitflow to be used in the formulation of Unilever branded food products.

“Unilever has a ‘vitality mission’: to help people feel good, look good and get more out of life. To help deliver on this mission, we already have a strong portfolio, including global heart-health brands,” said Val Samways of Unilever’s U.K. press office. “Open innovation agreements like this one with Provexis are an important means to ensure access to the latest science and technology. Furthermore, these agreements serve to accelerate our innovation rate.”

Ms. Samways added that Unilever’s timeline to co-develop a second-generation Fruitflow is still being structured. “We are in the early stages of development so it’s likely to be a couple of years or more before we might see products on-shelf,” she said. “Standard safety and efficacy studies need to be undertaken to ensure we are providing products that deliver what they promise.”

Provexis CEO Stephen Moon was also excited about the new partnership, saying it will go a long way toward furthering his company’s business growth, as it relates to the discovery and backing of novel ingredients. “Our long-term strategy is based on the discovery, scientific proof and licensing of functional and medical food technologies, and to leverage the strategy we need to engage with major corporations in the FMCG and consumer healthcare sectors,” he said. “The collaboration with Unilever is our first partnership with a global food and beverage owner and we intend to add further partners as we develop our business.”