Fonterra unveils GOS ingredient for infant formula market

Fonterra has today announced that commercial samples of NZMP galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) will be available early in the new year.

Fonterra’s new partnership with UK dairy company Dairy Crest means that it can now offer the specialty paediatric ingredient to food manufacturers globally. Known to support digestive comfort and improve mineral absorption, NZMP GOS will give infant formula manufacturers the ability to offer additional consumer benefits.

Once production is running at full scale, Dairy Crest will manufacture 10,000 metric tonnes of GOS annually and the product will be marketed and sold under the NZMP brand, making use of Fonterra’s global distribution network.

The New Zealand dairy company has said that it expects European and Chinese infant formula manufacturers to be among the first to start using NZMP GOS.

Fonterra regional director ingredients Europe Middle East/Africa Han Huistra said: “Combined with Fonterra’s expertise in paediatric nutrition, the ever growing portfolio of NZMP ingredients gives manufacturers even more flexibility to fine tune their products.”

Dairy Crest has invested £20m to set up a purpose-built ingredients facility at the company’s Davidstow facility in Cornwall to produce GOS.

Huistra continued: “We are delighted to add this important ingredient to our portfolio of specialised NZMP ingredient offerings. A new facility brings the very real advantages of being able to capitalise on latest control systems and equipment to consistently produce high quality products. What makes this exciting is that traceability and supply versatility have also been designed as key traits for this business launch.”

Dairy Crest managing director functional ingredients Richard Jones added: “By leveraging our expertise in the manufacture of dairy products, and Fonterra’s global reach and supply capabilities, we are delighted to successfully deliver high quality nutritional products to meet growing market demands. It is a testament to the strong Fonterra-Dairy Crest partnership and our ability to meet the desire globally for quality nutrition.”