Story by Hamish Renton
All mammals produce colostrum in the first hours and days after birth. It is a rich source of immunoglobulins, antimicrobial peptides and growth factors. It is a nutritional cocktail designed to sustain the young child in the first few critical weeks of life.
In July, Pharming announced that its rigorous research study supported by Dutch Food and Nutrition Delta had concluded that its recombinant human Lactoferrin was safe. Human Lactoferrin is a natural protein that helps to fight and prevent infections. It is present in large quantities in mother’s milk and plays an important role in the defence system of infants.
The company is currently looking for partners in the food industry who can make use of this dairy ingredient in its product formulations.
This is set to herald a new wave of ‘smart’ products aimed at improving health, and there is a great deal of research and development activity in this area.
Bovine colostrum, as opposed to human, is collected only after the calf has had their fill and is fully satisfied, so it’s not the case that the calf loses out. The colostrum is usually frozen immediately when collected on-farm, and then it’s spray-dried to create the colostrum powder.
The product has many advocates in academia. Professor Ray Playford, for instance, an eminent gastroenterologist from Plymouth University, has published research showing dairy colostrum to be effective for colitis and inflammatory bowel disorders, as well as prevention for gut damage caused by the use of NSAID painkillers including Ibuprofen.
Bovine colostrum has long been used by athletes to help them train harder, recover faster and fight gut and immune system disorders that can occur when in intensive preparation for competition and races.
The British Olympic Cycling team, the Tour de France winning Sky team, top triathletes including Sweden’s Gustav Larsen and the Welsh triathlon squad, all train using colostrum, as does tennis star Elena Baltacha and Rugby World Cup winner Phil Greening.
There is a solid body of evidence to support the functional claims of colostrum. Matt Lovell, Elite Sports Nutritionist and advisor to British Rugby team, says: “Colostrum is valuable support to your nutrition levels during periods of intense training. It offers background immune support and is a great benefit to digestive health and wellness. I see use of colostrum for both athletes and the general public.”
It is this interest from general consumers that is causing interest in the R&D departments of global dairy companies.
Traditionally, colostrum has been sold in tubs and packets to the athletics fraternity, but shows signs of coming into more mainstream formats.
Brands such as Maximuscle and MyProtein have all launched products, following in the wake of colostrum pioneers Neovite.
Neovite, long associated with the growth of colostrum in the UK, has been operating in the European market for over a decade and has seen sales grow steadily as it’s starting to be seen as a serious food ingredient by product developers globally.
The market for colostrum is ramping up. For instance, the California market for fresh colostrum is about $300,000 per year.
Heating changes the nature of colostrum, so as a food ingredient it needs to be treated gently but is well suited to incorporation in liquid beverages or with other functional powders.
For dairy product developers, colostrum is fast becoming a cost-effective tier of treatment for inflammatory bowel disease, colitis, IBS, recurrent respiratory infection, wound healing, muscle loss, chronic fatigue and auto-immune disorders.
Colostrum, a taste we all forgot, and revered by the ancients, seems set to have a long future in human health and dairy product development.
Hamish Renton is managing director of Hamish Renton Associates.
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