Special Report: Culinology® Hits SupplySide West

From Oct. 22 to 24, the healthy-ingredient nexus that is SupplySide West hit Las Vegas, and representatives from the Research Chefs Association (RCA) were on hand to helm a handful of educational sessions illustrating the myriad ways culinologists positively influence product development—from generally healthier foods and nutraceuticals to those approaching the tenets of medical foods.

The education sessions were sponsored by Cognis Nutrition & Health again, and RCA’s part began with Walter Zuromski, president and culinary director, Chef Services Group, who delved into the culinologist’s role in guiding a product from recipe to formula. He noted that all foods—including fortified products—benefit from the organoleptic-improving tools of Culinology®.

Next, Mark Crowell, CRC, principal culinologist, CuliNex, David Feder, director, S/F/B Communications Group, and Rodger Jonas, national business development manager, P.L. Thomas & Co., discussed nutraceutical foods. Jonas examined several established and emerging ingredients, including vitamin K2, grape seed extract, CoQ10 and lycopene. He also mentioned baobab, the fruit of the African “tree of life,” as a promising nutraceutical and cosmeceutical ingredient.

Last up was Kurt Stiles, owner and CEO, Intelligent Ingredients, steering discussions from Dr. Robert Corish, toxicologist and integrative medical doctor, and Mark Lemke, medical industry strategist, who examined the future of medical foods. Although medical foods, as defined by FDA, might prove a prohibitively difficult category, formulators might effectively help replace the many pills consumers rely on for specific medical issues with foods that fulfill the same functions. Working closely with members of the health-care industry when developing and distributing such foods was strongly advised.

A wide range of other educational sessions, a pre-show Golf Classic, pre-show conferences on stevia and consumer trends, and post-show workshops on essential fatty acids and probiotics rounded-out the slate of this year’s educational and networking opportunities.

SupplySide West 2008 was attended by around 8,000 industry members, with the opportunity to visit nearly 1,100 booths, making it the largest event to date. “We continue to see growth in the quality of attendees,” said Peggy Jackson, director of publishing, Health & Nutrition Division, Virgo Publishing, “as high-level decision makers from global manufacturing powerhouses walked the show floor looking for ingredients and services.”

The 2009 SupplySide West show will be held Nov. 11 to 13, again in glittering Las Vegas. For more information, visit the SupplySide website or call 800/454-5760.