Lycored's ingestible skin health solutions to drive further expansion into APAC
NutraIngredients, in conjunction with GOED, will be holding APAC's first ever omega-3 event in Singapore in February 2019, featuring renowned speakers from CSIRO, A*STAR, Koure, GOED and more.
Golan Raz, head of the company's global health division, told NutraIngredients-Asia: "Lycored has been laying the foundation for ingestible skincare products for over 20 years, during which we've conducted extensive research that has contributed to understanding of the direct link between nutrition and skin wellness.
"While we started our journey two decades, it's only within the last few years that we've really embraced 'beauty from within' as a core element of our brand identity."
Growing consumer awareness of phytonutrients' role in skin health is presenting the firm with plenty of opportunities, especially in the Asia-Pacific market.
Second-generation skincare solution
To this end, it has developed what it calls its 'second-generation solution for skin wellness' using its proprietary tomato extract, whose primary function is to replenish the skin's antioxidant content and enhance its resilience.
The extract contains a combination of phytonutrients and vitamins: lycopene (responsible for the fruit's red pigment), phytoene and phytofluene — colourless carotenoids known for their skin benefits —vitamins A and E, and rosemary extract.
Raz said, "The tomato oleoresin is oil-soluble so these ingredients are perfectly suited for soft gels, and we have extensive capabilities in microencapsulation that allow us to incorporate vitamins and natural ingredients into other delivery formats.
"Within the skin health portfolio, we offer carotenoid beadlets such as lycopene, lutein and astaxanthin, which are water-soluble and easily incorporated into tablets and other delivery formats."
Diversity in beauty
He added that nutritional diversity was a key focus for Lycored when developing products, as it would increase the user's ability to achieve the full potential of a product's health benefits.
"Through an extensive, multi-year programme of pharmacokinetic, cell model, and human intervention trials, our tomato portfolio has been proven safe and effective.
"The red lycopene, for instance, is known for balancing the skin and enhancing its natural resilience to environmental challenges such as UV exposure. These benefits are complemented by other phytonutrients, such phytoene and phytofluene.
"The naturally occurring vitamins in the tomato add another layer of benefits to this composition, with vitamin A contributing to the maintenance of normal skin, and vitamin E helping to protect cells from oxidative stress.
"Complemented by the carnosic acid from rosemary leaf extract, these carotenoids and other phytonutrients modulate the expression of specific skin biomarkers and help control inflammatory and oxidative stress processes."
These core molecular processes, Raz said, were major factors that influenced the skin's natural collagen network and overall ageing processes.
With ingestible skincare, Lycored aims to provide a complementary solution to topical skincare, thereby enhancing overall skin health.
APAC adoption
Raz believes the beauty industry on the whole has embraced the concept of complementing topical skincare with foundational solutions in the form of ingestible skincare.
"While some markets are more advanced than others, our tomato ingredients are selling well globally. Asia is an interesting market with high consumer awareness, and early adopters in different segments, such as the aesthetics and spa channels."
Lycored already has a presence in Singapore and Malaysia, but the firm will soon add Australia, Indonesia and Thailand to its list. Raz also mentioned that Lycored would be entering other APAC markets, but declined to name specific countries.
"Each has a different regulatory environment requiring different processes, which demands time and attention. But due to our high scientific standards, we find that our ingredients generally meet strict registration requirements.
"Obtaining halal certification would also be a major advantage in many APAC countries."
In the meantime, he said, the company would continue to invest heavily in R&D and technology to ensure the best quality possible in its products.
"We're developing our technologies on multiple levels, such as patented extraction and standardisation processes, and high-end microencapsulation techniques.
"The aim of all this is to preserve the delicate balance of phytonutrients from the natural ingredients we work with, and to deliver them to the end-consumer in the most optimal and bioavailable way."
