Vegetarian glucosamine receives EU approval

Tag : D-Glucosamine HCL
The certification essentially means that Hygieia 's joint health ingredient GlucosaGreen can now be used on the European market for the same purposes as Glucosamine HCL derived from shellfish - that is, in food supplements andfoods for particular nutritional purposes (PARNUTS).

Hygieia's GlucosaGreen line includes three different glucosaminesalts: d-glucosamine HCl; d-glucosamine sulfate 2KCl; andd-glucosamine sulfate 2NaCl. It is one of a number ofrecently-launched non shellfish-derived glucosamines that aim toaddress the market need for an ingredient suitable for vegetarians,people allergic to shell fish, or those adhering to a Kosher diet.

FSAI opinion

Ingredients that have been produced using a different process orextraction method than the regular approved form of the ingredientneed to be assessed for their quality and safety.

Achieving substantial equivalency from FSAI means that GlucosaGreenhas been demonstrated to be safe in composition, nutritional value,metabolism, intended use and undesirable substance levels, saidHygieia.

The company explained that FSAI's opinion was passed on to theEuropean Commission, which assessed all relevant information todemonstrate substantial equivalency and determines whether thenotification is valid or not.

The European Commission confirmed to NutraIngredients.com thatfurther to its assessment, Hygieia can now place its GlucosaGreenon the market for use in supplements.

Hygieia claims that further to the certification, it is now one ofthe only suppliers of vegetarian glucosamine "which may be legally used in the EU." NutraIngredients.com was unable to confirm in time forpublication.

"Gaining this equivalency not only proves product safety, itprovides a significant market edge, expanding applications as wellas opportunities. What's more, it sets precedence for furtherpenetration throughout the EU food supplement markets," said David Corcoran, Hygieia's marketing manager.

GlucosaGreen

Glucosamine has been found to rebuild cartilage, and is thereforeconsidered one of the major joint health ingredients. It is oftenused in conjunction with chondroitin, which gives cartilageelasticity.

According to Corcoran, joint health has been a major area of focusfor the company since it was formed in 2005. The firm developedits own glucosamine ingredient in response to interest from customers, who werelooking to differentiate their brands.

Hygieia told NutraIngredients-USA.com that a major benefit of itsGlucosaGreen product is its guaranteed purity, which means it doesnot contain the residual impurities that can be found inalternative sources.

This allows dietary supplement manufacturers to use the ingredientin tablets without the need for coating - which is often used toobtain an aesthetically pleasing white-looking tablet.

However, GlucosaGreen is a naturally white crystalline product, andcan therefore save manufacturers the cost and the extra productionstep necessary for coating, said Corcoran.

The company, which is based in China but conducts all of its salesoutside of the country, said its whole manufacturing process andquality assurance program have been modeled on ICH guidelines - astandard of reference used by the pharmaceutical industry.

Its manufacturing facility, which was completed at the end of 2007,is self-certified CGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practice).

Hygieia would not reveal the source of its ingredient, nor itsprice range. However, it claimed GlucoaGreen is "cheaper than all the alternate vegetarian glucosamines on themarket at present," including competitive Chinese production.

Other vegetarian glucosamines on the market include Cargill'sRegenasure, derived from the fungus Aspergillus niger, and Cyanotech's JointAstin.