EU Novel Food status for Neptune's NKO.(European Union)(Neptune Technologies and Bioressources Inc.)(neptune krill oil) - Nutraceuticals International

Canada's Neptune Technologies & Bioressources has announced that the European Food Safety Authority has approved Neptune Krill Oil (NKO) as a Novel Food and PARNUTS (Foods for Particular Nutritional Uses) for commercialization in the European Union.

NKO has successfully passed rigorous regulatory review and scrutiny by all member states of the EU, which have approved NKO as a Novel Food FOOD and PARNUTS allowing its immediate commercialization at a clinically-proven effective daily dose throughout all 27 EU member countries.

Will lead expansion into omega-3 market

'NKO's strong, clinically-proven benefits for cardiovascular health will now lead Neptune's further expansion in the European omega-3 market, which is currently dominated by cardiovascular health applications with 80% of all omega-3 fatty acids targeting heart benefits,' commented Toni Rinow, head of corporate development and investor relations at Neptune. 'According to market studies, the EU market is growing annually by 24 % and is expected to be worth C$1.6 billion ($1.25 billion) by 2014,' she added.

'According to EFSA regulations, functional food and dietary supplements can only be commercialized at the daily dose established as safe, which is not always necessarily the effective dose. Fortunately, the daily dose accepted by [the] EFSA as safe for NKO is also the one proven to be effective in all clinical studies with NKO,' stated Tina Sampalis, chief scientific officer of Neptune.

'This opens the door for NKO to gain a leadership position in both dietary supplements and functional food markets, achieving targets unmet by other omega-3 products and krill competition,' Dr Sampalis added.

Pharmaceutical opportunities

'Moreover, the NKO PARNUTS approval, which allows the commercialization of NKO for the dietary management of specific diseases, is expected to lead Neptune and its subsidiaries to major pharmaceutical opportunities,' she concluded.

Neptune says that it has already built substantial marketing visibility and recognition in Europe through its longstanding annual presence at Vitafoods International, the global nutraceutical event held in Geneva, Switzerland each year, and Health and Food Ingredients in Paris, France. Based on these continuing marketing efforts, the proprietary status of its ingredients and the Novel Food approval, Neptune expects to accelerate market penetration and increase its share of the omega-3 health ingredient market.