Now that people are beginning to understand how good bacteria can contribute to good health, the demand for these live ingredients is rising. Probiotics have long been ingested either in yogurt or dietary supplements but, as has been the case when other popular ingredients hit the masses, customers want more choices. Sensitivities to certain aspects of processing, including temperature, have limited the types of finished products that could realistically deliver viable probiotic ingredients; however, emerging technologies are removing these obstacles and opening the market up for more interesting probiotic-containing goods.
To a 5-year old the world is filled with good guys and bad guys, and things are either one side or the other. In the world of bacteria, there are also good and bad strains, and the same simplicity of division applies. The more good guys there are and the fewer bad guys, the better the world is—a theory that rings as true to a child as it does to probiotic science.
It’s this simple message that has lured the public to learn about and consume more beneficial bacteria. Natural Marketing Institute’s (NMI) 2008 Health and Wellness Trends Survey found awareness of the term “probiotics” in the general U.S. population skyrocketed in 2008 to 48 percent, up from 31 percent in 2007. This followed a 50-percent increase in 2007 from only 20 percent awareness in 2006.
Dannon capitalized early with its Activia™ yogurt, featuring a Bifidobacteria strain branded to reflect the ability of such probiotics to regulate digestion. Other companies launched similar yogurt products focused on probiotic content, and work was already underway to find some new applications for these probiotics beyond traditionally cultured foods.