Chapter 1
Current and Emerging Trends in the Formulation and Manufacture of Nutraceuticals and Functional Food Products

Alberta N. A. Aryee and Joyce Irene Boye

Agriculture & Agri-Food Canada, Saint-Hyacinthe, Canada

1.1 Introduction

In the last few decades, emphases on the role of foods have shifted from substances consumed merely to quell hunger or to provide needed nutrients for normal cellular function to substances that can potentially promote health and wellness and, particularly, reduce risk of disease. These foods are frequently referred to as nutraceuticals and/or functional foods with various reported bioactive functions (e.g., immunomodulators, antihypertensives, osteoprotectives, hypocholesterolemics, antioxidatives, and antimicrobials). Nutraceuticals and/or functional foods are a fast-growing, multi-billion-dollar global industry that has been expanding annually. Strong market growths of these foods confirm their perceived nutritional benefits and, in some cases, provide a surrogate substantiation of their health claims. It also provides evidence of increasing product innovations, consumer acceptance of healthy-living lifestyles through nutrition, and a growing shift from pharmaceutically derived supplements. Consumers are interested in preventing and/or slowing the progression of illness and disability before they become irreversible and costly to quality of life. In response to this demand, food companies are developing technologies for processing health and wellness products that will improve the efficacy of these products, maximize the potential benefits to consumers, and be cost-effective for the industry's survival in a competitive marketplace.

1.2 Overview, Classification, and Benefits of Nutraceuticals and Functional Foods

There is no universal definition of nutraceuticals and/or functional foods as it varies across countries and markets. All foods are generally functional because they provide nutrients and energy to sustain growth and support vital cellular processes. Functional foods, however, are generally considered to go beyond the provision of basic nutrients to potentially offer additional benefits such as reducing the risk of disease and/or promoting optimal health to the consumer (Hasler 2002). A study presented at the annual meeting of the American Institute for Cancer Research, in Bethesda (Maryland, United States) on November 7, 2013, showed a correlation between poor diets (high in sugar and saturated fats) and the risk of early death caused by inflammation-related health conditions (gastrointestinal [GI] tract cancers-i.e., cancers of the esophagus, stomach, colon, and rectum). The study sample included 10,500 people who were followed from 1987 through 2003 (The Weekly 2013). Of the 259 participants that had died at the end of the study period, 30 had died from GI tract cancers. The study showed that the participants who lived on poor diets were four times as likely to die from GI tract cancers as a result of poor diets that cause inflammation than those participants who consumed plant-based diets purported to be anti-inflammatory to GI tracts.

According to Health Canada (1998), the governmental authority that oversees the approval of food health claims in Canada, a functional food "is similar in appearance to, or may be, a conventional food that is consumed as part of a usual diet, and is demonstrated to have physiological benefits and/or reduce the risk of chronic disease beyond basic nutritional functions, i.e. they contain bioactive compounds." The Institute of Medicine's Food and Nutrition Board defines functional foods as "any food or food ingredient that may provide a health benefit beyond the traditional nutrients it contains." Other definitions of functional food are listed in Table 1.1. Health Canada (1998) further defines a nutraceutical as a "product isolated or purified from foods that is generally sold in medicinal forms not usually associated with foods. A nutraceutical is demonstrated to have a physiological benefit or provide protection against chronic disease." Zeisel (1999) deduced the definition of nutraceuticals from the description of dietary supplements ("ingredients extracted from foods, herbs, and plants that are taken, without further modification outside of foods, for their presumed health-enhancing benefits intended to supplement the diet, that bears or contains one or more of the following dietary ingredients: a vitamin, mineral, amino acid, herb, or other botanical in the form of a capsule, powder, softgel, or gelcap, and not represented as a conventional food or as a sole item of a meal or the diet") as a "diet supplement that delivers a concentrated form of a biologically active component of food in a non-food matrix in order to enhance health."

Table 1.1 Some definitions of functional foods

Source: Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics 2013. Reproduced with permission of Elsevier.

As Table 1.1 indicates, the definition of a functional food depends on the demography and the designated regulatory authority involved. The vast array of different ingredients used in the formulation of functional foods helps to explain the endless options and combinations available in the marketplace. A casual observation in any supermarket will confirm the multitude of different categories of products available in this sub-sector including solid foods, beverages, and supplements, which continue to expand on a daily basis. Over 5,500 new types of these products have been introduced to the Japanese market since 1990, the birthplace of functional foods (Siró et al. 2008), and 537 products valued at US$6.3 billion have been granted FOSHU (Foods for Specific Health Use) status since 2005 (Hartmann and Meisel 2007).

The American Dietetic Association expands the definition by categorizing functional foods into four groups. These are conventional, modified, medical, and foods for special dietary use. Conventional foods include whole foods such as garlic, nuts, whole grains, oily fish, and tomatoes, which contain bioactive chemicals and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). For instance, oatmeal is considered a functional food because it naturally contains soluble fiber that can help lower cholesterol levels. Modified foods are those that have been enriched, enhanced, or fortified to have or increase health benefits by adding bioactive substances such as phytochemicals or other antioxidants. Such foods include omega-3 (or ?-3) enriched eggs, yoghurts with live beneficial bacterial cultures, calcium-fortified orange juice, folate-enriched bread, and energy bars. Medical foods are those that serve specific medical purposes and those for dietary use, including products such as lactose-free milk and gluten-free breads. Some of these distinctions provide another basis for classifying functional foods, as shown in Table 1.2.

Table 1.2 Categories of functional foods

• Carrots (containing the natural level of the antioxidant ß-carotene)

• Fruit juices with vitamin C