Elan Vitality
Nano-particles, big ideas
John Lane is a co-founder of Elan Vitality and Health Limited, an innovative food supplement brand whose raison d’être is to help people live lively longer. We talk to John about what brought him to FoodWorksSW, the food innovation hub for the southwest.
What does your company create?
“My sister and I started Elan Vitality as a way for people to become more aware of their nutrition and health and to support good health through diet in later life. We’re a science focused food supplement business and our new product is based on a nano-sized particle called glutathione. This nanoparticle is almost as important to your body as oxygen and water, performing over 400 functions in the body, yet no-one’s really heard of it.”
What does glutathione do?
“Glutathione helps the immune system fight off free radicals and supports the functions of mitochondria in our body’s cells; it has major anti-inflammatory abilities and is vital in the fight against oxidative stress in the body. It is a very potent antioxidant that can recycle both itself and other antioxidants. It’s a fragile molecule, however, that can’t be ingested in the stomach as it would be destroyed there. Until now, turning it into a supplement has proved challenging.
“Now, we’re working with new technologies so that it can be successfully produced and bottled in liquid form. You simply swish it around your mouth where it’s absorbed immediately with a 90-95% success rate. This makes the glutathione almost immediately bioavailable so it can start working straight away. It can help brain function and benefit sports performance. It’s a great all-rounder.
“Glutathione is made in every cell in the body, but after our twenties our ability to produce it starts to decline by 8-10% every decade as part of the natural ageing process. It is this lack of glutathione in the body that can contribute to some illnesses as people age.”
How did you become aware of Foodworks SW?
“We sought research grants and approached the West of England Combined Academy (WECA) for advice. They provided us with some leads to follow up and one of them brought us to FoodWorks SW. We started with an initial free one-hour consultation with Zoe, the food innovation hub’s New Product Development Manager. This was so useful that we then booked more time with the team.”
How have FoodWorks’ experts helped your company?
“We’re perhaps not a typical FoodWorks tenant or beneficiary - we’re far from the cooking end. We’ve got 20-plus years of import-export expertise in the food industry, focused more on the movement of bulk products and concentrated juices for the cider industry. Where we needed help with our nano-particle product was with other things such as correct labelling, so that it was legally correct for the UK market. Labelling requirements are different in the USA where this product is currently on sale.”
What inspired you to develop this brand?
“Our late father had dementia. Seeing him in his later years really left its mark on us. We’re all living longer and we decided to take positive action to help people through food in later life. Our newly trademarked strapline is Live Lively Longer.”
Have you used any physical spaces at FoodWorks?
“For us, it was more about accessing FoodWorks’ expertise and in-house skills than its physical spaces or demonstration kitchens. We paid for consultancy time, to get our label checked. It’s now gone off to Trading Standards and we await their final sign off. Now that we’re aware of the set up at FoodWorks, we may well use it in the future. It has first-rate facilities and is very conveniently located for anyone travelling on the M5.
What will you take away from FoodWorks?
“For us, just knowing that somewhere like FoodWorks SW exists is our key takeaway. We had no idea that the expertise of a food innovation hub of this nature was available to us, and I’m sure that many other food, beverage and nutrition-focused businesses aren’t aware, either. Whether for a new or established food business, we really recommend connecting with FoodWorks to see how they can support you. The place looks great, has a great atmosphere and is a really comprehensive point of reference for every aspect of the food industry.”
What’s next for Elan Vitality?
“We’ve just signed a distribution agreement with a company in America. We’re in the process of making our first order of the product and will be their UK distributor. We’ll then use our website as our key marketing channel. We can be found on www.elanvh.co.uk”.
