New guidelines to cut the sugar content of sweets, chocolate, ice creams and breakfast cereals by 20% offer a tantalising opportunity for Optibiotix (LON:OPTI), its chief executive told Proactive investors.
Public Health England, the UK's well-being overseer, wants manufacturers to cut the sugar used in nine product areas by a fifth by 2020, with a 5% cut in the current year.
Stephen O’Hara, Optibiotix’s chief executive, believes Sweetbiotix, a naturally sweet fibre it is developing, may be the answer.
He told Proactive: “We are creating sugars that act as fibres, but have no calories and don’t add to obesity.”
Public Health England said it wanted food makers to reformulate products to lower the levels of sugar present; reduce the portion size and calories in servings and also push customers towards lower or no added sugar products.
O’Hara suggests its Sweetbiotix product has the capability to cover all of these issues while also strengthening the body’s microbiome, the mass of microbes that carry out essential functions such as breaking down food and fighting off infections.
The government’s initiative has been a great opportunity to remind markets we are working in this area and may be able to launch our first sweet healthy fibre either later this year or early next, he said.
Unlike other products, (such as plant extract stevia) O’Hara says there will be no taste trade-off.
“We are focused on natural fibres that are healthy and have an intrinsic sweetness.
“Sweetbiotix is a healthy sweetener rather than a replacement sweetener.”