CHICAGO — NZMP, the ingredient solutions brand by dairy company Fonterra, is expanding the application range of its patented probiotic strains to include various snacks and certain types of confectionery and beverage products.

Isolated from microbial cultures used in manufacturing yogurt and cheese, the brand’s unique strains of Bifidobacterium animalis subspecies lactis HN019 (BifidoB HN019TM) and Lacticaseibacillus rhamnosus HN001 (LactoB HN001TM) have been shown to provide digestive health and immunity benefits, including improving gut-barrier function and reducing risk of certain diseases, infections and inflammation. The strains are suitable for a range of applications, including ready-to-mix powdered beverages, supplements, chocolates, coated protein or snack bars, yogurts, ice creams, cheeses, fresh juices and fermented milk drinks.

By expanding the application range for its patented probiotic strains, NZMP aims to address growing consumer interest in immunity spurred by the pandemic, said Chris Ireland, US probiotics business manager, sports and active lifestyle, at Fonterra.

“For a few years now, we have been seeing probiotics delivery formats rapidly moving away from just supplements into the likes of cereals, chocolates and ready-to-mix powdered beverages — an area we are very familiar with due to our proteins business,” Mr. Ireland said. “Fonterra is traditionally a dairy food company, which means we have complementary expertise in regard to how probiotics can be paired with other ingredients in our portfolio for food and beverage applications. In fact, we are one of the few probiotic suppliers with evidence of probiotic stability data for chocolates.”