2000 was not a good year for the nutraceuticals industry and the antioxidant segment of the market was no exception. Sales were flat as a direct result of regulations, or the lack thereof, negative press and a lack of innovative products. Considering the barrage of products now calling themselves antioxidants, the term appears to have lost its luster in the eyes of the consumer. Meanwhile, in the minds of marketers, usage of the term "antioxidant" has become a secondary selling point. The near future will consist of marketers revamping ad campaigns, re-targeting products and undertaking more extensive educational efforts.

Despite the bad news, however, many say there are blue skies ahead. Stronger science is emerging on the effectiveness of antioxidants for specific conditions and marketers are working hard to correct the mistakes of the past and educate the consumers of the future.

Which Ingredient Does What To Whom
In the antioxidant marketplace crowded shelves are common and marketers have their work cut out for them in terms of finding ways to differentiate products. According to Kelly Moorhead, vice president of sales and marketing, Cyanotech, Kailua-Kona, HI-a manufacturer of astaxanthin and spirulina-antioxidants have to show specific benefits in order to stand out. "People are finally starting to associate antioxidants like vitamin E with heart health, vitamin C with immunity and lycopene with prostate health," he said. "Now as you roll out a new antioxidant it should have a good body of science behind it to validate specific applications."

Also touting the idea of targeting specific conditions was Rick Kaiser, vice president of sales at mineral antioxidant supplier Nutrition 21 (formerly AMBI), Purchase, NY. "The latest developments are the targeted antioxidants, which promise benefit for specific indications. Some work in the eye tissue, some in the liver and others in prostate or thyroid," he said. "In the past the antioxidant label was over-broad and over-used, causing consumer confusion. And if the recent market proves anything it is that a confused consumer will not spend money on vague benefits."

Don Blaine, general manager, Kyowa Hakko, Aliso Viejo, CA-a producer of CoQ10-concurred. "The issue of general versus specific is something that marketers are going to have to contend with in the future because consumers get confused in a store when they see hundreds of products," he said. "There has to be a more clear cut relation between the product and the benefit."

However, Mike Yatcilla, director of science and technology, Cyvex Nutrition, Irvine, CA, which supplies a host of botanical antioxidants, believed the opposite is true. He said, "Right now the best way to promote antioxidants is as free radical scavengers because it is hard, without the science, to make such large conclusions for specific health conditions."

Suppliers must also determine what mix of ingredients consumers are looking for. Freek Crum, marketing and sales manager at carotenoid supplier DSM Food Specialties, Delft, The Netherlands, said there is a trend toward mixed carotenoids. "In terms of antioxidants most people actually know what the ingredients are and what they do and they should represent the desired fruit and vegetable intake. That is why you are seeing the trend move toward multiple entity products," he said. "The mixed carotenoid concept was not created by the manufacturer; it was a response to consumer demand."

The State Of Consumer Awareness
Most industry experts agree that consumers are familiar with vitamins A, C and E but beyond this, they are still trying to wend their way through the mountains of information fed to them daily by the media, government and various other information sources. On the positive side, Lynda Doyle, senior marketing manager at vitamin and carotenoid supplier Roche Vitamins, Parsippany, NJ, offered, "Consumer awareness of antioxidants has grown throughout the 1990s, from 14% awareness in 1992 to 57% awareness in 1999, according to Multisponsor Surveys," she said. "In addition, consumers are more educated about the benefits of antioxidants, with increased awareness about their association with slowing down the aging process and prevention of cancer and CVD." Further, she said, consumers are also aware of specific antioxidant ingredients, especially vitamins E and C, beta-carotene and, more recently, lycopene and lutein.

At this point, unfortunately, the breakdown in communication occurs. Barry Kaufman, senior product manager-human nutrition, BASF, Mount Olive, NJ-a manufacturer of vitamins and carotenoids-commented, "The term antioxidant is out there and consumers sort of know about it but as more and more products try to identify themselves as antioxidants it only gets more confusing." One reason for the confusion, he said, is the lack of positive news in the supplement industry.

Frank Molinaro, executive vice president, Pharmachem/H. Reisman, Kearny, NJ, which is a supplier of natural antioxidants, agreed, "The market is soft because there are too many SKU's and our customers tell us that their customers (the consumers) are very confused. It will take at least one to two years for that confusion level to go away."�

Steve Hanson, director of marketing at lutein supplier Kemin Foods, Des Moines, IA, said that companies need to think long term by doing a better job educating the consumer. "What we see is a 'wellness consumer' and a 'mass market consumer' and the wellness consumer is much more aware of antioxidants and the mainstream consumer is kind of aware of them but is not sure of exactly what they do," he said. "I think the mainstream consumer is the key audience where we need to bridge that gap as an industry."

Bill Spencer, vice president of sales and marketing at astaxanthin supplier La Haye Laboratories, Redmond, WA, agreed that there are two different kinds of consumers, noting, "I think the health food consumer can definitely go as far as to point out that antioxidants quench free radicals but I can't say the same for the mass market consumer."

Expressing a different point of view was William Seroy, president and founder of plant-based antioxidant supplier InterHealth Nutraceuticals, Benicia, CA, who put more faith in consumers. "Consumers can identify antioxidants as a category and by specific ingredients. By and large, consumers look at antioxidants as all being the same," he said. "But clearly, research is demonstrating significant differences and unique benefits among specific antioxidants and as consumers become more aware of these differences, they will begin to identify with specific antioxidants and their particular health benefits."

Also giving more credit to consumers was Paul Allen, vice president, Cognis Nutrition and Health, LaGrange, IL, which manufactures vitamins and carotenoids. "Based on sales figures, not only can consumers identify specific antioxidant ingredients, they are selecting them with vigor. For example, just last year, the category for lutein jumped by nearly 1400% and alpha lipoic acid 35%," he commented.

How Do Antioxidants Compete?
Overall, antioxidants compete on a number of different levels. Some companies position antioxidants against totally different antioxidant ingredients, while others keep the competition in the family, so to speak. For example, vitamin E suppliers consider their competition to be other vitamin E suppliers, but grape seed suppliers will position their product against other antioxidants like green tea. Additionally antioxidants can also compete according to indication.

Ginny Bank, technical director at botanical antioxidant supplier RFI Ingredients, Blauvelt, NY, said competition can go both ways. "For standard antioxidants like vitamins E and C and selenium, if they compete at all, it is definitely by price. But when you are talking about natural antioxidant extracts, then I think they compete against each other; there you will see pine park (pycnogenol) compete against grape seed extract."

However, Nutrition 21's Mr. Kaiser said that it serves no purpose for companies to position compounds like green tea against grape seed extract. He said, "It only undermines consumer confidence, forcing the consumer to wait a few years to see who wins the battle."

Dr. Phil Brown, Ester-C� product manager at Inter-Cal Nutraceuticals, a supplier of vitamin C based in Prescott, AZ, suggested further problems with competition are possible. "If consumers saw that green tea was a good antioxidant they might stop taking their vitamin E and replace it with green tea. That is the worry and that is why it comes back to educating people," he said. "I think a product containing Ester-C, green tea and vitamin E would be a good product; that way you would get the full benefit of the antioxidants."

The Combination Controversy
It's an ongoing battle. Some speculate that combination antioxidants work better than single antioxidant supplements because they impart a synergistic effect on the user. Others believe the science on blends has yet to catch up with that of single antioxidant supplements. Diane Fremont, product manager at lycopene supplier LycoRed-Biodar, New York, NY, fell into the former camp. "We have never promoted lycopene to the exclusion of other carotenoids or other antioxidants because if one eats a balanced diet you are getting a variety of nutrients and we found that lycopene actually acts in synergy with various other antioxidants."

Jeanet Gerritsen, nutritionist at DSM Food Specialties, concurred. "I think the latest developments include moving toward mixed carotenoids instead of single entity products," she said. "When you think of multi-entity products the scientific literature indicates a combination of beta carotene, lycopene and lutein as mixed carotenoids. Most of the studies have involved these three carotenoids."

Mr. Kaiser said that right now the average consumer is buying single antioxidant supplements for a specific condition. "However, the next evolution in the market will be synergistic complexes of antioxidants," he commented.

Dr. Brown suggested that people are already recognizing that combination antioxidants work better than single antioxidants. "Vitamin C and E are great combinations and I am not sure whether that is a trend or a continued recognition of how antioxidants can better serve the end consumer's needs," he said. "Combinations work better because of the synergistic effect."

Weighing in on the other side of the fence was Katie Ferren, marketing director at SGTI/Optipure, Los Angeles, CA, which supplies a variety of antioxidant ingredients. "From the word on the street it seems like consumers are leaning more towards single antioxidants," she said. "On a mass market level I think that consumers are all about price and obviously a single antioxidant is usually going to be less expensive than the combination. However," she qualified, "MLM or mail order companies have earned the respect of customers and have a forum for education. As a result I think blends tend to do better in that kind of setting."

Mr. Seroy of InterHealth said science is calling for blends. "It is easier for consumers to identify a single antioxidant with a single benefit. However, from a scientific basis, antioxidant blends are more powerful than single antioxidants," he explained. "Manufacturers can help consumers understand the effectiveness and benefits of antioxidant blends through packaging and advertising."

"Consumers should be interested in combinations because in general these antioxidants exist from different vegetable sources," said Cyvex's Mr. Yatcilla. "It is better to have a balanced array of vegetables in the diet and when you are talking about free radical scavengers it really does not matter what antioxidants you are taking."

For blends to become more a part of the mainstream market, Kemin's Mr. Hanson suggested that more science is paramount. "The focus has been on single antioxidants and from an industry point of view more work needs to be done on blends to show that they have a particular impact," he said. "In a lot of the blends manufacturers will take the common doses for the various antioxidants and put them all together."

The Natural/Synthetic Supplement Dilemma
One topic that has caused some controversy is the debate over natural versus synthetic options. Some feel that claiming to be one or the other is simply a marketing tool, while others say it signifies a sharp difference in quality. And some feel there is no difference at all. RFI's Ms. Bank commented, "I don't think there is a difference. For example, lycopene produced synthetically and lycopene from tomato is the exact same compound so it should have no functional difference in your body at all."

There is a difference when it comes to vitamin E, however, according to Dr. Brown. "A lot of work has been done to show that natural vitamin E is more bioavailable or functions at a higher level than synthetic E," he said.

Also weighing in on the debate was Cognis' Mr. Allen. "There is a functional difference between natural and synthetic antioxidants and this was made official last year when the long-awaited report on dietary related intakes for antioxidants stated that natural vitamin E is twice as potent and is retained twice as well as synthetic. This means twice as much natural vitamin E reaches the blood and organs compared to synthetic," he said.

BASF's Mr. Kaufman took the synthetic side. "Most of the clinicals that have been done were on synthetic products and they tend to be overwhelmingly the products that are purchased," he said. "On the shelf 100 IU of synthetic vitamin E is exactly the same as 100 IU of natural vitamin E."

Pharmachem's Mr. Molinaro commented that the debate over natural versus synthetic is just starting to surface in the U.S. "Consumers want to focus on natural versus synthetic, which is common in other parts of the world and is recently becoming more of an issue in the U.S.," he said, adding, "The natural form is the way it occurs in nature and scientific evidence shows that in some cases natural is more bioavailable."

Finally, marketing plays a key role in consumer perceptions. Mr. Hanson suggested, "As a whole perception makes a difference and the natural versus synthetic issue is really a marketing tool." He went on, "Natural is king right now. It is evident in the supplement market and now has crossed over to the food industry and cosmetics."

Food Vs. Supplements: An Ongoing Debate
Speaking of the food industry, the debate rages on between food and supplements as a source of antioxidants. Ms. Bank of RFI spoke for both sides. "I think that consumers want their antioxidants from both supplements and foods. There are people that don't look at food as a way to get their nutrition because their lives are too busy and they eat on the run. If they could just take their pills in the morning and be done with it, they would be happy," she said. "On the other hand there are people who don't take any supplements and rely heavily on food to get their nutrition."

Inter-Cal's Dr. Brown agreed. "I think that consumers are lazy and whatever works for them is what they are going to do," he said. "I don't think eating food is enough to get you all that you need because for one thing we don't have enough room in our houses. I think the way to do it is to eat properly and supplement your diet."

According to DSM's Ms. Gerritsen, most people would prefer food as a source of antioxidants but in reality it's difficult to match diet with what is recommended. "When people become aware that food is not a good enough source for antioxidants they will turn to supplements and functional foods." At that point, she said, "The formulation of the supplement should be representative of the antioxidants found in a healthy diet."

Ms. Ferren said Americans' lifestyles and diets are not compatible with what a healthy lifestyle should be overall. On top of that, she said, you have a quantity issue. She explained, "For example, if you want CoQ10 in your diet you would have to eat five pounds of green leafy vegetables and no one wants to eat five pounds of broccoli." She continued, "They might prefer their antioxidants from food but when it comes down to it they really don't mind taking supplements."

According to Roche's Ms. Doyle, a number of surveys show that consumers prefer to get their nutrition from foods. However, consumers have expressed less confidence in their diets. She said this is partly because many people have moved away from low-fat, low-sodium, "healthy" foods and are consuming chips and ice cream more freely. As a result, she said, consumers feel the need to supplement their diets with vitamins.