US firm starts marketing 'fat fighter'
Pharmachem Laboratories (USA) has cashed in on the growing health consciousness among Thai consumers by launching its own brand of Phaseolus vulgaris, a white-bean extract it claims can prevent obesity.
Asian director Willy Tan said the product, Phase 2, was an ingredient that helped reduce body fat.
Manufacturers can put Phase 2 in their foods and beverages to reduce customers' risk of putting on weight.
He said more Thais and other Asians were being influenced by Western-style consumption, which was leading to increased obesity across the continent, and that he therefore saw a large potential market for Phase 2.
The company has held discussions with Thai-based Nu Life International and Unilever about them using Phase 2 as an ingredient in their products.
Tan said Nu Life had already used Phase 2 in its instant Phaseolamin Tea Plus non-dairy creamer, which
is scheduled to be launched this week.
He said other products, such as beverages, sauces and instant coffee, were in the pipeline, as Phase 2 could be mixed in with many products, depending on manufacturers' ability to adapt.
However, it will increase the price of those products containing it.
Pharmachem is planning road shows and sponsorships, the better to court media interest in and raise public awareness of Phase 2.
The company appointed Che-mico Inter its sole distributor in Thailand.
Tan said it would take a few years for most people to know about
Phase 2, and the company was not expecting a revenue return until that point.
Nitida Asawanipont
The Nation
|
