German distributor Biesterfeld Spezialchemie has boosted its portfolio following a deal to distribute Bio-gen Extracts’ nutraceuticals and plant extracts in Europe.

Located in Karnataka, India, Bio-gen produces a variety of products such as capsules, tablets, sugar-coated pills and sticks used in the healthcare and food supplement industries. The company operates a plant in Dobaspet, Bangalore, and exports to 19 countries around the world, including several in Europe and Asia, as well as the US and Saudi Arabia.

Bio-gen’s latest innovations to be offered by Biesterfeld include an odorless garlic extract, Garlixir, and solvent-free extracts such as lutein and zeaxanthin, which are marketed under the trade names Lute-gen and Zea-gen.

Andreas Lekebusch, market manager healthcare at Biesterfeld Spezialchemie, said the distributor can now provide a comprehensive service to meet the growing demand for functional ingredients that it is seeing in the healthcare and food supplement segments as a result of changing consumer behaviour.

This latest agreement follows another in March when Biesterfeld Spezialchemie announced co-operations with Prod’hyg and Sytheon in Spain and Portugal for plant extracts and products used in the personal care industry. Headquartered in Houdan, France, Prod’hyg manufactures specialty oleochemical products and plant extracts, while US-based Sytheon offers cosmetic active ingredients with multifunctional properties.