Could you start by introducing Jungbunzlauer and explaining the company’s role in the wellness sector?
Jungbunzlauer is a producer of high-quality ingredients derived primarily from natural sources, specifically corn. Our process centers on transforming corn into glucose, which is then fermented to create our portfolio of ingredients. This foundation is key to our business: utilizing natural raw materials and fermentation to ensure sustainability and efficacy.
We serve a broad range of industries, including food and beverage, nutrition and health, and non-food applications such as home and personal care. Our versatile ingredients, being food-grade, are inherently safe and easy to use across various applications. Our product portfolio includes texturants, which enhance texture and stability; acidulants like citric and lactic acids; and mineral salts such as calcium, magnesium, potassium and zinc salts, which are pivotal in supplements and functional foods. Our minerals play a significant role in the wellness sector, particularly in supporting consumers’ drive towards optimal health and addressing the growing demand for high-quality nutritional ingredients.
How do you see the wellness industry evolving over the next decade, and what role will Jungbunzlauer play in driving innovation within this space?
The wellness industry has evolved significantly, with consumers now prioritizing boosting health, keeping illness at bay. People are increasingly mindful of what they consume, whether in food, beverages, or supplements. This shift is driven by three primary areas in which minerals play a pivotal role: the importance of relaxation, including sleep; maintaining bone health, emphasizing calcium and magnesium intake; and strengthening immunity, which gained significant attention during the COVID-19 pandemic.
We address these needs by providing highly bioavailable mineral salts in user-friendly forms. This ensures that the nutrients are effectively absorbed by the body, offering tangible benefits. Additionally, demographically the aging population is another key factor shaping the industry. As the global demographic continues to skew older, consumers are increasingly focused on maintaining their health and preventing age-related issues. For example, conditions like dysphagia (difficulty swallowing) can lead to serious health complications. We’ve developed thickeners that make beverages safer and easier to consume, ensuring better health outcomes for elderly populations.
Affordability and reliability are other pressing concerns, especially in the face of rising energy and raw material costs. To address this, we’ve implemented numerous energy-saving measures, including heat recovery systems and a photovoltaic power station equivalent to 50 football fields. These efforts not only reduce risk and long term costs but also enhance sustainability, enabling us to supply cost-effective, high-quality ingredients while minimizing environmental impact.
Bioavailability is a critical aspect of your products. How does this set Jungbunzlauer apart, and what does it mean for the industry?
Superior bioavailability is indeed a cornerstone of our offerings. It ensures that nutrients like calcium and magnesium are effectively absorbed by the body, making them truly beneficial. This quality is determined by two factors: the intrinsic nature of the ingredient and its physical form. For example, calcium citrate is significantly more bioavailable than calcium carbonate. Our production focuses on creating ingredients with superior bioavailability, backed by decades of research and scientific validation.
Beyond the ingredient itself, we support customers in optimizing the application of our products. Whether it’s adjusting the granularity or ensuring compatibility with specific formulations, we help customers achieve maximum efficacy. This dual approach—combining scientifically validated ingredients with application expertise—sets us apart from competitors and addresses a common consumer frustration: navigating the overwhelming variety of products with varying effectiveness on the market.
How does Jungbunzlauer collaborate with brands and organizations to co-develop wellness solutions?
Collaboration is central to our approach. First, we establish trust with our partners by ensuring the quality and safety of our ingredients. Customers are welcome to audit our facilities and processes, which have been refined over decades through shared learning. This transparency builds confidence in the reliability of our offerings.
Beyond this, we work closely with customers to tailor our ingredients to specific applications. For example, we may modify the physical form—granular, fine powder, etc.—to suit particular needs, such as improving consumer acceptance or creating smaller, more convenient supplement forms. We also provide access to our extensive library of studies and reports, ensuring customers can make informed decisions about bioavailability and efficacy. This level of collaboration fosters innovation and helps brands deliver superior wellness products to the market.
What are the main objectives for Jungbunzlauer over the next 5–10 years?
Our long-term success hinges on continuous investment in our capabilities and infrastructure. Over the past decade, we’ve invested €1 billion—equivalent to our annual revenue—to ensure our production facilities remain state-of-the-art and sustainable. This commitment extends to energy-saving initiatives, such as installing large-scale heat pumps and photovoltaic systems, which reduce our reliance on volatile energy markets and align with our sustainability goals.
We are also focused on securing raw material supplies and expanding geographically to remain resilient in the face of market disruptions. Recent investments in our Canadian operations, for example, allow us to better serve regional customers while maintaining our strong presence in Europe.
Adaptability is another priority. We aim to stay attuned to customer needs, whether it’s delivering innovative ingredient forms, providing robust application support, or maintaining close partnerships. Ultimately, reliability—be it in quality, supply chain stability, or customer service—is at the heart of our strategy, ensuring we remain a trusted partner for generations to come.
How do you ensure your products remain accessible and affordable in a challenging economic landscape?
Affordability is a critical challenge as energy and raw material costs fluctuate. Our strategy to tackle this includes a comprehensive focus on energy efficiency. These measures not only ensure cost stability for our customers but also contribute to our sustainability objectives.
Additionally, we prioritize the efficient use of raw materials. Since our production process is based on corn, we’ve developed ways to upcycle byproducts, maximizing output and minimizing waste. By balancing efficiency with innovation, we maintain the affordability of our high-quality ingredients, ensuring they remain accessible to consumers even during times of economic uncertainty.
