WHAT'S A NUTRACEUTICAL? AND WHO CARES?
"What's a nutraceutical?" I hear you ask. Answer: it's the formal name for a nutritional supplement, just as medicinal druges are known as "pharmaceuticals."
Frankly, I'd never heard of "nutraceuticals" until I attended a luncheon meeting of the Anchorage World Trade Center. The featured speaker was Mr. Thane Humphrey, vice president of Denali Biotechnologies. His company, Denali Biotechnologies, produces a dietary supplement called "Aurora Blue made primarily from Alaska wild blueberries (of which wee have no shortage) on sold via the Internet
Wild blueberries are well known as a low fat, sodium free source of fiber and Vitamin C. Other statessuch as Maine harvest millions of pounds of blueberries every year and market them for their high anti-oxidant capacity and healthful benefits. Humphrey says, however, that Alaska’s blueberries contain much higher levels of anti-oxidants than Maine and Michigan, and could earn big incomes for Alaskans who want to commercially grow blueberries. In the case of Denali Biotechnologies, demand for blueberries supply exceeds the supply of picked blueberries.
To resolve the supply problem, Denail Technologies has applied for land use permits on large swaths of state land to commercially harvest wild Alaska blueberries. The permits, however, do not give the permit holder exclusive carte blanche rights to pick berries on state land. The company also has been establishing contracts with private, Native and borough land owners to gain permission to harvest berries on their land, and in some cases, for the landowner to employ workers to harvest the blueberries. This could develop into a entire new source of income for some Alaska villages.
I think the growing and harvesting of nutraceuticals, blueberries and other plants, has an excellent potential as a new source of Alaska economic development - especially in niche markets. The growth and marketing of nutraceuticals certainly bears investigation.
Today's World Trade Center luncheon was well worth my time.
Frankly, I'd never heard of "nutraceuticals" until I attended a luncheon meeting of the Anchorage World Trade Center. The featured speaker was Mr. Thane Humphrey, vice president of Denali Biotechnologies. His company, Denali Biotechnologies, produces a dietary supplement called "Aurora Blue made primarily from Alaska wild blueberries (of which wee have no shortage) on sold via the Internet
Wild blueberries are well known as a low fat, sodium free source of fiber and Vitamin C. Other statessuch as Maine harvest millions of pounds of blueberries every year and market them for their high anti-oxidant capacity and healthful benefits. Humphrey says, however, that Alaska’s blueberries contain much higher levels of anti-oxidants than Maine and Michigan, and could earn big incomes for Alaskans who want to commercially grow blueberries. In the case of Denali Biotechnologies, demand for blueberries supply exceeds the supply of picked blueberries.
To resolve the supply problem, Denail Technologies has applied for land use permits on large swaths of state land to commercially harvest wild Alaska blueberries. The permits, however, do not give the permit holder exclusive carte blanche rights to pick berries on state land. The company also has been establishing contracts with private, Native and borough land owners to gain permission to harvest berries on their land, and in some cases, for the landowner to employ workers to harvest the blueberries. This could develop into a entire new source of income for some Alaska villages.
I think the growing and harvesting of nutraceuticals, blueberries and other plants, has an excellent potential as a new source of Alaska economic development - especially in niche markets. The growth and marketing of nutraceuticals certainly bears investigation.
Today's World Trade Center luncheon was well worth my time.
posted by Blogs by Rep Bob Lynn | 7:00 PM
1 Comments:
I enjoyed your blog on Denali blueberries, and am glad you understand the importance of nutraceuticals. I met the President of Denali last year at a Trade Show in Las Vegas. Support that company! They're great.
Pam Magnuson
Nutraceutical Copywriter
Post a Comment
<< Home