D.D. Williamson offers a broad spectrum of natural colors, and distributes natural color blends through its strategic partnership with ColorMaker. At the Natural Products Expo West, in Anaheim, Calif., D.D. Williamson and ColorMaker will demonstrate the following:

• Organic Certified Class One Caramel Color for use in 100 percent organic beverages.

• Cost Effective Natural Color Blends featuring caramel color combined with natural colors for enhanced visual appeal in beverage and dairy applications. Both liquid- and powdered-natural color blends will be displayed in numerous shades of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple.

• Elderberry Juice Concentrates and Annatto Extracts representing new product lines acquired from Artemis International and Dinesen Trading Co. — D.D. Williamson & Co. Inc., 1901 Payne Street, Louisville, Ky. 40206; 502/895-2438; caramel.com.

Robertet Flavors Inc. introduced new passion fruit flavors that add exotic flair to new product developments. The flavor profiles include: Passion Fruit, Passion Fruit Grape, Passion Fruit Mango and Passion Fruit Orange. Robertet Flavors utilized natural aromatics to recreate the flavor profiles. — Robertet Flavors Inc., 10 Colonial Drive, Piscataway, N.J. 08854; 732/981-8300; robertet.com.

X Café LLC is now able to offer organic coffee in extract form. The company recently was certified organic by Organic Certifiers, an accredited firm under the USDA National Organic Program. This certification allows X Café to provide organic coffee extract by special customer request in either bag-in-box for beverage or totes for ingredient use. Any coffee available as an organic may be converted to liquid form at X Café’s recently certified facility. The shelf-stable products include 30-to-1 to 50-to-1 ratios, Medium Roast and Dark Roast, caffeinated and non-caffeinated versions. In addition, proprietary custom blends are also available. — X Café LLC, 104 Merriam Road, Princeton, Mass. 01541; 877/492-2331; x-cafe.com.

LycoRed Corp. received FDA approval for the use of Tomat-O-Red, natural tomato lycopene, as a food coloring. The approval allows LycoRed to market natural lycopene as a colorant for foods and beverages. The natural colorant provides various shades of red. Tomat-O-Red is ready-to use, highly stable under a wide range of temperatures and the color does not shift with changes in pH. The color is available as a liquid dispersion or a cold-water dispersible powder. Tomat-O-Red can be used to color a variety of beverage products, including dairy. Tomat-O-Red is produced with lycopene extracted from non-GMO, lycopene-rich tomatoes. —  LycoRed Corp., 333-A, Route 46 West, Suite 230, Fairfield, N.J. 07004; 877/592-6733; lycored.com.

Acatris recently presented information regarding the growth of dietary supplements containing standardized flax lignan ingredients and the increased health benefits being associated with flax lignan consumption. The presentation was part of the Functional Foods & Nutraceuticals web-based seminar “Focus on Flax Lignans and the EFA Category.” According to presenter Kelley C. Fitzpatrick, Flax Canada, growth in the specialty supplement category, including flax lignan products was up 8.1 percent overall in 2004 vs. 2003. Specialty supplements increased to more than $2.9 billion in annual sales in 2004, and while results from 2005 have not yet been calculated, continued growth is expected.

“SDG, the main flax lignan has been part of the human diet for centuries. It’s bioavailability and health benefits are well documented,” said Jocelyn Mathern, R.D. and technical specialist for Acatris Inc. “The number of products including standardized flax lignans and targeting specific health benefits have seen tremendous growth in the last four to five years, including products focusing on women’s health, prostate health and breast health. These products help bring this essential nutrient, flax lignans, to consumers looking for targeted health benefits.” — Acatris Inc., 3300 Edinborough Way, Minneapolis, MN 55435; 952/829-2414; acatris.com.

Fortitech Asia Pacific showcased its latest trends and food fortification initiatives at Food Ingredients China (FIC) 2006, the largest food industry trade show in Asia. Fortitech demonstrated how custom nutrient premixes can be successfully incorporated into applications, increasing nutrient value to consumers and product value for manufacturers. Applications included three complete healthy beverage concepts, a fortified snack seasoning, vitamin/mineral supplements and a fortified confection. — Fortitech, Inc., 2105 Technology Drive, Schenectady, N.Y. 12308; 518/372-5155; fortitech.com.

According to Natural Health Science, Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) and pine bark extract work symbiotically in promoting cardiovascular health. In research cited by the company, patients supplemented with Pycnogenol pine tree bark extract and CoQ10 benefited from the collaborative antioxidant effects. CoQ10 supports healthy heart and blood vessel function, while Pycnogenol supplies proanthocyanidins, which provide antioxidant protection. The company offers Pycnogenol in more than 400 dietary supplements, multi-vitamins and health products worldwide. — Natural Health Science Inc., 5 Marine View Plaza, Suite 403, Hoboken, N.J.  07030; 877/369 9934.