Japan’s Ise Foods, known for being the first firm to retail eggs with a food with function claim (FFC) has announced intentions to expand its business in Asia.
The FFC eggs (Ise no Tamago), contain high levels of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid).
The company is currently preparing to test for production in Bangkok, Thailand and plans to apply to the Thai FDA with aims to begin full-scale production soon.
Ise Foods is also considering exporting to Singapore by the middle of this year.
The company claims it is the first egg in Japan that is labeled FFC. EPA and DHA have the ability to reduce synthesis of excess triglycerides and promote the breakdown of triglyceride in the blood.
While EPA and DHA can be taken in the form of supplements, the company thinks getting it from a source like eggs is a more natural way.
Fumiko Yamanouchi, from the marketing promotion office at Ise Foods said that each egg contains 39mg of EPA and 352mg of DHA.
Egg-Citing Plans
Yamanouchi said that Ise Foods was the first company in the world to develop eggs rich in DHA in 1989, however, it took almost 30 years to launch it as a functionally labelled food in July 2019.
The company admitted that many consumers were still negatively associating eggs and cholesterol and hopes to debunk the confusion.
The move behind labelling it FFC was for good reasons, Yamanouchi explained: “We have received many inquiries from customers who care about their health, including those about triglycerides.”
Since its launch in July, Yamanouchi said that sales have been strong, “especially after the broadcast of TV commercials from October to November 2019, the increased consumer awareness has led us to decide to deal with large-scale (retail) chains.”
Ise no Tamago is available at supermarkets and retails stores in Japan nationwide. This year, the plan is to expand the number of sales outlets, and increases sales volume compared to last year.
The recommended daily intake is two eggs. While eggs will not lose its nutritional values when boiled, stewed or baked, Yamanouchi recommended eating it raw on hot rice to enjoy the freshness and flavour.
The company also produces regular chicken eggs, as well as eggs with added nutrients such as vitamin E and D, and liquid eggs.
In 2016, the company established the Ise Egg Research Institute to develop egg products with nutritional functions and further research in the area of health promotion.
Elsewhere in Asia, Ise Foods signed a Memorandum of Understand (MoU) with India in 2019 to operate two poultry farms which aims to eventually produce two million eggs for India’s 1.3 billion population.