New EnCoate CEO looks to global market
15 November, 2007
New EnCoate CEO Simon Yarrow says he is looking forward to helping the bio-polymer company realise its potential to
double the global probiotics market through the commercialisation of a revolutionary line of probiotic formulations for
enhancing food products.
A Joint Venture Company owned by Ballance Agri-Nutrients, AgResearch and BioPacificVentures, EnCoate's goal is to extend
the shelf-life of probiotics to two years at room temperature and humidity with special formulations.
Probiotics are the 'good bacteria' that have been shown to provide a range of human health benefits. Currently
probiotics are commonly delivered in dairy products to improve gut health.
Current technology does not allow probiotics to be mixed with other ingredients, which considerably limits the scope of
their application. Encoate has developed a technology that can stabilise these microbes so they can be used to enhance
foods such as breakfast cereals, infant milk-powders and dog-biscuits.
In July EnCoate announced that it had secured an investment of $6.3 million from BioPacificVentures, the $100 million
Venture Capital fund, managed by Auckland firm Direct Capital in collaboration with the global Inventages group fund,
which manages $1.5 billion in the life sciences area.
"This investment will give EnCoate the opportunity to commercialise its unique technology. I look forward to working
with the EnCoate team and potential collaborators to ultimately bring a product to market," he says.
Simon has considerable industry experience including a stint with Fonterra as Business Manager for its Human Health and
Nutrition division and as Regional Marketing Executive for South East Asia. His most recent position was General Manager
of Diagnostics at Dairy Farmer Cooperative LIC.
Simon is currently based near the AgResearch Ruakura campus in Hamilton but is considering a move to Lincoln near
Christchurch where EnCoate's technology is being developed by a team of scientists from AgResearch's Biocontrol,
Biosecurity & Bioprocessing Section.
ENDS