Mikroverkapselung und Nachhaltigkeit: Abfallreduzierung und Verlängerung der Haltbarkeit in nutraceutical Formulierungen

Context

A long-standing IPS customer, specialized in organic and natural nutraceutical products, aimed to strengthen its sustainability strategy by reducing raw material waste and improving product stability throughout the supply chain.
The company operates in a market segment strongly aligned with ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) principles, with a communication style focused on transparency, environmental responsibility, and clean-label formulations.
However, several of their active ingredients — such as functional oils, botanical extracts, and fat-soluble vitamins — showed rapid degradation and sensitivity to oxidation, leading to instability, altered color or odor, and loss of functional value.

These issues contributed to production waste, logistics returns, and reduced shelf-life, with tangible environmental and economic impacts.

Challenge

The customer required a technological solution capable of:
• preserving the stability and functionality of sensitive natural actives;
• reducing losses caused by degradation or oxidation;
• extending shelf-life without synthetic preservatives;
• optimizing warehouse management and decreasing returns due to out-of-spec batches;
• supporting sustainability-focused communication with evidence-based improvements.

The challenge was not only technical: the company wanted to demonstrate that innovation can actively support environmental sustainability.

Solution

IPS proposed the adoption of FlowActives® microencapsulation technology, designed to stabilize oils and sensitive functional ingredients within flexible and permeable biopolymeric matrices.
The process protects active substances from oxidation, humidity, and light, significantly improving their stability during storage and transport.

With FlowActives®, the customer was able to:
• convert unstable ingredients into free-flowing, stable powders;
• increase the shelf-life of natural actives by two to three times compared to non-encapsulated forms;
• improve thermal resistance and blend uniformity during production;
• significantly reduce production waste and non-conformities in storage;
• enhance logistic efficiency thanks to more stable products with predictable behavior.

Moreover, the FlowActives® process aligns naturally with sustainability principles:
– use of biopolymer coatings from natural and renewable sources;
– gentle processing conditions with lower energy impact;
– complete elimination of organic solvents and non-biodegradable additives.

Results

The introduction of FlowActives® microencapsulation enabled the customer to:
• reduce raw material waste by up to 20%;
• noticeably extend shelf-life and minimize logistics-related environmental impact;
• improve traceability and quality consistency along the supply chain;
• strengthen their ESG communication with measurable performance indicators.

Conclusion

FlowActives® microencapsulation is not only a technological advantage — it is a sustainability enabler.
Reducing waste, improving shelf-life, and stabilizing natural ingredients means using resources more efficiently, minimizing environmental impact, and delivering nutraceutical products that remain effective and safe over time.

For IPS, innovation and sustainability go hand in hand, supporting a more responsible and forward-looking nutraceutical industry.

Contact us to find out how to integrate FlowActives® technology into your development projects.