Yakult

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Yakult Honsha Co., Ltd.
Industry Probiotic Drinks
Founded 1935
Headquarters Minato-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Key people Sumiya Hori (Chairman)
Website www.yakult.co.jp/english/

Yakult (ヤクルト Yakuruto) is a probiotic dairy product made by fermenting a mixture of skimmed milk with a special strain of the bacterium Lactobacillus casei Shirota. It was created by Japanese scientist Minoru Shirota, who graduated from the Medical School of Kyoto University in 1930. In 1935, he started manufacturing and selling Yakult. Official claims state that the name is derived from jahurto, an Esperanto word for "yogurt".[1][2] Since then, Yakult has also introduced a line of beverages for the Japanese market that contain Bifidobacterium breve bacteria, and has also used its lactobacilli research to develop cosmetics. More recently, the Yakult Honsha played a major role in developing the chemotherapy drug irinotecan (Camptosar, CPT-11).[3]

After its introduction in Japan and Taiwan, Yakult was first sold in Brazil in 1966,[4] due to the large number of Japanese immigrants in the country, before it was marketed elsewhere. Today, Yakult is sold in 31 countries,[5] although its bacteria cultures are provided from a mother strain from Japan regardless of production location.[citation needed]

Yakult is marketed in different sizes. In Australia and New Zealand, Europe, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam Yakult comes in 65mL bottles. In the Americas (including Mexico, one of Yakult's largest selling markets), Japan, Philippines, Thailand and South Korea, 80 ml bottles are available. It is also available in Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan and mainland China where Yakult comes in 100 ml bottles.[6][7][8]

The product is made by Yakult Honsha Co., Ltd. (株式会社ヤクルト本社 Kabushiki-gaisha Yakuruto Honsha) (TYO: 2267), where Groupe Danone has a 20% share. The company also owns one of Japan's major baseball franchises, the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. It has been also one of the partner companies of the FINA World Aquatics Championships since 2005.

Nutritional value

Standard Yakult (excludes variations such as in Yakult Light) contains:[9]

  • Sugar (sucrose, dextrose) to balance sourness with sweetness.
  • Skimmed milk powder
  • Natural flavours
  • Live Lactobacillus casei Shirota strain, 6.5 billion per 65 mL bottle (concentration of 108 CFU/mL)
  • Water

Standard Yakult contains 18g of sugar for every 100g, but comes in 65 mL bottles. This concentration is higher than the level defined as “HIGH” by the UK Food Standards Agency (described for concentrations of sugar above 15g per 100g).[10] As a comparison Coca-Cola and orange juice are in the range of 10g of sugar per 100g, but with a serving size usually greater than 250 ml, while Yakult is served in much smaller doses. Based on the existence of many products like Yakult in the world market and the content of milk protein (1.4 g per 100 ml),[11] it was classified as a fermented milk named "Fermented Milk Drinks" of the Codex Standard. Through nutrient profiling guidelines, current health claim regulation in European Union may forbid the use of health claim on food products that are nutritionally unbalanced, but dairy products and probiotic drinks are likely to be considered as favourable carrier because their health benefits outweigh the fact they might be high in one of the designated 'unhealthy' ingredients.[12]

Varieties

  • Yakult Light 65ml. Australia.

  • Yakult 300 Light 100ml. Taiwan.

  • 4 different flavours of 100ml bottles of Yakult. Singapore. (Original, orange, grape, green apple)

  • Yakult LT 100ml. Hong Kong. (advertised as Low-Sugar Hi-Fibre)

  • Yakult Light 100ml. Hong Kong. (discontinued, replaced by Yakult LT)

Packaging

  • Glass Yakult bottles used before 1968.

  • Brazilian Yakult.

  • Mainland Chinese Yakult.

  • Yakult 80 ml in Mexico.

  • Thai Yakult.

  • Philippine Yakult (SM City Baliuag Hypermart)

  • Yakult 65 ml in Vietnam.

  • Yakult 65 ml in Italy.

See also

References

  1. ↑ "What is the origin of Yakult’s name?". Yakult. Retrieved 2011-11-17. 
  2. ↑ "History". Yakult USA. Retrieved 2013-09-01. 
  3. ↑ Yakult company profile: Pharmaceutical Division
  4. ↑ Yakult page in Portuguese
  5. ↑ "Yakult Europe – Yakult worldwide". Retrieved 2007-01-16. 
  6. ↑ "Yakult USA". Retrieved 2007-01-16. 
  7. ↑ "Yakult Australia – What is Yakult?". Retrieved 2007-01-16. 
  8. ↑ "Yakult Taiwan". Retrieved 2007-01-16. 
  9. ↑ "Yakult Australia – Nutritional Information". Retrieved 2007-01-16. 
  10. ↑ "Food Standards Agency – Healthy Diet – Sugars". Eatwell.gov.uk. 2011-03-29. Retrieved 2011-11-17. 
  11. ↑
  12. ↑ "Nutraingredients.com". Nutraingredients.com. Retrieved 2011-11-17.  </ref>

    Scientific basis

    According to the manufacturer's website, the benefits of Yakult consumption are supported by an array of scientific studies.<ref>[http://www.yakult07.co.uk/Public/hcp/yakult_the_product/history.aspx Yakult07.co.uk]{{dead link|date=November 2011}}</ref> Those could range from maintenance of gut flora,<ref>[http://www.yakult07.co.uk/Public/hcp/yakult_lcs/healthy_microbiota.aspx Yakult07.co.uk]{{dead link|date=November 2011}}</ref> modulation of the immune system,<ref name="yakult07">[http://www.yakult07.co.uk/Public/hcp/yakult_lcs/immune_modulation.aspx Yakult07.co.uk]{{dead link|date=November 2011}}</ref> regulation of bowel habits and constipation<ref>[http://www.yakult07.co.uk/Public/hcp/yakult_lcs/bowel_habit.aspx Yakult07.co.uk]{{dead link|date=November 2011}}</ref> and finally effects on some gastrointestinal infections.<ref>[http://www.yakult07.co.uk/Public/hcp/yakult_lcs/gastrointestinal_infections.aspx Yakult07.co.uk]{{dead link|date=November 2011}}</ref> Although the number of scientific papers is certainly large, most of them are related to in vitro and in vivo experiments, with some human clinical trials done on cohorts<ref>{{cite journal |author=Takeda K, Okumura K |title=Effects of a fermented milk drink containing Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota on the human NK-cell activity |journal=J Nutr. |volume=137 |issue=3 Suppl 2 |pages=791S–3S |date=Mar 2007 |pmid=17311976 |url=http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/pmidlookup?view=long&pmid=17311976}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Morimoto K, Takeshita T, Nanno M, Tokudome S, Nakayama K |title=Modulation of natural killer cell activity by supplementation of fermented milk containing Lactobacillus casei in habitual smokers |journal=Prev Med |volume=40 |issue=5 |pages=589–94 |date=May 2005 |pmid=15749143 |doi=10.1016/j.ypmed.2004.07.019 }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |author=Spanhaak S, Havenaar R, Schaafsma G |title=The effect of consumption of milk fermented by ''Lactobacillus casei'' strain Shirota on the intestinal microflora and immune parameters in humans |journal=Eur J Clin Nutr |volume=52 |issue=12 |pages=899–907 |date=Dec 1998 |pmid=9881885 |doi=10.1038/sj.ejcn.1600663 }}</ref> and with daily consumption of 40–100 billions of probiotic L. casei Shirota,<ref name="yakult07" /> far above the single bottle concentration of approximately 6.5 billion. In 2010, an EFSA panel concluded that a cause and effect relationship has not been established between the consumption of Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota and maintenance of the upper respiratory tract defence against pathogens by maintaining immune defences.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/efsajournal/pub/1860.htm |title=EFSA – Scientific Opinion of the NDA Panel: Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota and maintenance of the upper respiratory tract defence against pathogens by maintaining immune defences |doi=10.2903/j.efsa.2010.1860 |publisher=Efsa.europa.eu |date= |accessdate=2011-11-17}}</ref>

    Production

    Yakult opened a factory in Fountain Valley, California in the United States in 2012.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Mueller|first=Mark|title=Yakult To Build Fountain Valley Plant for U.S. Expansion|journal=[[Orange County Business Journal]]|date=June 28, 2010|volume=33|issue=26|pages=1, 23}}</ref> Yakult is also manufactured in Australia in Dandenong, Victoria. A manufacturing plant of Yakult is situated at Haryana, India.<ref>http://www.yakult.co.in/contactus.aspx

External links

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