Juice or Soup? Best with Protein
Interview with Fred Bergmans, Managing Director of Carezzo Nutrition BV
Malnutrition in hospitals. It seems unbelievable, but it can occur when patients, especially older ones, do not receive an adequate intake of proteins. Quick remedies must be made, not just by increasing protein intake, but by replacing normal foods with protein-enriched products. This is precisely where Carezzo Nutrition BV comes in: by doing this, significantly more protein is delivered with the same amount of food.
Today, when malnutrition is detected, dietary supplements are often administered. However, this alone cannot always correct the deficiency. "Protein is important for the body and cannot be produced by the body itself in case of a deficiency, but must be ingested through food. Unfortunately, protein does not fit into a pill, like vitamins or minerals, but must be obtained through food. We have 'packaged' protein into food, meaning we offer foods that contain more protein than normal foods," says CEO Fred Bergmans, who founded the company in 2014 with Wim van Cuijk. "Our products are the solution when protein intake needs to be increased quickly to stop and reverse a protein deficiency."
Choose what tastes good
Carezzo has positioned itself at the forefront of a market that combines scientific findings with the development and production of protein-rich foods.
"We have succeeded in incorporating protein into soup or juice. The patient or someone suffering from protein deficiency can choose. If they look at the packaging of our products, they will see a 10 on the soup, but also on the orange juice or the pastry. So, each of these contains 10 g of protein in a small portion, and the user decides in which form they want to take the additional protein, true to our motto 'Choose what tastes delicious & take in what you need'," explains Fred Bergmanns. "We do not want to take away the joy of eating from people, but rather let them choose what they like." The additional protein can lead to a significant nutritional improvement for patients, elderly people, or other groups who rely on additional proteins to improve their poor physical condition and promote faster recovery. This also means that their quality of life increases and health costs generally decrease.
"So, everything is interconnected. Through rigorous scientific studies, we have been able to demonstrate how beneficial our protein-based products are," emphasizes Fred Bergmans.
Scientifically Accompanied
Scientific studies also accompanied the founding of the company in 2014. "Even beforehand, the idea was formed to develop better products with added protein to counteract malnutrition. Together with Wageningen University and Gelderse Vallei Hospital, the leading 'nutrition hospital' in the Netherlands, we investigated how normal food can be replaced with food containing more protein and what the consequences are."
The results were clear: The study was able to demonstrate that a protein-enriched diet helped 79% of the target group, who suffered from deficiency, meet the standards set by the hospital. 'Compared to only 47% of the ‘normal eaters’,' said Fred Bergmans. 'That is a significant improvement.' When Carezzo entered the market in 2015 with specially developed products, the company was able to score directly with scientifically based products that Fred Bergmans, who came from the bread and bakery sector, and his business partner, Wim van Cuijk – with a background in vegetables, juices, and soups – had been developing since 2010. Carezzo quickly became a favorite among hospitals and nursing homes. Just two and a half years after entering the market, more than half of all hospitals in the Netherlands counted themselves as its customers.
Produced with Extensive Knowledge
"Since then, we have brought together four worlds. On one side, there is science, which we connect with our product development. We develop the final product and turn it into a food item with extra protein for the third group, the producers. In doing so, we collaborate with various manufacturers in the Netherlands, depending on the type of product. Finally, there is the group of consumers who use our products." Carezzo has succeeded as the only provider of protein-enriched foods to master the entire cycle. "Not many can do that," says Fred Bergmanns. "Of course, there were many trials where the bread no longer felt like a rubber block due to the extra added protein, or the soup stopped resembling concrete mix. But we've got all that under control now and offer foods that are tasty and contribute to health. The products are varied and can be consumed throughout the day without having to increase the amount of food intake. It's a normal product, just with more protein, and it's exactly right whenever there's a protein deficiency." Thus, Carezzo has already been able to help many people – and that's exactly what the company is about: delicious food with everything the body needs to stay healthy or become healthy. It's as simple as that.