Yakult Danone India expands its Probiotic portfolio To strengthen its presence in the market
Love your Intestine with Yakult
Having
carved a niche for itself in the probiotic category, Yakult Danone India Pvt.
Ltd., a 50:50 joint venture between Yakult Honsha and Danone has further
expanded its product portfolio in India by adding a new variant:Yakult Light. This new variant was unveiled by
fitness icon and Bollywood celebrity
Shilpa Shetty Kundra who endorsed Yakult Lightat a Press
Conference in Mumbai today. Present on
the occasion were Mr. Minoru Shimada, Managing Director, Yakult Danone India
Pvt. Ltd., and Dr. Neerja Hajela, General Manager – Science and Regulatory
Affairs, Yakult Danone India Pvt. Ltd.
Yakult Light is a sister product of the signature Yakult product
and contains the same unique probiotic, Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota (LcS),
in the same amount (6.5 billion). LcS has been scientifically
proven, through more than 80 years of research, to help improve digestion and
build immunity when consumed regularly. With reduced sugar and Vitamin D
and E, Yakult
Light caters for the daily needs
of the health conscious and is suitable for all age
groups. It contains less sugar and calories owing to the use of a sweetener of
natural origin, Steviol Glycoside.The recommended retail price of Yakult
Light is Rs. 80/- for a pack of 5 bottles.
Speaking on
the launch of Yakult
Light, Mr. Minoru Shimada, Managing Director, Yakult Danone India Pvt. Ltd.
remarked, “We are frontrunners in the probiotic category globally, and 35
million bottles of Yakult, our iconic probiotic drink, are consumed daily in 38
countries and regions across the world. Driven by our core philosophy of
improving intestinal health through our probiotic strain LcS, our journey in India has
been interesting so far. We see further growth potential in the market for our
products. Our signature brand Yakult is already a household name and is being
consumed by most families as a part of their daily diet. Today we are present
in over 40 cities in 12 statesacross India.
The health benefits of Yakult are tangible and there is an upward trend in
consumption. To address the growing demand and in line with the needs of the
Indian consumer we are delighted to make our product range more versatile and
inclusive by launching Yakult Light to
accompany our existing probiotic signature product, Yakult. Yakult
Light caters to a broad consumer
base such as the health conscious adults and the elderly.
We will
sell Yakult
Light across 12 states in both
retail outlets and our unique Home Delivery system. We have over 260 Yakult
Ladies delivering our health message to Indians on their doorsteps. We have
planned a 360 degree campaign to communicate the key messages of Yakult
Light as well as consumer
engagement initiatives at the ground-level to raise awareness.
Dr.
Neerja Hajela, General Manager – Science and Regulatory Affairs, Yakult Danone
India Pvt. Ltd. stated that India is on the cusp of a change with the health
barometer suggesting that 7 of every 10 Indians may be at risk of a lifestyle
disorder. While this has been linked to poor nutrition, stress and lack of
physical activity, an important determining factor is poor intestinal
condition. She highlighted that besides its role in the digestion of food; the
intestine also contains about 70% of the immune cells of the human body and is
in fact the largest immune organ. It therefore plays a crucial role in deciding
your risk of disease and infection. Recent studies have revealed that the
intestine is home to 100 trillion microbes which weigh about 2 kg and function
as a virtual organ. They are absolutely essential for the digestion of food,
the absorption of nutrients, the maintenance of a well-developed immune system
and production of essential vitamins such as Vitamin B. Maintaining intestinal
balance is therefore very important. Probiotics, backed by decades of research
have been scientifically proven to contribute to the balance of these microbes
and thereby both support digestive health and contribute to overall immunity.
"Yakult Light with reduced sugar contains the same number of the probiotic LcS as the original Yakult and therefore imparts
the same benefit of improved digestion and better immunity. The added benefit
of Vitamin D in Yakult Light helps in
absorption of Calcium thereby improving and maintaining bone health, Vitamin E
is an antioxidant which helps to protect the body from the harmful
effects of free radicals and therefore slows the process of aging. Yakult
Light therefore aims to provide a
broad spectrum of health benefits to all age groups. We hope it will offer
increased choice to consumers and so motivate them to make it a part of their
daily diet ”Dr. Hajela added.
Hailing Yakult
Light as a welcome addition to her
healthy food choices, Bollywood celebrity and fitness icon Shilpa Shetty Kundra
remarked, “It is an undisputed fact that a healthy intestine is an indicator of
good health but is often ignored by all. Today in our hectic lives, we often
end up making wrong food choices which disturbs our gut health. I strongly
trust and recommend Yakult because it helps improve digestion and helps build
immunity.
I am
already an avid Yakult fan and my family and I always make sure to take our daily
dose. I am delighted to add Yakult Light, with its reduced sugar and
calories, to my fitness kit. I am
sure it will contribute to the intestinal health of consumers of all ages in
India.”
Probiotic
benefits are strain specific and it is important that every probiotic is backed
by its own scientific studies. Lactobacillus casei strain Shirota, the probiotic bacteria
found only in Yakult is backed by more than 80 years of scientific heritage
with more than 100 human studies to validate its safety and health benefits.
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