The Gut Health Connoisseur on the Probiotic Future

Innovator Interview with Arne Heissel.

Tamara Masri
Sep 5, 2018 · 5 min read

After receiving his doctorate in economics from Princeton University, Arne Heissel worked in the medical device industry before turning to the world of gut health. Together with his partner Constanze Heissel, he founded Living Cultures Superfoods, a plant based probiotic yogurt which they sell locally in California’s Bay Area. After Heissel Google searched “food innovation” in Berlin, he landed at HERMANN’S. Today we are sitting learning about how to decipher the science from the hype when it comes to probiotics, prebiotics and us.

Can you tell us a little bit about your journey into the world of probiotics?

I was sick with chronic inflammation. I saw doctors all around the world, and they all gave me modern medications that did not heal me. Although I still believe in Western medicine, it did not work for me when I got sick. Finally, a chiropractor told me about an elimination diet and now I am three years off of any drug. I resigned from my job in the medical device industry which I loved, to dedicate my life to gut health.

Why go into food manufacturing and not a probiotic supplement?

My partner and I were never planning on being food manufacturers. I learned that most of today’s modern diseases are probably better addressed with right food and the right lifestyle. If we change what we eat, we could probably reduce many metabolic diseases such as cancer by 30%. I was very fascinated to experience this on my own. So I went from medical research into prevention, or supporting a lifestyle where the body’s innate healing powers are empowered.

What can people do on a day to day basis to help promote a good gut health?

It is a complete set of factors impacting our health. Play in the dirt. Eat minimally processed food, fermented food. Fermentation changes food into an amazing powerhouse. It takes a raw food into a more nutrient dense food. It takes out some pathogens, anti-nutrients, and it adds enzymes, nutrients and acids. After fermentation you get an enhanced food plus a preserved food.

“The US probiotic market is a mess, and the EU market is super restricted.”

A few years ago, the EU banned the term “probiotic” for labeling food or supplements. What is your take on that decision?

Until now, there is not a single probiotic with an EU health claim. The EU and all member states are saying “we need proof”. But they are not saying what they need. Being so strict as the EU takes away the motivation from the market. People start to think the probiotic movement is hocus pocus because of all the restrictions. But the research is indicating that something really big is happening. Putting an entire health food movement into a corner and then saying, “You are nothing if you are not meeting these drug standards” — — I find that disturbing. People should be allowed to buy a well-researched product.

What are some of the differences between the probiotic market of the US and the EU?

The US probiotic market is a mess, and the EU market is super restricted. I hope we will find something in between. I think the US method of “everything is a probiotic” is misleading. In the US they say cheese, red wine and chocolate is probiotic. It’s dead bacteria! They do not provide health benefits to the host.

That is tough news about red wine and chocolate not being probiotic. So not all foods that use bacteria are good for your gut?

No. To meet the UN and WHO probiotic criteria it would need to be proven. Probiotics are food with active and alive bacteria that have a health benefit. And then it gets really complicated. Dead bacteria might be beneficial to the host. Because they crowd out the bad bacteria. It’s new research, and not everyone agrees with it. But more and more research is pointing to it, so the research when it come to gut health is extremely young.

You only sell your yogurt in the US market, locally in the Bay area. How could I try your yogurt if I am in Berlin?

You can’t because we can’t ship it. It is active and alive bacteria, it would not do well with the changes in temperature. We are only available in the greater Bay area. We are overwhelmed by the success. The demand is huge. We have requests across the world for this product, there is a market for it. But it is not very scalable, you can’t really put it into mass market. If you scale it, it is not a bad product but it is not the same and is no longer “super clean”. That doesn’t financially make sense for a large company. They would have different expectations.

“The new products are fermenting, active and alive.”

Could you say that the big economy players and mass production have played a role in our gut health?

Enormously. And that is one of the big food trends: buying local products. Local products means less ingredients. If you go to a farmers’ market you get good, alive sauerkraut. If you go into a shop, you get a pasteurized one. Heat kills bacteria. There are reasons why companies do this. They want to ship your product across the world. They want to have 6 months shelf life. But then it is not the best product anymore. It is not a homemade yogurt which has active and alive bacteria, which can truly restore your gut. It is still a nutritious product; but it is not an active and alive bacteria.

Where do you think the probiotic market is going in the future?

People are making different food choices. They are trying to heal themselves from gastric distress. There is a willingness to pay for probiotic, artisanal food. There is a probiotic kefir that sold their company to Pepsi Cola. Companies like Pepsi are realizing the best time for their product is over. The cycle is declining. Everyone making clean coconut yogurt is getting calls. It is unbelievable how fast this trend picked up. The new products are fermenting, active and alive.

Originally published at www.hermanns.com on September 5, 2018.

HERMANN’S

For the good future of food.

Tamara Masri

Written by

HERMANN’S

For the good future of food.

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