Olimp Labs & Ixoreal Biomed: Partners in science and innovation

Editor’s Note: Olimp Laboratories develops and markets various innovative, research-backed dietary supplements. In this Q&A, Barbara Wielgos, Ph.D., director of pharmaceutical products at Olimp Laboratories, discusses how scientific rigor and the latest technologies deliver high-quality, high-performance products to the market—and why a partnership with Ixoreal Biomed that’s based on empathy, professionalism and a commitment to research is critical to both innovating and earning consumer confidence.

Q: What are the main attributes and values you look for in an ingredient partner?

A: When looking for the right partner, we prioritize a company that has many years of experience, offers high-quality ingredients and is professional. Multi-stage quality control is our standard, which means that the raw materials from our suppliers are subject to a rigorous selection procedure. We accept raw materials on the basis of passed pilot production tests, which are subject to qualitative, organoleptic and technological evaluation. Each purchased batch is microbiologically and physicochemically tested. The consistent results of each delivery determine whether we pursue a long-term partnership. We look for companies that invest in research yielding high-quality products. Ideally, this means that its effectiveness has been clinically proven. Ultimately, high-quality and proven effectiveness of the product influence success of the future product on the market,

Q: Quality is clearly very important to you. How do you define it?

A: Olimp Labs’ mission has always been to provide customers with a better quality of life and optimal health and vitality, which is why we constantly focus on the safety and effectiveness of our products. We go beyond the requirements for dietary supplement manufacturers; our products are manufactured in pharmaceutical conditions. We have a number of certificates, including the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) certificate. We also passed the audit of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). We test the raw materials that we use in products and their preparations at every stage—starting from the raw material entering the warehouse, ending with the finished product. We test each batch of the raw material and the products made from in individual laboratories of the quality control and analytics development departments located in our research and development (R&D) center.

Q: What does innovation mean at Olimp Labs—and how can the right partnerships bring this to life?

A: Our company has been setting trends for the dietary supplement industry for decades. In our modern R&D center, all new products are designed based on the analysis of trends and needs of the Polish and foreign markets, scientific data and research carried out by specialists working in interdisciplinary teams. We send the most interesting ideas to laboratories for implementation. The development of an innovative formulation depends strongly on the form of the preparation; we focus on the latest technological solutions, which help determine the product’s superior functionality. Our work is often presented at scientific conferences and training sessions, where we share the latest knowledge with pharmacists, doctors and other scientists with whom we often cooperate on our research projects. Cooperation with appropriate partners also results in sharing up-to-date knowledge regarding innovative ingredients, as well as supporting us in industry events in which we participate by effectively promoting our products containing particular ingredients. Product innovation is largely influenced by the formulation of the active ingredients in which, for example, we use a clinically tested ingredient that is not available on the market. Cooperation with partners that provide innovative active ingredients is a key determinant of a product’s success. A perfect example of this is our collaboration with Ixoreal Biomed, the producer of the KSM-66 raw material, which we use in our flagship preparations from the Perceptin and Forsen lines, as well as sports products.

Q: Can you describe a unique aspect of how you work with Ixoreal Biomed?

A: We have been cooperating with Ixoreal for several years and knew from the beginning that this partner goes above and beyond the standard framework. Because of our company’s focus on research and quality, cooperation with Ixoreal was the right business choice. The team exhibits incredible empathy, and at the same time full professionalism and customer-oriented policy by always providing necessary technical documents and scientific materials, as well as actively supporting marketing promotions and participation of Ixoreal Biomed representatives in industry events and scientific conference.

Ixoreal has been developing its research and development activities for many years, focusing on one raw material, KSM-66, which resulted in very well-tested and high-quality ingredient. Its ashwagandha extract was developed in a 14-year process of development, research and improvement. KSM-66 ashwagandha extract is the subject of more than 30 clinical and preclinical studies carried out in cooperation with independent scientific and research units. The research conducted jointly with Ixoreal is based on the gold standard of clinical trials—randomized, double-blind trials and placebo-controlled groups—and was therefore published in journals indexed in the PubMed database. This undoubtedly stands for the uniqueness and high quality of this ingredient.

KSM-66 is the best ashwagandha root extract in the world also in the sense that it has a high concentration and a full spectrum of active ingredients. A full-spectrum extract is one in which the individual components are present in the same proportions as the original medicinal plant, without an excess of one component. Thanks to the use of green chemistry, Ixoreal was able to holistically extract the entire essence of the root, preserving its natural therapeutic power. Only Ixoreal was able to develop a process to meet these requirements, and it was only after many years of research and development.

Another crucial aspect of cooperation with Ixoreal Biomed is that its published research gives us the opportunity to use the KSM-66 extract in various product categories in the pharmaceutical and sports lines. These studies confirm the clinical effectiveness of KSM-66 around the adaptation to stress factors; energy support; antioxidant properties; synthesis of muscle tissue; maintenance of vitality, well-being and emotional balance; reduced concentration, exhaustion, fatigue and nervous tension; and support of learning, memorising and maintaining good mental fitness in the elderly. For these reasons, KSM-66 appears in a number of preparations in the Olimp Labs portfolio, which currently enjoys recognition and great interest among customers in Poland and abroad.

The fruit of cooperation with Ixoreal Biomed is the implementation of such brands from KSM-66 as: Gold Ashwagandha, Perceptin line, Forsen line, Forstress, Stress Control, Testomag, Menopauzin Forte, Erektin Ultra Fast shot, Testoxeed, T-100, Testovarin, Regenerator, Range-66, Vita-min Multiple Sport 40+, Vita-plex Sport 40+, Testify, Mind Fuel, Adapto-Fuel, Ashwagandha 600 Sport.