EU approves fibre-based novel food additive targeting weight gain

Imperial College London and the University of Glasgow have secured EU approval for inulin propionate ester (IPE), a fibre-based novel food additive designed to help prevent gradual weight gain by regulating appetite.

The authorisation clears a path for IPE to move into mainstream food and drink products, including smoothies, shots, cereals and bread, as brands search for satiety-led ingredients in the fast-evolving weight-management market.

The decision comes as GLP-1 medicines reshape consumer expectations around appetite, nutrition and portion control. Tate & Lyle research has suggested that consumers using GLP-1 medicines want products that deliver taste, texture and satiety, while the UK approval of Wegovy as a weight-loss pill has underlined how quickly the market is moving beyond injectable treatments.

We have brought together two natural ingredients to stimulate appetite regulating hormones at exactly the right site in the gut. Although GLP 1 receptor agonists have shown great results in helping people lose weight, IPE could help stop the kind of slow, steady weight gain that makes those drugs necessary.”

Professor Douglas Morrison of SUERC, University of Glasgow

Targeting satiety through the gut

IPE offers a preventive nutrition tool rather than a medicine or weight-loss drug. The white powder combines inulin, a naturally occurring fibre found in chicory and onions, with propionate, a short-chain fatty acid produced during gut fermentation.

The ingredient was developed by researchers at Imperial College London and SUERC, Centre for the Isotope Sciences at the University of Glasgow, with support from the NIHR Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, a translational research partnership between Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and Imperial College London.

Professor Gary Frost, Chair in Nutrition and Dietetics at Imperial College London’s Department of Metabolism, Digestion and Reproduction, said: “A small calorie surplus each day will lead to significant weight gain over time. Even one extra kilo a year in young adults is enough to create serious weight problems by middle age. We already know that a higher fibre intake can counter this, but we also know that most people find it difficult to take in enough fibre and are falling far short of the recommended intake levels.”

Randomised controlled trials by the team have shown that around 10 grams of IPE per day can regulate appetite and help prevent weight gain. IPE delivers propionate directly to receptors in the colon that trigger appetite-regulating hormones, enhancing the gut’s normal bacterial fermentation process.

Professor Douglas Morrison of SUERC, University of Glasgow, added: “We have brought together two natural ingredients to stimulate appetite regulating hormones at exactly the right site in the gut. Although GLP 1 receptor agonists have shown great results in helping people lose weight, IPE could help stop the kind of slow, steady weight gain that makes those drugs necessary.”

Longer-term studies have suggested wider benefits, including preservation of lean body mass, improved liver fat levels and potential effects on immune and metabolic health.

Scaling towards mainstream foods

Professor Morrison first developed IPE in the lab before collaborating with Professor Frost for more than a decade to explore its potential as a food ingredient through clinical studies published in peer-reviewed journals.

The European Food Safety Authority issued a positive opinion late last year after reviewing toxicological, nutritional and microbiological data. The European Commission then granted final authorisation and added IPE to the EU List of Authorised Novel Foods.

The development opens a new route into satiety-led functional foods as consumers seek more targeted nutrition solutions, but wider use will depend on commercial scale-up. The researchers can currently produce IPE only in pilot-scale batches of a few hundred kilograms and have launched spinout company Satisfed to find partners capable of increasing output to thousands of tonnes.

The team hopes growing interest in targeted nutrient delivery to the gut will help bring IPE into mainstream foods and eating plans. Professor Frost said the ingredient’s inclusion in the Novel Foods List could give people beginning to struggle with their weight a new way to prevent further weight gain.