In-depth interview with the Mother of Probiotics, developmental scientist and founder-president of Natren probiotics, Natasha Trenev.
Westlake Village-based Natren pioneered the probiotics industry and company founder and noted developmental scientist Natasha Trenev – the Mother of Probiotics – even coined the term probiotics, which means “for life.” Over the years, many have taken to refer to Natasha as The Mother of Probiotics because of her more than 50 years of work in natural health. Consumers across the country and around the world turn to Natren’s probiotic supplements to bring digestive support to their entire gastrointestinal tract. Each of Natren’s probiotic supplements support regularity, digestion of dairy products, carbs and protein utilizing probiotic strains cultivated in the company’s wholly-owned Southern California manufacturing plant and meticulously supervised by Natasha and her team of probiotics scientists.
What is your philosophy when it comes to Probiotics?
Probiotics are live microrganisms that are commonly referred to as ‘friendly,’ ‘good’ or ‘healthy’ bacteria that function to help maintain the natural balance of organisms in the intestine. Throughout my work in the field of probiotics, it has never ceased to amaze me how nature provides the very ‘good’ bacteria that can help overpower ‘bad’ bacteria to keep our digestive tracts functioning at peak performance. Natren selects only the most scientifically researched species and strains, and processes our probiotics in our own manufacturing plant where probiotic strains are nurtured and manufactured for survivability – all the way until our product is ingested.
How did you get your start in Probiotics?
Probiotics is not a new phenomenon for me. For 15 generations, my family has been at the forefront of probiotics-infused yogurt. When I moved from Europe to America nearly six decades ago, my family with it’s unparalleled knowledge and experience in probiotics – introduced this timeless health category to my new country. My family has been producing cultured dairy products for over 750 years. Yogurt is the ancient ‘grandmother’ of all dairy products with probiotic live cultures, and I was born into a family that was famous for producing the most delicious probiotic yogurt. Our probiotic yogurts were so famous that we supplied the royal family of Yugoslavia. With the Axis takeover and our family’s long loyalty to the royal family, our wealth was lost and we fled first to Vienna, then immigrated to the US.
In the 1960’s, my father was able to restart his yogurt manufacturing business in Glendale, California, naming his company Continental Culture Specialists. In the meanwhile I had graduated from UCLA and joined the family business full-time where I helped develop honey-sweetened and fruit-flavored custom probiotic yogurts with rich bacterial strains. We sold our yogurt product loaded with good bacteria to health food stores – actually convincing our retailers to invest in refrigeration in order to insure proper storage of our fresh yogurt containing live cultures. This was the beginning of my developing the first probiotic supplement, which ultimately led to my creating Natren together with my husband Yordan. I dedicated myself to high-tech research and the study of microbiological literature and by 1981 I arranged with a research laboratory to begin culturing my own probiotic supplements.
How did you introduce the US to probiotics?
L.acidophilus acidophilus was well known as a beneficial bacteria however most consumers found it difficult to understand the benefits of a super strain of Lactobacillus acidophilus compared with the generic supplements of the time. I began working with the Natural Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA) to set standards for probiotic supplements. In 1989, I wrote the probiotic labeling standard for the NNFA, which became the first standard ever written for any dietary supplement in the industry. The Probiotic Labeling Standards I composed was unanimously accepted by the NNFA national membership of retailers, manufactures, brokers, educators and other health food industry professionals comprising the association.
Today, the Probiotic Labeling Standard is a ruling that requires probiotic supplement labels list the quantity and identity of the live bacteria species present, a viable cell count, an expiration date, certification of the absence of pathogens, storage requirements and a list of any additional ingredients. I am proud that the Probiotic Labeling Standards ultimately led to the True Label Program which is adopted by the entire health food industry. Unfortunately, even to this day most probiotic supplement companies choose not to adhere to these standards. Our customers can always rely on Natren fully complying with these important labeling standards.
Natren’s commitment to the highest quality probiotics and the most effective delivery of probiotics has earned recognition for our leadership role among consumers, retailers and the medical community – all of whom appreciate how Natren’s unique infrastructure and shipping methods assures that our probiotics maintain their potency all the way through ingestion.
Describe the Natren differentiation with other probiotics?
Natren’s probiotic potency protection begins with our bacteria strain selection. Only Natren selects the most scientifically-researched probiotic species and strains, then formulates and manufactures our industry gold standard probiotics in our own plant. We choose “core” beneficial bacteria backed by our decades of meticulous testing – strains that are known for their safety, effectiveness and bile resistance. Our beneficial bacteria are micro-enrobed in a unique protective oil matrix delivery system, protecting the probiotics from corrosive stomach acids.
Importantly, only Natren protects its probiotic potency from manufacture through transportation – and through ingestion – with shipments transported in thermally-controlled boxes with blue ice and the addition of dry ice during summer months. Additionally, we instruct retailers to place Natren’s cold-packed probiotic supplements into store coolers immediately upon arrival.
You were the first to demonstrate how – in addition to adults – probiotics can bring health benefits to children of all ages, from birth through growing childhood years.
I am proud to have demonstrated early-on the tremendous health benefits probiotics can have with growing children. Our company’s Natren’s Healthy Kids division offers a line of probiotics supplements created expressly for babies, toddlers and growing children. Life Start has become the go-to probiotic for babies, toddlers and expectant moms, delivering Bifidobacterium infantis, the most beneficial bacteria predominant in healthy infants.
Able to be taken from the first day, each serving of Life Start helps support the baby’s gastrointestinal system as well as helps promote a healthy digestive environment. Life Start 2 is cultured in goat’s milk for babies sensitive or sensitive to dairy. LifeStart Vegan contains Bifidobacterium infantis, the most predominant beneficial bacteria found in healthy infants. If born by Caesarian Section, infants do not receive this initial boost of important beneficial bacteria. Less than 10% of even vaginally born and breast fed infants have this important B. infantis beneficial bacteria in North America.
To what would you attribute the long success of Natren in the increasingly competitive probiotics industry?
Probiotics are live microrganisms that are commonly referred to as ‘friendly,’ ‘good’ or ‘healthy’ bacteria that function to help maintain the natural balance of organisms in the intestine. Properly cultivating friendly bacteria and ensuring their potency is at the core of the Natren Process. Natren is recognized – by retailers, by the medical community and by consumers – as the best probiotic supplement available.
Natren selects only the most scientifically researched species and strains, and processes our probiotics in our own manufacturing plant where probiotic strains are nurtured and manufactured for survivability – all the way until our product is ingested. One is reluctant to speak negatively of others, however I feel I must remain vocal about companies whose probiotics fall short. As the person who first introduced probiotics into the US, it has been frustrating to watch as companies use shortcuts that are detrimental not only to their customers but also to our industry.
Only Natren carefully chooses our probiotic cultures as well as researches, formulates and manufactures industry standard probiotics in our own plant. Only Natren utilizes a specially-formulated oil matrix to protect probiotic bacteria to survive until they reach their destination in the upper small intestine. This is why only Natren is the most trusted probiotic supplement on the market. Truly, where other probiotic supplements promise – Natren Delivers.
It is an honor being cited as ‘The Mother of Probiotics,’ and to have our company recognized as the pioneering leader in the field. It is also a privilege to have the medical community recommend Natren and our probiotic supplements to their patients. However, my greatest satisfaction has been and always will be hearing from our Natren family of customers. Their emails, letters and calls sharing how Natren products have contributed to their well-being means more to me than I can say. Because first and foremost – your health is what we at Natren are all about. www.natren.com