Targeting GI Health and Postbiotic Innovation

At Natural Products Expo West, Nutritional Outlook spoke with Brad Schwan, VP of global category marketing at ADM, about how the company is addressing two major forces shaping the food and beverage industry: product reformulation and the rise of GLP-1 therapies.

Schwan highlighted findings from ADM’s 2025 Outside Voice survey, which showed that more than 80% of consumers support reformulated products that better align with health and wellness expectations. In response, ADM focuses on five key reformulation priorities: reducing sugar and sodium, optimizing fat, increasing protein, and achieving clean label formulations. However, Schwan emphasized that reformulation is not as simple as adjusting a single ingredient. Instead, it requires a holistic approach that considers the entire product formulation, supported by the right ingredient portfolio and deep technical expertise.

A critical component of this process is sensory validation. Schwan noted that regardless of nutritional improvements, consumer acceptance ultimately depends on taste, texture, and overall enjoyment. ADM leverages sensory testing to ensure reformulated products meet consumer expectations and deliver a satisfying experience.

The conversation also explored the growing influence of GLP-1 medications on consumer behavior. ADM conducted proprietary research on individuals using these therapies and found strong demand for products tailored to their specific needs. Notably, 83% of respondents expressed interest in customized solutions, and 80% indicated a willingness to pay a premium for them.

Schwan identified key nutritional priorities for GLP-1 users, particularly the need for muscle mass retention, which drives demand for high-protein products. ADM is leveraging its broad protein portfolio and ongoing innovation to develop versatile, nutrient-dense formulations that cater to this emerging market.

Overall, Schwan underscored ADM’s consumer-centric approach, using data-driven insights and formulation expertise to help brands create products that meet evolving health trends without sacrificing sensory appeal.

A transcript of his conversation can be found below.

Nicholas Saraceno: Are you aware of the mechanisms behind these alleviated digestive health systems for GLP-1s, because I know that's also a big area. For digestive health, it’s not really being marketed broadly, in this space. I would imagine that, not all digestive health support is going to have the same impact. Maybe you could get into that a little bit.

Brad Schwan: Of course, of course. You're keying in on one of the key needs that consumers on GLP-1s have. I mentioned that there are three key needs that when you're on the drugs that you have, and so muscle mass, retention, hydration, and the third one is managing GI discomfort.

Proprietary data shows us that about 40% of consumers on a GLP-1 drug are experiencing some type of GI challenge. That's a real and meaningful need. As we think about that with our ADM approach, we want to be able to help our customers design companion products that can serve the needs of these consumers. We have offerings like prebiotic fiber, our fiber salt product. We have offerings in our postbiotic portfolio that can help with digestive challenges. There are a lot of things that you can do to address those challenges. It all comes back to the consumer, what the consumer needs, and in this case, that's one of the key things they need.

Saraceno: You hear it time and time again, the whole gut-brain access and the connection, it's critical. I mean, there's no doubt about that. The research supports it, and everything like that. The other thing I wanted to get into with you, Brad, was that there’s a rise in interest in these gut health solutions, beyond the standard probiotics, including postbiotics.

I've been stopping by a lot of booths, and they're talking about that. Ever since I returned to the industry, before I came that wasn't really a concept. This whole concept is very interesting. They offer formulation flexibility, they're shelf stable with temperature.. How are you at ADM growing to advance these postbiotic applications across different food and beverage formats?

Schwan: You hit on one of the most critical things about postbiotics, and that is the formulation flexibility. And it's a huge unlock. It is a major unlock when you're able to take a biotic and integrate it into all kinds of different formats. I think about the stuff that we are showing here at the show. We have a beverage, we have a brownie, we have soft chews, we have bars—I can keep going—all of which contain postbiotics, because they can, and because now, you've got the ability to deliver these products, and put with postbiotics. You could not do that with probiotics.

We're excited about that big unlock. The other piece that's really relevant to postbiotics is, what is the specific benefit space that you can deliver to the consumer, and what is that? We have a portfolio of postbiotics that we use. The newest one that we have is called CP2305. It rolls, right off the tongue.

It’s a lactobacillus postbiotic, and the research and the clinical studies that we've done suggest that it may help support stress, sleep, and mood. Those are key areas of benefit that the consumer is really interested in. We're very excited about the science there. We're very excited that now we're able to deliver that in a wide variety of formats. I think postbiotics are going to be a real unlock in the food and beverage industry in the coming years.