HEALTH & FOOD

In Midi-Pyrenees, we have always been interested in the quality of what consumers put onthe table. The food industry is one of the primary economic activities in the region (with a workforce of 25,000 in some 4.100 establishments).
Midi-Pyrenees was the first region in France to create a regional institute for agri-food quality (IRQUALIM) in 1992. Today, it continues to lead in terms of the number of products bearing its quality label (108), including those produced using quantified organic methodology.

Quality Labels
	IRQUALIM: Regional Institute for the quality of agricultural products in the Midi-Pyrenees  ECOCERT: certification society in order to guarantee the respect of the standards specific to organic agriculture AFNOR: French association for standardization, homologation and distribution of standards, information, training, consulting service, product certification etc...

HEALTH SAFETY OF FOODSTUFFS

The region is well equiped in European terms as teams from the region particpate in 8 European Union projects as well as the Network of Excellence (NoE) CASCADE ("Cheminals as Contaminants in the Food Chain : a NoE for Research, risk assessment, education and formation").

In addition, the PCN (National Contact Point) "Food Quality and Safety" is based in Toulouse.

 

Some of the companies involved in Food Quality and Traceability

ALPHA MOS: instruments for monotoring quality/conformity and taste&odour features of products BIOQUAL: consulting laboratory in foog hygiene, accredited by COFRAC BIOSENTEC: enzymatic measurement biosensors of biochemical compounds (glucose, fructose) FORMULACTION : instruments design for concentrated dispersion analysis HYGIDIAG : legionellose detection  LABHYA: samples, analysis, training in monitoring food hygiene, disease detection, legionella, residual water LARA-Europe ANALYSES: quality control analysis for food industry, agriculture, environment, pharmacy … LBP AGROPHARMA: analytical microbiology and eco-toxicology NEOSENS: measurment solutions (dissolved oxygen, biofilm, pH, ORP, turbidity, conductivity) QUALIBOO: food quality systems GAVARD, PHYLUM, PASCAL BOUSSELET ... : evaluation and consultancy

  

HEALTHY FOOD

In the food/health field, an original complex based on multi-disciplinarity and partnership between research and industry was established in 2001 to create a structure for collaboration and work centered on nutrition, food and health in Midi-Pyrenees.

Two characteristics of the Food Health complex: running a multi-disciplinar research program, resulting from the work of Toulouse's academic laboratories, and initiating an approach for technology tranfer and exploitation oriented towards innovation and the creation of new products, in partnership with the industries of Midi-Pyrenees.

In the field of research, three essential areas of work exist in parallel:
- Probiotics and Prebiotics,
- Anti-Oxidants and Phyto-Estrogens,
- Clinical evaluation and the impact of food supplements on health.
Academic teams participate in four European projects.

Some of the companies involved in Food Quality and Traceability

ACTICHEM: neutraceutics BIOGEMMA: plant biotechnologies, seed development COGNIS: manufacturing of fatty alcohols hydrogeneration high pressure, methyl esters and sterols DIETETIQUE et SANTÉ: medication, tisanes (Boldoflorine) and nutritional supplements  FONDEREPHAR: pre-clinical services, cellular tests, microbial engineering GENIBIO: research, development, and manufacture in agri-foods biotechnology (active plant and microbial substances in nutraceutical applications and cosmetics) Groupe SANTÉ RECHERCHE: clinical research INSTITUT JERODIA: nutritional supplements and cosmetics LALLEMAND: probiotics and biosupplements to the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries NUTERGIA: vitamin and mineral complements  NUTRITION et SANTÉ: functional and dietary food PHYSIOGENEX: pre-clinical trials on metabolic diseases PLANTES et INDUSTRIE: active ingredients and raw mateirals for pharmaceutical, dermo-cosmetic products, veterinary medications and nutraceutical SEPIPROD: surface-active agents and derived formulations, polymers, pharmaceutical excipients and veterinary products SYMBIOTEC: probiotics and biosupplements to the nutraceutical industry

METABOLIC DISEASES

This therapeutic area (primarily diabetes and obesity) is a mojor growth sector for pharmaceutical companies. In our region it accounts for 150 private sector posts, with roughly a hundred public sector researchers, and several laboratories that are leaders in their fields, particularly in lipidic metabolism, participation in the European programs and networks:

     - NuGénOb (Nutrient Gene Interaction in Human Obesity),
     - EVGN  (European Vascular Genomics Network)  
     - Joint French-Czech laboratory for clinical research on obesity, INSERM (Toulouse) and Charles University (Prague).