General Mills Add DHA to Yoplait Product

12/01/07 DHA omega-3 innovator Martek Biosciences has announced that General Mills has introduced under the Yoplait brand, Yoplait Kids, featuring Martek's life'sDHA. Enhancing the product's nutrition profile, Yoplait Kids 4 oz. yogurt products will utilize Martek's proprietary vegetarian form of DHA omega-3, a fatty acid important for optimal brain, eye, and nervous system development in infants and children. This "on-the-go" yogurt product will provide health-conscious parents with a unique, high quality, nutritious selection to give their children. With 25% less sugar, vitamins, calcium, and now life'sDHA, Yoplait Kids will be available at retailers nationwide mid February.

"We now know that DHA omega-3 is an important part of a healthy diet, especially to support brain health throughout life. We also know that most Americans fall short of the recommended amount of DHA omega-3 they should be eating daily," said Elizabeth Somer, registered dietitian, editor of Nutrition Alert and author of nine nutrition books, including 10 Habits that Mess Up a Woman's Diet, Age-Proof Your Body, Nutrition for a Healthy Pregnancy and The Origin Diet. "Life'sDHA offers consumers a great-tasting, vegetarian way to get more of this critical nutrient."

"We are excited to be working with General Mills on this wholesome, great tasting product. Yoplait, already enjoyed by people everywhere, is now providing children with the opportunity to get life'sDHA omega-3 in a great-tasting yogurt that also provides other key nutrients for health," said Steve Dubin, Martek's CEO.

DHA omega-3 is a long chain omega-3 fatty acid that serves as a primary building block for the brain and the eye and supports brain, eye and cardiovascular health throughout life. There is a large and growing body of scientific evidence demonstrating that people of all ages, from infants to aging adults, benefit from an adequate supply of DHA omega-3 in the diet. Several recent scientific reviews have noted the importance of DHA omega-3 in proper brain and eye development and function, and there are large clinical studies underway to evaluate its role in decreasing the prevalence of certain neurological disorders. Yet despite its importance, Americans have among the lowest dietary intakes of DHA omega-3 in the world.

Martek's life'sDHA is claimed to be unique in the market because it is derived from a sustainable and vegetarian source. Made from microalgae under tightly controlled manufacturing conditions, life'sDHA is free of oceanic contaminants that may be present in certain fish or fish oils. Microalgae are the only vegetarian source of DHA omega-3, the key omega-3 for brain development and function.