The prebiotic market has moved a long way since 2020, from broad “supports digestion” claims toward much sharper conversations about microbiome composition, gut barrier function, synbiotics, and precision nutrition, and Livaux® always shows up as a strong contender.

Livaux® won in both Asia and the USA in its very first finalist year in the awards, a strong signal in a category that was dominated by isolated fibres and bulk prebiotics.

This recognition was built on the randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial (Blatchford et al., 2017), which had shown that in functionally constipated adults, 2,400 mg of Livaux® per day doubled Faecalibacterium prausnitzii levels over four weeks. The Livaux® story is built on the belief that prebiotics should not just be about adding fibre, but about supporting the gut microbiome and health.

Livaux® picked up finalist selections in both Asia and Europe in 2021. In the same year, the US patent covering its composition and use was formally granted to Anagenix, demonstrating that Livaux® is not just any normal prebiotic: pectin-rich fibre, polyphenols, vitamins, and minerals, all in one clean-label ingredient. Many conventional prebiotics centre on a single isolated substrate. Livaux® brings a whole matrix to the table.

2021 was a year of growing the science and expanding recognition globally.

2022 was the biggest year for Livaux® at the NutraIngredients Awards, Livaux® won in Asia, Europe, and the USA in the same calendar year, becoming the first ingredient to take the NutraIngredients Prebiotic of the Year title across all three regions at once.

This rare achievement is known as the “Triple Crown” and is prestigious as the awards are judged by independent regional expert panelists, so to win three regions at once is not a common feat.

2022 was the year where the science and whole-fruit approach earned recognition across the global stage.

Asia and Europe both named Livaux® a finalist again in 2023.

A Japanese patent was granted, which extended protection into another strategically important market.

What 2023 really reinforced is that fruit-based prebiotic science isn’t only about how much fibre you throw at the gut, but that the type of fibre matters. Livaux® contains complex kiwifruit cell-wall polysaccharides, including high-methoxy pectin, alongside its wider whole-fruit matrix. This offers a potential explanation for its targeted relationship with F. prau, a butyrate-producing member of the gut microbiome.

Asia named Livaux® a finalist for the third year running in 2024.

Anagenix also commissioned molecular systems modelling that year, exploring possible pathways through which Livaux’s constituents might influence gut motility, mucus production, and inflammatory signalling.

The science story was also becoming more defined at the composition level. A 2024 compositional analysis identified 41 phenolic compounds across 27 compound classes in Livaux®, compared to the 9 in inulin, reinforcing the idea that whole fruit offers more than fibre alone.

In 2025, an in-vitro gut-fermentation study found that Livaux® increased butyrate production by up to 260% under the tested conditions. Butyrate is a short-chain fatty acid that acts as an energy source for colonocytes, produced by gut bacteria such as F. prau.

The same year, publication of a 28-day randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled human trial brought the low-dose Livaux® story into focus. Just 600 mg per day increased F. prau abundance and supported improvements in bowel regularity, stool form and digestive comfort, including bloating, from baseline in individuals with occasional constipation.

Many prebiotics require gram-level daily doses, which can limit flexibility across compact delivery formats. With a clinically evaluated dose of 600 mg per day, Livaux® gives formulators more room to build convenient capsules, gummies, sachets and other consumer-friendly products.

In synbiotic formulations, Livaux® can be used at even lower inclusion levels, from 25 mg per billion CFU, to support the growth of selected probiotics in vitro up to 200%. This opens opportunities for genuinely compact formulations that combine Livaux® with selected probiotics.

Alongside the low-dose research, 2026 brought a deeper understanding of Livaux’s whole-fruit matrix. Compositional analysis revealed a substantial non-extractable polyphenol (NEPP) fraction containing approximately 90% more polyphenols than the extractable fraction, highlighting bioactive complexity beyond fibre and readily extractable polyphenols.

This growing science story was recognised with Livaux’s sixth win: Ingredient of the Year: Microbiome Modulation at the NutraIngredients-Asia Awards, with a finalist selection in Europe alongside it. Six years. Twelve finalist selections. Six wins.

First-generation fibres, think psyllium husk and oat fibre, focus on bulk and regularity, typically at gram-level doses. Second-generation gut health ingredients, like inulin and FOS, shift the focus to feeding beneficial gut microbes through isolated prebiotic fibres, but still mostly require gram-level intake, which can cause gas, bloating and other digestive side effects.

Livaux® is a different generation entirely, because it combines a whole-fruit bioactive matrix with a much more precise microbiome target:

• Made from 100% non-GMO New Zealand gold kiwifruit
• Naturally contains pectin-rich fibre, polyphenols, vitamins, and minerals, together, not isolated
• Clinically researched for its effect on F. prau
• Effective at 600mg, built for modern supplement and functional food formats
• 25mg for synbiotic and postbiotic formulations where formula space is tight

Livaux® is a fruit-derived platform built for a category that now cares as much about microbial diversity and gut barrier function as it does about basic regularity.

Six wins and twelve finalist selections are the headline, but they’re not the whole story. What sits behind them is a clinically researched whole-fruit ingredient, backed by patents across multiple markets, built around a keystone bacterium.

As the microbiome category keeps evolving, formulators need ingredients that work across capsules, powders, gummies, beverages, and synbiotic systems, without giving up on dose, clean label, or credibility. Formulators building full-spectrum gut-health propositions often pair Livaux® with Actazin®, Anagenix’s green kiwifruit ingredient, for combined prebiotic and whole-fruit fibre support, and can access both through Anagenix’s global distributor network. That’s exactly what Livaux® was built for.

Explore the science of Livaux®  |  Discover Livaux® formulation concepts

What is the recommended dose of Livaux®?

Livaux® has been clinically evaluated at 600 mg per day in a 28-day randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled human trial. At this low daily dose, the study reported increased Faecalibacterium prausnitzii abundance alongside improvements from baseline in bowel regularity, stool form and digestive comfort, including bloating.

Earlier clinical research evaluated Livaux® at 2,400 mg per day over four weeks in healthy adults and adults with functional constipation. The appropriate inclusion level will depend on the finished product format, intended consumer benefit, market and local regulatory requirements.

How much Livaux® is needed in synbiotic formulations?

Livaux® can be included from 25 mg per billion CFU in synbiotic formulations where space is limited. In-vitro research has shown that, when paired with selected probiotics, Livaux® may support probiotic growth by up to 200% under the tested conditions.

This makes it suitable for compact formats such as capsules, sticks, gummies and other products where conventional gram-level prebiotic doses can be difficult to accommodate.

How many clinical studies have been conducted on Livaux®?

Livaux® has been investigated in two published human clinical trials:

• A 2017 randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial in adults with functional constipation, using 2,400 mg per day for four weeks.
• A 28-day randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled human trial published in 2025, evaluating a 600 mg daily dose.

These clinical studies are complemented by in-vitro gut-fermentation research, compositional analyses and molecular systems-modelling work. The evidence should be interpreted according to each study’s design, population and endpoints as in-vitro findings do not necessarily predict outcomes in people.

Is Livaux® a natural ingredient?

Yes. Livaux® is made from 100% non-GMO New Zealand gold kiwifruit. It is a whole-fruit ingredient, gently freeze-dried using proprietary Target Bio-Lock™ technology to retain the fruit’s naturally occurring matrix of pectin-rich fibre, polyphenols, vitamins and minerals.

Rather than supplying a single isolated fibre, Livaux® delivers multiple kiwifruit-derived constituents together in a clean-label, fruit-based format.

Is Livaux® simply a fibre ingredient?

No. Livaux® naturally contains dietary fibre, including complex kiwifruit cell-wall polysaccharides and high-methoxy pectin, but its proposed mode of action goes beyond fibre quantity alone. Its whole-fruit matrix also contains polyphenols and other naturally occurring compounds that may interact with the gut ecosystem.

Livaux® has been clinically researched for its relationship with F. prausnitzii, an important butyrate-producing member of the gut microbiome. This microbiome-focused approach distinguishes it from conventional bulk-fibre ingredients designed primarily for regularity.

What is Faecalibacterium prausnitzii and why does it matter?

Faecalibacterium prausnitzii, often abbreviated to F. prau, is a common beneficial gut bacterium associated with the production of butyrate. Butyrate is a short-chain fatty acid used by colon cells as an energy source and is an important area of interest in microbiome research.

In Livaux® clinical research, supplementation increased F. prau abundance. Separate in-vitro fermentation work found up to a 260% increase in butyrate production under the tested conditions. These are different types of evidence: the clinical trials assessed outcomes in people, while the fermentation findings describe results in a laboratory model.

What product formats can use Livaux®?

Livaux® is designed for use in supplements, functional foods and synbiotic systems. Its clinically evaluated 600 mg daily dose can enable compact, consumer-friendly formats, including:

• Capsules and tablets
• Gummies
• Sachets and stick packs
• Powder blends
• Functional beverages
• Synbiotic and postbiotic formulations

Final formulation, serving size, stability work and permissible claims should be assessed for each specific market and product concept.