What is Microencapsulation?

Brief explanation of SCO2 Microencapsulation Technology in Probiotics

Microencapsulation is a process by which a product is  sealed into miniature, microcapsules that can  release their contents at controlled rates under influences of specified conditions.

Encapsulation is defined as a process  that entrap, envelope or cover a substance into another substance, producing particles in the nanometer (nanoencapsulation), micrometer (micro-encapsulation) or millimeter scale (Lakkis, 2007; Burgain et al., 2011).

The encapsulated substance is usually called  core material, active agent, filler agent, internal phase, or payload phase. A substance used to encapsulate is called  coating membrane,  shell, carrier or wall material, external phase or matrix. The wall material used in food products  e.g. Probiotics or processes should be food grade and must be able to form a barrier between the active agent and its surroundings (Zuidam and Nedovic, 2010).

Microencapsulation technology offers advantages as it  stabilizes the probiotics,  increases their survival during storage,  controls oxidative reactions, ensures sustained or controlled release at the GIT (gastro intestinal tract / digestive system) and above all  improves the shelf-life.

Microencapsulation has been considered a viable technology to overcome  Probiotics Challenges for a long time. However, it’s a fairly complex solution due to a host of factors.

  1. Most techniques used have led to  high stress and degradation of the live bacteria, resulting to low survival rate and reduced load.
  2. The use of various microencapsulation materials leads to  unstable and sometimes non-viable micro-capsules without any protection of the organism
  3. Formulations and innovations around gastric or enteric coating have resulted into  the coating not ‘opening’ or dissolving in the digestive system and thus  not releasing the probiotics at all.

Despite all these challenges with microencapsulation, it still offers the most viable way of reducing the loss of probiotic cell viability.

The Science

What is microencapsulation?

The patented technology that allows 1000× more live probiotics to reach your gut alive.

microencapsulation?

The problem with conventional probiotics

Conventional probiotic capsules look impressive on the label. Marketing promises tens of billions of live bacterial cultures. But the reality between the shelf and your gut is brutal — and most cultures don't survive the journey.

Stomach acid is the first killer. Within minutes of swallowing a typical probiotic, the acidic environment of the stomach (pH 1–2) destroys the vast majority of live cultures. By the time the surviving handful reach the small intestine, where they're actually needed, you're left with a fraction of what was on the label.

Heat is the second killer. Probiotics are living organisms. They die slowly in warm rooms, in transit trucks, in pharmacy shelves. Without proper protection, a capsule that started with 10 billion CFU may have only 1–2 billion by the time you swallow it.

Conventional probiotics face stomach acid, heat, and moisture — most die before reaching the gut.

Conventional probiotics face stomach acid, heat, and moisture — most die before reaching the gut.

What is microencapsulation?

Microencapsulation is a food-science technology that wraps each individual bacterial culture in a microscopic protective coating. Think of it as armour for your probiotics.

The protective shell does three things:

  • Shields against stomach acid — the coating stays intact through the acidic stomach environment.
  • Protects against heat and moisture — extending shelf life from months to years.
  • Targeted release in the small intestine — where the pH shifts, the coating dissolves and releases live cultures exactly where they're needed.

The result: significantly more probiotics arrive alive at their target environment, where they can colonise, multiply, and deliver the benefits the label promised.

Velobiotics™ MEP — each probiotic culture is wrapped in a protective microcapsule.

Velobiotics™ MEP — each probiotic culture is wrapped in a protective microcapsule.

What makes Velobiotics™ MEP different?

Velobiotics™ MEP (Microencapsulated Probiotics) uses a patented supercritical CO₂ process to encapsulate each culture under precisely-controlled conditions. This is not the cheap spray-coating you'll find on supermarket probiotics. It's pharmaceutical-grade microencapsulation engineered specifically for live probiotic delivery.

The patented process produces a coating that:

  • Withstands stomach acid pH as low as 1.0
  • Remains shelf-stable at room temperature for 24+ months
  • Releases cultures specifically when pH rises in the small intestine
  • Allows 1000× more cultures to survive vs. uncoated capsules

The bottom line

If a probiotic doesn't reach your gut alive, it doesn't matter how many billion CFU were on the bottle. Microencapsulation is the difference between marketing claims and real biological impact.

Velobiotics™ MEP is the patented technology that makes the entire Velobiotics range work — every single product, every single brand. It's not optional. It's the foundation.

Powered by MEP

Every brand uses the same delivery.

Nine brands. One patented MEP delivery. All engineered to reach you alive.

Experience the difference

Probiotics that actually work.

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