VEVEY, SWITZERLAND — Nestle S.A. is creating Nestle Health Science S.A. and the Nestle Institute of Health Sciences to allow the company to develop areas of personalized health science nutrition to prevent and treat health conditions.
“The combination of health economics, changing demographics and advances in health science show that our existing health care systems, which focus on treating sick people, are not sustainable and need redesigning,” said Peter Brabeck-Letmathe, chairman of Nestle. “Nestle has the expertise, the science, the resources and the organization to play a major role in seeking alternative solutions. Personalized health science nutrition is about finding efficient and cost effective ways to prevent and treat acute and chronic diseases in the 21st century.”
Nestle Health Science S.A. will incorporate the existing global Nestle HealthCare Nutrition business and have access to external scientific and technological know-how through Nestle’s innovation network and a number of venture capital funds. It will be operational on Jan. 1, 2011.
The Nestle Institute of Health Sciences will be part of Nestle’s global R.&D. network to conduct research in relevant areas of biomedical science to translate that knowledge into nutritional strategies to improve health and longevity. Nestle will invest hundreds of millions of Swiss francs during the next decade to build the Institute of Health Sciences.
“The creation of Nestle Health Science S.A. and the Nestle Institute of Health Sciences is the best way to focus our attention and organize our unique capabilities and competencies to seize this promising business opportunity,” said Paul Bulcke, chief executive officer of Nestle. “The new set-up will give us a pioneering and leading role in this entirely new industry, while at the same time allowing us to keep the necessary focus on Nestle’s extremely important food, beverages and nutrition business, as embodied by our binding promise of Good Food, Good Life.”