Nowadays an impressive number of processed foods, feeds, cosmetics, pharmaceutical and chemical formulations contain extra‐added (pro)vitamins or vitamin‐related compounds, and single and multivitamin preparations are commonly taken or prescribed. Apart from their in vivo nutritional‐physiological roles as essential growth factors and coenzymes for man, animals, plants and microorganisms, vitamins and related compounds are increasingly being introduced as food and as feed additives, as medical‐therapeutical agents, as health promoting aids. Today, modern society is seldom confronted with the notorious avitaminoses of the past, well known to the Western World, but they do still occur frequently in overpopulated, war‐ridden, poverty‐ or famine‐struck regions on our globe, as well as for surprisingly large population groups in developed countries. However, current food habits or preferences, food availabilities, as well as food processing, preservation or cooking methodologies and technologies, do not always assure a sufficient balanced natural daily (pro)vitamin supply to a healthy individual, and even more so for a stressed or sick human being. Everyone of us needs his/her daily intake of (pro)vitamins and antioxidants, normally provided by a balanced and varied diet. These terms sound synonymous to vitality, good health and mental strenght, even to the layman. Vitamins and related compounds, such as provitamins, biopigments and antioxidants, belong to those few chemicals that appeal in a positive way to most people. Need for efficient bio‐production systems for vitamin, biopigments, antioxidants and related health factors
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