# Dr. Metz ## Facts | | | |---|---| | Founded | 1950 | | Origin | Germany | | Headquarters | Kelkheim (Taunus), Hesse, Germany | | Status | Active | | Manufacturing | Kelkheim (Taunus), Germany | | Distribution | Multi-channel | | Website | https://drmetz.de/ | Dr. Metz is a German family company based in Kelkheim (Taunus), in the state of Hesse, that has made products from liquid brewer's yeast since 1950 [2]. It was founded by Heinrich Metz around Panaktiv, a drinkable brewer's-yeast preparation that the company describes as the first liquid brewer's-yeast product in the world. Over the following decades the range widened into plant-based foods such as sprouted-grain muesli, mineral powders, oils, berry juices and teas, but brewer's yeast has stayed at the centre of the business. The brand's place in beauty is small and grows directly out of that yeast heritage. Its only cosmetic product is Hefe Hautkur, a brewer's-yeast face mask, and the company also promotes its yeast and mineral products as nutrition for skin, hair and nails. Dr. Metz calls itself a third-generation family business, makes its products in its own plant in Kelkheim and remains active, with a working online shop and regular customer publications. ## Origin & founders Heinrich Metz, whom the company calls a brewer's-yeast pioneer, founded the firm in 1950 [2]. According to the company's account, he drew on the results of his own medical research to develop a brewer's-yeast product "for everyone". That product was Panaktiv, and the company looks back on its launch as a genuine start-up of its day. The problem Metz set out to solve is easy to describe. The nutrients in brewer's yeast sit inside a tough cell wall, which makes them hard for the body to digest. The company says Heinrich Metz managed to develop a yeast whose contents the body can readily absorb, and it gives the name Metz-Verfahren ("Metz process") to the method behind it. Dr. Metz describes the process as purely biological and says high-quality fruit juices are added along the way. Panaktiv, it states, is still made by this method without change [2]. The claim that Panaktiv was the first liquid brewer's-yeast product worldwide comes from the company itself and has not been independently confirmed. The same is true of its description of brewer's yeast as the natural product with the highest natural vitamin B content. ## History & milestones The company did not begin where it is based today. According to its own history, Dr. Metz started out in Bielefeld and Hamburg, moved towards Frankfurt in the 1960s and later settled in Kelkheim, in the green Taunus region [2]. Panaktiv also shaped how the company reached its customers. Dr. Metz says that its liquid yeast made it one of the first suppliers to Reformhaus health-food stores and to pharmacies [2]. The company gives no year for this step. Over time, the company says, new products joined the range, each chosen because it is naturally rich in vitamins and minerals and prepared without additives. Today its catalogue is organised around everyday eating rather than supplements. It covers vitamin-rich brewer's yeast, plant minerals, breakfast foods, alkaline nutrition, fibre for digestion, plant proteins, whole-fruit berry juices, omega oils, cranberry products, teas and books on health and nutrition. Among the named products are CereGran, an organic muesli made entirely from sprouted barley and spelt, sweet-lupin protein products, tiger-nut spreads and flakes, and juices made from wild berries. The company marked 75 years in business in 2025. Its website speaks of 75 years in which the family business has developed Dr. Metz products "with professional expertise" [1]. ## Ownership Dr. Metz is operated by Dr. Metz KG, a German limited partnership registered with the local court in Königstein under the number HRA 1552 and with its address in Kelkheim [3]. In this legal form at least one partner carries unlimited personal liability; for Dr. Metz KG that partner is Gertraud Metz, who represents the company [3]. The company's legal notice also names Dr. Kathrin Metz-Müller as responsible for its editorial content. Dr. Metz describes itself as a family company in its third generation. No corporate parent, outside investor, acquisition or sister brand is known. ## Philosophy & positioning The company's tagline is "Vitaminreich essen – für Gesundheit und Vitalität", which translates as "Eat rich in vitamins – for health and vitality". Dr. Metz says it develops purely plant-based products whose natural vitamin and nutrient content is high enough that added vitamins are unnecessary [1]. It states that it uses no additives and no added vitamins in manufacturing, a position it sums up with the line "healthy food needs no chemistry set". Behind this sits a clear argument. The company holds that vitamins which occur naturally in food are better absorbed by the body than vitamin concentrates or fortified foods, and it presents its products as valuable everyday foods rather than one-sided dietary supplements. Under the heading "Wissenschaftlich bestätigt" ("scientifically confirmed"), its website states that vitamins, minerals, fibre and plant compounds work best in natural products. No study or reference is given for this statement on the page. Dr. Metz summarises its own values in three words: proven, effective and reliable. It frames its products as easy to fit into daily life, stirred into breakfast muesli or yoghurt, added to salads and vegetable dishes, or drunk as vitamin-rich beverages. The company's legal notice names an EU organic control body (DE-ÖKO-013). That organic certification relates to the products the company sells as "Bio", such as its linseed oil. No source states that the Hefe Hautkur mask is organic, and no third-party cosmetic certifications are documented. ## Products & innovation ### Panaktiv Panaktiv remains the company's founding product. Dr. Metz describes it as a source of natural vitamins B1, B2, B6 and B12, folic acid, biotin and niacin. The company explains that the yeast it uses is the species *Saccharomyces cerevisiae carlsbergensis*, which grows on nutrient-rich barley malt during brewing. It argues that keeping the yeast in liquid form preserves intact cells and shields the delicate vitamins from light and oxygen. The company's magazine surrounds the product with history and lore. It says that people in ancient Egypt used brewer's yeast as a strengthening staple food and remedy, and that in the 1920s the Red Cross used brewer's yeast to fight a vitamin B and protein deficiency among poor communities in the American South. These accounts come from the company's own publications. ### Hefe Hautkur The company's only skincare line sits in a category it calls "Hefe für schöne Haut" ("yeast for beautiful skin"), which lists a single product: Hefe Hautkur, a 15 ml brewer's-yeast mask [4]. Dr. Metz says brewer's yeast supplies a care complex of B vitamins, amino acids and minerals such as zinc, which it calls the right building blocks for active skin metabolism. According to the company, the mask removes skin impurities and loosens old skin cells and residue from the pores. It also claims the mask leaves the skin feeling refreshed and with better circulation, and that regular use gives a finer-pored, more even complexion [8]. For mature skin, the company says the yeast adds moisture and suppleness and compares the result to a natural "lifting". It also suggests using the mask on rough elbows, knees and hands, on the heels and toes, and on flaky, itchy patches along the hairline or eyebrows, where it is washed out with the next shampoo. The company links the mask to an old beauty story. Its magazine retells the tale, which it labels a myth, that Cleopatra preferred warm beer with yeast in it to any other bath additive. ### Beauty from within Most of what Dr. Metz says about beauty concerns nutrition for skin, hair and nails rather than topical care. Its magazine names biotin, niacin, vitamin B2, zinc and protein as nutrients linked to healthy skin, and says all of them occur in brewer's yeast. The company gives a biotin content of 21 micrograms per 100 ml of liquid brewer's yeast, set against a daily requirement it puts at 40 micrograms. It suggests pairing a wholegrain breakfast with a glass of liquid yeast later in the day. Alongside Panaktiv, the company markets Minactiv, a plant-based mineral powder that it describes as rich in plant calcium, iron, magnesium and zinc, as support for healthy hair, skin and nails. The company presents both products as food rather than as cosmetics or medicines. ### Manufacturing All Dr. Metz products are made in the company's own factory in Kelkheim. The company says it produces them fresh on a regular basis and handles everything from development and production to shipping itself. ## Current status Dr. Metz is an active, independent company. It sells directly to consumers through its own online shop, which advertises delivery "direct from the manufacturer", and it also supplies trade customers. Resellers, naturopaths, wholesalers and bricks-and-mortar shops can obtain special terms and free samples on request [7]. The company publishes a monthly email newsletter on nutrition and medicine, with recipes and book tips, and a quarterly customer magazine. It also maintains Instagram and Facebook accounts. The company's website is published in German, and no export markets are documented. ## Timeline {#belagg-timeline} | Year | Event | Source | |---|---|---| | 1950 | Heinrich Metz founds Dr. Metz with the liquid brewer's-yeast product Panaktiv | https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ | | — | After starting in Bielefeld and Hamburg, the company moves towards Frankfurt in the 1960s and later to Kelkheim in the Taunus | https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ | | — | Through Panaktiv, Dr. Metz becomes one of the first suppliers to Reformhaus health-food stores and pharmacies (no year given) | https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ | ## Signature products {#belagg-products} - **Panaktiv® (cellular liquid brewer's yeast)** — Damals ein richtiges Start-Up, denn Panaktiv® war das erste flüssige Bierhefe-Produkt weltweit. — https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ - **Hefe Hautkur (brewer's-yeast face mask, 15 ml)** — Bierhefe gibt es auch als Pflegemaske Hefe Hautkur zum Auftragen auf die Haut: — https://drmetz.de/magazin/bierhefe-biotin-und-zink-fuer-haut-haare-naegel/ - **Minactiv® (plant-based mineral powder)** — Minactiv® ist von Natur aus reich an pflanzlichen Mineralstoffen und unterstützt so ganz natürlich Ihre tägliche Ernährung für gesunde Haare, Haut und Nägel: — https://drmetz.de/magazin/bierhefe-biotin-und-zink-fuer-haut-haare-naegel/ ## Key ingredients {#belagg-ingredients} brewer's yeast (Bierhefe; cellular liquid brewer's yeast) Source: https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ ## Proprietary technologies & patents {#belagg-tech} - Metz-Verfahren (biological process that makes brewer's yeast bioavailable; used for Panaktiv) — https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ ## Sources 1. (T1) https://drmetz.de/ 2. (T1) https://drmetz.de/footer/informationen/ueber-uns/ 3. (T2) https://drmetz.de/impressum 4. (T2) https://drmetz.de/produkte/hautpflege/ 7. (T2) https://drmetz.de/footer/einkaufen-im-ueberblick/grosskunden/ 8. (T2) https://drmetz.de/magazin/bierhefe-biotin-und-zink-fuer-haut-haare-naegel/ --- Glowpedia · · Published 2026-09-30 Please cite with a link to the article URL.