The Dunedin biotech company will provide some children and their families in Otago-Southland with free probiotic lozenges, the same as Blis K12 Throat Guard which are sold in retailpharmacies and online.
The families will be identified by the Salvation Army as being in need of additional welfare and are likely to be at higher risk from tonsilitis.
The lozenges contain a strain of probiotic bacteria called Blis 12, which was discovered nearly 20 years ago by Prof John Tagg, of the department of microbiology at the University of Otago.
Prof Tagg discovered it could protect against disease-producing bacteria known to cause tonsilitis and rheumatic fever in some children.
Blis Technologies will give lozenges based on sales from its internet business. Over the next 12 months, it was hoped the project would supply lozenges to about 100 children, every day for a year.
If the programme was successful, it could be rolled out to other regions of New Zealand which were known to have high rates of rheumatic fever.
Blis Technologies had been selling its probiotic product in pharmacies for the past 10 years, with "great support" from consumers and the public.
The management and board decided it was time to acknowledge that support "and give back to the people of New Zealand", company spokesman Mukesh Kumar said.
