REG has expanded its offerings into the bioproducts market. Its REG Life Sciences Division has delivered a specialty fatty acid, its first commercial product, to Aroma Chemical Services (ACS) International. REG has been working closely with ACS, a specialty manufacturer and supplier of flavor and fragrance ingredients, to develop and bring to market fragrance and flavor derivatives based on the REG Life Sciences’ proprietary technology. ACS will use the specialty chemical for the production of a high performance musk ingredient for sale into the $620 million global musk ingredient market.
“We are proud to have achieved this key milestone and are confident that the musk will enjoy commercial success, creating growing demand for our multi-functional fatty acid,” said Eric M. Bowen, head of REG Life Sciences and Vice President, Corporate Business Development & Legal Affairs. “We have identified over 500 candidate compounds from our platform, several of which we believe could lead to attractive follow-on opportunities in the global musk market.”
According to REG Life Sciences, fatty acids are one of three product areas the company has been focused on along with esters and alcohols. Work on this product began last year after REG and ACS identified the specialty fatty acid as particularly well suited for the production of a high performance musk.
ACS leaders welcomed delivery of the renewable chemical. “We are very excited to see our joint efforts come to fruition through a powerful combination of industrial biotechnology and unique processing solutions,” said Koenraad Vanhessche, Vice President, Innovation and Business Development at ACS. “Moreover, this integrated fatty acid synthetic biology platform is the first of its kind in the field of flavor and fragrance and enables quick and cost-effective access to a plethora of targets previously beyond anyone’s scope.”
Dan Hirlea, CEO of ACS International, added, “Our partnership has deliberately targeted key ingredients in the flavor and fragrance industry. When combined with the other components of the ACS International business model, namely sustainability, reliability, creativity and respect, it will allow us to drive this project to its successful conclusion.“