Sales and markets

This is what Novozymes has been working for in close concert with our partners for a number of years, and we are now on the brink of commercialization.

Milestones in 2011
In the US, the Environmental Protection Agency approved E15 gasoline (15% ethanol) for vehicle model year 2001 onward. The previous “blend wall” allowing only 10% ethanol to be blended in gasoline had threatened to prevent further growth in biofuel production and compliance with the Renewable Fuel Standard. While commercial challenges remain, this landmark decision offers a clear way forward for increased use of biofuel in the US.

Meanwhile, the US Departments of Energy and Agriculture continued to support advanced biofuels by providing funding and loan guarantees for the first commercial plants. Novozymes’ partner POET as well as other companies received loan guarantees under these programs during the year. In addition, the Department of Defense announced that it will invest up to USD 510 million over the next 3 years in the production of advanced “drop-in” aviation and marine biofuels for military and commercial transportation.

In Italy, Novozymes’ partner Mossi & Ghisolfi Group began work on what is expected to be the world’s first commercial-scale plant for advanced biofuels. The facility is due to be fully operational by mid-2012, producing roughly 50 million liters a year from energy crops and wheat straw.

China announced considerable support for advanced biofuels in its 5-year plan for 2011–2015. Acknowledging that advanced biofuels are in their infancy, the government will provide support for industrial players to commence construction of the first commercial facilities over the next 5 years. Novozymes’ Chinese partners COFCO and Sinopec plan to bring an advanced biofuel plant with a capacity of 50 million liters on line within the next few years.

Novozymes launched the first commercially viable enzyme for the production of biofuel from agricultural waste early in 2010. With the first commercial plants now becoming operational, and all the industrial and political initiatives being launched around the world, we look forward to learning how the technology scales, driving further improvements and commercial opportunities.

Realizing this, Novozymes hosted the first Copenhagen Detergent Sustainability Summit in 2009. Held in conjunction with the UN Climate Change Conference (COP15), it brought together key representatives of a range of detergent manufacturers, retailers, and NGOs to spearhead work toward a more sustainable and profitable future for the industry. The summit concluded that the way to achieve real progress was to expand cooperation not only up and down the value chain, but also sideways to include a range of other raw material producers, such as chemical companies.

Second sustainability summit
In December 2011, Novozymes hosted the second summit, which fulfilled the promise of broad participation of all players in the value chain. The presentations and discussions explored two ways of making laundry greener: new technical solutions and changes in consumer behavior.

Speakers from Asda, P&G, Henkel, Unilever, BASF, AkzoNobel, Method, Whirlpool, and Ecolab addressed topics such as consumer trends, the needs of developing and emerging markets, and technologies for compact detergents and low-temperature washes. Also presented were the results of a study that concluded that the fact-driven approach to sustainability that most companies rightly take is not necessarily what changes consumer behavior.

The context of consumer needs is important too, and the study revealed rather surprisingly that health and safety, for example, are of increasing importance to consumers in emerging markets, while those in developed markets are still driven very much by traditional factors such as cost and time savings.

Toward greener detergents
Novozymes’ enzyme solutions for the household care industry improve the performance of detergents at low temperatures, enable the formulation of more compact products, and are readily biodegradable. With their unique catalytic action, enzymes are a low-volume ingredient that can reduce the need for oil-based ingredients and chemicals such as surfactants and phosphates that traditionally make up the bulk of detergents.

Interaction with other players in the value chain is important for Novozymes in a number of ways. First and foremost, we can position ourselves as a key technology enabler in the industry. By investing resources in bringing together the players in the value chain, we demonstrate our commitment to invest in our customers’ agendas and drive change. This also generates crucial input for our internal development processes, providing the context needed to come up with new and improved enzyme solutions for our global partners.

Through industry associations and technical innovation collaborations, players across the industry are committed to making detergent products with a reduced environmental impact. We aim to lead the industry toward more sustainable products and have committed to continue hosting the Copenhagen Household Care Sustainability Summit on a biennial basis.

HA is a naturally occurring polysaccharide found throughout the human body in tissues such as skin and cartilage. It functions as a binding and protecting agent in tissue hydration and lubrication, making it well suited to a wide range of biomedical applications such as medical devices and drug delivery.

Product of the highest purity
Commercial hyaluronic acid on the market today is derived from either rooster combs or attenuated strains of Streptococcus bacteria, both of which are associated with a number of challenges. Owing to the risk of animal-derived contamination of the final product, the use of HA from rooster combs is in decline, and Streptococcus-based production has become more prevalent. However, as Streptococcus is inherently pathogenic to humans, it is not the ideal production organism.

In an effort to overcome these shortcomings, Novozymes has developed Novozymes Hyasis^®, the next generation of high-quality HA, which is produced using the safe, nonpathogenic host Bacillus subtilis and offers unprecedented safety, consistency, and performance. Our proprietary technology also improves the recovery process by replacing traditional solvent-based solutions with water-based techniques.

The product offers numerous advantages for medical devices as well as drug delivery and formulation. It can be used in many clinical applications, such as adhesion prevention, dermal fillers, tissue engineering materials, wound healing, and sealants/hemostats, as well as a range of ophthalmology and osteoarthritis applications.

Production complies fully with international requirements for the manufacture of active pharmaceutical ingredients (ICH Q7) and will enable all regulatory requirements for the use of HA in drug products to be met. The new plant is located in the TEDA district outside Tianjin in close proximity to Novozymes’ existing enzyme production.