Japanese Giant Ajinomoto Strikes Deal to Produce Amino Acid for Food Flavorings

11 Feb 2016 --- Ajinomoto, the Japanese food and chemical giant, has set up a production company to make Cysteine Hydrochloride, an amino acid that is used for food product and flavorings.

The new company is part of a joint venture with Japanese technology company Nippon Rika and will begin operating in the second half of 2017.

Currently, Cysteine extracts are mostly produced in China.

But Ajinomoto said its supply was under threat because of “stronger environmental regulations”, exchange rate fluctuations and rising labor costs.

The Japanese food and chemical giant is hoping the joint venture will enable it tap into the growing demand for Cysteine has been rising in recent years, mainly for flavourings.

According to Ajinomoto, by teaming up with Nippon Rika, the pair will take advantage of the fermentations technologies of Ajinomoto and the Cysteine production technologies that Nippon Rika has.

Nippon Rika is a leading company in Cysteine production and has produced Cysteine derivatives mainly for pharmaceutical raw materials since the 1960s.