March 30, 2006 01:22 ET
Holland Sweetener Company to exit from aspartame business
Holland Sweetener Company VoF (HSC) has today announced its decision to withdraw from the aspartame business, including Twinsweet. HSC is a 50/50 joint venture between Royal DSM N.V. (the Netherlands) and Tosoh Corporation (Japan). The company will terminate its activities at the end of 2006 and as a consequence will discontinue the production of aspartame in the fourth quarter of 2006.
HEERLEN, NETHERLANDS -- (MARKET WIRE) -- March 30, 2006 --
The global aspartame markets are facing structural oversupply,
which
has caused worldwide strong price erosion over the last 5 years.
This
has resulted in a persistently unprofitable business position for
HSC. No significant improvements are expected in the near or
foreseeable future. The decision to withdraw from this business is
in
line with DSM's Vision 2010 - Building on Strengths strategy, in
which profitable innovative growth and value creation are key
objectives.
The termination of HSC's business operations will affect around
100
jobs on the site in Geleen (the Netherlands). DSM expects to be
able
to re-assign the majority of these people to other positions. The
social plan of DSM Limburg is applicable.
DSM does not expect the decision to have a material impact on its
overall corporate financial performance in 2006. In Q1 2006 DSM
will
- in relation to this decision- record an exceptional item of
approximately EUR 10 million net.
About DSM
DSM is active worldwide in nutritional and pharma ingredients,
performance materials and industrial chemicals. The company
creates
innovative products and services that help improve the quality of
life. DSM's products are used in a wide range of end markets and
applications such as human and animal nutrition and health,
cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, automotive and transport, coatings,
housing and electrics & electronics (E&E). DSM's strategy, named
Vision 2010 - Building on Strengths, focuses on accelerating
profitable and innovative growth of the company's specialties
portfolio. Market-driven growth, innovation and increased presence
in
emerging economies are key drivers of this strategy. The group has
annual sales of over EUR 8 billion and employs some 22,000 people
worldwide. DSM ranks among the global leaders in many of its
fields.
The company is headquartered in the Netherlands, with locations in
Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. More information about DSM
can
be found at www.dsm.com.
About Holland Sweetener Company
Holland Sweetener Company (HSC) is a 50/50 joint venture between
DSM
(the Netherlands) and Tosoh (Japan) established in 1985. A unique
aspartame process was developed using technology from both
parents.
In 1988, the first aspartame production unit was started up in the
Netherlands, with subsequent expansions making HSC the largest
aspartame producer in Europe. HSC supplies customers all over the
world from its plant in the Netherlands via a global network of
sales
offices, agents and distributors.
Twinsweet™ was discovered in 1995 as part of a research program
to
develop aspartame-based new sweetener concepts for the food and
nutraceutical industries. HSC has filed several patents on the
Twinsweet™ product, the production process and the use of the
product. More information about HSC can be found at
www.hollandsweetener.com.
For more information:
DSM Corporate Communications DSM Investor Relations
Nelleke Barning Dries Ausems
tel. +31 (0) 45 5782017 tel. +31 (0) 45 5782864
fax +31 (0) 45 5740680 fax +31 (0) 45 5782595
e-mail media.relations@dsm.com e-mail investor.relations@dsm.com
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