Senomyx recently announced that its research and license agreement with Nestlé has been extended by two years. The agreement focuses on Senomyx's work in taste receptor research, yielding new flavor ingredients for application in dehydrated, culinary and frozen foods. The deal is structured to give Senomyx royalty payments on sales of Nestlé products containing Senomyx's ingredients. Nestlé has already commercialized food products containing savory materials developed under a separate Senomyx program. Senomyx's research and commercialization agreements include both flavor houses and finished products companies, including Coca-Cola Co., Firmenich and Ajinomoto. Of note for 2008:
- The company's savory enhancer program has already seen commercialization (via Nestlé) in the Pacific Rim and Latin America, with expansion anticipated in Central West Africa and Europe (pending regulatory approval).
- Senomyx has produced a sucralose enhancer, S2383, which the company expects to have applications in beverages and foods, OTC healthcare products and dietary supplements.
- The company believes it has discovered the primary human salt taste receptor, SNMX-29. This discovery is expected to yield sodium reduction flavor materials for its salt enhancer program.
- The cool flavor program has been focused on a number of recent samples that may not have the technical limitations of agents currently on the market.
