SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 1, 2012–-Senomyx, Inc. (NASDAQ: SNMX), a company using proprietary taste science technologies to discover novel flavor ingredients for the food, beverage, and ingredient supply industries, announced today that its new flavor ingredient, S9632, has been determined to be Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) under the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, administered by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Taste tests have demonstrated that S9632, which was discovered and developed by Senomyx, can be used to restore the desired taste profile in a wide variety of foods and selected beverages wherein sucrose (common table sugar) has been reduced. Sucrose is widely used in many food and beverage products. The GRAS determination allows S9632 to be incorporated into specified products in the U.S. and in numerous other countries.
“S9632 provides Senomyx with an important new commercial opportunity,” stated Kent Snyder, Chief Executive Officer of the Company. “The rising consumer focus on health and wellness has increased the demand for foods and beverages with reduced calories. S9632 is a solution for manufacturers seeking to create new offerings that meet this need, but retain the taste consumers enjoy.”
The GRAS status allows usage of S9632 in a broad range of non-alcoholic beverages including powdered and concentrated beverages, along with ready-to-drink and powdered forms of dairy, coffee and tea products. In addition, S9632 may be used with alcoholic beverages, as well as a variety of foods, including dairy products, confectioneries, snack foods, and sauces. Numerous individual product types are included in each of these product categories. Firmenich, a Senomyx partner, has exclusive rights to commercialize S9632 for the food product categories and shares co-exclusive rights in the powdered beverage category with the Company. Senomyx maintains exclusive rights for all other non-alcoholic beverages and is currently evaluating various commercialization strategies for S9632 in those categories.
About Senomyx, Inc. (www.senomyx.com)
Senomyx is using proprietary taste science technologies to discover and develop novel flavor ingredients. These include new flavors such as Savory Flavors and Cooling Flavors, as well as Bitter Blockers and modifiers of Sweet and Salt tastes. Senomyx is also engaged in a new effort to discover and develop natural high-potency sweeteners. The Company has collaborative agreements with global food, beverage, and ingredient supply companies, some of which are currently marketing products that contain Senomyx’s flavor ingredients. Its corporate socially responsible activities are described on the Senomyx Cares blog at http://www.senomyx-csrblog.com/. For more information, please visit www.senomyx.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
Statements contained in this press release regarding matters that are not historical facts are "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding: the expected benefits and potential market for S9632; the ability of S9632 to restore the desired taste profile in food and beverage products; the extent to which the company’s collaborators or other packaged food and beverage manufacturers will incorporate the company’s new flavor ingredients into packaged food and beverage products; and the Company’s current activities to evaluate various commercialization strategies for S9632 in the non-alcoholic and powdered beverage categories. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements due to numerous factors, including the following risks: Senomyx is dependent on its product discovery and development collaborators for all of Senomyx's revenue; Senomyx is also dependent on its current and any future product discovery and development collaborators to develop, manufacture and commercialize Senomyx flavor ingredients, including S9632 and any flavor ingredients Senomyx may discover or develop in the future; the cost to manufacture and/or formulate Senomyx flavor ingredients into packaged food and beverage products may be higher than anticipated, which could discourage market acceptance of Senomyx flavor ingredients; Senomyx may be asked to complete additional studies to evaluate and/or monitor the safety of new flavor ingredients in order to maintain applicable regulatory approvals and/or obtain regulatory approvals outside the United States; Senomyx or its collaborators may be unable to obtain and maintain the regulatory approval of S9632 in the United States and elsewhere; and Senomyx's ability to compete in the flavor ingredients market may decline if Senomyx does not adequately protect its proprietary technologies. These and other risks and uncertainties are described more fully in Senomyx's most recently filed SEC documents, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, under the headings "Risks Related to Our Business" and "Risks Related to Our Industry." All forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date on which they were made. Senomyx undertakes no obligation to update such statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made.