Monday, August 21, 2023

C&EN: Amyris files for bankruptcy

In this week's C&EN (article by Matt Blois): 
The synthetic biology firm Amyris has declared bankruptcy after months of cost cutting failed to keep the company solvent. Rather than specializing in one activity, Amyris, which sells personal care products, flavors and fragrances, and other chemicals made via fermentation, aimed to both develop new materials and market those products to customers. After the bankruptcy, Amyris says, it will focus on its core competencies: R&D and scale-up of biomanufacturing processes. The firm plans to sell off its consumer brands, though it says that under new ownership those brands will still use chemicals produced by Amyris. 

The company warned investors in May that it may not be able to pay all its bills through the end of the year. It has been reducing spending on advertising, shipping, and staffing. Amyris also sold a portfolio of cosmetic ingredients, including squalane, to the flavor and fragrance maker Givaudan for up to $350 million early this year. But at the end of March, the company had just $17 million in cash and nearly $1 billion of debt.

The first time Amyris is mentioned on the blog is in 2010 - I feel like this company has been around for a while. Best wishes to those impacted by this news.  

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looks like Blogger doesn't work with anonymous comments from Chrome browsers at the moment - works in Microsoft Edge, or from Chrome with a Blogger account - sorry! CJ 3/21/20