PRESS RELEASE | AD HOC ANNOUNCEMENT PURSUANT TO ART. 53 LR
 

Evolva signs multi-year agreement with leading CMO partner to enable supply of Vanillin to global F&F customer of around CHF 35 million until 2026

Reinach, 5 May 2023 — Evolva (SIX: EVE), a pioneer in the field of natural molecules and industrial biotech, has reached a major milestone to boost its commercial performance by signing a multi-year agreement with a leading CMO partner as basis to secure the Vanillin business with a global F&F customer of around CHF 35 million until 2026.

Thanks to its proprietary precision-fermentation platform and the newly signed CMO agreement, Evolva is now able to supply Vanillin to a global customer in the Flavors & Fragrances industry (F&F) within a framework of defined volumes and very competitive pricing over a multi-year period. The move is a further testimony to Evolva’s core capabilties of having successfully developed and upscaled high-grade Vanillin from lab to industrial scale production and now towards full commercialization.

Based on the newly signed agreement with the selected CMO partner, Evolva expects to generate revenues of around CHF 35 million over the next three and a half years from supplying a global customer with Vanillin for use as natural ingredient to the flavors industry. As such, the agreement further substantiates Evolva’s mid-term plan.

In 2023, the corresponding revenues are expected to be in the mid-single digit range. For production reasons, these revenues will fully accrue in the second half of the year, leading to a shift in revenues from the first to the second half of the year when compared to 2022.

Vanillin is a widely used ingredient in the F&F industry. When plant derived, it is only available in limited quantities and often subject to price and supply fluctuations as crop yields are heavily dependent on climate conditions. Thanks to its proprietary precision-fermentation platform, Evolva is able to offer nature-based, high-grade Vanillin of European origin with a superior sensory profile at very attractive conditions. This allows customers to replace expensive vanilla bean extracts as well as synthetic vanillin (which is obtained through a chemical process), meeting the increasing demand of consumers for more natural ingredients which are responsibly and sustainably produced.

CEO Christian Wichert comments: “The signing of this agreement is a huge and exciting milestone for the new Evolva. It demonstrates our ability to successfully deliver commercial growth to bring Evolva to the next level. I am very proud of the team having successfully created the basis for this exciting new business for Evolva, combining Evolva’s core competencies along the entire value chain.”

Evolva aims to become an industrial biotech leader, providing solutions around natural ingredients addressing the global megatrends of health, wellness and sustainability. Based on the company's proprietary precision-fermentation platform, Evolva is well positioned to resolve supply bottlenecks of nature.

Important dates
24 August 2023  Half-year 2023 results
 

Contact
Doris Rudischhauser
Head of Investor Relations and Corporate Communications
+41 79 410 81 88
dorisr@evolva.com
 

About Evolva
Evolva is a Swiss biotech company focused on the research, development and commercialization of ingredients based on nature. We have leading businesses in Flavors and Fragrances, Health Ingredients and Health Protection. Evolva’s employees, half of which are women, are dedicated to make the best products that can contribute to health, wellness and sustainability. Find out more at evolva.com and connect with us on LinkedIn.

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Disclaimer
This announcement is not an offer of securities into the United States. The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and may not be offered, pledged, sold, delivered or otherwise transferred, directly or indirectly, in the United States, except pursuant to an exemption from, or transaction not subject to, the registration requirements of the Securities Act. No public offering of securities is being made in the United States. Further, the securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the applicable securities laws of Canada, Australia or Japan or under the applicable securities laws of any other jurisdiction where to do so might constitute a violation of such laws.             
This press release contains specific forward-looking statements, e.g. statements including terms like believe, assume, expect or similar expressions. Such forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may result in a substantial divergence between the actual results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and those explicitly or implicitly presumed in these statements. Against the background of these uncertainties readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The company assumes no responsibility to update forward-looking statements or to adapt them to future events or developments.