Author: Bobbie Kenney

ATLANTA, April 9, 2018 – CP Kelco, a leading global producer of specialty hydrocolloid solutions, announced today that four additional KELCOGEL^® Gellan Gum products are Non-GMO Project (NGP) verified. NGP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to building and protecting a non-GMO food supply in North America.

Since the company’s discovery of gellan gum, CP Kelco has evolved its product line to meet global market needs, including consumers’ demand for non-GMO options. CP Kelco now offers 13 NGP-verified gellan gum products in its comprehensive portfolio:

These high-quality gellan gums provide protein protection, texture, gelling properties and particle suspension in a variety of applications, including but not limited to fruit juice beverages, alternative dairy beverages (i.e., soy, almond), flavored milks, acidified protein drinks, ambient yogurt drinks, sauces and personal care.

For the most up-to-date list of CP Kelco NGP verified products, visit the Non-GMO Project website. To learn more about these products and how to develop or improve formulations, send an email to solutions@cpkelco.com or visit http://www.cpkelco.com/.

About CP Kelco

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Visit http://www.cpkelco.com/ for more information.

ATLANTA (April 2, 2018) — CP Kelco, a leading global producer of specialty hydrocolloid solutions, announced today that PT. Azelis Indonesia Distribusi will be its exclusive distributor for all CP Kelco products sold into food and beverage applications in Indonesia, effective April 1, 2018.

As a key distribution partner of CP Kelco in Europe and China for years, Azelis is a leading global distributor of specialty chemicals and food ingredients, and is driving growth that is in line with CP Kelco’s business strategy.

“We are pleased to expand our relationship with Azelis into Indonesia,” said Richard Yin, Vice President, Asia Pacific Region for CP Kelco. “Together, our organizations are committed to delivering value-added solutions and services to meet our customers’ expectations.”

More information about PT. Azelis Indonesia Distribusi is available at www.azelis.com.

About CP Kelco
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Contact CP Kelco today for more information.

ATLANTA, February 22, 2018 – CP Kelco, a leading global producer of specialty hydrocolloid solutions, announced today that Jennifer Aspen Mason has joined its Executive Leadership Team as Senior Vice President, Global Innovation, reporting directly to CP Kelco President Didier Viala.

A global executive with more than 20 years of industry experience, Mason has an extensive background leading science organizations with Fortune 100 companies. Most recently, she spent more than five years with Mars, Incorporated, where she served as Technology and Science Strategy Officer for all Mars segments.

In her new role, Mason is responsible for leading CP Kelco’s global research and development (R&D) function, including strategic innovation imperatives to drive the company’s long-term growth, as well as oversight of technical teams focused on new product innovation, process R&D and research.

“We are truly delighted to welcome Jennifer to our team, and will surely benefit from her global leadership capabilities, scientific expertise and rich industry experience,” Viala said. “In her critical role as the Global Innovation leader for our business, Jennifer will serve as a change agent across our organization, focused on ensuring CP Kelco is equipped to address the evolving needs of the customers and regional markets we serve.”

Prior to joining Mars, Incorporated, Mason spent 14 years with Unilever, holding several roles of increased responsibility and working in the Netherlands, the UK, Chicago, Ill., and New Jersey. While at Unilever, she led Global R&D teams for Beverages, Food Solutions and Dressings; ran the Regional Deploy Center for the $5 billion North American Food business; and served as the R&D Director for the $2 billion North American Ice Cream unit. Upon joining Mars, Incorporated in 2011, Mason served as Vice President – R&D, Quality & Food Safety for the Mars Petcare business and managed a team of 400 R&D associates while also leading the $120 million expansion of a global innovation center. She assumed her most recent role as Technology and Science Strategy Officer at Mars in 2016.

Mason holds a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and Neuroscience from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisc., and a PhD degree in Behavioral Pharmacology from the University of Chicago. In addition, she completed executive business programs at Henley Management College in the UK and Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.

About CP Kelco
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Contact CP Kelco today for more information.

Former Employee Found Guilty of Misappropriation of Trade Secrets

ATLANTA, Feb. 08, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CP Kelco, a leading global producer of specialty hydrocolloid solutions, announced today that a California state court issued a judgment in its favor in a legal case filed against one of its ex-senior scientists, Dr. Chienkuo “Ronnie” Yuan, Director of Innovation at DSM (China) Ltd. Dr. Yuan was an employee with CP Kelco for 14 years before departing in 2014 to join DSM, a subsidiary of Royal DSM, N.V. and a competitor of CP Kelco in the gellan gum industry.

In July 2015, CP Kelco filed a Complaint against Dr. Yuan in San Diego Superior Court, following several attempts to address CP Kelco’s legitimate concerns that the Company’s intellectual property may have been used for the benefit of DSM by Dr. Yuan.

On August 24, 2017, a 12-member jury returned a verdict in favor of CP Kelco on all causes of action, and the State court issued a judgment in accordance with the jury verdict. The verdict specifically found that Dr. Yuan had misappropriated CP Kelco’s trade secrets and used or disclosed those trade secrets with third parties. Further, the jury found that Dr. Yuan breached his confidentiality agreement and duty of loyalty to CP Kelco. The jury also determined that Dr. Yuan knowingly accessed CP Kelco’s computer systems in order to wrongfully obtain CP Kelco property.  Finally, the jury found that CP Kelco was entitled to punitive damages for Dr. Yuan’s willful and malicious misappropriation of trade secrets.

In its Statement of Decision on Punitive Damages, “the court conclude[d], as the jury evidently did, that [Dr. Yuan] assembled internal CP Kelco documents and emailed them to himself (and then to DropBox) not for the purpose of advising on production issues in the waning days of his time in San Diego, but rather so that he would be able to ‘shorten the runway’ once he took up his new employment.”

“This legal case demonstrates CP Kelco’s commitment to taking the appropriate actions to ensure our intellectual property and our employees’ work products are safeguarded from improper and unfair use in the marketplace,” said Didier Viala, President of CP Kelco. “With our rich heritage of technological and product innovation, our global team continues to raise the bar in providing ingredient solutions that meet the evolving needs of our regional markets and  customers.”

About CP Kelco
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Contact CP Kelco today for more information.

About KELCOGEL^® Gellan Gum 
CP Kelco introduced KELCOGEL Gellan Gum to the industry almost 30 years ago. We have deep experience with this versatile, high-performance ingredient in application segments ranging from food and beverage to personal care and pharmaceuticals. Gellan gum can be used at low levels in a wide variety of products that require gelling, texturizing, stabilizing, suspending, film-forming and structuring.

ATLANTA, October 16, 2017 — CP Kelco, a leading global producer of specialty hydrocolloid solutions, announced today that Didier Viala has been appointed President, effective October 1, 2017. Viala replaces Donald Rubright, who served as CP Kelco President since 2006 and will retire at the end of 2017.

Viala has also joined the CP Kelco Board of Directors.

“As a market leader supplying high-quality hydrocolloid products for a range of foods and beverages, consumer products and industrial applications, CP Kelco will continue to invest in capacity additions, new product and applications development, strategic raw material sourcing, quality and safety management, and sustainability initiatives to support our customers’ innovation efforts and growth strategies,” Viala said.

Over the course of more than 25 years with CP Kelco and its predecessor companies, Viala held leadership roles across a broad spectrum of critical areas, including innovation, marketing, business development, operations, sales and distribution. In 2006, Viala became VP of Business Management and a member of the CP Kelco Senior Leadership Team. He was named SVP of Growth & Innovation in 2010, and assumed his most recent role as SVP of Global Operations in 2015.

About CP Kelco

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco
leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Visit www.cpkelco.com for more information.

ATLANTA, May 31, 2017 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — CP Kelco currently produces carrageenan products at manufacturing plants in Lille Skensved, Denmark, and Sibonga, Cebu, Philippines. Based on CP Kelco’s strategy and business objectives, a decision has been made to seek a strategic buyer for the Cebu site.

CP Kelco is not exiting the carrageenan business. Utilizing our deep applications expertise and technology, the company remains committed to providing the global market with high-quality carrageenan products, now and in the future.

About CP Kelco

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Cellulose Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Visit www.cpkelco.com for more information.

World-Leading Gellan Gum Producer Responds to Growing Global Market Demand

ATLANTA, March 29, 2017 — CP Kelco, a leading global producer of specialty hydrocolloid solutions, announced today the completion of new production capabilities in its Okmulgee, Oklahoma plant for manufacturing KELCOGEL^® gellan gum. This expansion of gellan gum production capacity enables the company to respond to growing market demand for this high performance product line, used in a wide range of food, beverage and other applications.

“As the world’s leading producer and innovator of gellan gum, CP Kelco is committed to serving the industry as a sustainable provider of this versatile, multi-functional ingredient over the long term,” said Don Rubright, President of CP Kelco. “We have invested in expanded gellan gum production capacity to deliver on this commitment.”

Until now, CP Kelco’s San Diego, Calif. facility was the main source of KELCOGEL gellan gum. “Our gellan gum product from Okmulgee matches the quality and functional performance of product from our San Diego facility, based on our manufacturing and quality protocols,” said Shaw Gilmer, Sr. Director, Biogums Platform at CP Kelco. “We are prepared to work with our customers to ensure a smooth qualification process.”

Anchored by a strong customer focus, deep technical expertise and the highest standards of quality and food safety management systems, CP Kelco has completed extensive product testing and validation of gellan gum product from the Okmulgee site. CP Kelco customers have begun receiving new product samples for trial, and full deployment of the new gellan gum production capability is planned for April, 2017.

About KELCOGEL^® Gellan Gum

CP Kelco introduced KELCOGEL gellan gum to the industry almost 30 years ago. We have deep experience with this versatile, high-performance ingredient in application segments ranging from food and beverage to personal care and pharmaceuticals. Gellan gum can be used at low levels in a wide variety of products that require gelling, texturizing, stabilizing, suspending, film-forming and structuring.

About CP Kelco

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, and part of J.M. Huber Corporation, CP Kelco is a leading producer of specialty hydrocolloids with offices and facilities across the globe. Featuring an extensive range of hydrocolloid solutions and serving over 100 countries, CP Kelco leverages its capabilities to bring concepts and ideas to real-world products in a broad range of applications. The company’s specialty ingredients touch a wide variety of consumer and household products and industrial applications, tailored to meet the needs of regional consumers. Key product lines are Gellan Gum, Pectin, Xanthan Gum, Carrageenan, Diutan Gum, Carboxymethyl Cellulose/Cellulose Gum and Microparticulated Whey Protein Concentrate, as well as other unique biopolymers. Visit www.cpkelco.com for more information.