Kaneka hikes CoQ10 prices as Mitsubishi exits market

By Hank Schultz

- Last updated on GMT

Related tags Marketing Kaneka

Kaneka hikes CoQ10 prices as Mitsubishi exits market
Longtime CoQ10 supplier Kaneka has announced a price increase in advance of competitor’s Mitsubishi’s exit from the market.

Mitsubishi Gas Chemical announced last year that it will exit cease CoQ10 production in March, 2013. In response, Kaneka will raise prices by 10% effective in mid January, 2013.

 “The impending Mitsubishi withdrawal from the CoQ10 market will shift 15 to 20 metric tons of annual volume to Kaneka and other suppliers,” ​said Richard Weis, vice president of sales and marketing for Kaneka.

"We have seen a decisive upward trend in the price of CoQ10 over the past 18 months. Although Kaneka regrets any increase in price to its customers, mounting stressors on margin and supply have necessitated that we follow the market up,"​ he said.

Unsustainably low prices

John Jarmul, U.S. Marketing Manager for Kaneka, told NutraIngredients-USA in October that CoQ10 bulk prices have been unsustainably low for years, and Mitsubishi’s retreat from the market reinforces that fact.

"We have seen an upward trend in the price of CoQ10 over the past year, and Mitsubishi’s departure will surely continue that movement,"​ he said.

"The Mitsubishi withdrawal from the CoQ10 market will certainly have an effect on supply, especially for those customers that require material is of U.S. or Japanese origin. Kaneka is now the sole CoQ10 manufacturer in both the United States and Japan,"​ he noted.

Kaneka might be playing the trump card because they know that their quality is the best available,”​ CoQ10 expert Brian Lipshutz, PhD, a professor of chemistry at the University of California Santa Barbara, told NutraIngredients-USA.

“There are places that will not buy Chinese material. They can raise their prices and get away with it,”​ he said.

Washout from legal battle

This latest development in the CoQ10 market follows the outcome of a long, involved patent fight. In October, the International Trade Commission dismissed a case brought by Kaneka against seven suppliers of the ingredient who allegedly infringed on Kaneka’s US patent. In addition to Mitsubishi, the complaint named Zhejiang Medicine Co. Ltd., ZMC-USA, LLC, Xiamen Kingdomway Group Company, Pacific Rainbow International, Inc, Maypro Industries, Inc., and Shenzou Biology & Technology Co., Ltd.  The court ruled that Kaneka’s patent was valid, but the competitors’ processes did not infringe on it.

Related topics Suppliers Cardiovascular health

Related news

Show more

Related products

show more

Krill oil supports six key areas of healthy aging

Krill oil supports six key areas of healthy aging

Content provided by Aker BioMarine | 14-Feb-2024 | White Paper

The global population is getting older—according to WHO by 2050 the world’s population over 60 years will double and the population above 80 years will...

Latest Research Findings on Omega-3s for Heart Health

Latest Research Findings on Omega-3s for Heart Health

Content provided by GC Rieber VivoMega™ | 12-Feb-2024 | White Paper

According to Grandview Research, the global omega-3 market is a $2.62 billion market and is one of the fastest-growing segments in the dietary supplement...

Dynamic Duo - More Power, Less Fatigue

Dynamic Duo - More Power, Less Fatigue

Content provided by Enovate Biolife LLC | 23-Jan-2024 | White Paper

Better physical performance & vitality have deep connections to muscular as well as cardio-respiratory health.

Related suppliers

Follow us

Products

View more

Webinars