Itaconix lands first European detergent polymer sale

Itaconix said on Friday that it received its first order from a European customer for its latest bio-based detergent polymer following a successful trial.

The product has already gained traction in North America but the AIM-traded company said that the expansion of use of its new product into the European market represented a "significant milestone" due to higher performance demands for automatic dishwashing detergents on the continent.

The new European customer is a major producer of non-phosphate automatic dishwashing detergent products.

Jim Gordon, director of Cleaning & Hygiene at Itaconix, said: "Europe presents special challenges for detergent formulators. Hard water conditions and high-temperature dishwashing machine cycles create difficult barriers for new detergent ingredients to gain acceptance. Building on our success in North America, we have now demonstrated that our new polymer delivers unique value and performance that meets the demands of European customers."

Specifically, Itaconix said its detergent polymer stands out from the crowd as it is able to meet consumer demands for environmentally-friendly products without compromising performance.

Chief executive John Shaw said: "As phosphates are phased out due to environmental concerns, our novel bio-based polymers are stepping in to enable a new generation of safer detergent products that set new standards for performance, value, and increased sustainability. We expect European detergent use will support our forecast revenues for 2020 and beyond."

Itaconix's shares were up 18.67% at 2.67p at 1007 BST.