Lensey Chen, Novonesis Regional President and Senior Vice President Food and Beverage Biosolutions Asia Pacific, shares her insights on the company’s vision of offering a new beginning based on the power of biology.
Bridges: Novonesis (Derived from the Greek word ‘genesis’, Novonesis meaning ‘a new beginning’) was formed from the merger of Novozymes and Chr. Hansen, two global leaders in biosolutions. How has this integration strengthened your presence and impact in the APAC region?
Chen: The combination of two extraordinary companies makes us even better, stronger, and better equipped to develop the answers to today and the answers to the future.
Our combined group has a global talent pool of diverse and passionate employees who will benefit from our strong purpose-driven culture, expanded global presence and shared ambition. In APAC, we have 1200+ employees with diversified backgrounds and expertise in 10 countries.
Besides the greater talent pool, we have also enhanced our production and R&D capabilities, enabling us to develop and deploy cutting-edge biosolutions more efficiently.
Additionally, the integration has facilitated greater sharing of best practices and technological exchanges across different countries, creating more synergy in our operations. This has led to improved collaboration and coordination, allowing us to better serve our customers and contribute to sustainable growth in the APAC region.
Together, we will be better equipped to stand stronger in addressing challenges not just in the APAC region, but all globally, including enabling healthier lives, transforming food systems, and accelerating towards a climate neutral society.
Specifically in the Japan market, by combining the two companies, we now have a footprint in both Tokyo and Chiba, with enhanced application knowledge and innovation capabilities to serve local customers’ needs in expanded markets. During last year, we presented our combined solutions in multiple external events, for example HI Japan Food Ingredients show. We also enabled customer launch of more innovative products; a recent successful case is non-alcohol beer with our NEER® yeast solution enabling a very refreshing taste.
“Time for an Era of Biosolutions” suggests a transformational shift. What does this new era look like, and how does Novonesis plan to lead this movement in Asia?
Biosolutions are already around us in everyday life.
Our biosolutions cannot be seen with the naked eye, but we are already here taking care of you. For example, you may have already encountered our biosolutions which are used to improve the texture, flavor and shelf life of foods. Starting with a breakfast of bread and yogurt, our enzymes help bread taste well with a nice mouthfeel, texture, yet fresh for longer shelf time, reducing unnecessary chemicals, and for yogurt, our cultures are essential solutions for fermentation and enzymes reduce sugar and improve texture. In a lunch or dinner, biosolutions help to enhance natural taste without adding more artificial flavors, salt or MSGs, of course, not only for meat, but also plant-based food. You may also like to try our probiotics which help to balance gut microbiomes and lower cortisol output in response to stress for a good quality of sleep.
Our biosolutions cannot be seen with the naked eye, but we are already here taking care of you.
Lensey Chen, Novonesis Regional President and Senior Vice President Food and Beverage Biosolutions Asia Pacific
Of course, biosolutions are not only applied in food as they also impact our daily life in other ways. They help our laundry detergent much more effectively with less fossil fuel chemicals, and enable biofuel generated from biomass in our transportation. Bio-solutions enable sustainable agriculture. They help crops absorb more natural nutrients from the soil and reduce the chemical fertilizers or pesticides. They help animals grow healthier with less antibiotics. We are already present today in your daily lives and will become even more in the future. The transformation in how we all produce and consume starts with the choices we make every day. Our biosolutions make it easier for you to choose a healthier life on a healthier planet.
But it needs more strategic support to make an even bigger impact—Asian countries have already taken action in strategic planning and R&D investment.
The Asia-Pacific (APAC) region, characterized by its diverse cultures and economies, is increasingly recognized as a critical player in the global bioeconomy. From technological innovation to sustainable practices, APAC countries drive growth and resilience through diverse bioeconomic initiatives, overcoming innovation gaps, infrastructural and regulatory challenges to shape a sustainable future.
The scope and emphasis of national strategies on biosolutions vary based on nations’ natural resources and systemic factors. Examples include Japan’s bio-strategy made in 2019, but which is updated every year. Each country leverages its unique strengths and resources to promote a sustainable and profitable bioeconomy, contributing to regional growth and environmental sustainability.
Regarding innovation, the research and development for biosolutions have been very active in recent years in the Asia Pacific region. Research advancement, private/public investment, and policy incentives in the APAC region have supported the biotechnology boom. This region has recorded significantly high biotechnology patent activity over the last 5 years, compared to the other major regions.
Our APAC region has been experiencing steady growth. In 2024, we reported a 10% organic pro forma sales growth, which was driven by growth across all our sales areas.
Partners for impact
Novonesis would like to collaborate with policymakers, industry players as well as our partners to embrace this era of biosolutions. By doing so, only then can sustainable growth be driven in the APAC region. Businesses and governments must be ambitious and work together to find the best solutions for our shared future. The only way forward is through coordinated and collective efforts.
At Expo 2025 Osaka, global players will showcase cutting-edge sustainability solutions. How does Novonesis see its technologies shaping the future of food, health, and environmental sustainability in the region?
With emerging Asia economies predicted to take center stage, they also represent future demand centers. Asia Pacific’s melting pot of dynamic and culturally diverse consumers will make this region the ideal hub for new products or concepts’ test and regional innovation.
Our solutions help rethink every step of the food value chain, from soil health to food preservation. Our food moves from farm to table through vast, interwoven food systems. A change, no matter in which area, ripples through the entire chain. We can find new ways to make the whole system feed more while restoring balance to our ecosystems.
Our solutions help rethink every step of the food value chain, from soil health to food preservation.
This includes building soil health and resilience, meeting growing protein demand efficiently, manufacturing food with less resources and less waste, and securing access to healthier food.
Increasingly proactive and health-conscious consumers are turning to functional foods and nutraceuticals to boost their physical and mental well-being. Novonesis’ solutions are well-poised to shape the health trend.
Novonesis’ value propositions also bolster the focus and efforts on sustainability and net zero transformation across the region. Our tiny but mighty enzymes, functional proteins and microbes enable change in all living things. We’ve put that transformational power at the core of our biosolutions to help solve some of humanity’s biggest challenges.
How important is Japan as a market for Novonesis, and how does it compare with other key APAC markets?
Japan is one of Novonesis’ most significant markets in the Asia-Pacific region, ranking third behind China and South Korea. We have maintained a strong presence in Japan since 1977 and our office in Chiba houses our first Research & Development (R&D) unit outside of Denmark. We have approximately 80 employees now in two offices in Chiba and Tokyo.
In 2022, we also celebrated the 40th anniversary of our Japan’s R&D unit, as well as the 30th anniversary of funding activity towards Japanese academia. Our dedicated R&D center has been instrumental in developing state-of-the-art biosolutions tailored to industry needs.
As a highly developed market, Japan has already embraced the potential of biosolutions across multiple industries. Japanese companies are early adopters of advanced biosolution technologies, setting some of the highest quality standards globally, also influencing and inspiring innovation for many Asian countries. Novonesis has experienced consistent and strong growth in Japan over the years, and we see continued opportunities for expansion as businesses and consumers increasingly seek innovative, sustainable, and high-performance biological solutions.
Novonesis has experienced consistent and strong growth in Japan over the years, and we see continued opportunities for expansion as businesses and consumers increasingly seek innovative, sustainable, and high-performance biological solutions.
Looking ahead to 2025, what are Novonesis APAC’s key goals and priorities for the region?
Over the past year, our priority is ensuring a successful and seamless integration of the two legacy companies following the merger. We have made significant progress, established a strong organization and are actively executing synergy initiatives that leverage the combined expertise of legacy Novozymes and Chr. Hansen. The merger has also unlocked new technological possibilities, enabling us to introduce more innovative biosolutions to the broader APAC market.
Yet, the current progress is just a beginning. Going forward, our focus will be on unlocking the full potential of biosolutions across APAC to drive sustainable, transformative change across industries.
We aim to: (1) enable sustainable food systems that enhance nutrition, quality, and efficiency; (2) provide solutions for better health, supporting people at every stage of life, from infancy to old age; and (3) contribute to planetary health, helping industries transition toward low-carbon, resource-efficient, and circular models.
Japan aims to be “the world’s most advanced bioeconomy society by 2030”, through an expansion of its domestic biotechnologies industry, and Novonesis is committed to shaping the future of biosolutions together with our partners in Japan.
