Chromadex reports 97% increase in ingredient sales

The company’s recent financial results showed a 97% in ingredient sales, which Frank Jaksch, Jr., CEO and co-founder of ChromaDex, commented was largely a result of the first order the company received from 5LINX for Niagen and its PurEnergy pterostilbene-caffeine ingredient.

“Based on visibility of sales activity from both our existing customers and our business development pipeline, we anticipate steady growth in our ingredient segment to continue for the foreseeable future,”​ he said.

Nicotinamide riboside (NR) is found naturally in trace amounts in milk and other foods, and is a more potent, no-flush version of Niacin (vitamin B3). Published research has shown that NR is a potent precursor to NAD+ in the mitochondria of animals. NAD+ is an important cellular co-factor for improvement of mitochondrial performance and energy metabolism.

Chromadex is currently available in High Performance Nutrition’s (HPN) N(R) product to support neuroprotection in contact sports, and the company also has a three-year marketing deal with Thorne Research to take Niagen into a series of first-to-market products for the healthcare-practitioner channel. Most significantly, in a deal worth a potential $62 million over four years, Chromadex granted 5LINX the marketing rights for Niagen for use in dietary supplements exclusively in the network marketing sales channel in the United States, Canada and Philippines.

“Media outlets are starting to highlight peer reviewed research studies from esteemed institutions on the potential health benefits of NAD+ precursors, such as NR,” ​said Jaksch. “We expect new research will continue to be published which will further validate the health benefits of NR. We plan to add to that research by beginning our first clinical study on Niagen in the second quarter.”​

For the first quarter of 2014, the company reported an increase in net sales of 32% to reach just over $3 million, largely due to the massive increase in ingredient sales.