NATURECHEM® Line of products to be manufactured through environmentally friendly and state-of-the-art process.
GREENSBORO, North Carolina, May 4, 2007 - Vertellus Performance Materials Inc. ("VPMI"), a business unit of Vertellus Specialties, is pleased to announce the opening of its state-of-the-art Shea Butter and Shea Butter-derivative refinery and manufacturing operation. Located in Greensboro, North Carolina, this operation will produce Naturechem® SHEA-Refined and Naturechem® SHEA-UR (unrefined), 100% vegetable-based emollients obtained from the pressing of African Butyrospermum Parkii (shea) seeds, commonly known as Shea Butter.
"We are pleased to offer the only Shea Butter refinery dedicated to the Personal Care industry," commented Laurence S. Slovin, President of Vertellus Performance Materials Inc.
VPMI''s proprietary Shea Butter refining process uses no hydrocarbon solvents and provides an environmentally-friendly, high purity, water-processed product specifically developed for cosmetic and pharmaceutical applications. In cooperation with its African-based partnerships, VPMI maintains the highest quality standards for the selection, harvesting and processing of shea seeds. In addition, quality control for Shea Butter refining is maintained through VPMI''s Greensboro, North Carolina production unit, a new, state-of-the-art facility completed in April 2007 .
"Our hydrocarbon-free refining process meets the demands of our customers for environmentally-friendly processed, naturally-derived cosmetic ingredients," stated Steven Rogers, Vertellus Performance Materials Inc.''s Sales & Marketing Manager, Personal Care. "Naturechem® SHEA''s exceptional skin feel and moisturizing properties and its high levels of natural antioxidants, anti-inflammatory and solar ultraviolet absorbing ingredients make it ideal for the enhancement of a wide variety of skin and hair care formulations."
About Vertellus Performance Materials Inc.
VPMI is the leading supplier of Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil, Castor derivatives and Citric Acid Esters to the personal care market. Formed through the merger of Rutherford Chemicals’ CasChem and Reilly Industries‘ Morflex business units, VPMI enjoys a 150-year tradition of providing high quality, technologically-advanced natural products for a wide variety of personal care, coatings, plastics industrial and biomedical applications. VPMI is a division of Vertellus Specialties. For further information on Naturechem® SHEA – Refined and Naturechem® SHEA – UR, contact Vertellus Performance Materials Inc. at tel. 1-973-515-0096 (USA).