• Our
Company
• Forest
Management
 Natural
Response S.A. is a company involved in the
production and marketing of natural extracts
derived from unique Chilean plants or plants
that grow abundantly in Chile. The main challenge
is to sustainably manufacture in Chile products
having high added value, based on national
raw materials (e.g. quillaja (soaptree), boldo,
cinnamon tree, maqui, peumo, etc.) being especially
careful so as not to impair the availability
of these resources.
Natural Response S.A. is technologically based
on research in the production of natural extracts
from Chilean renewable resources, that have
been conduct since 1986 in the Department
of Bioprocess and Chemical Engineering of
the Catholic University of Chile,.
A first line of products has been the production
of quillaja (soaptree) extracts. Quillaja
(Quillaja saponaria Mol) is a tree that only
grows abundantly in Chile, and has a saponin-rich
bark and wood. Saponins are natural foaming
agent and emulsifiers, they have multiple
uses: foaming agent in soft drinks and beers,
cosmetics, mining, agriculture, preparation
of photographic film, additive in animal feeds,
treatment of effluents, preparation of milk-derived
low-cholesterol foodstuffs, adjuvant in animal
and human vaccines, etc.
In 1996, a joint venture was set up with Desert
King International (DKI) of San Diego, CA,
U.S.A. DKI has 15 years experience in the
production and marketing of mostly Mexican
plant extracts, such as yucca, natural chewing
gum and jojoba. Yucca also contains saponins,
and therefore the markets and distribution
channels are very similar; in many applications,
quillaja and yucca saponins are complementary.
Based on this joint venture, in September
1996, we built a plant with a capacity of
15 ton of quillaja liquid extract per month,
in Quilpué, V Region, Chile.
Sustainable use of renewable resources
as well as constant technological innovation
have always been priorities for the company.
Due to these policies led in 1999 the National
Agricultural Innovation Prize was awarded
to Natural Response S.A. by the Chilean
Ministry of Agriculture, for the sustainable
exploitation of Quillaja.
 In
2000, through a joint venture between NR
and DKI, Desert King Chile (DKC) was created,
involved exclusively in the marketing of
quillaja extracts, while the other activities
remained centered in Natural Response S.A.
At present, NR produces and commercializes
quillaja saponins for various uses. To this
end, the company has developed a proprietary
process that uses all the quillaja wood,
and not only the bark of the tree (traditional
exploitation method). In this way, the worldwide
demand for saponins is satisfied exclusively
with wood from the pruning of the existing
forests, thus adding value to a natural
resource which up to now has either been
given over to destructive exploitation or
simply abandoned. This prevents the destruction
of the resource and generates added value
to national exported goods, because a finished
product is exported instead of the raw material.
On the other hand, NR is committed to the
environment and applies, in wood exploitation,
the concept of sustainable forest management,
complying with the rules of FSC (Forest
Stewardship Council), as well as manufacturing
part of its production with the organic
product label (BCS). The company also has
an active program of forest assays (5 has)
and planting (approx. 350 has to date).
Some of these activities are carried out
in coordination with CONAF (Forest National
Corporation).
 This
promotion of quillaja has generated great
expectations in the field of agroforestry,
establishing the possibility of a profitable
activity with native resources of the country,
and creating a new and attractive market
in that field. Therefore, this activity
is still being developed through the production
of quillaja plants, relying on the cooperation
of CONAF for promoting the supply of quillaja
by agroforestry landowners.
After 6 years of operation, the company
has attained a production of 320 ton per
year of quillaja extract, which represents
more than 50% of the world market of this
product. The estimations for 2003 are 400
ton/year.
The company also participates actively in
technological innovation projects, in order
to study the best growth conditions for
quillaja and the multiple industrial applications
of saponins. From 1998 until today, the
company has generated 4 research projects
financed by FONDEF, a government organization
which supplies funds for research, concerned
with the investigation of various aspects
related to quillaja saponin, its uses and
applications, forest management, etc., with
a total budget of US $ 1.6 million.
NATURAL
RESPONSE S.A. is engaged in permanent collaboration
with the Faculty of Engineering of the Catholic
University of Chile, therefore having access
to information on the latest processes and
leading edge technologies for the extraction
and purification of natural products. Additionally,
excellent students participate in theses
and research projects in this area.
Regarding process development and operation,
the staff has ample experience in the field
of aqueous extractions and plant extract
purification. Members of the staff are also
experienced in the manufacture of hyperpurified
products, by ion exchange and ultrafiltration.
In analysis, they are experienced in gas
chromatography and mass spectrophotometry,
as well as HPLC. The company also has experts
in construction and equipment assembly (particularly,
stainless steel equipment), permitting the
prompt scaling up of new production processes.
On the other hand, activities in the field
of collection of quillaja wood (lumber)
have allowed us to establish an important
contact network with agroindustrial middle
men, which expedites the job of recollection
of new species.
It’s also important to highlight
the great commercial strength originating
from the solid relationship with our customers,
which has grown based on mutual trust throughout
the several years of commercial relationship.
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