Strong demand drives the methionine industry
Since 2008, the domestic methionine market has experienced a weak performance, but overall demand remains robust. As a result, the long-term development prospects for methionine in the industry remain promising. Methionine is a vital amino acid and a key additive in animal feed. Its inclusion helps animals grow faster, reducing feed consumption by approximately 40%. The largest consumer of methionine is the feed industry, and global demand has consistently grown over the years. To meet this rising demand, methionine production has expanded worldwide. In 1993, global output was 260,000 tons, increasing to 450,000 tons in 1999 and reaching 600,000 tons in 2005. In recent years, with growing demand and rising prices, many production facilities have expanded their capacity.
China's early methionine production began in 1959 when Hebei Pharmaceutical Factory established the country’s first small-scale synthetic facility. Over time, more small-scale units were built, but total annual capacity remained around 200 tons, with Hebei producing only 70–80 tons per year. Due to limited scale, outdated technology, and high costs, Chinese methionine struggled to compete globally, leading to frequent production halts. For many years, China relied heavily on imports. By 2003, import volumes exceeded 55,000 tons, costing over $155 million—accounting for 16% of the national chemical raw material imports. In early 2004, methionine remained the top imported chemical raw material in China.
Chinese companies have since made efforts to develop domestic methionine production, including joint ventures with foreign firms. On January 17, 2006, China National Bluestar Corporation completed its acquisition of France’s Antissu Group, marking the first overseas acquisition in China’s chemical industry. This move filled critical gaps in China’s methionine and bio-enzyme technologies. Adisseo, the world’s largest animal nutrition additive company, possesses advanced methionine production technology and is the only firm capable of producing both liquid and solid methionine, holding the second-largest global market share.
Today, China’s methionine imports continue to rise, driven by the rapid expansion of aquaculture and its position as the world’s second-largest feed producer. Annual feed output exceeds 100 million tons, second only to the U.S., and is growing steadily. This has led to a significant increase in demand for feed additives. Although short-term fluctuations occur due to price changes and seasonal factors, the overall trend shows strong and sustained growth in methionine demand, especially in the feed sector. By 2010, global methionine demand is expected to reach 900,000 tons, with China’s demand surpassing 100,000 tons.
The growing demand has accelerated the development of China’s methionine industry. Companies in Zhejiang, Guangdong, Shandong, Hubei, and Shanghai have shown increasing interest in methionine production and its raw materials. Currently, more than a dozen companies produce methionine APIs nationwide, with total production capacity exceeding 1,000 tons annually, and actual output around 700 tons.
Experts believe that while China’s methionine technology is not yet at the highest level, recent progress by research institutions suggests it is feasible to build large-scale production facilities using domestic technology. Additionally, China’s material and equipment manufacturing industries have made significant advancements, ensuring that necessary components for methionine production are readily available.
Raw material supply is no longer a major challenge. China has substantial propylene production capacity (1.5–1.6 million tons/year), along with sufficient sodium cyanide (over 90,000 tons/year) and hydrogen sulfide from various sources, including natural gas processing, oil refining, and inorganic salt plants. Acrolein and methyl mercaptan, intermediates used in methionine production, are also widely produced and used in other industries like pesticides and glutaraldehyde. With improved logistics and transportation, raw material availability is secure. For example, Adisseo’s U.S., French, and Spanish facilities rely on imported raw materials, just as Chinese producers ship acrolein and methyl mercaptan across the country and even to Europe.
In the coming years, China aims to independently build a large-scale methionine production facility. Continued R&D efforts and collaborative industry initiatives will be crucial to forming a complete methionine industrial chain.
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