the difference in amino acid concentrations between healthy individuals and adults suffering from cancer and other serious diseases to aid the early detection of cancer and other diseases. In addition to glutamates as a seasoning, the company also produces other amino acids such as L-Leucine, L-Tyrosine, Glycine, and L-Phenylalanine, which it markets as dietary supplements under the brand name AjiPure. Corporate structure Representative directors Taro Fujie, President & CEO Hiroshi Shiragami, Representative Executive Officer & Executive Vice President, Chief Innovation Officer (CIO) Divisions and global locations Ajinomoto currently operates separate divisions for North America, Latin America, and Asia, with Europe, the Middle East, and Africa being combined into the EMEA division. Ajinomoto also owns dozens of subsidiaries globally for its food, biochemical, and healthcare businesses. Brand identity Controversies Lysine price fixing In 1986, the Ajinomoto Group produced lysine at its Iowa factory of Heartland Lysine Co. U.S.A., followed by production in its Pathum Thani factory in Ajinomoto, Thailand in 1986, and Bio Italia, BioPro in Italy in 1992, gradually upgrading its worldwide production bases. In the United States, competitors tried to increase lysine production, which resulted in pricing issues due to an overabundance of lysine on the market. To raise prices, several companies price fixed lysine in the 1990s. Along with Kyowa Hakko Kogyo and Sewon America, Inc., Ajinomoto settled with the United States Department of Justice Antitrust Division in September 1996. Each firm and an executive from each pleaded guilty as part of a plea bargain to aid in further investigation. Their cooperation led to Archer Daniels Midland settling charges with the US government in October 1996 for $100 million, a record antitrust fine at the time. Cartels were able to raise lysine prices 70% within its first six months of cooperation. MSG The safety of MSG, as related to the corporate image of Ajinomoto, has been a point of discussion since 1910, with unsubstantiated rumors relating to the use of serpents in its raw materials. Since the 1940s, safety concerns have been voiced several times by public institutions in both Japan and the United States. Additional concerns included Chinese restaurant syndrome in the 1960s and the call for greater regulation on the use of MSG, which was based on the work of Professor John Olney, in 1969. In 1996, the FDA commissioned the Federation of American Society for Experimental Biology (FASEB) to study the effects of MSG, who