Novozymes started as part of Novo Nordisk in the early twentieth century. The company launched its first enzyme in 1941 and has continued to release products ever since. Novozymes bought Schweizerische Ferment and established a sales office in Mainz, Germany in 1967. In 1979 the company opened an enzyme factory in Franlinton, North Carolina and in 1990, bought Entotech in California. Novozymes was established as an independent company in November 2000 by means of a demerger from Novo Nordisk. Novozymes established the Biotechnology Business Development (BBD) group in 2001 with the challenge of looking for business development opportunities where the company could leverage its world-leading technologies in the discovery and development of enzymes with industrial applications.