Vystar Corp - Annual Report: 2009 (Form 10-K)
UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C.
20549
FORM 10-K
(Mark
One)
þ
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ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO
SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
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For
the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2009
OR
o
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TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO
SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
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For the Transition Period from
to
Commission
File No. 000-53754
VYSTAR
CORPORATION
(Exact
name of registrant as specified in its charter)
GEORGIA
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20-2027731
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(State or other jurisdiction of
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(I.R.S. Employer
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incorporation or organization)
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Identification No.)
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3235 Satellite Blvd.
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Building 400, Suite 290
Duluth GA
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30096
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(Address of principal executive offices)
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(Zip Code)
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Registrant’s
telephone number, including area code: (770) 965-0383
Securities
registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
NONE
Securities
registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
Common
Stock, par value $0.0001 per share
Indicate
by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in
Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes o No þ
Indicate
by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to
Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes o No þ
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to
be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the
registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to
such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes þ No o
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on
its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be
submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the
preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was
required to submit and post such files). Yes o No o
Indicate
by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of
Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best
of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements
incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to
this Form 10-K. o
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an
accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer or a smaller reporting company. See
the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “smaller
reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check
one):
Large
Accelerated Filer
o
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Accelerated
Filer o
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Non-Accelerated
Filer o
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Smaller Reporting Company
þ
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Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in
Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes o No þ
Aggregate
market value of the voting and non-voting common stock held by non-affiliates of
the registrant as of June 30, 2009, the last business day of the
registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, based on the last
private sale price of the registrant’s common shares on such date: $9,556,592.
See Item 12.
The
number of shares outstanding of each of the registrant’s classes of common
stock, as of March 29, 2010 was as follows:
SHARES OUTSTANDING AS OF
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TITLE OF EACH CLASS
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March 29, 2010
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Common Stock, $0.0001 Par Value
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13,316,524
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DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY
REFERENCE
Portions
of the registrant’s definitive Proxy Statement for the 2010 annual meeting of
shareholders are incorporated by reference into Part III of this Form
10-K.
Vystar
Corporation
Annual
Report on Form 10-K
For
the Year Ended December 31, 2009
Table
of Contents
Page
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Part I
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Item
1.
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Business
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2
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Item
1A
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Risk Factors
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8
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Item
1B.
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Unresolved Staff Comments
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12
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Item
2.
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Properties
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12
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Item
3.
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Legal Proceedings
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12
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Item
4.
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Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security
Holders
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12
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Part II
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Item
5.
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Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related
Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity
Securities
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13
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Item
6.
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Selected Financial Data
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15
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Item
7.
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Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations
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16
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Item
7A.
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Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about
Market Risk
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22
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Item
8.
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Financial Statements and Supplementary
Data
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23
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Item
9.
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Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on
Accounting and Financial Disclosure
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24
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Item
9A.
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Controls and Procedures
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24
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Item
9B.
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Other Information
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24
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Part III
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Item
10.
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Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate
Governance
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25
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Item
11.
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Executive Compensation
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25
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Item
12.
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Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners
and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
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25
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Item
13.
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Certain Relationships and Related Transactions,
and Director Independence
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25
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Item
14.
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Principal Accountant Fees and
Services
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26
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Part IV
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Item
15.
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Exhibits and Financial Statement
Schedules
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26
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Signatures
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29
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CAUTIONARY
NOTE REGARDING FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain oral and written statements
made by Vystar Corporation about future events and expectations, including
statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K (the “Report”) contain
forward-looking statements, within the meaning of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) and the Securities Act of 1933, as amended
( the “Securities Act”), that involve risks and uncertainties. For
those statements, we claim the protection of the safe-harbor for forward-looking
statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Act of
1995. In some cases, forward-looking statements are identified by
words such as “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “will,” “may”
and similar expressions. You should not place undue reliance on these
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this Report or
the statement. All of these forward-looking statements are based on
information available to us at this time, and we assume no obligation to update
any of these statements. Actual results could differ from those
projected in these forward-looking statements as a result of many factors,
including those identified in “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and
elsewhere. We urge you to review and consider the various disclosures
made by us in this Report, and those detailed from time to time in our filings
with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), that attempt to advise
you of the risks and factors that may affect our future results. We
qualify any forward-looking statements entirely by these cautionary
factors.
The above mentioned risk factors are
not all-inclusive. Given these uncertainties and that such statements
speak only as of the date made, you should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update
publicly or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise.
1
PART
I.
ITEM 1.
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BUSINESS
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Vystar
Corporation (“Vystar”, the “Company”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) is the creator and
exclusive owner of the innovative technology to produce Vytex® Natural Rubber
Latex ("NRL"). This technology reduces antigenic protein in natural rubber latex
products made with Vytex to virtually undetectable levels. The allergic
reactions to untreated latex are a significant detriment affecting numerous
individuals globally that use many different products made with NRL. With
non-latex products growing at a rapid rate due to these allergy problems, the
costs for alternative materials incurred by the manufacturers of these many
different products have greatly increased. Nearly all substitute materials are
more expensive than NRL – by a factor of five in some cases. We are
introducing Vytex NRL, our new “ultra low protein” natural rubber latex,
throughout the worldwide marketplace that uses NRL or latex substitutes as a
component of manufactured products. We intend for Vytex NRL to become the
standard source of latex and latex substitutes, not unlike a standard computer
operating system on which many other applications can run. Over 9.7 million
tonnes of NRL are produced globally of which just over one million tonnes
are in liquid latex form. There are more than 40,000 products made from the
liquid latex while the other eight million tonnes are used to produce tires
and other hard rubber products. Natural rubber latex is used in an extensive
range of products including balloons, textiles, footwear and clothing (threads),
adhesives, foams, furniture, carpet, paints, coatings, protective equipment,
sporting equipment, and, especially health care products such as condoms,
surgical and exam gloves, catheters and other items. We have started introducing
Vytex NRL into the supply channels with aggressive, targeted marketing campaigns
directed to the end users to create the pull-through. This
provides a competitive advantage for manufacturers utilizing Vytex NRL, ranging
from those who use it as a raw material to those who are using a product that
contains NRL, including manufacturers of the end products.
During
the fourth quarter of 2009, we transitioned from the development stage to the
operating stage. This resulted from our completion of substantially
all the activities associated with the developmental stage of our business and
we are now involved in expanding our operations, particularly increasing market
acceptance of Vytex. We are marketing to multiple industries
concurrently, targeting regulated (condoms, surgical and exam gloves) and
non-regulated products (foam and non-medical and non-food packaging adhesive)
categories to balance the lengthier sales cycles inherent in medical devices
with the relative ease of entry in the non-regulated markets. A
manufacturer’s conversion from their standard latex or synthetic raw material to
Vytex NRL can be a protracted process, ranging from three to twelve months to
complete the sales cycle due to the multiple steps required. The
sales cycle starts with a laboratory analysis of Vytex NRL whereby physical
properties and protein levels of the finished goods are tested to ensure it
meets the required specifications and then progresses to a full production run
on the manufacturer’s equipment. A manufacturer’s decision to convert
to Vytex NRL is impacted by many functional areas including research and
development, manufacturing, sales, marketing, purchasing and
finance. If the product is regulated and requires regulatory
clearances or approvals prior to commercialization, the sales cycle could be
extended by another three to nine months for testing, filing and agency
review. By diversifying the target product categories we believe this
balanced approach will reduce our exposure to individual market fluctuations and
increase our aggregate revenues.
2
Products
and Services
Natural
rubber latex is an agricultural product produced from the sap of the rubber
tree, Hevea brasiliensis. In 2007, over 9.7 million tonnes of NRL
were produced globally, of which just over one million tonnes are liquid latex
according to the International Rubber Study Group, Singapore, for dipped
products (e.g., gloves, condoms, catheters and other products that require
multiple layers of the NRL) and other latex end products such as foams,
adhesives, etc. Substantially all of
the latex processors are located in Southeast Asia, India, Africa and Central
America and are owned by local groups or large multinational
corporations. The typical processor acquires raw NRL (or “field
latex”) aggregated from latex plantations. The processors in South East Asia
have a worldwide advantage, since latex is predominately a product of that area
and labor and water are abundant and inexpensive. However, because of the
intrinsic allergenic problems of NRL, the processors’ market volume had been
level, if not slightly decreasing, for many years. Significant price and demand
increases in NRL have turned the industry into a “sunrise” industry. A sunrise
industry indicates a replanting of the natural rubber plantations to keep up
with growing worldwide demand. Some reports show a shortage of NRL in the coming
decade as demand in developing countries such as China and India continues to
grow. This future demand is awakening interest in other areas of the world where
the climate is suitable, particularly in Guatemala, where it is expected the
latex industry will grow from 57,000 tonnes produced in 2006 to over 95,000
tonnes by 2016, a 40% increase, according to a report issued by the office of
Consulate General of Guatemala, Atlanta, Georgia. This is particularly
attractive to U.S. manufacturers of latex products who could potentially see
reduced transportation costs and lead times over the usual Asian
sources.
Vytex NRL
is produced at the latex processor level and can be easily integrated into the
current processing environments without additional capital equipment
investment. The protein removal and modification process that leads
to Vytex NRL allows manufacturers to lower manufacturing costs with the benefit
of reduced protein levels. We presented a paper on this topic
(“technical paper”) at the RAPRA Latex and Synthetic Polymer Dispersions 2010
Conference in Amsterdam in March 2010. Reduced leaching times
and resulting reductions in energy, water and material handling consumption can
lead to realized cost savings. The manufacturing process may occur
entirely within a direct manufacturer that takes the NRL in its raw, harvested
form all the way through to the final product, such as a large glove
manufacturer, but this is rare. More typically, there are several
sub-manufacturers fabricating components to be used in final products, such as
elastic thread manufacturers selling product to bedding and clothing
manufacturers. Although not part of the manufacturing process, the links between
the NRL processors and the first manufacturer are independent distributors
specializing in NRL, similar to those participating in other agricultural
commodity trading.
We signed
a Toll Manufacturing Agreement with Revertex (Malaysia), the world’s largest
producer of prevulcanized natural rubber latices, in 2008. Our
agreement covers the areas of processing and technical support. Revertex is a
non-exclusive, toll manufacturer for us and is in full production mode to
manufacture Vytex NRL commercially.
3
We have
two different models for generating revenue. Through our Toll Manufacturing
Agreement with Revertex, the concentrated Vytex NRL is produced by Revertex for
a fee and we are responsible for marketing and selling it. We expect
this model to be responsible for generating the majority of our revenues over
the next five years. Our initial Vytex NRL product portfolio has two
versions, high ammonia (HA) and low ammonia (LA). This model is also applicable
for a vertically integrated manufacturer whose operations span the entire
manufacturing chain from the latex plantation to finished goods
production. This is commonly found in glove and condom manufacturing,
where today several manufacturers located in Thailand, Malaysia and India
control their processes from the rubber tree to the end-product. The
revenue stream in this scenario would be the same as for PV (pre-vulcanized)
Vytex NRL - the manufacturer pays the company a licensing fee for trademark
usage based on volume. We signed a licensing agreement with
GrupoAgroindustrialOccidente, located in Guatemala, in March 2010 based on this
model. GrupoAgroindustrialOccidente is the largest processor of
natural rubber latex in Latin America and the largest exporter serving more than
15 countries. Under the agreement, GrupoAgroindustrialOccidente will
manufacture, sell and market Vytex NRL throughout Latin America as well as
supply Vytex NRL to North America and Europe through the Company’s existing
distribution system.
Under our
second model, the processor can contract to market and sell a proprietary
version of Vytex NRL in a pre-vulcanized form. In this scenario
Revertex uses its own proprietary compound formula to create a new PV Vytex NRL
distinctly their own that becomes part of their portfolio of
products. For this, we will be paid a licensing fee by Revertex for
the use of the Vytex NRL trademark based on the volume of PV Vytex NRL (PV
Vytex) using the Vytex NRL trademark, and also pay us a licensing fee for the
Vytex NRL processed. We currently have a tentative licensing
agreement that covers glove production under this model.
We are
optimistic that both models will successfully generate revenues for
us. In addition, we entered into a Distribution Agreement
with Centrotrade Minerals & Metals, US and Centrotrade Deutschland, GmbH,
Germany, the leading global distributors of latex raw materials, to create a
worldwide distribution network that will further enhance our ability to cost
effectively reach and service manufacturer customers in these key manufacturing
areas.
These
agreements eliminate the need for us to create a costly infrastructure along
with the other investment and regulatory compliance costs to develop and operate
a processing or manufacturing facility. All of these costs are or will be borne
by our manufacturing and distribution contractors and/or customers. This means
we must show the NRL producers and product manufacturers the economic value
proposition of including Vytex NRL in their product lines, hence the technical
paper presented in Amsterdam in March of 2010. In addition, as an all
natural raw material, Vytex NRL puts the main component in gloves, etc. back in
the environmentally friendly arena.
4
Competition
Traditional
users of NRL as a product component have been seeking and developing alternative
synthetic raw materials. Currently, it is estimated that NRL
processors have lost one-half the overall latex market to synthetic latex,
despite the higher costs and recent capacity issues of these synthetic
materials. Base synthetic feedstocks such as ethylene, propylene and
styrene are expected to stabilize in both pricing and supply over the next 12-18
months, however, pricing will remain approximately 60% higher than 2003
prices. Butadiene users will continue to see short supply and pricing
volatility through 2010, according to Chemical Market Associates, Inc., a
national petrochemical consulting group in their report “Synthetic
Latex Feedstocks: Can It Get Any Worse?”, presented at the International Latex
Conference, July 2008, Cleveland, Ohio. Butadiene is the
feedstock most commonly found in synthetic exam gloves and a component of
synthetic latex foams. These facts, coupled with the easy
transition to the process to manufacture Vytex NRL, make it very attractive for
the processors to regain lost business.
Several attempts, including new source
crops, synthetic latices and various treatment methods, have been made to
eliminate problem proteins from Hevea NRL by biological, physical and/or
chemical methods that act on proteins. One approach has been to
introduce the latex articles to multiple leaching steps and
chlorination. While it does reduce the protein levels in the finished
product, it weakens the latex film thus compromising the desirable physical
properties of the product. Another attempt to reduce proteins in NRL
is the use of proteolytic enzymes to degrade the proteins in the latex solution
but this approach introduces another protein (the enzyme) to the latex, which
may itself be allergenic. Attempts to commercialize two other
non-Hevea NRL materials have been made in the United States; guayule rubber
latex and Taraxacum kok-saghyz, also known as the Russian
dandelion. These materials are reported to be higher in cost compared
to natural rubber latex and presently are available only in limited
quantities.
Intellectual
Property
We have
two issued patents, one pending patent application and one provisional patent
filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) protecting our
manufacturing process and latex composition. We also have filed two applications
for international patent protection pursuant to the Patent Cooperation Treaty
(PCT), which enable us to preserve patent rights in all PCT member countries
around the world and are discussed below. The first U.S. issued patent was
issued on June 14, 2005 as U.S. Patent 6,906,126. In April 2005, we
filed a continuation in part of our previously granted patent, which was
approved by the USPTO in October 2005, and was ultimately filed on June 6, 2006
as U.S. Patent 7,056,970. All 13 originally filed claims were allowed
in this patent that issued June 2006. We have sought international patent
protection of our U.S. patent number 7,056,970 pursuant to the PCT, and were
issued PCT patent No.: PCT/US2005/025018. This international patent
has been filed and nationalized in the European Union (EU) as well as in China,
Hong Kong, Japan, Sri Lanka, India, Canada, South Africa, and back into the US
with enhanced claims to expand our protection to both method and composition
claims. Additionally, we filed a patent application directly into Thailand for
this patent application. We expect patents in these countries to be issued
without objection.
5
Our
currently pending U.S. patent application, Serial No. 12/356,355 was filed on
January 20, 2009 and reflects new developments we discovered in the composition
of our Vytex NRL in various respects and with various finished
products. This US patent application has also been filed as an
international PCT patent application, No. PCT/US2009/031445. We intend to
nationalize this patent application in 2010/2011 into the various countries as
we did with the first PCT. Additionally, we have filed a provisional
patent application on March 16, 2010 with the USPTO Serial No. 61/314,455 to preserve
patent rights in our R&D, composition advancements and documented
manufacturing cost savings, which were the subject of our published papers and
presentations at the Smithers RAPRA’s Sixth International Latex & Synthetic
Polymer Dispersions Conference in Amsterdam on March 24, 2010. We
intend to convert this provisional application into a full utility patent
application within twelve months with the USPTO.
We
applied for trademark protection for “Vystar”, “Vytex” and our tagline “Created
by Nature. Recreated by Science.” in the U.S. and we intend to file
internationally for trademark protection. All three of these
trademarks have been officially allowed, and we received the official statement
and certificates of allowance from the USPTO in August 2009. No
assurance can be given that such trademark protection will provide substantial
protection from competition. We realize that the market for Vytex NRL
is an industrialized world concern and we are committed to aggressively
challenging any infringements of its patents and trademarks.
Research
and Development
Vytex NRL
has produced results on finished products that are both “below detection” and
“not detectable”, and these results have been reproduced in subsequent
tests. From inception through December 31, 2009, Vystar's research
and development costs have been approximately $2.3 million, with an additional
$43,000 budgeted for continued efforts in 2010. These efforts past
and future have been and will continue to be patented and/or
trademarked. As of December 31, 2009, Vystar has expended since
inception approximately $128,000 on such patent and trademark costs and has
budgeted approximately $12,000 more for the year ended December 31, 2010 to
continue to pursue and maintain its patents and trademarks around the
world.
6
Government
Regulation
In the
United States, healthcare and many food and food-based packaging products are
subject to regulation by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). We
do not believe that Vystar is subject to regulation by the FDA due to the fact
that it does not manufacture a finished medical device or other product, but
only provides Vytex NRL as a component or raw material to healthcare or other
product manufacturers. However, there will be FDA regulation of the
labeling of healthcare and food-based packaging products that are produced with
Vytex NRL. Additionally, the FDA prohibits the use of the term “hypoallergenic”
on any natural rubber latex product it regulates. In order to make
any such claim, the latex product manufacturer must seek a waiver from the FDA
of such regulatory prohibitions. Commentary by the FDA in its
guidance documents and other rulings indicate that the prohibition on the use of
the “hypoallergenic” label is based, at least in part, on the fact that,
although the use of the term “hypoallergenic” in such labeling may be intended
to indicate that the risk of allergic reaction to residual levels of processing
chemicals has been reduced, consumers may interpret the labeling to mean that
the risk of allergic reactions to any component in the device would be
minimal. Thus the hypoallergenic label is deemed
misleading. There can be no assurance, however, that we will succeed
in securing FDA approval for any claim regarding the “hypoallergenic” or reduced
allergy potential of latex produced with the Vytex NRL
process. Failure to secure, if required, such FDA approval, could
delay or otherwise detrimentally affect our introduction to natural rubber latex
healthcare and/or food packaging products regulated by the
FDA. Notwithstanding, the medical or food packaging manufacturer will
be able to use the Vytex NRL trademark on its label if size permits to
indicate only that the Vytex NRL component was used in the production of the
healthcare product, and no further claim is asserted. We believe that
we will be able to provide sufficient testing data to the FDA to support our
claim with respect to the natural rubber latex antigenic proteins present in
Vytex NRL.
On May 1,
2009, Vystar and Alatech Healthcare, LLC (“Alatech”), a major United States
condom manufacturer, received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration to market and sell Alatech’s Envy™ condom manufactured with Vytex
NRL. The Envy condom is the first medical product available in the United States
made from Vystar’s patented Vytex NRL, which has less than 2 micrograms/dm 2,
virtually undetectable levels, of the antigenic proteins that can cause an
allergic response, while retaining and improving upon all the desirable
qualities of latex. The Envy condom carries labeling that reflects the lowest
antigenic protein content currently available in a natural rubber latex medical
device in the United States.
On July
22, 2009, Vystar and Alatech further received 510(k) clearance from the FDA to
market and sell Alatech's unpowdered medical exam glove manufactured with
Vytex NRL. The Alatech exam glove will include labeling of less than 50
micrograms/gram of total proteins.
Inflation
and Seasonality
We do not
believe that our operations are significantly impacted by inflation. Our
business is not seasonal in nature, but is subject to commodity
pricing. Our product is a commodity-based raw material and prices for
such material fluctuate from day-to-day.
7
Employees
As of December 31, 2009, we had four
full-time employees and one part-time employee, four of which were employed at
our corporate headquarters in Atlanta, GA. We had three full-time
employees engaged primarily in sales and marketing, one of which includes
research & development responsibilities with his sales
activities. Finance and administration were the primary activities
for the remaining full-time employee and the part-time employee.
Corporate
Information
Vystar Corporation is a Georgia
corporation that was incorporated in 2003. Our predecessor company,
Vystar LLC, was formed by our founder, Travis Honeycutt, in February 2000 as a
Georgia limited liability company.
Our
principal executive offices are located at 3235 Satellite Boulevard, Building
400, Suite 290, Duluth, Georgia 30096, and our telephone number is 770-965-0383.
Our website address is www.vytex.com. The information contained on,
or that can be accessed through, our website is not a part of this Report. We
have links on our website to reports, information statements, and other
information that we file electronically with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, or SEC, at the Internet website maintained by the SEC,
www.sec.gov. In addition to visiting our website and the SEC’s
website, you may read and copy public reports we file with or furnish to the SEC
at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C.
20549. You may obtain information on the operation of the Public
Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330.
ITEM 1A.
|
RISK
FACTORS
|
We have
had very limited revenues in our history and have just transitioned from the
development stage to the operational stage during the fourth quarter of
2009. We are still in the relatively early stages of implementing our
business plan; our financial success will be dependent upon the soundness of our
business concept and our management’s ability to successfully and profitably
execute our plan.
While we
anticipate that revenues will grow from what we achieved in 2009, our limited
operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our business. We
expect to make significant future expenditures to develop and expand our
business. We may incur significant losses in the future for a number of reasons,
including due to the other risks described in this Report, and we may encounter
unforeseen expenses, difficulties, complications and delays and other unknown
events. Accordingly, we may not be able to achieve or maintain profitability,
and we may incur significant losses for the foreseeable future.
8
Our
business does not presently generate the cash needed to finance our current and
anticipated operations. At December 31, 2009 we had $780,147 cash on hand and an
accumulated deficit of $10,872,122. We plan to finance our operations
for the next twelve (12) months through the use of cash on hand, increased
revenues, and raising capital through a private placement and stock warrant
exercises from existing shareholders.. You should consider, among
other factors, our prospects for success in light of the risks and uncertainties
encountered by companies that, like us, have not generated net earnings on an
annual basis. Various factors, such as economic conditions, regulatory and
legislative considerations, and competition, may also impede our ability to
expand our market presence. We may not successfully address these risks and
uncertainties or successfully implement our operating and acquisition
strategies. If we fail to do so, it could materially harm our business and
impair the value of our common stock. Even if we accomplish these objectives, we
may not generate positive cash flows or profits we anticipate in the
future.
Operating
results could fluctuate and differ considerably from our financial
forecasts.
Our
business model is based on assumptions derived from (i) the experience of the
principals of the Company, and (ii) third party market information and analysis.
There are no assurances that these assumptions will prove to be valid for our
future operations or plans.
Our
operating results may fluctuate significantly as a result of a variety of
factors, including:
|
·
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Acceptance
by manufacturers of the Vytex Natural Rubber Latex
technology;
|
|
·
|
Our
ability to achieve and sustain
profitability;
|
|
·
|
Consumer
confidence in products manufactured using our Vytex Natural Rubber Latex
technology.
|
Our business is
totally dependent on market demand for, and acceptance of, the Vytex
Natural
Rubber Latex process.
We expect
to derive most of our revenue from the sales of our Vytex Natural Rubber Latex
raw material to various manufacturers of rubber and rubber end products using
NRL and/or their distributors. We will pay natural rubber latex processors a fee
for the service of manufacturing and creating Vytex NRL for us under our toll
manufacturing agreement. Conversely, Vystar will collect a fee under the
licensing model. Our Vytex NRL product is new and operates within broad, diverse
and rapidly changing markets. As a result, widespread acceptance and use of product is critical to
our future growth and success. If the market for our product fails to grow or
grows more slowly than we currently anticipate, demand for our product could be
negatively affected.
9
Our
ability to generate significant revenues is substantially dependent upon the
willingness of consumers to make discretionary purchases and the willingness of
manufacturers to utilize capital for research and development and the retooling
of their manufacturing process, both of which are impacted by the state of the
economy.
The current state of the world economy
has and likely will in the future impact upon our ability to increase
revenues. Certain of the products that we anticipate will be
manufactured with our Vystar NRL process, such as mattresses and sponge
products, are considered discretionary consumer purchases which decline during
economic downturns. Additionally, certain manufacturers who might
otherwise utilize the Vytex NRL process in the manufacturing of products with
NRL have determined not to expend capital to complete the research of the Vytex
NRL process or to retool their manufacturing process because of the general
downturn in the economy. While we are beginning to see signs that the
economy is improving and manufacturers are becoming more willing to consider the
use of the Vytex NRL process, the state of the economy has delayed our
generation of significant revenue and will likely continue to impact our
revenues in the future.
Assertions by a
third party that our process infringes its intellectual property, whether or not
correct, could subject us to costly and time-consuming litigation or expensive
licenses.
There is
frequent litigation based on allegations of infringement or other violations of
intellectual property rights. As we face increasing competition and become
increasingly visible as an operating company, the possibility of intellectual
property rights claims against us may grow.
Any
intellectual property rights claim against us or our customers, with or without
merit, could be time-consuming, expensive to litigate or settle and could divert
management attention and financial resources. An adverse determination also
could prevent us from offering our process, require us to pay damages, require
us to obtain a license or require that we stop using technology found to be in
violation of a third party’s rights or procure or develop substitute services
that do not infringe, which could require significant resources and
expenses.
The market in
which we will participate is competitive and if we do not compete effectively,
our operating results may be harmed.
The
markets for our product are competitive and rapidly changing. With the
introduction of new technologies and market entrants, we expect competition to
intensify in the future. In addition, pricing pressures and increased
competition generally could result in reduced sales, reduced margins or the
failure of our services to achieve or maintain widespread market
acceptance.
While
early interest was strong in a new innovative product in the natural rubber
latex industry, pricing and regulatory approvals remain a key selling factor
especially in the exam glove arena. There is no manufacturer signed to date that
has accepted Vytex NRL into its product mix.
Our
revenues will vary based on fluctuations in commodity prices for
NRL.
NRL is a
commodity and, as such, its price fluctuates on a daily basis. As a
result, our revenues may also fluctuate either upward or downward based on such
price fluctuations, over which we have no control. Such
fluctuations could have an adverse effect on
our revenues.
10
While
Vytex NRL has received 510(k) clearance from the FDA for condoms and
exam gloves, there is no assurance that future applications will be
cleared.
In order
for Vytex to be used in medical device applications, the manufacturer of the end
product must submit an application to the FDA. If the device is
classified by the FDA as Class II (e.g., condoms, surgical gloves, and most
non-cardiac and non-renal/dialysis catheters) and in some cases Class I (e.g.,
exam gloves), a 510(k) application must be filed with the FDA seeking clearance
to market the device based on the fact that there is at least one other
predicate or similar device already marketed. If the product is
classified as a Class III product (e.g., most cardiac and renal/dialysis
catheters, certain adhesives and other in vivo devices), or is otherwise a new
device with no predicate on the market already, then the manufacturer of the end
product must submit a Pre-Market Approval (“PMA”) application seeking approval
by the FDA to market the device. The PMA approval process is much
more in depth and lengthy and requires a greater degree of clinical data and FDA
review than does a 510(k) clearance process.
Since
Vytex is a raw material and not an end-product, Vystar is not the entity that
files with the FDA for any clearance or approval to market a
device. Instead, the end-product manufacturers who will be selling
and marketing the device(s) must submit applications and seek FDA clearance or
approval depending upon the device classification. Vystar’s role in
this process is only as a background support to the manufacturers to supply
information and any technical or test data regarding the Vytex raw material if
and to the extent needed.
An
American manufacturer of condoms and exam gloves has been engaged in
production work and has completed required testing and received FDA clearance
for using Vytex NRL in their condom and exam glove lines.
Notwithstanding such approvals, we have no assurance that future products
will provide acceptable test results and even if they do, there is no certainty
that the FDA will approve the applications.
Vystar
may seek to have lower protein claims than what is currently on the market today
for exam gloves, and may ultimately seek to have latex warnings removed from or
modified on all FDA-regulated products, but it cannot guarantee that either of
such actions will be approved by the FDA.
The FDA
scrutinizes heavily any and all claims categorizing the protein levels and other
claims of a NRL product. Currently, the FDA has allowed claims only stating the
level of less than 50 micrograms/gram of total extractable proteins pursuant to
only one of two FDA-recognized standards on exam or surgical gloves. Vystar
intends to claim protein levels pursuant to both of the two FDA-recognized
standards, which will result in claiming the lowest level of antigenic proteins
for a Hevea NRL product currently on the market. Although the FDA has cleared
such claims on the condom using Vytex NRL, the FDA rejected those claims for the
exam glove. There is no guarantee that the FDA will ultimately or ever allow
these claims on an exam glove.
Additionally,
for many years, the FDA has required warnings on products containing latex due
to the latex allergy issue that exists. Vystar plans on petitioning the FDA to
have that label removed from or modified on products manufactured with Vytex
NRL, by filing a Citizen’s Petition. Such Petition is likely to require clinical
test results indicating acceptable allergic reactions associated with
Vytex NRL. There are no assurances that the FDA will grant that
request.
11
Manufacturers
are implementing trials of Vytex NRL in their facilities but final data are not
yet available from all these manufacturers on its viability for their particular
environments.
Samples
of Vytex NRL have been made available to over 50 natural rubber latex and latex
substitute end product manufacturers. Since the completion of the Vytex NRL
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), Vystar has been in full production at
Revertex Malaysia. Manufacturers that have signed a sampling agreement with us
have been provided with samples of Vytex NRL for validating its use in their
manufacturing processes. To date, a number of manufacturers have completed those
runs and feedback is somewhat minimal at this point in various industries.
Although most feedback received to date is positive, there is no assurance that
such feedback will continue to be satisfactory.
We
do not expect to declare any dividends in the foreseeable future.
We do not anticipate declaring any cash
dividends to holders of our common stock in the foreseeable
future. Consequently, shareholders must rely on sales of their common
stock after price appreciation, which may never occur, as the only way to
realize any future gains on their investment. Investors seeking cash
dividends should not purchase our common stock.
There
is no assurance that any significant public market for our shares of common
stock will develop.
While our shares of common stock have
been approved for trading on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol “VYST”,
there is currently no significant public market for our common stock and there
is no assurance that there will be any such significant public market for our
common stock in the future.
ITEM 1B.
|
UNRESOLVED
STAFF COMMENTS
|
None
ITEM 2.
|
PROPERTIES
|
Our headquarters are located in
approximately 2,500 square feet of leased office space in Duluth, Georgia, a
suburb of Atlanta. The term of the lease ends in December
2010.
Although we believe that our current
space is adequate for the foreseeable future, if additional office space is
required, we believe that suitable space will be available at market
rates.
ITEM 3.
|
LEGAL
PROCEEDINGS
|
None
ITEM 4.
|
SUBMISSION
OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY
HOLDERS
|
None
12
PART
II.
ITEM 5.
|
MARKET
FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER
PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
|
Market
Price Information
Our common stock is traded in the
United States on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board (OTCBB) under the symbol
“VYST.” The following table shows the range of high and low closing
prices for our common stock since it began trading on December 10,
2009.
High
|
Low
|
|||||||
December
31, 2009
|
||||||||
Fourth
Quarter
|
$ | 2.10 | $ | 1.00 |
Holders
As of March 29, 2010, there were 251
holders of record of the Company’s common stock.
Dividends
We have never paid or declared any cash
dividends on our common stock and we do not intend to pay or declare dividends
on our common stock in the near future. We presently expect to retain
any future earnings to fund continuing development and growth of our
business. Our payment of dividends is subject to the discretion of
our board of directors and will depend on earnings, financial condition, capital
requirements and other relevant factors.
Issuer
Purchases of Equity Securities
We did not make any repurchases of our
equity securities during the fourth quarter of 2009.
Securities
Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
Information concerning our equity
compensation plans is set forth in Item 12 of Part III of this Annual Report on
Form 10-K.
13
Recent
Sales of Unregistered Securities
Private
Placements
Vystar
completed a private placement of its common stock and warrants to purchase
common stock to accredited investors that ended in May 2009. In the offering,
the Company issued a total of 1,477,000 shares of its common stock at a
price of $2.00 per share. For each two (2) shares of common stock purchased, the
investor received a warrant to purchase one (1) share of our common stock at
$1.00 per share for a period of two (2) years from the date of
issue. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009 288,000 shares
of such common stock and warrants to purchase 144,000 shares of our common stock
were issued.
On November 2, 2009 the Company began
an offering to sell up to 1,000,000 shares of common stock and 1,000,000
warrants to purchase common stock through a private placement
memorandum. Under the terms of the private placement memorandum, the
Company is offering up to 1,000,000 shares of common stock at $2.00 per
share. For each two (2) shares of common stock purchased, the
investor will receive a warrant to purchase a share of common stock at an
exercise price of $1.50 per share exercisable for one year from issuance and an
additional warrant to purchase a share of common stock at an exercise price of
$3.25 per share exercisable for two years from issuance. The Company
has the right to increase the offering up to 2,000,000 shares of common stock
and 2,000,000 warrants to purchase common stock. During the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2009 the Company received $430,000 and issued 215,000
shares of common stock and warrants to purchase an additional 215,000 shares of
common stock. From January 1, 2010, through March 29, 2010, the Company
received $245,000 and issued 122,500 shares of common stock and warrants to
purchase an additional 122,500 shares of common stock.
During
2009 the Company issued stock purchase warrants to purchase 189,735 shares of
common stock at exercise prices ranging from $1.00 to $2.20 in exchange for
services rendered to the Company.
During
2009 the Company issued 100,000 shares of its common stock for services rendered
to the Company.
Stock Option Grants
During
2009 the Company issued options to certain employees, directors and consultants
to purchase an aggregate of 2,175,000 shares of common stock, of which
400,000 were later forfeited, at an exercise price of $1.63 per share. Through
the date hereof, none of such options have been exercised.
14
Application of Securities Laws and
Other Matters
No
underwriters were involved in the foregoing sales of securities. The securities
described above were issued to investors in reliance upon the exemption from the
registration requirements of the Securities Act, as set forth in
Section 4(2) under the Securities Act and Regulation D promulgated
thereunder, as applicable, relative to sales by an issuer not involving any
public offering, to the extent an exemption from such registration was
required.
The
issuance of stock options as described above were issued pursuant to written
compensatory plans or arrangements with the Registrant’s employees, directors
and consultants, in reliance on the exemption provided by Rule 701
promulgated under the Securities Act. All recipients either received adequate
information about the Registrant or had access, through employment or other
relationships, to such information.
All of
the foregoing securities are deemed restricted securities for purposes of the
Securities Act. All certificates representing the issued shares of common stock,
warrants and options described above included appropriate legends setting forth
that the securities had not been registered and the applicable restrictions on
transfer.
ITEM 6.
|
SELECTED
FINANCIAL DATA
|
As a smaller reporting company, we are
not required to provide the information required by this Item pursuant to 301(c)
of Regulation S-K.
15
ITEM 7.
|
MANAGEMENT’S
DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF
OPERATIONS
|
This
analysis of our results of operations should be read in conjunction with the
accompanying financial statements, including notes thereto, contained in Item 8
of this Report. This Report contains certain forward-looking
statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act, and Section
21E of the Exchange Act. Statements that are predictive in nature and
that depend upon or refer to future events or conditions are forward-looking
statements. Although we believe that these statements are based upon
reasonable expectations, we can give no assurance that their goals will be
achieved. Please refer to the discussion of forward-looking
statements included in Part I of this Report.
Overview
Vystar
LLC, the predecessor to the Company, was formed February 2, 2000, as a Georgia
limited liability company by Travis W. Honeycutt. The Company’s operations under
the LLC entity were focused substantially on the research, development and
testing of the Vytex® Natural Rubber Latex ("NRL") process, as well as attaining
intellectual property rights. In 2003, the Company reorganized as Vystar
Corporation, a Georgia corporation, at which time all assets and liabilities of
the limited liability company became assets and liabilities of Vystar
Corporation, including all intellectual property rights, patents and
trademarks.
We are
the creator and exclusive owner of the innovative technology to produce Vytex
NRL. This technology reduces antigenic protein in natural rubber latex products
to virtually undetectable levels in both liquid NRL and finished latex
products. We have started to introduce Vytex NRL, our new “ultra low
protein” natural rubber latex, throughout the worldwide marketplace that uses
NRL or latex substitutes as a component of manufactured
products. Natural rubber latex is used in an extensive range of
products including balloons, textiles, footwear and clothing (threads),
adhesives, foams, furniture, carpet, paints, coatings, protective equipment,
sporting equipment, and especially health care products such as condoms,
surgical and exam gloves. We plan to produce Vytex through toll manufacturing
and licensing agreements and have started introducing Vytex NRL into the supply
channels with aggressive, targeted marketing campaigns directed to the end
users.
16
We are no
longer a development stage company, having transitioned to the operating stage
during the last quarter of 2009. Our primary focus now is increasing
market-acceptance for Vytex NRL and accordingly, increasing
sales. With this change in our status, we expect that our financial
condition and results of operations will undergo substantial change from what we
experienced as a development stage company. In addition to recording
both revenue and expense from product sales, we expect to incur increased costs
for sales and marketing expenses. Accordingly, the financial condition and
results of operations reflected in our historical financial statements are not
expected to be indicative of our future financial condition and results of
operations.
Critical
Accounting Policies and Estimates
Our
discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations are
based upon our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with
U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. As such, we are required to make
estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and
liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of
the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses
during the reporting period. By their nature, these estimates and judgments are
subject to an inherent degree of uncertainty. Our management reviews its
estimates on an on-going basis. We base our estimates and assumptions on
historical experience, knowledge of current conditions and our understanding of
what we believe to be reasonable that might occur in the future considering
available information. Actual results may differ from these estimates, and
material effects on our operating results and financial position may
result.
We
believe the following critical accounting policies affect our more significant
judgments and estimates used in the preparation of our financial
statements.
Stock-based
Compensation
Generally accepted accounting
principles require all share-based payments, including grants of employee
stock options and warrants, to be recognized in the financial statements based
on their fair values. We compute the value of awards granted by utilizing
the Black-Scholes valuation model based upon their expected lives, expected
volatility, expected dividend yield, and the risk-free interest rate. The value
of the awards is then straight-line expensed over the service period of the
awards.
17
Income
Taxes
We account for income taxes
using the
assets and liability method. This method requires that
the deferred tax consequences of temporary differences between the amounts
recorded in our financial statements and the amounts included in our federal and
state income tax returns be recognized in the balance sheet. Estimates are often
required with respect to, among other things, the appropriate state income tax
rate to use in the state in which we are required to file, the potential
utilization of any operating and capital loss carry-forwards for both federal
and state income tax purposes and valuation allowances required, if any, for tax
assets that may not be realizable in the future. We
believe that it is more likely than not that the amounts recorded as deferred
income tax assets will not be recoverable through future taxable income
generated by us. As a result, the Company recorded a 100% valuation
allowance against our net deferred tax assets as of December 31,
2009. We believe the procedures and estimates used in our accounting
for income taxes are reasonable and in accordance with established tax
law.
RESULTS
OF OPERATIONS
Year
ended December 31, 2009 compared to year ended December 31, 2008
Revenues
Year
Ended
|
||||||||||||||
December
31
|
$
|
%
|
||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
Change
|
Change
|
|||||||||||
Revenues
|
$ | 50,933 | $ | 227 | $ | 50,706 |
N/M
("not meaningful")
|
We transitioned to an operating company
during the fourth quarter of 2009 but were still a development stage company at
the end of 2008 and had yet to commence significant revenue
generation. This is why the percentage increase in net revenues for
the year ended December 31, 2009 compared to the year ended December 31, 2008 is
not meaningful. All of our revenues for the periods shown above have
been generated through product sales.
Operating
Costs and Expenses
Year Ended
|
||||||||||||||||
December 31
|
$
|
%
|
||||||||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
Change
|
Change
|
|||||||||||||
OPERATING
COSTS AND EXPENSES
|
||||||||||||||||
Cost
of revenues
|
$ | 54,353 | $ | - | $ | 54,353 | N/M | |||||||||
Research
and development
|
223,102 | 403,196 | (180,094 | ) | -44.7 | % | ||||||||||
Sales
and marketing
|
676,370 | 473,337 | 203,033 | 42.9 | % | |||||||||||
General
and administrative
|
1,332,890 | 3,785,612 | (2,452,722 | ) | -64.8 | % | ||||||||||
$ | 2,286,715 | $ | 4,662,145 | $ | (2,375,430 | ) | -51.0 | % |
Cost of revenues consists primarily of
product and freight costs.
18
Research and development expenses
decreased 44.7%, or $180,094, to $223,102 for the year ended December 31, 2009
compared to the year ended December 31, 2008. Research and
development expenses consist primarily of compensation for employees and
contractors engaged in internal research and product development activities,
laboratory operations, and related operating expenses. The decrease
represents the change in our focus from developing Vytex to gaining market
acceptance of it and we expect our research and development expenses to decrease
to less than $50,000 during 2010.
Sales and
marketing expenses increased 42.9%, or $203,033, to $676,370 for the year ended
December 31, 2009 compared to the year ended December 31, 2008. Sales
and marketing expenses include the costs of sales and marketing personnel and
their related travel and support costs and the costs of our marketing and public
relations programs. This increase is primarily attributable to adding
sales and marketing personnel and other marketing costs generated in developing
market recognition for our company and brand recognition for
Vytex. We expect our sales and marketing expenses to continue with
substantial increases, year over year, as we expand our markets for
Vytex.
General
and administrative expenses decreased 64.8%, or $2,452,722, to $1,332,890 for
the year ended December 31, 2009 compared to the year ended December 31,
2008. General and administrative expenses consist primarily of
compensation and support costs for management and administrative staff, and for
other general and administrative costs, including professional fees related to
accounting, finance, and legal services as well as other operating
expenses. This decrease is primarily attributable to a reduction in
stock-based compensation expense and amortization of deferred
compensation. Stock-based compensation expense decreased 84% in 2009
to $209,200 from $1,321,170 for the year ended December 31,
2008. Amortization of deferred compensation decreased $1,426,841 or
93.4% to $100,469 for the year ended December 31, 2009 from $1,527,312 for the
year ended December 31, 2008. The deferred compensation expense
represents the amortized fair value of warrants and common stock issued for
future services to non-employees.
In total,
we recognized $299,084 in stock-based compensation expense in 2009 compared with
$1,660,776 in 2008, an 82% reduction. These charges were primarily
for stock options granted under our Long-Term Incentive Compensation Plan to
executive officers and directors and were made so that their interests would be
aligned with those of shareholders, providing incentive to improve Company
performance on a long-term basis. Grants of warrants were also made
to third parties for various services rendered to preserve operating
capital.
We expect
general and administrative expenses to increase a minimal amount during 2010 due
to the increased costs associated with being a publicly held company for an
entire year.
19
Other
Income (Expense)
Other
income was $130,135 for the year ended December 31, 2009, consisting of $13,065
of interest income on cash deposits net of interest expense of $3,135 and the
$120,205 release of a provision for a related party note receivable, as
discussed in Note 10 to the financial statements. This compares to
$22,930 of interest income for the year ended December 31, 2008 net of $1,031
interest expense.
Net
Loss
As a
result of the factors described above, the net loss decreased $2,534,426 to
$2,105,647 for the year ended December 31, 2009, compared to $4,640,073 for the
year ended December 31, 2008.
LIQUIDITY
AND CAPITAL RESOURCES
As of
December 31, 2009, we had current assets of $1,213,519, including cash of
$780,147, and $296,702 in current liabilities, or working capital of
$916,817. We use working capital to finance our ongoing operations
and since those operations do not currently cover all of our operating costs,
managing working capital is essential to our company’s future
success.
Cash used
in operating activities was $2,031,106 for the year ended December 31, 2009 as
compared to $1,389,781 for the year ended December 31, 2008. During
the year ended December 31, 2009, cash used in operations was primarily due to
the net loss for the year of $2,105,647, net of non-cash related add-backs of
stock-based compensation expense, reversal of provision on related party note
receivable, and amortization of deferred compensation. The remaining
more significant operating activities that used cash in 2009 were $140,827 for
inventory purchases and payment of a related party payable,
$36,453.
20
Cash
provided by investing activities was $791,868 during the year ended December 31,
2009, as compared to cash used of $731,761 during the year ended December 31,
2008. During the year ended December 31, 2009, we received $750,000
when a certificate of deposit matured, that had been purchased in 2008, and we
received proceeds of $60,000 from a related party note receivable. We
incurred $18,132 in costs related to our patents.
Cash
provided by financing activities was $1,062,730 during the year ended December
31, 2009, as compared to cash provided of $2,505,020 during the year ended
December 31, 2008. These were the proceeds we received from the sale
of common stock and the exercise of warrants, net of issuance costs of $35,269
for the year ended December 31, 2009.
Based on
our current financial projections, we believe we can finance our future
operations through our cash on hand, increased revenues and raising capital
though a private placement and stock warrant exercises from existing
shareholders. We expect sales in 2010 to continually increase as our
product continues to gain market acceptance and we believe our current business
plan is attractive enough to investors to raise additional capital so that we
will have adequate working capital to fund our operations through December 31,
2010.
Our future expenditures will depend on
numerous factors, including: the rate at which we can introduce and sell NRL to
manufacturers; the costs of filing, prosecuting, defending and enforcing any
patent claims and other intellectual property rights; and market acceptance of
our products and competing technological developments. We expect that we will
incur approximately $2 million of cash expenditures for our operating expenses
over the next 12 months. This includes almost $800,000 in both
personnel costs and general and administrative expenses, including professional
fees. As we expand our activities and operations, our cash requirements are
expected to increase at a rate consistent with revenue growth after we have
achieved sustained revenue generation.
Off-Balance
Sheet Arrangements
We do not have any material off-balance
sheet arrangements.
Recent
Accounting Pronouncements
For information with respect to new
accounting pronouncements and the impact of these pronouncements on our
financial statements, see Note 1 of the Notes to Financial
Statements.
21
Income
Taxes
Due to a required change in the
applicable accounting standards, the Company adopted a new recognition threshold
for income tax benefits arising from uncertain positions effective January 1,
2009. Generally accepted accounting principles in the United States
of America (“GAAP”) prescribe a recognition threshold that a tax position is
required to meet before being recognized in the financial statements and
provides guidance on derecognition, measurement, classification, interest and
penalties, accounting in interim periods, disclosure and transition
issues. We recognized tax benefits from all tax positions we have
taken, and there has been no material adjustment to any carryforwards, NOL or
R&D credits, as a result of implementing the new standard. There were
no material unrecognized tax benefits and related tax liabilities at December
31, 2009. In addition, future changes in the unrecognized tax
benefits will likely have no impact on our effective tax rate due to the
existence of the valuation allowance.
As of
December 31, 2009 and 2008, we have no accrual requirement for interest or
penalties related to uncertain tax positions. Accrued interest
relating to uncertain tax positions would be recorded as interest expense and
penalties related to uncertain positions would be recorded and general and
administrative expenses.
The tax
years 2006 to 2009 remain open to examination by the major taxing jurisdictions
to which we are subject. Additionally, upon inclusion of the NOL and
R&D credit carryforward tax benefits in future tax returns, the related tax
benefit for the period in which the benefit arose may be subject to
examination.
ITEM
7A.
|
QUANTITATIVE
AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET
RISK
|
As a smaller reporting company, we are
not required to provide the information required by this Item pursuant to 301(c)
of Regulation S-K.
22
ITEM
8.
|
FINANCIAL
STATEMENTS
|
Index
to Financial Statements
|
|
Report
of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
|
F-1
|
Balance
Sheets
|
F-2
|
Statements
of Operations
|
F-3
|
Statements
of Stockholders' Equity
|
F-4
|
Statements
of Cash Flows
|
F-5
|
Notes
to Financial Statements
|
F-6
|
23
Report
of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
The Board
of Directors and Stockholders
Vystar
Corporation
We have
audited the accompanying balance sheets of Vystar Corporation (the “Company”) as
of December 31, 2009 and 2008, and the related statements of operations,
stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the years then ended. These
financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s
management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these
financial statements based on our audit.
We
conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company
Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require
that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether
the financial statements are free of material misstatement. The
Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its
internal control over financial reporting. Our audits included
consideration of internal control over financial reporting as a basis for
designing audit procedures that are appropriate in the circumstances, but not
for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s
internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no
such opinion. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence
supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial
statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting
principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as
evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe
that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
In our
opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all
material respects, the financial position of Vystar Corporation as of December
31, 2009 and 2008, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the
years then ended in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in
the United States of America.
/s/
Habif, Arogeti & Wynne, LLP
Atlanta,
Georgia
March 29,
2010
F-1
Vystar
Corporation
Balance
Sheets
As of
December 31
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
ASSETS
|
||||||||
CURRENT
ASSETS
|
||||||||
Cash
|
$ | 780,147 | $ | 956,655 | ||||
Investments
|
- | 750,000 | ||||||
Accounts
receivable
|
25,678 | - | ||||||
Inventory
|
140,827 | - | ||||||
Prepaid
expenses
|
97,483 | 44,938 | ||||||
Note
receivable due from related party, net of allowance for uncollectible
amount of $ 0 and $120,205
at December 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively
|
137,949 | 60,000 | ||||||
Other
|
31,435 | 1,217 | ||||||
TOTAL
CURRENT ASSETS
|
1,213,519 | 1,812,810 | ||||||
PROPERTY
AND EQUIPMENT, NET
|
8,104 | 15,307 | ||||||
OTHER
ASSETS
|
||||||||
Patents
and trademarks, net
|
115,975 | 83,570 | ||||||
Note
receivable due from related party, net of current portion shown
above
|
- | 17,744 | ||||||
Other
|
5,887 | 5,887 | ||||||
TOTAL
ASSETS
|
$ | 1,343,485 | $ | 1,935,318 | ||||
LIABILITIES
AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
|
||||||||
CURRENT
LIABILITIES
|
||||||||
Accounts
payable
|
$ | 128,888 | $ | 104,038 | ||||
Accounts
payable - related party
|
- | 36,453 | ||||||
Accrued
expenses
|
127,922 | 99,615 | ||||||
TOTAL
CURRENT LIABILITIES
|
256,810 | 240,106 | ||||||
LONG-TERM
LIABILITIES
|
47,399 | 12,574 | ||||||
TOTAL
LIABILITIES
|
304,209 | 252,680 | ||||||
STOCKHOLDERS'
EQUITY
|
||||||||
Preferred
stock, $0.0001 par value, 15,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and
outstanding
|
- | - | ||||||
Common
stock, $0.0001 par value, 50,000,000 shares authorized; 13,042,774 and
11,951,774 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2009 and 2008,
respectively
|
1,304 | 1,195 | ||||||
Additional
paid-in capital
|
11,994,522 | 10,466,302 | ||||||
Deferred
compensation
|
(84,428 | ) | (18,384 | ) | ||||
Accumulated
deficit
|
(10,872,122 | ) | (8,766,475 | ) | ||||
TOTAL
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
|
1,039,276 | 1,682,638 | ||||||
TOTAL
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
|
$ | 1,343,485 | $ | 1,935,318 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial
statements.
F-2
Vystar
Corporation
Statements
of Operations
For the
Years Ended December 31
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
REVENUES
|
$ | 50,933 | $ | 227 | ||||
COST
OF REVENUES
|
54,353 | - | ||||||
Gross
Profit (Loss)
|
(3,420 | ) | 227 | |||||
OPERATING
EXPENSES
|
||||||||
Sales
and marketing
|
676,370 | 473,337 | ||||||
General
and administrative
|
1,332,890 | 3,785,612 | ||||||
Research
and development
|
223,102 | 403,196 | ||||||
Total
Operating Expenses
|
2,232,362 | 4,662,145 | ||||||
LOSS
FROM OPERATIONS
|
(2,235,782 | ) | (4,661,918 | ) | ||||
OTHER
INCOME (EXPENSE)
|
||||||||
Interest
income
|
13,065 | 22,930 | ||||||
Interest
expense
|
(3,135 | ) | (1,031 | ) | ||||
Reversal
of provision for note receivable from related party
|
120,205 | - | ||||||
Other
expense
|
- | (54 | ) | |||||
NET
LOSS
|
$ | (2,105,647 | ) | $ | (4,640,073 | ) | ||
Basic
and Diluted Loss per Share
|
$ | (0.17 | ) | $ | (0.40 | ) | ||
Basic
and Diluted Weighted Average Number of Common Shares
Outstanding
|
12,467,732 | 11,522,901 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial
statements.
F-3
Vystar
Corporation
Statements
of Stockholders' Equity
For the
Years Ended December 31, 2009 and 2008
Number of
Shares
|
Common Stock
|
Additional Paid-in
Capital
|
Deferred
Compensation
|
Accumulated
Deficit
|
Total
|
|||||||||||||||||||
Ending
Balance, December 31, 2007
|
15,148,320 | $ | 1,515 | $ | 4,699,545 | $ | - | $ | (4,126,402 | ) | $ | 574,658 | ||||||||||||
Common
stock issued in private placement memorandum at $1.50/share during 2008,
net of issuance costs of $375 cash
|
5,000 | - | 7,125 | - | - | 7,125 | ||||||||||||||||||
Contribution
of founder's stock
|
(4,900,000 | ) | (490 | ) | 490 | - | - | - | ||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for services rendered during 2008, valued at $1.00/share, net
of issuance costs of $4,080 non-cash
|
64,080 | 6 | 59,994 | - | - | 60,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for services rendered during 2008, valued at
$1.50/share
|
1,333 | - | 2,000 | - | - | 2,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for services rendered during 2008, valued at
$1.63/share
|
3,374 | 1 | 5,499 | - | - | 5,500 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for services rendered during 2008, valued at
$2.00/share
|
10,500 | 1 | 20,999 | - | - | 21,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued in private placement memorandum at $2.00/share during 2008,
net of issuance costs of $91,371 cash and $17,162 non-cash
|
1,189,000 | 119 | 2,286,509 | - | - | 2,286,628 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for exercise of warrants during 2008, net of issuance costs
of $7,317 cash
|
430,167 | 43 | 211,224 | - | - | 211,267 | ||||||||||||||||||
Share-based
compensation to employees vested during 2008
|
- | - | 1,572,276 | - | - | 1,572,276 | ||||||||||||||||||
Share-based
payments for services vested during 2008, net of issuance costs of $21,916
non-cash
|
- | - | 1,545,695 | (1,545,695 | ) | - | - | |||||||||||||||||
Amortization
of deferred compensation during 2008
|
- | - | - | 1,527,311 | - | 1,527,311 | ||||||||||||||||||
Forgiveness
of debt by founder
|
- | - | 54,946 | - | - | 54,946 | ||||||||||||||||||
Net
loss
|
- | - | - | - | (4,640,073 | ) | (4,640,073 | ) | ||||||||||||||||
Ending
Balance, December 31, 2008
|
11,951,774 | 1,195 | 10,466,302 | (18,384 | ) | (8,766,475 | ) | 1,682,638 | ||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued with warrants in private placement memorandum at $2.00/share
during 2009, net of issuance costs of $34,394 cash
|
503,000 | 50 | 971,556 | - | - | 971,606 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for exercise of warrants during 2009, net of issuance costs
of $875 cash
|
488,000 | 49 | 91,076 | - | - | 91,125 | ||||||||||||||||||
Common
stock issued for services vested during 2009, valued at
$1.63/share
|
100,000 | 10 | 162,990 | (163,000 | ) | - | - | |||||||||||||||||
Share-based
compensation to employees vested during 2009
|
- | - | 184,550 | - | - | 184,550 | ||||||||||||||||||
Share-based
payments for services vested during 2009, net of issuance costs of $1,751
non-cash
|
- | - | 118,048 | (3,514 | ) | - | 114,534 | |||||||||||||||||
Amortization
of deferred compensation during 2009
|
- | - | - | 100,470 | - | 100,470 | ||||||||||||||||||
Net
loss
|
- | - | - | - | (2,105,647 | ) | (2,105,647 | ) | ||||||||||||||||
Ending
Balance, December 31, 2009
|
13,042,774 | $ | 1,304 | $ | 11,994,522 | $ | (84,428 | ) | $ | (10,872,122 | ) | $ | 1,039,276 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial
statements.
F-4
Vystar
Corporation
Statements
of Cash Flows
For the
Years Ended December 31
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
CASH
FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
|
||||||||
Net
loss
|
$ | (2,105,647 | ) | $ | (4,640,073 | ) | ||
Adjustment
to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating
activities
|
||||||||
Stock-based
compensation expense
|
299,084 | 1,660,776 | ||||||
Reversal
of provision on related party note receivable
|
(120,205 | ) | - | |||||
Amortization
of deferred compensation
|
100,469 | 1,527,312 | ||||||
Forgiveness
of debt by founder
|
- | 54,946 | ||||||
Depreciation
|
7,203 | 7,928 | ||||||
Amortization
|
2,982 | 2,991 | ||||||
(Increase)
decrease in assets
|
||||||||
Accounts
receivable
|
(25,678 | ) | - | |||||
Inventory
|
(140,827 | ) | - | |||||
Prepaid
expenses
|
(69,801 | ) | (50,374 | ) | ||||
Other
|
(30,218 | ) | 13,783 | |||||
Increase
(decrease) in liabilities
|
||||||||
Accounts
payable
|
24,850 | 87,124 | ||||||
Accounts
payable - related party
|
(36,453 | ) | - | |||||
Accrued
expenses
|
28,307 | (51,039 | ) | |||||
Other
|
34,828 | (3,155 | ) | |||||
Net
cash used in operating activities
|
(2,031,106 | ) | (1,389,781 | ) | ||||
CASH
FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES
|
||||||||
Maturity
(purchase) of investment
|
750,000 | (750,000 | ) | |||||
Proceeds
on related party note receivable
|
60,000 | 42,460 | ||||||
Cost
of patents
|
(18,132 | ) | (15,901 | ) | ||||
Purchase
of equipment
|
- | (8,320 | ) | |||||
Net
cash provided by (used in) investing activities
|
791,868 | (731,761 | ) | |||||
CASH
FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
|
||||||||
Issuance
of common stock, net of issuance costs
|
1,062,730 | 2,505,020 | ||||||
Net
cash provided by financing activities
|
1,062,730 | 2,505,020 | ||||||
NET
(DECREASE) INCREASE IN CASH
|
(176,508 | ) | 383,478 | |||||
CASH
- BEGINNING OF YEAR
|
956,655 | 573,177 | ||||||
CASH
- END OF YEAR
|
$ | 780,147 | $ | 956,655 | ||||
SUPPLEMENTAL
DISCLOSURES OF CASH FLOW INFORMATION:
|
||||||||
CASH
PAID DURING THE PERIOD FOR
|
||||||||
Interest
|
$ | 3,135 | $ | 1,032 | ||||
SUPPLEMENTAL
DISCLOSURE OF NON-CASH FINANCING ACTIVITY:
|
||||||||
Patents
- shares for services
|
||||||||
During
2008, 50,000 shares valued at $50,000 were issued for legal services
rendered to obtain a patent
|
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial
statements.
F-5
Vystar
Corporation
Notes
to Financial Statements
December
31, 2009 and 2008
NOTE
1- SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
History
and Nature of Business
Vystar
Corporation (“Vystar”, the “Company”, “we”, “us”, or “our”) is the creator and
exclusive owner of the innovative technology to produce Vytex® Natural Rubber
Latex ("NRL"). This technology reduces antigenic protein in natural rubber latex
products to virtually undetectable levels in both liquid NRL and finished latex
products. Vystar intends to introduce Vytex NRL, its new “ultra low
protein” natural rubber latex, throughout the worldwide marketplace that uses
NRL or latex substitutes as a component of manufactured
products. Natural rubber latex or latex substitutes are used in an
extensive range of products including balloons, textiles, footwear and clothing
(threads), adhesives, foams, furniture, carpet, paints, coatings, protective
equipment, sporting equipment, and, especially health care products such as
condoms, surgical and exam gloves. The Company plans to produce Vytex through
toll manufacturing and licensing agreements and has started introducing Vytex
NRL into the supply channels with targeted marketing campaigns directed to the
end users. During 2008, the Company signed an agreement with Revertex
(Malaysia) for the production of Vytex NRL. Revertex is a
non-exclusive, toll manufacturer for Vystar.
Vystar
LLC, the predecessor to the Company, was formed February 2, 2000, as a Georgia
limited liability company. The Company’s operations under the LLC entity were
focused substantially on the research, development and testing of the Vytex NRL
process, as well as attaining intellectual property rights. In 2003, the Company
reorganized as Vystar Corporation, a Georgia corporation, at which time all
assets and liabilities of the limited liability company became assets and
liabilities of Vystar Corporation, including all intellectual property rights,
patents and trademarks.
Development
Stage
Since
inception as Vystar LLC on February 2, 2000 through the period ending September
30, 2009, the Company’s activities were devoted primarily to the development of
NRL and the raising of capital. Vystar Corporation was considered a development
stage company as defined under accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of America (“GAAP”) during that period. The Company
transitioned to the operational stage from the development stage during the
final quarter of 2009; with that change, Vystar’s primary focus changed to
increasing market acceptance for NRL and accordingly, increasing
sales.
Estimates
The
preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management
to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the
financial statements and accompanying disclosures. Although these
estimates are based on management’s best knowledge of current events and actions
the Company may undertake in the future, actual results could differ from these
estimates.
F-6
Concentration
of Credit Risk
Certain
financial instruments potentially subject the Company to concentrations of
credit risk. These financial instruments consist primarily of cash,
accounts receivable and, as discussed in Note 10, an unsecured related party
note receivable. Cash held in operating accounts in many cases
exceeds the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, or FDIC, insurance
limits. While we monitor cash balances in our operating accounts on a
regular basis and adjust the balances as appropriate, these balances could be
impacted if the underlying financial institutions fail. To date, we
have experienced no loss or lack of access to our cash; however, we can provide
no assurances that access to our cash will not be impacted by adverse conditions
in the financial markets.
Accounts
Receivable
Accounts
receivable are stated at the amount management expects to collect from
outstanding balances. To date, we have not provided for any
uncollectible amounts through a charge to earnings as all balances are believed
to be fully collectable. We grant credit to our customers without
requiring collateral. The amount of accounting loss for which we are
at risk in these unsecured accounts receivable is limited to their carrying
value.
Inventory
Inventory
is stated at the lower of cost or market and cost is determined using the
first-in, first-out (FIFO) method.
Property
and Equipment
Property
and equipment is stated at cost. Depreciation is provided by the use
of the straight-line and accelerated methods for financial and tax reporting
purposes, respectively, over the estimated useful lives of the assets, generally
5 years.
Patents
and Trademarks
Patents
represent legal and other fees associated with the registration of
patents. The Company has two patents and two provisional patent
submissions with the United States Patent and Trade Office (USPTO) as well as an
international PCT (Patent Cooperation Treaty) patent. Patents are
carried at cost and are being amortized on a straight-line basis over their
estimated useful lives, typically 20 years.
The
Company has incurred legal and other fees associated with its application to the
USPTO for trademark protection for “Vystar”, “Vytex”, and “Created by
Nature. Recreated by Science.” during 2009 and 2008.
Trademarks
are carried at cost and since their estimated life is indeterminable, no
amortization is recognized. Instead, they are evaluated for
impairment as described below.
Impairment
of Long-lived Assets
Long-lived
assets, including property and equipment and intangible assets with finite
lives, are evaluated for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances
indicate that the carrying amount of such assets may not be recoverable. If
the sum of the expected future undiscounted cash flows is less than the carrying
amount of the asset, an impairment loss is recognized in the amount that the
carrying amount of the asset exceeds its fair value. Fair value is
determined based on discounted future net cash flows associated with the use of
the asset.
F-7
Fair
Value of Financial Instruments
The
Company’s financial instruments consist of cash, investments, note receivable
due from related party, accounts payable and accrued expenses. The
carrying values of all the Company’s financial instruments approximate fair
value because of their short maturities.
In
specific circumstances, certain assets and liabilities are reported or disclosed
at fair value. Fair value is the exit price that would be received to sell
an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between
market participants at the measurement date in the Company's principal market
for such transactions. If there is not an established principal market,
fair value is derived from the most advantageous market.
Valuation
inputs are classified in the following hierarchy:
|
·
|
Level
1 inputs are unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical
assets or liabilities.
|
|
·
|
Level
2 inputs are directly or indirectly observable valuation inputs for the
asset or liability, excluding Level 1
inputs.
|
|
·
|
Level
3 inputs are unobservable inputs for the asset or
liability.
|
Highest
priority is given to Level 1 inputs and the lowest priority to Level 3
inputs. Acceptable valuation techniques include the market approach,
income approach, and cost approach. In some cases, more than one valuation
technique is used.
Investments
At
December 31, 2008 the Company held a certificate of deposit in the amount of
approximately $750,000 which matured April 11, 2009.
Income
Taxes
The Company follows the asset and
liability approach to financial accounting and reporting for income
taxes. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are computed for
temporary differences between the financial statement and tax bases of assets
and liabilities and for net operating loss carryforwards that will result in
taxable or deductible amounts in the future based on enacted tax laws and rates
applicable to the periods in which the differences or carryforwards are expected
to affect taxable income. Valuation allowances are established when necessary to
reduce deferred tax assets to the amount more likely than not to be
realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is
dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in
which the net operating losses and temporary differences becomes
deductible. Income tax expense (benefit) is the tax payable or
refundable for the period plus or minus the change during the period in deferred
tax assets and liabilities.
Loss
Per Share
The
Company presents basic and diluted earnings per share. Because the
Company reported a net loss in 2009 and 2008, common stock equivalents,
including stock options and warrants, were anti-dilutive; therefore, the amounts
reported for basic and dilutive loss per share were the
same. Excluded from the computation of diluted loss per share were
options to purchase 3,565,000 shares and 3,287,500 shares of common stock for
2009 and 2008, respectively, as their effect would be
anti-dilutive. Warrants to purchase 2,627,764 shares and 2,690,779
shares of common stock for 2009 and 2008, respectively, were also excluded from
the computation of diluted loss per share as their effect would be
anti-dilutive.
F-8
Revenues
The
Company recognizes revenue when the following four criteria are met: (1)
persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists; (2) shipment or delivery has
occurred; (3) the price is fixed or determinable and (4) collectability is
reasonably assured. Revenue is recognized at the time
product is shipped and title passes to the customer.
Cost
of Revenues
Cost of
revenues consists primarily of product and freight costs.
Research
and Development
Research
and development costs are expensed when incurred. Research and
development costs include all costs incurred related to the research,
development and testing of the Company’s process to produce Vytex
NRL.
Recently
Adopted Pronouncements
In April
2009, the FASB issued authoritative guidance requiring publicly traded companies
to include certain fair value disclosure related to financial
instruments in their interim financial statements. This guidance,
which was incorporated into ASC Topic 825, “Financial Instruments,” was
effective for interim periods ending after June 15, 2009. It did not
affect our financial position, cash flows, or results of operations and we have
included the required disclosures within these financial
statements.
In
June 2009, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued
Accounting Standards Update 2009-01, The FASB Accounting Standards
Codification and the Hierarchy of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles-a
replacement of FASB Statement No. 162. The FASB Accounting Standards
Codification is intended to be the source of authoritative U.S. generally
accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and reporting standards as issued by
the Financial Accounting Standards Board. Its primary purpose is to improve
clarity and use of existing standards by grouping authoritative literature under
common topics. This Statement is effective for financial statements issued for
interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. The
Codification does not change or alter existing GAAP and there was no impact on
our financial position or results of operations.
NOTE
2 – LIQUIDITY AND GOING CONCERN
The
Company's financial statements are prepared using the accrual method of
accounting in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of America and have been prepared on a going concern basis, which
contemplates the realization of assets and the settlement of liabilities in the
normal course of business. The Company has incurred significant
losses and experienced negative cash flow since its
inception. Further, at December 31, 2009, the accumulated deficit
amounted to approximately $10,872,000.
Vystar
was in the development stage for most of 2009, transitioning to the operational
stage in the final quarter of the year. At December 31, 2009, the
Company had cash of approximately $780,000. Management plans to
finance future operations through the use of cash on hand, increased revenues
and raising additional capital through a private placement and stock warrant
exercises from existing shareholders. As the Company’s product
continues to gain market acceptance, the Company expects sales in 2010 to
continually increase.
F-9
The
Company also is currently engaged in raising additional capital through a
private placement and stock warrant exercises from existing
shareholders. Year-to-date through March 29, 2010, the Company has
raised additional capital of approximately $250,000 and $30,000 through the
private placement and stock warrant exercises, respectively. The
Company plans to raise an additional $1,325,000 from the private placement in
2010. Based on current financial projections, management believes
that the Company will have adequate working capital to funds its operations and
satisfy its liabilities through December 31, 2010.
NOTE
3 – PROPERTY AND EQUIPMENT
Property
and equipment consists of the following at December 31:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Furniture
and fixtures
|
$ | 15,347 | $ | 15,347 | ||||
Equipment
|
23,431 | 23,431 | ||||||
38,778 | 38,778 | |||||||
Accumulated
depreciation
|
(30,674 | ) | (23,471 | ) | ||||
$ | 8,104 | $ | 15,307 |
Depreciation
expense for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008 was $7,203 and $7,928,
respectively.
NOTE
4 – PATENTS AND TRADEMARKS
Patents
and trademarks are as follows at December 31:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Patents
|
$ | 118,737 | $ | 86,884 | ||||
Accumulated
amortization
|
(11,834 | ) | (8,852 | ) | ||||
106,903 | 78,032 | |||||||
Trademarks
|
9,072 | 5,538 | ||||||
$ | 115,975 | $ | 83,570 |
Amortization
expense for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008 was $2,982 and $2,991,
respectively.
F-10
NOTE
5 – COMMITMENTS
Operating
Leases
The
Company is obligated under operating leases for its corporate office and office
equipment expiring through December 31, 2010.
Aggregate
minimum future lease payments are as follows:
Year
Ending
|
||||
December 31
|
Amount
|
|||
2010
|
$ | 67,953 |
Rent
expense approximating $53,000 and $54,000 is included in general and
administrative expense for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008,
respectively.
Employment
Agreements
The
Company has entered into employment agreements with certain members of the
executive management, which include provisions for the continued payment of
salary and benefits for periods ranging from 3 months to 6 months as well as a
percentage of base salary for compliance with specified covenants in the
agreements upon termination of employment by the Company without
cause.
NOTE
6 – INCOME TAXES
Differences
between the income tax benefit for 2009 and 2008 and the amount determined by
applying the statutory federal income tax rate (34%) to the loss before income
taxes were as follows:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Statutory
rate
|
(34.0 | )% | (34.0 | )% | ||||
State
income taxes, net of federal deduction
|
(6.0 | ) | (6.0 | ) | ||||
Valuation
allowance
|
40.0 | 40.0 | ||||||
- | % | - | % |
F-11
Significant components of the Company’s deferred tax assets are as follows as of
December 31:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Deferred
tax assets:
|
||||||||
Net
operating loss carryforwards
|
$ | 2,776,000 | $ | 2,007,000 | ||||
Stock-based
compensation
|
1,523,000 | 1,397,000 | ||||||
Other
|
30,000 | 86,000 | ||||||
4,329,000 | 3,490,000 | |||||||
Valuation
allowance
|
(4,329,000 | ) | (3,490,000 | ) | ||||
Net
deferred tax asset
|
$ | - | $ | - |
The
change in the total valuation allowance for the years ended December 31, 2009
and 2008 was an increase of $839,000 and $1,856,000, respectively.
As of December 31, 2009, the Company had net operating loss
carryforwards of approximately $6,940,000 expiring during the years December 31,
2024 through 2029. This amount can be used to offset future taxable income of
the Company.
Due to a
required change in the applicable accounting standards, the Company adopted a
new recognition threshold for income tax benefits arising from uncertain tax
positions effective January 1, 2009. There were no material unrecognized
tax benefits and related tax liabilities at December 31, 2009. Penalties
related to uncertain tax positions would be recorded as a component of general
and administrative expenses. Interest relating to uncertain tax positions would
be recorded as a component of interest expense.
The tax
years 2006 to 2009 remain open to examination by the major taxing jurisdictions
to which we are subject. Additionally, upon inclusion of the NOL and
R&D credit carryforward tax benefits in future tax returns, the related tax
benefit for the period in which the benefit arose may be subject to
examination.
NOTE
7 – DEFERRED COMPENSATION
Deferred
compensation, which represents the unamortized fair value of the issuance of
warrants and common stock for future services to non-employees, was as follows as of
December 31:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Warrants
|
$ | 1,549,209 | $ | 1,545,695 | ||||
Stock
|
163,000 | - | ||||||
Accumulated
amortization
|
(1,627,781 | ) | (1,527,311 | ) | ||||
$ | 84,428 | $ | 18,384 |
F-12
NOTE
8 – STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Common
Stock and Warrants
During
February 2008 the Company’s former CEO surrendered 4,900,000 shares of the
Company’s common stock issued to him during 2004. These shares were
cancelled and returned to the Company for future re-issue, eliminating the need
to increase the Company’s number of authorized shares.
On May 5,
2008, the Company initiated an equity raise through a best efforts private
placement of 1,500,000 shares of common stock at $2.00 per share with
accompanying warrants to purchase an additional 750,000 shares of common stock
at $1.00 per share. On October 31, 2008 the Company closed the
offering after receiving $2,378,000 in net proceeds and issuing 1,189,000 shares
of common stock and warrants to purchase an additional 594,500 shares of common
stock. In April 2009 the Company reopened the private placement to
existing shareholders and qualified investors under the same terms and
conditions for a period not to exceed May 28, 2009. The Company
received an additional $565,700 in net proceeds and issued 288,000 shares of
common stock and warrants to purchase an additional 144,000 shares of common
stock.
At
December 31, 2008, as discussed in Note 10, the Company recognized an increase
of $54,946 in additional paid-in-capital resulting from forgiveness of debt by
the former CEO.
During
2008 the Company issued stock purchase warrants to purchase 1,924,721 shares of
common stock at exercise prices ranging from $.01 to $2.00 in exchange for
services rendered, valued at $1,769,916. The warrants are exercisable
for periods ranging from 2012 through 2018 and vested immediately.
During
2008 the Company issued 79,287 shares of common stock for professional services
valued at $88,500, including 4,080 shares valued at $4,080 for services rendered
in connection with the Company’s private placement memorandum.
During
2009 the Company issued stock purchase warrants to purchase 189,735 shares of
common stock at exercise prices ranging from $1.00 to $2.20 in exchange for
services rendered, valued at $108,917. The warrants are exercisable
for periods ranging from 2014 through 2019 and vested immediately.
During
2009 the Company issued 100,000 shares of common stock under an agreement for
professional services to be provided for a period of twelve months, expiring
June 30, 2010 and valued at $163,000.
On
November 2, 2009 the Company began an offering to sell up to 1,000,000 shares of
common stock and 1,000,000 warrants to purchase common stock through a private
placement memorandum. Under the terms of the private placement
memorandum, the Company is offering up to 1,000,000 shares of common stock at
$2.00 per share. For each two (2) shares of common stock purchased,
the investor will receive a warrant to purchase a share of common stock at an
exercise price of $1.50 per share exercisable for one year from issuance and an
additional warrant to purchase a share of common stock at an exercise price of
$3.25 per share exercisable for two years from issuance. The Company
has the right to increase the offering up to 2,000,000 shares of common stock
and 2,000,000 warrants to purchase common stock. During 2009 the
Company received $430,000 and issued 215,000 shares of common stock and warrants
to purchase an additional 215,000 shares of common stock.
F-13
NOTE
9 – STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION
Generally
accepted accounting principles require share-based payments to employees,
including grants of employee stock options, to be recognized in the income
statement based on their fair values at the date of grant, net of estimated
forfeitures.
The
Company used the Black-Scholes option pricing model to estimate the grant-date
fair value of awards granted during 2009 and 2008. The following
assumptions were used:
|
·
|
Expected
Dividend Yield – because the Company does not currently pay dividends, the
expected dividend yield is zero;
|
|
·
|
Expected
Volatility in Stock Price – because trading in the Company’s stock began
late in 2009, there is insufficient data to project the Company’s future
volatility and instead the expected volatility of similar public entities
(including companies engaged in the manufacture and/or distribution of
medical, surgical and healthcare supplies) was considered with expected
volatility ranging from 23.26% -
39.17%;
|
|
·
|
Risk-free
Interest Rate – reflects the average rate on a United States Treasury bond
with maturity equal to the expected term of the option, ranging from 1.32
– 2.84%; and
|
|
·
|
Expected
Life of Awards – because the Company has had minimal experience with the
exercise of options or warrants for use in determining the expected life
for each award, the simplified method was used to calculate an expected
life based on the midpoint between the vesting date and the end of the
contractual term of the stock
award.
|
The
Company recorded approximately $299,000 and $1,572,000 of stock-based
compensation expense for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008,
respectively, related to employee stock options and stock warrants issued to
board members and nonemployees. Approximately $205,000 and $1,402,000
for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively, was attributable
to the fair value of shares issued under the Company’s stock option plan that
vested during those periods. As of December 31, 2009, approximately
$1,012,000 of unrecognized compensation expense related to non-vested
share-based awards remains to be recognized over a weighted average period of
approximately 3 years. The total intrinsic value of options
outstanding and exercisable at December 31, 2009 and 2008 is $3,664,550 and
$1,957,500, respectively.
Stock
Options
During
2004, the Board of Directors of the Company adopted a stock option plan (the
“Plan”) and authorized up to 4,000,000 shares to be issued under the
Plan. In April 2009, the Company’s Board of Directors authorized an
increase in the number of shares to be issued under the Plan to 10,000,000
shares and to include the independent board members in the plan in lieu of
continuing the previous practice of granting warrants each quarter to
independent board members for services. At December 31, 2009, there
were 4,825,000 shares of common stock reserved for issuance under the
Plan. The Plan is intended to permit stock options granted to
employees to qualify as incentive stock options under Section 422 of the
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (“Incentive Stock
Options”). All options granted under the Plan that are not intended
to qualify as Incentive Stock Options are deemed to be non-qualified
options. Stock options are typically granted at an exercise price
equal to the fair market value of the Company’s common stock on the date of
grant, typically vest over periods up to 4 years and are typically exercisable
up to 10 years.
F-14
The
weighted-average assumptions used in the option pricing model for stock option
grants were as follows:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Expected
Dividend Yield
|
- | - | ||||||
Expected
Volatility in Stock Price
|
38.15 | % | 23.51 | % | ||||
Risk-Free
Interest Rate
|
1.88 | % | 2.68 | % | ||||
Expected
Life of Stock Awards - Years
|
5.1 | 5.1 | ||||||
Weighted
Average Fair Value at Grant Date
|
$ | 0.61 | $ | 0.71 |
The
following tables summarize all stock option activity of the Company for the
years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008:
Number of
|
Weighted Average
|
|||||||
Shares
|
Exercise Price
|
|||||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2007
|
1,200,000 | $ | 1.08 | |||||
Granted
|
2,200,000 | $ | 0.68 | |||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2008
|
3,400,000 | $ | 1.03 | |||||
Granted
|
2,175,000 | $ | 1.63 | |||||
Forfeited
|
(400,000 | ) | $ | 1.63 | ||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2009
|
5,175,000 | $ | 1.26 | |||||
Exercisable,
December 31, 2009
|
3,565,000 | $ | 1.07 |
Number of
|
Weighted Average Remaining
|
Range of
|
||||||||||
Shares
|
Contractual Life (Years)
|
Exercise Prices
|
||||||||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2008
|
3,400,000 | 8.34 | $ | 1.00 - $1.50 | ||||||||
Granted
|
2,175,000 | 9.56 | $ | 1.63 | ||||||||
Forfeited
|
(400,000 | ) | $ | 1.63 | ||||||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2009
|
5,175,000 | 7.52 | $ | 1.00 - $1.63 | ||||||||
Exercisable,
December 31, 2009
|
3,565,000 | 7.48 | $ | 1.00 - $1.63 |
F-15
Warrants
Warrants
are issued to third parties as payment for services and in conjunction with the
issuance of common stock. The fair value of each common stock warrant
issued for services is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes
option pricing model. The following weighted average assumptions were
used for warrants granted in 2009 and 2008:
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Expected
Dividend Yield
|
- | - | ||||||
Expected
Volatility in Stock Price
|
37.75 | % | 22.38 | % | ||||
Risk-Free
Interest Rate
|
2.00 | % | 2.19 | % | ||||
Expected
Life of Awards, Years
|
4.6 | 4.3 |
The
following table represents the Company’s warrant activity for the years ended
December 31, 2009 and 2008:
Weighted Average
|
Weighted Average
|
|||||||||||||||
Number of
|
Grant Date
|
Weighted Average
|
Remaining
|
|||||||||||||
Warrants
|
Fair Value
|
Exercise Price
|
Contractual Life (Years)
|
|||||||||||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2007
|
627,725 | $ | 1.01 | 7.38 | ||||||||||||
Issued
in private placement
|
594,500 | $ | 1.00 | $ | 1.00 | |||||||||||
Granted
|
1,924,721 | $ | 0.92 | $ | 0.76 | |||||||||||
Exercised
|
(430,167 | ) | $ | 0.51 | ||||||||||||
Expired
|
(26,000 | ) | $ | 0.50 | ||||||||||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2008
|
2,690,779 | $ | 0.85 | 5.14 | ||||||||||||
Issued
in private placement
|
359,000 | $ | 1.82 | $ | 1.82 | |||||||||||
Granted
|
189,735 | $ | 0.57 | $ | 1.56 | |||||||||||
Exercised
|
(488,000 | ) | $ | 0.19 | ||||||||||||
Expired
|
(15,000 | ) | $ | 1.00 | ||||||||||||
Outstanding,
December 31, 2009
|
2,736,514 | $ | 1.17 | 3.60 | ||||||||||||
Exercisable,
December 31, 2009
|
2,736,514 | $ | 1.17 | 3.60 |
The
Company issued warrants for services during 2009 at exercise prices ranging from
$1.00 to $2.20 per share, exercisable over periods ranging from five to ten
years. All of the warrants vested immediately. The fair
value of the warrants was calculated as of the date of the grant utilizing the
Black-Scholes option pricing model and assumptions as detailed
above. The total amount of the fair value ($108,917 expense and
$1,751 cost of raising capital) was recorded when vesting occurred.
F-16
NOTE
10 – RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS
Climax
Global Energy
During
2005 and 2006, the Company advanced cash and made payments on behalf of Climax
Global Energy, Inc. (“Climax”), a development stage company controlled by the
Company’s former CEO, resulting in a note. Management reserved at
December 31, 2008 approximately $120,000 of the balance remaining at December
31, 2008 due to the uncertainty involved.
On August
15, 2008, the Company entered into an agreement with Climax which specified the
repayment terms of the note receivable discussed above. The
significant terms were established as follows: (A) the note is
non-interest bearing, (B) a $25,000 payment to be made on or before September
30, 2008, (C) equal monthly payments of $5,000 will commence in October 2008,
and (D) the note shall be due and payable in full no later than January 31,
2010. In 2009 all payments due under the agreement had been received
by the Company and management determined that the $120,000 reserve could be
released, based upon payment history and Climax’s available cash
balances. As of December 31, 2009 all payments due under the
agreement have been received by the Company.
Officers
and Directors
On March
31, 2009, the Company’s four independent directors each received warrants,
valued at approximately $12,000, to purchase 20,000 shares of the Company’s
common stock with an exercise price of $1.63. The warrants are
exercisable in whole or in part at or before March 31, 2019 and vested
immediately.
During
April 2009, each board member was granted options to purchase 400,000 shares of
the Company’s common stock at an exercise price of $1.63. Vesting
occurs at the end of each complete calendar quarter served as an independent
board member of the Company at a rate of 20,000 shares each. The
options are exercisable in whole or in part before June 30, 2019.
The
options granted to one of the board members were forfeited in June 2009 due to
resignation from the board. That member returned to the board in
September 2009 and was granted a replacement option to purchase 400,000 shares
of the Company’s common stock at an exercise price of $1.63. The
terms are as discussed in the above paragraph and the options are exercisable in
whole or in part before September 30, 2019.
F-17
Other
At
December 31, 2007, the Company had accrued back-pay to the Company’s former CEO,
Travis Honeycutt, in the amount of $54,946. In July 2008, Mr.
Honeycutt entered into an agreement with the Company foregoing any claims to
this back-pay if the Climax receivable was not collected in full by December 31,
2008. The Company removed the accrued back-pay from its liabilities
at December 31, 2008 and recorded an increase in additional paid-in-capital as
the forgiveness of debt. This was considered a capital transaction
due to the related party nature of the parties. For the year ended
December 31, 2009, Mr. Honeycutt provided to the Company prospect advisory
services in the thread industry and received $30,000 for his
services.
At
December 31, 2009 and 2008, the Company has accrued severance of $81,250 payable
to the Company’s former CFO, Glenn Smotherman. Mr. Smotherman has
agreed to payment of this liability beginning at the earlier of payment in full
of the Climax receivable or the Company’s achievement of specific sales
goals. Payment began in January 2010 and the liability will be
satisfied in 24 equal monthly payments.
At
December 31, 2008, the Company had a balance payable to Reactive Energy, LLC, a
company wholly owned by the Company’s former CEO, for management fees and
contract services of $36,453. The Company satisfied this liability
during September 2009.
NOTE
11 – DEFINED CONTRIBUTION PLAN
The
Company maintains a tax-qualified retirement plan that provides all regular
employees with an opportunity to save for retirement on a tax-advantaged
basis. Under the 401(k) plan, 100 percent of participants’
contributions up to a maximum of 3 percent of compensation and 50 percent of
participants’ contributions up to an additional 2 percent of compensation are
matched. Company costs under the plan were approximately $18,000 and
$13,000 for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008,
respectively.
NOTE
12 – RECLASSIFICATIONS
Certain
amounts in the 2008 financial statements were reclassified to conform to the
current presentation.
NOTE
13 – MAJOR CUSTOMERS AND VENDORS
Major
customers and vendors are defined as a customer or vendor from which the Company
derives at least 10% of its revenues and cost of revenues,
respectively.
During
2009, the Company had product revenues from one major customer for the year,
which comprised 58% of the Company’s total revenues. These revenues amounted to
$29,297 for the year ended December 31, 2009. The Company had accounts
receivable from this customer of $14,900 at December 31,
2009.
F-18
The
Company had cost of revenues from one major vendor, which comprised of 100% of
the Company’s total cost of revenues. These costs amounted to $44,414 for
the year ended December 31, 2009. The Company had accounts payable from this
vendor which amounted to $60,498 at December 31, 2009.
NOTE
14 – RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES
The Company is exposed to commodity
price risk, mainly associated with variations in the market price for NRL as
well as wintering of the Hevea trees, which differs for each
country. The timing and magnitude of industry cycles are difficult to
predict and are impacted by general economic conditions including the buying
climate in China. The Company responds to changes in NRL prices by
adjusting purchase prices on a weekly basis and by turning rather than holding
inventory in anticipation of higher prices. The Company actively
manages its exposure to commodity price risk and monitors the actual and
expected spread between forward selling prices and purchase costs and processing
and shipping expense. The Company also currently spreads the
processing of Vytex between two continents. Sales contracts are based
on forward market prices, and generally orders are placed 30 to 90 days ahead of
shipment date due to these fluctuations. However, financial results
may be negatively impacted where selling prices fall more quickly than purchase
price adjustments can be made or when levels of inventory have an anticipated
net realizable value that is below cost.
NOTE
15 – SUBSEQUENT EVENTS
On
January 29, 2010 the Company received payment in full of the remaining balance
due of the note receivable from Climax Global Energy, Inc. (Note
10).
On March
2, 2010 the Company entered into a Licensing Agreement for Vytex NRL with
GrupoAgroinindustrialOccidente’s “Pica de Hule Natural,” located in
Guatemala. GrupoAgroinindustrialOccidente will manufacture, market
and sell Vytex NRL throughout Latin America and will also supply Vytex NRL to
customers in North America and Europe. The agreement provides
exclusive rights to manufacture, market and sell Vytex products in Latin America
and nonexclusive rights to manufacture, distribute and sell Vytex products in
North America and Europe.
As of
March 29, 2010 the Company has received $245,000 and issued 122,500 shares of
common stock and warrants to purchase an additional 122,500 shares of common
stock from the on-going private placement previously discussed in Note
8.
F-19
ITEM
9.
|
CHANGES
IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL
DISCLOSURE
|
None
ITEM
9A(T). CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Evaluation
of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, including our principal
executive and principal financial officer, has evaluated the effectiveness of
our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2009. Our
disclosure controls and procedures are designed to provide reasonable assurance
that the information required to be disclosed in this annual report on Form 10-K
has been appropriately recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the
time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and
forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to our
management, including our principal executive and principal financial officer,
to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Based on
that evaluation, our principal executive officer and principal financial officer
have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures are effective to the
reasonable assurance level.
Internal
Control Over Financial Reporting
This annual report does not include a
report of management’s assessment regarding internal control over financial
reporting or an attestation report of the company’s registered public accounting
firm due to a transition period established by rules of the Securities and
Exchange Commission for newly public companies.
Changes
in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
We
regularly review our system of internal control over financial reporting and
make changes to our processes and systems to improve controls and increase
efficiency, while ensuring that we maintain an effective internal control
environment. Changes may include such activities as implementing new,
more efficient systems, consolidating activities, and migrating
processes.
There
were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred
during the fourth quarter of 2009 that have materially affected, or are
reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial
reporting.
ITEM
9B. OTHER INFORMATION
None
24
PART
III
ITEM
10.
|
DIRECTORS,
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE
GOVERNANCE
|
The information contained in the
Company’s definitive Proxy Statement, which the Company will file with the
Securities and Exchange Commission no later than 120 days after December 31,
2009, with respect to: the identity, background and Section 16
filings of directors and executive officers of the Company; the Audit Committee
of the Board of Directors and the Committee’s “audit committee financial
expert”, the Company’s procedures by which security holders may recommend
nominees to the Board of Directors; and the Company’s code of ethics applicable
to its chief executive, financial, and accounting officers is incorporated
herein by reference to this item.
ITEM 11.
|
EXECUTIVE
COMPENSATION
|
The information contained in the
Company’s definitive Proxy Statement, which the Company will file with the
Securities and Exchange Commission no later than 120 days after December 31,
2009, with respect to director and executive compensation, the Compensation
Committee of the Board of Directors and the Compensation Committee Report, is
incorporated herein by reference in response to this item.
ITEM
12.
|
SECURITY
OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED
STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
|
The information contained in the
Company’s definitive Proxy Statement, which the Company will file with the
Securities and Exchange Commission no later than 120 days after December 31,
2009, with respect to the ownership of common stock by certain beneficial owners
and management, and with respect to the Company’s compensation plans under which
our equity securities are authorized for issuance, is incorporated herein by
reference to this item.
For purposes of determining the
aggregate market value of the Company’s voting and non-voting common stock held
by non-affiliates, shares held by all directors and executive officers of the
Company have been excluded. The exclusion of such shares is not
intended to, and shall not, constitute a determination as to which persons or
entities may be “affiliates” of the Company as defined by the Securities and
Exchange Commission.
ITEM
13.
|
CERTAIN
RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR
INDEPENDENCE
|
The information contained in the
Company’s definitive Proxy Statement, which the Company will file with the
Securities and Exchange Commission no later than 120 days after December 31,
2009, with respect to related party transactions and director independence, is
incorporated herein by reference in response to this item.
25
ITEM 14.
|
PRINCIPAL
ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES
|
The information contained under the
heading “Audit Matters” in the Company’s definitive Proxy Statement, which the
Company will file with the Securities and Exchange Commission no later than 120
days after December 31, 2009, is incorporated herein by reference in response to
this item.
a)
1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The
following financial statements and notes thereto of Vystar Corporation, and the
related Reports of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm are set forth
in Item 8.
Report
of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm on the Financial
Statements
|
F-1
|
Balance
Sheets
|
F-2
|
Statements
of Operations
|
F-3
|
Statements
of Stockholders’ Equity
|
F-4
|
Statements
of Cash Flows
|
F-5
|
Notes
to Financial Statements
|
F-6
|
2.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
All
schedules for which provision is made in the applicable accounting regulations
of the SEC have been omitted because they are not applicable or the required
information is included in the financial statements or notes
thereto.
3.
EXHIBITS
Exhibit
Index *
*
Some Exhibits have certain confidential information redacted pursuant to a
request for confidential treatment
Number
|
Description
|
|
3.1
|
Articles
of Incorporation of Vystar Acquisition Corporation (now named Vystar
Corporation) dated December 17, 2003 (as amended) (incorporated by
reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed
on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
|
3.2
|
Bylaws
of Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s Registration
Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008, Registration
Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
4.1
|
Specimen
Certificate evidencing shares of Vystar common stock (incorporated by
reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed
on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
|
4.2
|
Form
of Share Subscription Agreements and Investment Letter (First Private
Placement) (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement
on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement
No. 333-155344)
|
26
4.3
|
Form
of Share Subscription Agreement and Investment Letter (Second Private
Placement) (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement
on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement
No. 333-155344)
|
|
4.4
|
Form
of Vystar Corporation Investor Questionnaire and Subscription Agreement
(Third Private Placement) (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008,
Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.1*
|
Manufacturing
Agreement between Vystar Corporation and Revertex (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.
effective April 1, 2008 (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008,
Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.2
|
Executive
Employment Agreement between Vystar Corporation and William R. Doyle,
dated November 11, 2008 (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008,
Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.3
|
Management
Agreement dated January 31, 2008 between Universal Capital Management,
Inc. and Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008,
Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.4
|
Letter
Agreement dated August 15, 2008 between Universal Capital Management, Inc.
and Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008,
Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.5
|
Addendum
to Management Agreement dated February 29, 2008 between Universal Capital
Management, Inc. and Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to
Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November
13, 2008, Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.6
|
Warrant
Purchase Agreement dated January 31, 2008 between Universal Capital
Management, Inc. and Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to
Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November
13, 2008, Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.7
|
Management
Agreement dated April 30, 2008 between Universal Capital Management, Inc.
and Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s Registration
Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008, Registration
Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.8
|
Warrant
Purchase Agreement dated April 30, 2008 between Universal Capital
Management, Inc. and Vystar Corporation (incorporated by reference to
Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November
13, 2008, Registration Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.9
|
Vystar
Corporation 2004 Long-Term Compensation Plan, as amended (incorporated by
reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed
on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
|
10.10
|
Employment
Agreement between Vystar Corporation and Sandra Parker dated April 1, 2008
(incorporated by reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1
originally filed on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
|
10.11
|
First
Amendment to Employment Agreement dated July 1, 2009, between Vystar
Corporation and Sandra Parker (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s
Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008,
Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
27
10.12*
|
Distributor
Agreement among Vystar Corporation, Centrotrade Minerals & Metals,
Inc. and Centrotrade Deutschland, GmbH dated January 6, 2009 (incorporated
by reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally
filed on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
|
10.13
|
Note
agreement between Vystar Corporation and Climax Global Energy, Inc. dated
August 15, 2008 (incorporated by reference to Vystar’s Registration
Statement on Form S-1 originally filed on November 13, 2008, Registration
Statement No. 333-155344)
|
|
10.14
|
Lockup
Agreement with Glen W. Smotherman dated July 30, 2009 (incorporated by
reference to Vystar’s Registration Statement on Form S-1 originally filed
on November 13, 2008, Registration Statement No.
333-155344)
|
|
23.1
|
Consent
of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
|
|
31.1
|
Certification
of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act of 2002
|
|
31.2
|
Certification
of Chief Financial Officer pursuant Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
of 2002
|
|
32.1
|
Certification
of Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer pursuant to 18
U.S.C. Section 1350 as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
|
*
|
Confidential treatment requested
as to certain portions, which portions have been omitted and filed
separately with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.
|
(b) EXHIBITS
The
exhibits listed in Item 15(a)(3) are included elsewhere in this
Report.
(c) FINANCIAL
STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Not
applicable.
28
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by
the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
VYSTAR
CORPORATION
|
||
Date: March
29, 2010
|
By:
|
/s/ William R. Doyle
|
William
R. Doyle
|
||
|
Chairman,
President, Chief Executive Officer and
Director
(Principal Executive Officer)
|
|
Date:
March 29, 2010
|
By:
|
/s/ Linda S. Hammock
|
Linda
S. Hammock
|
||
|
Acting
Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial
and
Accounting Officer)
|
29
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been
signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the
capacities indicated, on March 29, 2010.
Signature
|
Title
|
|
/s/ William
R. Doyle
|
Chairman,
President, and Chief Executive Officer
|
|
William
R. Doyle
|
||
/s/ Linda
S. Hammock
|
Acting
Chief Financial Officer
|
|
Linda
S. Hammock
|
||
/s/ J.
Douglas Craft
|
Director
|
|
J.
Douglas Craft
|
||
/s/ Joseph
C. Allegra, MD
|
Director
|
|
Joseph
C. Allegra, MD
|
||
/s/ Mitsy
Y. Mangum
|
Director
|
|
Mitsy
Y. Mangum
|
||
/s/ W.
Dean Waters
|
Director
|
|
W.
Dean Waters
|
30