On January 27, 2004, Professor Ryoji Noyori, Nobel Laureate chemist and long-time collaborator with Takasago International Corporation, dropped by the laboratories of Aceites Esenciales Y Derivados, S. A. (ACEDESA), a Takasago-owned producer of aromatic chemicals. 

Noyori and his wife toured the ACEDESA facilities with a small gathering of local reporters in tow. The main stops along their tour included the wastewater treatment facility, the aroma chemical factory, the research laboratory, quality assurance-related facilities, and the hydrogenation plant newly completed in 2002.

As a specialist in asymmetric hydrogenation, Noyori spent a good deal of time inspecting the manufacturing facility and advising ACEDESA researchers and engineers on the technical challenges they faced. Spanish television and newspaper reporters eagerly documented the visitation by the elite world scientist.

Noyori received an honorary doctorate from the nearby University of Alicante the next day.