The modern lysine industry developed as a result of basic scientific discoveries in biochemistry in the late 1950s. The now dominant method of industrial production of lysine is based on fermentation of liquid sweeteners derived from sugar cane or starches of many kinds. Since being commercially introduced around 1960, manufacturers of mixed animal feeds have grown to view lysine as an essential ingredient. In the last four decades of the 20^th century, lysine grew and developed into a major biochemical product market, attracting more and more biotech companies from Asia, North America, and Europe to the industry. The purpose of this chapter is to sketch the uses, methods of production, market size, and structure of supply of the global lysine market.