Firmenich Acquires CO2 Extraction Technology Unit From Evonik, Boosting Leadership in Naturals

GENEVA, Nov. 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Firmenich, the world's largest privately-owned perfume and taste company, has acquired the CO₂ extraction business from Evonik Industries AG located in Trostberg, Germany. This acquisition significantly expands Firmenich's capabilities in super critical fluid extraction (SFE), complementing its Naturals Centre of Excellence in Grasse, France. With more than 30 years of experience in botanical raw material extraction the CO₂ business of Evonik will enhance Firmenich's ability to address customers' growing demand for authentic, natural taste and scent experiences. CO₂ extraction offers the safest, cleanest, and highest-quality method of extracting natural botanical molecules, from flowers and nuts to coffee and tea.

"Firmenich has been a pioneer in CO₂ extraction for three decades, creating game-changing, natural ingredients, such as the unique spicy notes of pink pepper," said Patrick Firmenich, Chairman of the Board, Firmenich. "With this acquisition, I look forward to expanding our capacity in naturals to delight consumers with sustainably produced new ingredients."

"This technology strengthens our leadership in naturals by enabling us to capture the exact, authentic and vibrant notes we want from natural ingredients," said Gilbert Ghostine, CEO, Firmenich. "Complementing our established leadership in Perfumery and quadrupling our CO₂ extraction capacity, this acquisition gives us the scope to apply SFE to a wider range of flavor products, such as peanuts, tea and coffee."

The facility of Evonik in Trostberg, Germany is now part of Firmenich's Centre of Excellence for Naturals, expanding its footprint from Grasse. Its products will be commercialized through Firmenich's Ingredients Business, while adding to the Group's natural product palette for Flavors.

The works council of Evonik has approved the sale in an agreement that focuses on a long-term commitment, ensuring job security for transferring staff for a minimum of two years and ongoing investment in the Trostberg site for at least three years. The agreement also continues the chemical industry's collective bargaining arrangements.

Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

About Firmenich

Firmenich is the world's largest privately-owned perfume and taste company, founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1895. Driven by its purpose to create positive emotions to enhance wellbeing, naturally, Firmenich has designed many of the world's best-known perfumes and tastes, bringing delight to over four billion consumers every day. Renowned for its world-class research and creativity, as well as its leadership in sustainability, each year, Firmenich invests 10% of its turnover in R&D to understand and share the best that nature has to offer responsibly. Firmenich had an annual turnover of 3.9 billion Swiss Francs at end June 2019. More information about Firmenich is available at www.firmenich.com.

About Evonik

Evonik is one of the world leaders in specialty chemicals. The focus on more specialty businesses, customer-oriented innovative prowess and a trustful and performance-oriented corporate culture form the heart of the corporate strategy. They are the lever for profitable growth and a sustained increase in the value of the company. Evonik benefits specifically from its customer proximity and leading market positions. Evonik is active in over 100 countries around the world. In fiscal 2018, the enterprise with more than 32,000 employees generated sales of ?13.3 billion and an operating profit (adjusted EBITDA) of ?2.15 billion from continuing operations. www.evonik.com

SOURCE Firmenich