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Firmenich SA is a private Swiss company in the
fragrance An aroma compound, also known as an odorant, aroma, fragrance or flavoring, is a chemical compound that has a smell or odor. For an individual chemical or class of chemical compounds to impart a smell or fragrance, it must be sufficiently v ...
and flavor business. It is the largest privately owned company in the field and ranks number two worldwide. Firmenich has created perfumes for over 125 years and produced a number of well-known flavors. Firmenich employs 10,000 people across 46 manufacturing plants and six research and development centers. Major competitors include Givaudan, International Flavors and Fragrances and
Symrise Symrise AG is a major producer of flavours and fragrances with sales of €3.154 billion in 2018. Major competitors include Döhler, Firmenich, Givaudan, International Flavors and Fragrances, and Takasago International. Symrise is a member of th ...
. In 2021, Firmenich was ranked second on FoodTalks' Global Top 50 Food Flavours and Fragrances Companies list, below Givaudan and above International Flavors and Fragrances.


History

The company was founded as Chuit & Naef in 1895 in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
by chemist Philippe Chuit and businessman Martin Naef. Fred Firmenich joined in 1900 and later became the majority partner. The company was renamed Firmenich SA. Originally a fragrance company, Firmenich branched into the flavor business by creating a
raspberry The raspberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus ''Rubus'' of the rose family, most of which are in the subgenus '' Idaeobatus''. The name also applies to these plants themselves. Raspberries are perennial with ...
substitute in 1938, followed by creations of
citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...
and
strawberry The garden strawberry (or simply strawberry; ''Fragaria × ananassa'') is a widely grown hybrid species of the genus '' Fragaria'', collectively known as the strawberries, which are cultivated worldwide for their fruit. The fruit is widely ap ...
flavor. Other synthetic flavors followed for use in
processed food Convenience food, also called tertiary processed food, is food that is commercially prepared (often through processing) to optimise ease of consumption. Such food is usually ready to eat without further preparation. It may also be easily p ...
s and
preserved food Food preservation includes processes that make food more resistant to microorganism growth and slow the oxidation of fats. This slows down the decomposition and rancidification process. Food preservation may also include processes that inhibit v ...
s. In 1939, Firmenich Director of
Research and Development Research and development (R&D or R+D), known in Europe as research and technological development (RTD), is the set of innovative activities undertaken by corporations or governments in developing new services or products, and improving existi ...
Lavoslav Ružička was awarded the
Nobel Prize in Chemistry ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then "M ...
"for his work on
polymethylenes Polyethylene or polythene (abbreviated PE; IUPAC name polyethene or poly(methylene)) is the most commonly produced plastic. It is a polymer, primarily used for packaging (plastic bags, plastic films, geomembranes and containers including bott ...
and higher terpenes," "including the first
chemical synthesis As a topic of chemistry, chemical synthesis (or combination) is the artificial execution of chemical reactions to obtain one or several products. This occurs by physical and chemical manipulations usually involving one or more reactions. In mod ...
of male sex hormones." On May 3, 2007, Firmenich announced that it would be acquiring the flavors' division of
Danisco Danisco A/S is a Danish bio-based company with activities in food production, enzymes and other bioproducts as well as a wide variety of pharmaceutical grade excipients. It was formed in 1989 from the largest Danish industrial merger ever of t ...
, Noville, in a deal worth €450 million. The deal was expected to move Firmenich ahead of IFF as the second-largest flavor company in the world. Firmenich's board named Gilbert Ghostine as CEO to succeed Patrick Firmenich, effective October 1, 2014. Patrick Firmenich was elected as chairman of Firmenich's Board of Directors as of October 12, 2016. On July 11, 2017, Firmenich completed the acquisition of Agilex Fragrances, expanding its ability to serve mid-sized customers in North America. On December 13, 2017, Firmenich announced the acquisition of Flavourome, an established privately held flavors company in South Africa, to expand its presence in Africa. On February 5, 2018, Firmenich confirmed the successful completion of the acquisition. In August 2018, Firmenich acquired Campus, an innovator in the application of "natural functional ingredients for protein application", which specializes "in clean label, meat, dairy, sauces and plant-based food". The research and production facilities of Campus are located in Italy and
Monterrey Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is ancho ...
, Mexico. At some point, Firmenich acquired Natural Flavors, a manufacturer of flavors for the food and beverage industry. In September 2018, Firmenich announced its intent to acquire
Senomyx Senomyx was an American biotechnology company that developed food additives. The company claimed to have "reverse engineered" human taste and aroma receptors. It was founded by Lubert Stryer and Paul Nevsky in 1998. On 17 Sept 2018, private Swis ...
. In June 2020, Firmenich acquired Les Dérivés Résiniques et Terpéniques ("DRT"), a world leader in plant-based chemistry, mainly from pine trees, and one of the leading suppliers globally of high quality, renewable ingredients. In October 2020, Firmenich announced that it had created a flavour by means of
artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech ...
. It teamed with
Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washi ...
who helped leverage "the entirety of Firmenich’s broad raw material database" to dissimulate "a lightly grilled beef taste" into its plant-based meat alternatives. Firmenich's "unique palette of ingredients" and "SmartProteins expertise in plant-based protein alternatives" were instrumental in the innovation process.


Lobby groups

Firmenich is a member of the European Flavour Association. In March 2021, Firmenich, Givaudan, IFF and Symrise launched the
Fragrance Science and Advocacy Council An aroma compound, also known as an odorant, aroma, fragrance or flavoring, is a chemical compound that has a smell or odor. For an individual chemical or class of chemical compounds to impart a smell or fragrance, it must be sufficiently vol ...
.


References

{{Authority control Chemical companies of Switzerland Flavor companies Fragrance companies Manufacturing companies based in Geneva Food and drink companies of Switzerland Cosmetics companies of Switzerland Multinational companies headquartered in Switzerland