Givaudan extends global innovation partnerships to accelerate new solutions for plant proteins

Givaudan, the world’s leading flavour and fragrances company is expanding its global innovation ecosystem with new partnerships to drive innovative solutions for alternative protein products.

“The strong shift towards plant-based meat-alternatives and alternative protein sources is one of the greatest innovation opportunities in the food industry today,” said Fabio Campanile, Givaudan’s Global Head of Science and Technology, Flavours. “No one company can solve these alone and we are partnering with the best and brightest minds in the industry to address the complex technical and taste challenges presented by these products. Our collaborations spark new, creative approaches, and create faster, more agile, innovation pipelines.”

The Company’s latest partnership is with Redefine Meat, which has developed the world’s first Alt-Steak™ plant-based products, using industrial 3D printing technology. These have the texture, flavour and appearance of beef steak and can be produced in the volume and cost to enable large-scale market launch. Working closely with Redefine Meat, Givaudan is using its industry-leading capabilities in flavour and taste to make sure the new Alt-Steak™ product offers the same satisfying flavours, aromas and eating experience of real meat.

This is the latest in a series of partnerships for Givaudan which focus on the development of great tasting alternative protein products. These include the Plant Meat Matters consortium, a global initiative, led by Wageningen University & Research (WUR), which is working to produce plant substitutes for beef and potentially other meat types such as pork or chicken, in the future. The project uses WUR’s revolutionary Shear-Couette Cell technology that transforms vegetable protein into layered and fibrous structures that resemble real steak, not processed or ground meat. The collaboration brings together key industry players from across the entire supply chain, to scale up and commercialise this new technology.

Givaudan has also been exploring the protein space with University of California, Berkeley through the Product Development Program (PDP) in the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. The PDP Program provides a unique opportunity to work collaboratively with students to tackle the complex technical challenges of designing and producing high quality meat replacements. Givaudan supports students with expertise to get the critical elements of taste, texture, and smell right, to create appealing and delicious meat alternatives. The most recent collaboration with PDP was a pioneering research project which identified the top six new up-and-coming sources of plant-based protein that could be game-changers for the food industry, and in particular, nutritional beverages.

“Food and drink companies are increasingly aware of the need to collaborate to address the big challenges facing our industry this century. These include urgent issues such as climate change and nutrition,” added Campanile. “We believe that by working together we can address these challenges faster and more effectively.”

About Givaudan

Givaudan is the global leader in the creation of flavours and fragrances, with its heritage stretching back over 250 years, the Company has a long history of innovating scents and tastes. From a favourite drink to your daily meal, from prestige perfumes to cosmetics and laundry care, its creations inspire emotions and delight millions of consumers the world over. The company is committed to driving purpose-led, long-term growth while leading the way to improve happiness and health for people and nature. In the fiscal year 2019, the Company employed over 14,900 people worldwide and achieved sales of CHF 6.2 billion and a free cash flow of 12.7% of sales. Let’s imagine together on https://www.givaudan.com.

About Givaudan Flavours

For further information please contact

Jeff Peppet, Givaudan Flavour Communications
T +1 513 293 3740
E jeff.peppet@givaudan.com

Debbie Daly, Instinctif
T +44 1869 353804
E debbie.daly@instinctif.com