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IFF posts full-year net loss as US$1.15B write-down sets stage for Food Ingredients sale

IFF posts full-year net loss as US$1.15B write-down sets stage for Food Ingredients sale

International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF) has reported a full-year net loss of US$374 million for 2025, driven largely by a US$1.15 billion write-down on the value of its Food Ingredients business — a segment the company is now actively putting up for sale. Stripping out one-off charges, the underlying business grew 2% on a currency-adjusted basis and delivered US$2.09 billion in adjusted operating profit. Full-year reported sales came in at US$10.89 billion, down 5% from the prior year.

The write-down — an accounting charge that reduces the stated value of a business when its expected sale price falls below what was originally paid — reflects IFF’s assessment that its Food Ingredients unit is worth less than the figure carried on its books since the 2021 merger with DuPont’s nutrition division. IFF placed the segment under strategic review in August and has since launched a formal sale process, taking a US$1.15 billion goodwill write-down to reflect the planned exit. 
Beyond sugar: How sweetener innovation is redefining taste and texture
Beyond sugar: How sweetener innovation is redefining taste and texture
Sweetener suppliers are moving beyond single-ingredient sugar swaps toward blended systems that combine rare sugars, stevia, citrus flavonoids, and sweet proteins to rebuild taste, texture, and mouthfeel simultaneously. Innova Market Insights data shows 72% of consumers worldwide are actively cutting sugar, while sweetener NPD is growing at 8% annually, presenting an increasingly lucrative market for the industry. 
Cargill study finds 98% correlation between ingredient perception and purchase decisions in APAC
Cargill study finds 98% correlation between ingredient perception and purchase decisions in APAC
Asian consumers aren’t rejecting food science — but they are turning away from scientific-sounding ingredient names. Cargill’s APAC IngredienTracker 2025 finds that naming, familiarity, and brand credibility matter more than ingredient complexity when it comes to purchase decisions, with over 70% of consumers now checking labels before buying. Yuchu Zhang, vice president of R&D at Cargill Food APAC, tells Food Ingredients First how the study’s findings across 91 ingredients are reshaping the company’s innovation strategy in the region. 
ADM Texperien® Tapioca Starch Solutions
ADM Texperien® Tapioca Starch Solutions
For foods with the ideal bite, ADM Texperien® tapioca starches offer the functionality to deliver superior texture and clean taste in a range of applications.This Technical Paper is brought to you by ADM.
ISM & ProSweets 2026: Valio on “permissible indulgence” and high-protein innovation
ISM & ProSweets 2026: Valio on “permissible indulgence” and high-protein innovation

Niina Gerritsen, customer development manager at Valio, explores the rise of “permissible indulgence” in confectionery and snacks. She shares how Valio blends high-protein innovation, lactose-free chocolate solutions, and nutritious frozen desserts to deliver treats that balance indulgence with health benefits.

ISM & ProSweets 2026: Solving supply and reformulation challenges
ISM & ProSweets 2026: Solving supply and reformulation challenges
At ISM & ProSweets 2026 in Cologne, Germany, innovation converged around supply chain resilience, product reformulations, and sensory excellence in confectionery and snacks. Exhibitors showcased cocoa-free alternatives, sugar-reduced solutions, and clean label colors and flavors. The show highlighted how collaboration, social media-driven trends, and smart ingredient designs are reshaping the future of scalable, high-quality confections and snacks.

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Beer innovation trends: Kalsec reveals what’s driving consumer choices
Beer innovation trends: Kalsec reveals what’s driving consumer choices
Consumer choices are propelling “flavor-first” beer innovation as demand for natural ingredients and a desire to understand hop varieties rise, a Kalsec report reveals. While artificial flavors remain a turn-off for health-conscious consumers, 6,000 beer drinkers surveyed across 12 countries prefer hop extracts when manufacturers use them transparently.
Bühler reports strong growth in Chocolate & Coffee amid “climate of high...
Bühler reports strong growth in Chocolate & Coffee amid “climate of high uncertainty”
Bühler’s Grains & Food division remained resilient, gaining market share amid tough market conditions, while the company also saw strong growth in Chocolate & Coffee (+31%) and Value Nutrition (+12.7%).
Aldi and Lidl face growing pressure to match UK prawn welfare reforms
Aldi and Lidl face growing pressure to match UK prawn welfare reforms
The International Council for Animal Welfare (ICAW) has urged German supermarkets Aldi and Lidl to meet new UK industry standards on prawn and shrimp welfare and ban eyestalk ablation (cutting off female prawns’ eyes) and death by ice-slurry. Asda is the latest UK supermarket to ban the controversial practices, following similar commitments by Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Marks & Spencer, Ocado, Waitrose, Co-op, Morrisons, and Iceland.
dsm-firmenich reveals rising mycotoxin risk across global feed markets
dsm-firmenich reveals rising mycotoxin risk across global feed markets
All major mycotoxin contamination rates and average concentration levels have increased, and more regions have moved into extreme risk, according to dsm-firmenich Animal Nutrition & Health’s World Mycotoxin Survey 2025. The results suggest that the food system faces a structural shift linked to climate patterns — not just a one-off seasonal issue — creating potential procurement, food safety, and cost issues for F&B businesses.
Unilever’s Food Segment delivers solid growth as Hellmann’s and Knorr drive...
Unilever’s Food Segment delivers solid growth as Hellmann’s and Knorr drive sales
Despite some pruning of its food-related portfolio, Unilever backs its large, global power food brands while reporting fourth-quarter 2025 and full-year 2025 results. The company’s flagship condiment brand, Hellmann’s mayonnaise, helped drive sales growth in the food segment, while Knorr, one of Unilever’s long-standing food brands, and other condiments and cooking aids, showed steady growth in 2025.
Beyond probiotics: Syringe-wielding gut bacteria inject protein to influence...
Beyond probiotics: Syringe-wielding gut bacteria inject protein to influence immune pathways

Nutrition Insight

A new study has found that gut bacteria can inject proteins into human cells to trigger immune responses. The discovery enhances understanding of gut-immune interactions, where microbes directly modulate pathways alongside metabolites. The research points out that this communication mechanism between gut bacteria and human cells has not yet been recorded, which helps explain the gut microbiome’s role in inflammatory diseases.
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Food Ingredients News
US beef prices surge as supply crisis triggers political...
US beef prices are climbing at nearly six times the rate of overall food inflation, driven by the smallest cattle herd in 75 years and a parasitic fly crisis on the Mexican border. The situation has triggered a rapid political response from the Trump administration, which has ordered antitrust investigations into the country’s dominant meat packers, while simultaneously expanding Argentine import quotas to ease consumer costs. Major processors, including Tyson Foods and JBS, are reporting hundreds of millions of dollars in quarterly beef losses, and the USDA Economic Research Service forecasts wholesale beef prices to rise a further 6.9% this year. On the retail side, grocery chains are reworking their pricing, assortment, and markdown strategies to manage what has become one of the most visible grocery cost pressures on US consumers. 
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Food Ingredients News
Functional mushrooms move beyond supplements into...
Functional mushrooms are moving beyond capsules and powders into mainstream F&B — from mushroom coffee and energy drinks to chocolates and gummies. However, as consumer awareness of species like lion’s mane and reishi rises, industry advocates reveal deeper challenges around ingredient standardization, species differentiation, and treating functional mushrooms as a single, interchangeable category.
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Food Ingredients News
GLP-1 reshapes UK consumption: Why is dairy positioned to...
Analysis from the UK’s Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) finds that the increased use of weight loss and appetite-suppressant drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro presents key opportunities for the country’s dairy industry. The research comes amid rising GLP-1 adoption, which is heavily influencing how protein-rich products like milk, cream, yogurt, and cottage cheese feature in diets, as consumers seek F&B that delivers more nutrition per bite.

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Consumers crave enhanced mouthfeel experiencesFeb2026

Data from Innova Market Insights shows that consumers are increasingly curious about texture when purchasing indulgent F&B products. They are drawn to smooth, creamy textures while also exploring ...

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Sweetener trends & insights: Opportunities for calorie-conscious innovation Feb 2026

Innova Market Insights reveals that nearly half of consumers globally are turning to sweeteners to satisfy their sweet cravings while aiming to reduce their calorie intake. This growing demand for lower-calorie options is fueling innovation in the sweetener market, presenting new opportunities for the development of novel sweetener solutions in F&B products.

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Plant-based innovation: Beyond dairy and meat alternativesFeb 2026

Plant-based products now extend beyond dairy and meat alternatives, including both category replicas and standalone or hybrid products. Innova Market Insights data shows plant-based F&B launches have seen steady growth globally over the past five years, with Europe leading the way. Dairy remains the top category in these launches.

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ISM & ProSweets 2026: Valio on “permissible indulgence” and high-protein innovation

Niina Gerritsen, customer development manager at Valio, explores the rise of “permissible indulgence” in confectionery and snacks. She shares how Valio blends high-protein innovation, lactose-free chocolate solutions, and nutritious frozen desserts to deliver treats that balance indulgence with...

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ISM & ProSweets 2026: Bursting espresso martini chocolates win Silver ISM Innovation Award 
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ISM & ProSweets 2026: Dreidoppel highlights cherry blossom as 2026 flavor trend
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ISM & ProSweets 2026: GNT’s plant-based colors enhance functionality in confectionery
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