Firmenich Celebrates the Science Behind Culinary Arts

26 June 2013 --- Firmenich recently hosted a Culinary Arts event at its historical site in Geneva to celebrate the link between culinary creativity and the science behind it. The guest of honor was Pierre Gagnaire, three-star Michelin Chef known for his inventive cuisine.

The gathering, hosted by Firmenich in partnership with the University of Geneva’s School of Science and Migros, Switzerland’s largest supermarket chain, offered guests unique insights into Chef Gagnaire’s creative process, from the selection of ingredients to his use of science to transform those ingredients into unique cuisine.

“Whether you are one of the world best Chef or a Master Perfumer or Flavorist shaping unique sensorial experiences, science inspires and enables your work,” said Dr. Maria Inès Velazco, Senior Vice President, R&D, Firmenich. “We have a deep and long standing heritage of innovation at Firmenich,” emphasized Dr. Velazco, “and we constantly seek to nurture it by working with leading creators such as Chef Gagnaire. Their artistry and philosophy fuel our creativity, which we put to work to inspire our Clients,” she added.

Chef Gagnaire is heralded as one of today’s true innovators in modern cuisine with a philosophy of treating food as art. His style is progressive, visual and surprising, yet it is marked by a distinctly classic stroke.

“My style,” says Gagnaire, “is joyous, immediate and tries to tell a story. I want to make people dream and bring them somewhere they don’t know.” The chef himself likens cooking to jazz with its inherent improvisation whilst regarding it also as “an intellectual game.” In his own words, his is a “lively approach which takes risks.”

Gagnaire pursues an organic style of molecular gastronomy, based on the use of high-quality and locally-sourced fresh ingredients. He then surprises the palate through unusual combinations of textures and tastes and the subtle use of molecular techniques.
Members of Firmenich’s culinary team, including a TechnoChef, joined Gagnaire’s brigade to develop the evening’s dinner, from the selection of ingredients, to their preparation, to the plating of the meal, which balanced taste with visual appeal. Firmenich TechnoChefs, who have formal culinary training as well as secondary degrees in chemistry or food technology, are an integral part of the company’s Savory development team around the world.

“By connecting our TechnoChefs to such as a renowned and innovative chef, we stimulate our steady pipeline of culinary innovation,” said Dr. Jérôme Barra, Vice-President Innovation & Design, Firmenich.

“I was inspired by the meticulous work of Gagnaire and his team,” said Patrick Panahandeh, Firmenich TechnoChef. “They maximize the essence of each ingredient, and then they intricately compose the dish to achieve a breathtaking balance and harmony of flavors,” added Panahandeh. “It was inspiring!”

“Gagnaire’s creative process which comes across as fresh, spontaneous and intuitive at first, yet is highly methodical and organized, is very similar to the creative process in our labs” added Dr. Barra.

In a very similar spirit to Gagnaire, Firmenich creative teams (including Flavorists, TechnoChefs™ and application specialists), work closely with the R&D teams to create the most authentic tasting products. At the recent event, Firmenich’s Dr. Estelle Delort, Senior Scientist, and Robert Wagner, Director Global Product Design, Flavors, discussed how the company uses its unique Culinary Print process to decode what makes food taste great at the molecular level in order to translate its learnings into products that consumers love.

“Creating an authentic taste experience begins with insight into the consumer,” said Dr Wagner. “By developing a deep understanding of consumers’ taste preferences, we can develop the culinary gold standards for a particular type of food, and then focus our R&D and creative efforts to perfect that standard.” Dr. Wagner explained how they recently focused on Bresse chicken, the gold standard for chicken in Western markets due to its creamy and soft notes.

Dr. Delort continued by describing how she used the company’s proprietary research techniques to uncover the unknown aroma compounds of this creamy soft taste, by discovering new molecules. “First we use several extraction techniques to surface the molecules for a thorough review and selection by a Flavorist. Once the Flavorist points us towards the best notes to work with, we investigate how to translate them into flavor ingredients. In this particular case with the Bresse chicken, we discovered unknown molecules and thus enriched our palette with a new and unique soft and creamy note for exclusive use by our creators." Those new compounds are made available to the creative community either in synthetic form or as reaction flavors, which are created through a process of using high heat to trigger reactions on the molecular level of specific aroma compounds. “It is through this close and seamless collaboration between R&D and Flavor chemists that we differentiate our palette of flavors and offer our clients unique and authentic solutions,” concluded Dr. Delort.

This culinary arts event also celebrated the long-standing collaboration between Firmenich and the University of Geneva. Firmenich has worked closely with academia for its entire 118 year-old history to drive breakthrough research. A strategic pillar of the company’s innovation model is to partner with leading external experts, including start-ups and academic institutions. “We work with Geneva’s School of Science in different fields, including analytical chemistry and olfaction on the one hand, and the brain and human behavior, on the other,” says Dr. Velazco. “These collaborations with leading academic experts and artists such as Chef Gagnaire and his team stimulate our creative process and ensure we keep a fresh and forward looking approach to innovation,” she added.

Firmenich is the world’s largest privately-owned company (No.2 worldwide) in the fragrance and flavor business. Founded in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1895, it has created many of the world’s best-known perfumes and flavors that we enjoy each day. Its passion for smell and taste is at the heart of its success. It is renowned for its creativity and innovation, as well as its exceptional understanding of consumer trends. Each year, it invests around 10% of its turnover in R&D, reflecting its continuous desire to understand, share and sublimate the best that nature has to offer. Firmenich had an annual turnover of 2.64 billion Swiss Francs at end June 2012.