IFF-Evolva join forces to expand vanillin commercialization

26 Mar 2020 --- Swiss biotech company Evolva has entered a new collaboration agreement with International Flavors and Fragrances (IFF), a creator of taste, scent and nutrition for consumer products, to further develop and expand commercialization of vanillin. Under the terms of the new agreement, IFF will expand commercialization of the product and Evolva will be responsible to further develop vanillin. Evolva will receive payments for the product manufactured and sold, contributing to reaching cash breakeven by 2023.

Vanilla is a complex blend of flavor and fragrance ingredients extracted from the seed pods of the vanilla orchid. The most important ingredient in this blend is vanillin. However, due to “bottlenecks in nature,” Evolva notes that most products formulated to impart the aroma of vanilla do not in fact use vanilla but rather synthetic vanillin (roughly 85 percent of all globally consumed vanillin) made primarily from petrochemicals or chemically derived from lignin.

“We regard the agreement with Evolva as an example of our continued commitment to support the increasing consumer attention to health and the environment,” says Matthias Haeni, Divisional CEO, Taste, at IFF. 

The two companies began collaborating in 2011. Evolva has since made significant investments in the capability to develop and optimize its ingredients and shorten time to commercial-scale production.

Back to the classics
Vanilla premiumization provides ample opportunities for companies seeking to emphasize provenance and luxury. Last year, Nielsen-Massey launched single-origin pure vanilla extracts from Uganda and Indonesia in response to growing consumer interest in global flavors. Earlier this year, it also released new two-ounce bottles of its Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Bean Paste and Pure Vanilla Bean Paste targeted toward gourmet chefs and bakers.

The number of products that refer to the origin of vanilla on their packaging continues to grow. However, as consumers become better informed, companies tend to offer more and more exotic vanilla origins. 

“It is now possible to find products with vanillas from India, Indonesia – Java vanilla is particularly popular – Tahiti or Papua New Guinea,” Marie Le Beller, Product Manager at Prova, tells FoodIngredientsFirst in an exclusive interview about the ingredient’s foothold on the flavor market.

Edited by Benjamin Ferrer