Print technology and flavors: IFF acquires The Additive Advantage

21 Feb 2019 --- International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. (IFF), has expanded and strengthened its innovation capabilities for scent, taste and active ingredients through the acquisition of The Additive Advantage (TAA) for an undisclosed sum.

TAA develops novel technologies with diverse capabilities that span applications and industries. It has the expertise to develop the next-generation delivery systems technology platform that will enable the printing of flavors, fragrances, cosmetic and health & nutrition actives onto a variety of consumer products.

“The acquisition of TAA helps to expand our large portfolio of offerings to customers in a truly unique way – through print technology,” says Andreas Fibig, IFF’s Chairman & CEO. “With the expertise that this talented group of people brings under our roof, we envision taking delivery systems to a completely new level and ultimately enriching how consumers experience our customers’ products,” he adds.

TAA was founded in 2006 by Salvatore Celeste, and maintains a research laboratory, engineering facility and sales office in North Reading, Massachusetts. TAA's patented Integrated Delivery Platform (IDP) technology is claimed to take microencapsulation much further. Whereas microcapsules protect the actives, TAA’s technology is claimed to protect the microcapsules as well as affixes them to substrates through a proprietary printing process.

“We are genuinely excited to welcome our new colleagues to the IFF R&D family,” said Dr. Gregory Yep, Chief Scientific and Sustainability Officer for IFF. “This is the type of technology that cuts across all our business units and spurs innovation across the company – creating excitement for our teams and for our customers.”

In a statement to FoodIngredientsFirst, Yep stresses that TAA’s technology has far more potential than mere marketing. “The technology is definitely not a gimmick – we anticipate that it will be a very sustainable way to deliver taste, scent and nutrition to many current and future applications,” he stressed. Few details are being shared about the technology itself.

Last week, IFF reported that net sales for the full year totaled US$4 billion, an increase of 17 percent from US$3.4 billion in 2017 driven by mid-single digit growth in both Taste and Scent and the contribution of sales related to Frutarom, the biggest acquisition in IFF’s history. The move has made IFF the world’s second largest flavor supplier, behind Givaudan.