DSM-Firmenich Partners With Biotech Start-up to Create Natural Scent Ingredients
PARIS — Nutrition, health and beauty supplier DSM-Firmenich has partnered with Interstellar Lab, a biotech start-up that develops biofarming solutions, to conceive exclusive natural ingredients for sustainable scents.
“Together, the two companies aim to spearhead advancements in botanical ingredient production, marking a significant leap forward in DSM-Firmenich’s quest to expand and explore the boundaries of natural innovation in agrotech, and to unlock new dimensions in olfactive richness and sustainable innovation,” DSM-Firmenich said in a statement Tuesday.
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“This collaboration aims to pioneer an ingredient research program focusing on the impact of environmental conditions on plant yield and phenotype evaluation,” the company continued.
Fragrance suppliers have been expanding their biotech know-how as their clients and consumers are on a rising quest for more natural and sustainably made perfumes.
The compound annual growth rate of the natural fragrance market globally is expected to be 7.5 percent between 2022 and 2030, when it should reach $48.3 billion, according to Market Research Future.
Interstellar Lab develops and operates advanced biofarming platforms in order to speed up plant growth and trigger specific molecules in plants. It has artificial intelligence-controlled biofarms to optimize energy and resources consumption, capture carbon dioxide and improve ingredients’ life-cycle assessments with a data-driven approach, according to DSM-Firmenich.
“Our biofarming platform represents a revolution in the perfumery landscape, understanding and addressing the current industry needs to provide renewable ingredients, responsibly sourced and produced, that inspire creators and respect the environment,” said Barbara Belvisi, chief executive officer and founder of Interstellar Lab.
“At DSM-Firmenich, we valorize natural ingredients and continuously push the boundaries of innovation and sustainability for perfumery,” said Michal Benmayor, vice president perfumery innovation and sustainability at DSM-Firmenich. “Our partnership with Interstellar Lab represents another avenue of exploration in agrotech, expanding our ability to harness the synergy of nature and science, breaking the conventions to uncover unparalleled excellence in both olfactive quality and sustainability for our creations.”
Together, Interstellar Lab and DSM-Firmenich will also try to reduce the climate impact of farming and to preserve biodiversity in critical ecosystems.
“Our commitment to innovation drives us to continually expand the horizons of natural ingredients,” said Xavier Brochet, global head of natural innovation at DSM-Firmenich.
“By exploring cutting-edge agrotech advancements, we’re reshaping the landscape of species selection, anticipating challenges of production and sourcing and prioritizing the highest quality of ingredients,” he continued. “This dedication ensures we deliver the purest and most authentic natural extracts for perfumery.”
DSM-Firmenich, a Swiss-Dutch company listed on Euronext Amsterdam, is increasingly focusing fully on its core nutrition, health and beauty business. In mid-February, the group said it will spin off its animal nutrition and health activity with that aim in mind.
Firmenich and DSM merged in May 2023 to become the world’s largest fragrance, beauty, well-being and nutrition supplier.
In 2023, DSM-Firmenich’s net profit rose 26 percent to 2.15 billion euros on sales that grew 27 percent to 10.63 billion euros.
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