Sustainability in the Flavor and Fragrance Industry

In addition to the quality of the flavor and fragrance ingredients that industries and consumers purchase, there are a number of other factors that are becoming increasingly important. Among topics such as the use of Advanced Biotech’s natural ingredients and extracts and organic compliant ingredients, industry professional will find the sustainability of the plants and botanicals that are used in the industry to be an increasingly popular concern.

 

The sustainability of plants and botanicals is important to the industry for a number of reasons. Chief among them is the green movement, which has seen a number of industries striving to refocus their goals in order to contribute to the overall health of the natural environment. But there are other factors that are just as important to consider. Just as the increasing demand or natural products has taken over the market, shortages of certain materials have led to the diminished availability of certain flavor and fragrance ingredients. There is simply not enough of plants and botanicals available to meet the increasing demands of consumers.

And from the bottom up, customers are increasingly interested in knowing where the ingredients for their products come from, and whether companies are using sustainable methods to produce these ingredients. However, even the most environmentally aware consumer may not realize just how important the topic of sustainability is in the flavors and fragrances industry.

 

As it is, steps are being taken along the entire supply chain – from the farmers that produce plants, fruits, vegetables, and other botanical ingredients – to the companies that use ingredients, such as the beverage industry and the perfume industry – to ensure practices are improving in terms of sustainability. Many companies, such as Advanced Biotech, are helping to foster research about sustainable methods and practices in the flavors and fragrances industry to ensure that not only are consumers able to get the flavors and fragrances that they desire, but that they are able to do so in a way that does not adversely affect the environment.

Though it may seem like a contradiction, it does seem possible, or even likely, that companies will be able to manage both in the future. The search for the former has influenced the growth of the latter, and the ability to produce better quality ingredients is an important advancement in the world of sustainable flavor and fragrance production.

 

Among the solutions in the works are developments in the process of extracting natural compounds from plant and botanical sources. Improvements in technology as well as research into more efficient extraction methods mean that more of a product is put to use. Additionally, stronger and better quality extracts and natural ingredients mean that they are more economical to use, fewer ingredients are necessary for each product, and ultimately fewer plants and botanicals are needed to produce the same number of goods.

 

The flavor and fragrance industry is still far away from the ultimate solution to the sustainability problem, but companies such as Advanced Biotech are devoting much of their time and research into discovering new methods of extraction that make the industry more sustainable.