Givaudan

Givaudan SA, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, supplies, and sells fragrance, beauty, taste, and well-being products to the consumer goods industry. The company operates through in divisions, Fragrance & Beauty, and Taste & well-being. The Fragrance & Beauty division offers fine fragrances, consumer products, fragrance ingredients and active beauty products. 

The Taste & Wellbeing division provides beverages, such as carbonated soft drinks, juices, bottled waters, ready-to-drink products, alcoholic beverages, hot drinks, and others; dairy and cheese products, including dairy drinks, yoghurt, ice cream, chilled desserts, cream cheese, and spreads; snacks comprising rice crackers and cassava chips; savoury and nutraceutical products; and biscuits, crackers, and cereals, as well as confectionery products, such as chewing gums, chocolates, and sweets. It operates in Switzerland, Europe, Africa, the Middle East, North America, Latin America, and the Asia Pacific. The company was founded in 1796 and is headquartered in Vernier, Switzerland.

From its historic roots in Grasse in 1768 to the acquisition of Custom Essence in 2021, Givaudan has pursued a historic policy of invention and acquisition, of creativity, passion and innovation, enriching the world of scents and taste. The company was founded as a perfumery company in 1895 in Lyon, France by Leon and Xavier Givaudan. In 1898 Givaudan moved to Geneva, Switzerland and constructed a factory in Vernier. In 1946, Givaudan opened a perfumery school, which trained a third of the world's creative perfumers. 

In 1948 the company acquired Ersolko SA, which transitioned Givaudan also into the flavour industry. In 1963, Givaudan was acquired by Roche and in 1964, Roche acquired one of Givaudan's competitors, Roure. Roure was founded in Grasse, France in 1820. In 1937 Roure created the first designer perfume: Shocking for Schiaparelli. Givaudan's original United States fragrance headquarters, in Teaneck, New Jersey, was built in 1972 from a design by Der Scutt, architect of the Trump Tower. The company later moved to East Hanover, New Jersey.

In 1991 Givaudan and Roure were merged to form Givaudan-Roure. Also in 1991, the company bought Fritzsche, Dodge and Olcott. In 1997 Givaudan-Roure acquired another flavour company, Tastemaker, based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The merger made Givaudan the largest flavour company in the world. In 2000 Givaudan-Roure was spun off by Roche as Givaudan and listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange where it is part of the SLI.

In 2002 Givaudan acquired FIS, the flavours division of Nestle, for which Nestle received a 10% stake in the company. The following year Givaudan purchased the cheese flavour company IBF. In 2004 the company expanded its operations in China, which had been in place since the 1990s. On 22 November 2006, Givaudan announced the acquisition of Quest International to be completed in Q1 2007. On 21 February, the EU approved the merger of Givaudan and Quest clearing the final regulatory hurdle for the merger after the United States authorities approved the merger earlier in the month. The merger deal closed on 2 March 2007. 

The acquisition makes Givaudan the global leader in both fine fragrances and consumer products; it was already the global leader in flavours and the acquisition of Quest International strengthens its position. The acquisition of Quest boosted Givaudan's sales by 42% from CHF 2,909 million in 2006 to CHF 4,132 million in 2007.

In 2013 Nestle sold its share in Givaudan for $1.3 billion. By 2014 the company had about US$4.6 billion in revenues. That year the company had its first acquisition since Quest, purchasing Soliance. Givaudan also released the TasteSolutions Richness line of flavours. It also launched the Givaudan Foundation and has a programme that works with patchouli and other grower collection networks to establish sustainable development practices, called the Innovative Naturals programme. Since 2014, Givaudan has acquired around 20 companies among them Naturex, the cosmetics business of AMSilk, Albert Vieille, Fragrance Oils, and Golden Frog.

In 2022, Givaudan, the mechanical engineering company Bühler, and Migros want to open the Cultured Food Innovation Hub in Kemptthal. Research is also to be carried out there on cultivated meat.

“Together with our customers, we craft memorable experiences that bring moments of delight to consumers.”

“To inspire emotion through our creations every day, everywhere, as we strive for a better tomorrow.”