Food Ingredients Europe 2022 hosted both virtual (November 28-December 23) and in-person (December 6-8) components. I ventured to the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles to explore the expo hall on day two and was pleasantly surprised by the incredible attendee turnout. After a turbulent last few years with live events due to COVID-19 and travel restrictions, seeing the crowd was a breath of fresh air.
Being that the majority of the expo was dedicated to food ingredients without a specific dedication to flavors or essential oils, I made searched the halls for familiar company names and was pleasantly surprised to see a few I didn't recognize but were showcasing interesting wares. One of which being German-based Frey & Lau and Italy-based L'Italiana Aromi.
My first stop on the tour was a meeting with the Solvay group (pictured below) discussing recent company news items, areas of interest and market advancements.
L to R: The Solvay team's Corrine Duffy (technical marketing manager), Clementine Ollier (market development manager), P&F+'s Jenna Rimensnyder (managing editor) and Maud Joassard (naturals marketing manager, Solvay)
Next on my stop was the Bontoux booth showcasing a lineup of essential oils. Bontoux dedicated a stand in its booth to highlight Guedant (a company of Bontoux Group).
At Food Ingredients Europe, Bontoux showcased a lineup of essential oils as well as highlighted Guedant (a company of Bontoux Group) which specializes in the design, production and marketing of aromatic natural ingredients.JENNA RIMENSNYDER
While roaming around, I discovered the Mintel booth. The company debuted its Flavourscape AI platform, designed to offer insight into flavor markets and categories to identify formulation opportunities.
Not too far away lived the Sweegen booth, complete with a grill to serve up reduced sugar teriyaki skewers made with the company's Bestevia taste solution. I was also able to meet with Sensegen senior perfumer, Angelique Burke, who is adamant about dissolving the line between flavor and fragrance in terms of formulation strategies— more on that to come. I caught up with flavor applications manager, Jenise Pratt, and was introduced to senior flavorist Robert Pan who is new to the Sweegen team.
A piece of Sweegen's flavor squad Jenise Pratt (senior manager) and Robert Pan (senior flavorist).
Also present at the expo was Verger, with a booth designed to take attendees for a journey through Sri Lanka.
The company showcased a selection of ethically sourced and certified ingredients including cinnamon bark, white pepper (vanilla planifolia) from Sri Lank, extracted with supercritical fluid (CO2) among others and a range of spices.
Verger showcased a selection of ethically sourced and certified ingredients and a range of spices.C/O VERGER
Overall, it was a successful day exploring the expo, and it left me hungry to create a flavorful lineup for Flavorcon 2023 next November. Interested in exhibiting? Contact Paige Crist at [email protected] ASAP.
