Market News Service - International Trade Centre

ESSENTIAL OILS AND OLEORESINS 

MARKET NEWS SERVICE (MNS) 

QUARTERLY EDITION 

MNS BULLETIN 

March 2011

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Market News Service 

Essential Oil and Oleoresins


Essential Oils & Oleoresins, EU and US Market Report 

Report prepared for ITC‘s Market News Service by: 

EU markets: Mr. Steve Caiger (steve.caiger@highvaluehorticulture.com) 

US markets: Ms. Kerry Hughes (kerry@ethnopharm.com) 

Issue Number 1, March 2011 

The Market News Service of the International Trade Centre UNCTAD/WTO (ITC) provides timely 

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particular interest to developing countries and economies in transition. Regular access to such 

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Essential Oil and Oleoresins 

3

INDEX 

MARKET CONDITIONS 5 

EU Markets 5 

US Market 5 

FUEL SUSTAINABILITY 6 

Fuel costs and carbon footprint 6 

SPECIAL FOCUS: 7 

Flavour & Fragrance Industry Sales, with a Focus on Industry Leaders 7 

Mainstream Industry Trends 11 

Supplying the Top Ten 12 

SUPPLIERS OF EQUIPMENT 13 

Africa 13 

PRICE INFORMATION 16 

US Markets 16 

EU Markets 19 

NEWS & UPDATES 22 

Cinnamon active label extends peach shelf life, maintains sensory qualities 22 

Global industry looks at India as a future hub for Fragrances and Flavours 23 

Study notes HPP effectiveness in reducing Listeria risk in yoghurt 24 

Using wastewater to enhance mint production 25 

Mentha oil remains up in futures trade 26 

EVENTS CALENDAR 27 



Market Conditions 

EU Markets 

The market has not been badly disturbed by 

the political upheavals in North Africa, 

although prolonged problems in Egypt would 

have had a serious impact given the range of 

products for which it is an important origin. 

Provided the situation there remains basically 

stable – in terms of the day-to-day economy 

functioning – there should not be any major 

impact on product prices. Tunisia is a 

commercial producer of a narrow range of 

essential oils (neroli, rosemary) but it is not a 

dominant origin, so the continuing disruption 

there should not affect the market unduly. 

Libya and Syria do not have significant 

essential oil production, and Morocco, the 

other major producer in North Africa, has not 

been involved in the turmoil. 

Prices of almost all essential oils remain firm, 

driven by 2 basic factors: 

The flavours and fragrances market 

continues to grow, and 

US Market 

According to a Malagasy producer, there was 

explosion of geranium and ravintsara demand 

in the first quarter of the year which continues 

to grow. Geranium oil is being sold at 200 euro 

FOB now. They have also noticed the rise in 

demand of the vegetable oil of calophyllum 

inophyllum(also called forah in Madagascar). 

In Guatemala the harvesting season of 

cardamom has finished. The total production 

expected from Sept-2010 till August-2011 

seems to be 10-15% more in comparison with 

last season. Prices are at high levels, which 

are reported to likely stay at the same levels 

until next season which starts in October. 

During recent years the weather conditions 

have been the most important condition 

regarding production volumes in Guatemala. 

US importers of essential oils are reporting 

strong demands for American peppermint oil, 

resulting in firm prices, which may potentially 

increase in the next few months. Spearmint oil 

is also reported to have firm pricing. Indian 

suppliers continue to explain the lack of 



Updates 

Fuel costs, which represent a major part 

of the costs of the production of all 

products, are very high and likely to 

remain so. 

An additional factor is the range of crop 

options that farmers have these days, 

particularly short term fresh food crops. This 

has resulted in farmers being able to turn 

away from ‗traditional‘ crops when prices are 

poor. They are no longer tied in to production 

of a particular crop but have a broad range of 

options to choose from. The consequence of 

this is that many have permanently 

abandoned the traditional cultivation of 

essential oils, while others might possibly drop 

the crop when returns are poor and 

alternatives offer better returns. These 

changes are driving the industry towards 

‗sustainable‘ pricing as a necessary strategy to 

avoid the continuing uncertainty over supply 

and price spikes from shortages. 

supplies and high prices of essential oils from 

India due to adverse weather conditions, 

inflation, and the strengthening of the Indian 

currency against the US dollar. Likewise, in 

Indonesia, shippers are reporting that even 

though it was still rainy (in February when this 

was reported), the situation has improved with 

both prices and with available stock, possibly 

due to anticipation of the end of the rainy 

season. 

The recent flooding in Australia has reportedly 

impacted the tea tree oil distillation this year, 

with estimates that the 2011 production may 

be 30% less than last year. Increases in the 

currently quoted prices (approx. US$40/kg) for 

tea tree oil are foreseen. 

In Paraguay the Petitgrain distillation season 

which should have begun by now, but has 

been delayed by about two months; therefore, 

production is limited and producers are now 

busy with other products. Oil Guaiacwood has 

been taken off the CITES list early this year, 

and therefore is being exported once again. 

5

Fuel Sustainability 

Fuel costs and carbon footprint 

Distillation operations using fuel – typically 

diesel or heavy fuel oil – have seen major 

price rises over the last few years, and the 

signs are that prices are going to remain high, 

and that further upheavals in the Middle East 

area have the potential to send them higher 

still. Even without any consideration of 

political disturbances, it is clear that global 

demand has risen, and is continuing to rise, 

and this is likely to keep prices where they are, 

or to push them higher still. Fuel costs are a 

major in distillation costs, and enterprises 

have to find ways to reduce usage, and/or to 

change to lower priced fuels. New boilers and 

burners can offer significant efficiency savings 

over old equipment, but important and cost 

effective benefits can be obtained by 

optimising insulation to minimise heat loss, 

putting in heat recovery systems to make use 

of waste heat, using simple solar collectors to 

pre-heat water etc. 

As well as trying to minimise fuel usage, 

enterprises need to consider their carbon 

footprint, and start to work on strategies to at 

least minimise it, and then to start off-setting it. 

This is starting to become an important factor 

in the market, and will become increasingly so. 

It is much better to be a leader in offering 

carbon neutral product, than to be driven to do 

it at the end and not have the time to identify 

and plan for the best way to achieve it. Fuel 

used is likely to be the major source of carbon 

usage, although if crops are grown under 

intensive systems, with irrigation and high 

fertilizer inputs, crop production itself may 

have a significant carbon footprint, which will 

also need to be considered. Minimising fuel 

used in distillation will reduce the carbon 

footprint of the enterprise. After that, the 

strategy changes to off-setting – either through 

the purchase of carbon credits, or the 

generation of credits (such as through 

registered tree planting schemes). The costs 

of this are not great, but the beneficial impact 



– both to the environment and the business - 

can be. As an indication, for each 10,000 

litres of diesel used in a boiler, around 27 

tonnes of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e) is released 

– so that 27 credits are required to offset it. 

Prices of credits vary depending on whether 

they come from voluntary schemes or formal 

CDM credit schemes, but at around 

US$10/credit, the total offset cost would be 

US$270 for each 10,000 litres used. 

Alternatively, tree planting schemes could be 

started, to generate credits. Schemes have to 

run for a certain time – typically 15 years, but it 

can be shorter – so that they may not be 

suitable for fuel wood schemes. In the 

voluntary sector RED credits (for avoided 

deforestation) can be generated, and 

boundary tree planting schemes (around 

landholdings) are also accepted. Once the 

carbon credit system is understood – and 

frequently there are locally based 

organisations that have made it their business 

to understand the system, in East Africa for 

example the Uganda Carbon Bureau is a very 

good first point of contact – an appraisal of the 

business can identify a range of ways through 

which carbon usage can be minimised and 

credits generated to move towards offsetting 

the carbon footprint. 

Enterprises that run wood fired distillation 

operations – either an open fire or wood fired 

steam boilers – also have to consider fuel 

usage, as the same principles apply as for 

enterprises using diesel. Wood is becoming 

scarce, prices are rising, and burning wood is 

generating a carbon footprint. 

Uganda Carbon Bureau 

Plot 47 Lubowa Estate 

PO Box 70480 

Kampala. Uganda 

Tel/fax: +256 (414) 200988 

Contact: Bill Farmer, Chairman 

billfarmer@ugandacarbon.org

Special Focus 

Flavour & Fragrance Industry Sales, with a Focus on 

Industry Leaders 

The flavour and fragrance Industry is 

dominated by a few large corporations that 

control the majority of the market share 

while the more numerous small Flavour 

and fragrance companies continue to lose 

market share. Last year was no different 

in this trend, as 2010 saw some of the 

largest year-to-year gains, with an 

estimated total market growth of 

approximately 10% in US$ 1 . The small 

flavour and fragrance companies, on the 

other hand, were reported to lose market 

share on the order of about 4.5% in US$. 

Who are the Top 10 Industry Leaders? 

1. Givaudan SA 

Corporate Headquarters: 

5, Chemin de la Parfumerie 

Vernier, - 1214 Switzerland 

http://www.givaudan.com/ 

Givaudan is the top Flavour & fragrance 

company in the world. They claim their 

success has to do with their innovation, 

and they have a focus on building 

partnerships with clients. They list their 

mid-term objectives based on assumed 

market grown of 2-3% as being a 4.5-5.5% 

organic sales growth, the best in class 

EBITDA, 14-16% free cash flow of sales 

by 2015, and above 60% free cash flow 

return. The key ‗pillars‘ of their five-year 

strategy are reported to be developing 

markets, research and development, 

health and wellness, sustainable sourcing 

of raw materials, and targeted customers 

and segments. 

As reported by Leffingwell & Associates: In 

2010, Givaudan Group sales totalled CHF 

4,239 million, an increase of 8.9% in local 

currencies and 7.1% in Swiss francs 

compared to the previous year. Sales of 

the Fragrance Division were CHF 1,988 

million, an increase of 10.5% in local 

currencies and 9.0% in Swiss francs. 

Sales of the Flavour Division were CHF 

1 Leffingwell & Associates 



2,251 million, an increase of 7.5% in local 

currencies and 5.4% in Swiss francs 

compared to the previous year. 

2. Firmenich SA 


Rue de la Bergère 7 

P.O. Box 148 

Meyrin 2 CH-1217 Switzerland 

Firmenich is the largest privately owned 

flavour and fragrance company in the 

world. It was founded in 1895 and early on 

became known for signature fragrance 

chemicals, such as Dianthine® and 

Iralia®, which are still present on the 

market today. Their strongest growth 

markets today are geographically in 

emerging market, with a new affiliate in 

Dubai opened this year to serve the Gulf 

region, a new state-of-the art perfume and 

Flavour development center in Brazil to 

service Latin America, and a new Perfume 

ingredients plan in India to support their 

global business. 

As reported by Leffingwell & Associates: 

For the financial year ended June 30, 

2010, Firmenich posted record sales of 

CHF 2873 million, an increase of 12.1% in 

local currencies and 8.7% in Swiss Francs, 

regaining its position as growth leader in 

the fragrance and Flavour industry. This 

performance was driven by double-digit 

growth in Perfumery and Flavour 

segments, with a particularly strong 

rebound in Fine Fragrance during the 

second half of the year. The perfume and 

Flavour ingredients business followed the 

trend, recording a healthy high single-digit 

growth performance. Leffingwell estimates 

that Firmenich increased market share by 

about 1.7% in the period. 

3. IFF 


521 West 57th Street 

New York, NY 10019 USA 

7

IFF‘s vision is to create unique scent & 

taste experiences people love. They say 

they do this through their commitment to 

customers, people and innovation. 

Since 1833 they have been in the Flavour 

and fragrance business, originally started 

by a miller and a druggist with a focus on 

the production of essential oils, especially 

sandalwood oil and clove. In 2011, IFF 

has announced plans to invest over $100 

million in Greater Asia over the next few 

years to be allocated to two new state-ofthe-art 

manufacturing facilities located in 

Guangzhou, China and Singapore. IFF‘s 

2010 net sales were $2.6 billion and had 

operations in 33 countries. 

4. Symrise 


Muehlenfeldstraße 

Holzminden, 37603 Germany 

In the medium term Symrise is striving to 

become one of the three leading 

manufacturer in the Flavour and fragrance 

industry. In order to do this they plan to 

grow globally with defined customers, 

growing in the emerging markets of Asia, 

South America, the Middle East and 

Africa. They plan to strategically 

strengthen themselves through 

acquisitions. 


Symrise increased sales in 2010 by 15.4 

% to € 1.571.9 million (+11% in local 

currency) and exceeded its target to 

achieve sales growth of at least 8 %. 

Scent & Care sales increased 17.9% to € 

804.5 million while Flavour & Nutrition 

sales increased 12.9% to € 804.5 million. 

5. Takasago 


Nissey Aroma Square 17F 

5-37-1, Kamata 

Ohta-Ku, - 144-8721 Japan 

Founded in Japan in 1920, Takasago has 

developed Flavours and fragrances for 

over 80 years, and has a focus on the 

Asian region. Takasago maintains 

operations in 24 countries and through this 

network strive to deliver individual market 

solutions. Takasago also has pursued 



pharmaceutical intermediaries, functional 

materials and other fine chemicals, with 

asymmetric synthesis being used as a key 

technology. 


Sales for the half fiscal year ending 

September 30, 2010 were ¥ 60,547 

million, up 2.9% from the prior year while 

net income increased 85.1% to ¥ 3,325 

million. 

6. Mane SA 


620 Route de Grasse 

06620 Le Bar Sur Loup, France 

Founded in 1871, Mane began as a 

company supplying and producing fragrant 

materials from regional flowers and plants. 

It grew internationally between 1916 and 

1958, and then in 1959 diversified into the 

Flavourings for the food industry. 

Mane reportedly consolidates their 

activities with the promotion of human 

resources, the quality assurance of their 

products, and with their environmental 

protection management system. 


Mane achieved a consolidated turnover of 

480.1 million Euros in 2010, up 26.7% 

from 376.2 million Euros in 2009 (personal 

communication, Leffingwell & Associates). 

7. Sensient Flavours 


777 East Wisconsin Avenue 

Milwaukee, WI 53202-5304 USA 

Sensient Technologies is not only one of 

the largest Flavour and fragrance 

companies in the world, but they also 

supply colours that are used in a diversity 

of products, from food and beverages, 

pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, home and 

personal care products, specialty printing 

and imaging products, as well as computer 

imaging and industrial colours. 


The Flavours & Fragrances Group 

reported full year 2010 sales of $809.1 

million, an increase of 4.7% vs. 2009. 

Operating income for the same period 

declined 2.0%. For the 4th Qtr, F&F sales

were $206.1 million, up 5.2% while 

operating income declined 0.5%. As these 

figures include dehydrated products such 

as dehydrated vegetables that are about 

28% of sales, we estimate that the sales of 

conventional Flavours & fragrances in 

2010 were about $582.6 million. 

8. T. Hasegawa 


4-4-14, Nihonbashi Hon-cho, 

Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-8431 

Since 1903, T. Hasegawa has focused on 

quality and service. Today they are 

second in the Japanese market, and 

eighth in the global market. Operations 

are focused in the US, Japan, Singapore 

and China. 


For the full year ending September 30, 

2010 consolidated net sales were ¥ 

45,167 million, up 4.4%. For the same 

period, net income increased 58.5% to ¥ 

2,840 million. 

9. Robertet SA 


37, Avenue Sidi Brahim 

BP 52100 

06130 Grasse Cedex, France 

Robertet describes itself as being above 

all a natural aromatic products company. 

Their natural raw materials are produced 

in one of their four factories, located in 

France, Turkey, South Africa or Belgium. 

Robertet is a family business that is 



quoted on the Paris stock exchange since 

1984, and it prides itself on family 

traditions that live on in the company‘s 

rigorous management style that enable it 

to grow globally. 


Robertet has reported sales for 2010 of 

362.25 million Euros, an increase of 

18.7% over 2009. Fragrance sales 

increased 15.7% to 130.6 million Euros. 

Flavour sales increased 17.3% to 143.5 

million Euros and Ingredient sales 

increased 26.1% to 85.8 million Euros. 

10. Frutarom 


25 Hashaish Street   

P.O.B 10067   

Haifa 26110  Israel 

Frutarom was established in 1933, and is 

now a rapidly growing Flavour and fine 

ingredients company. Beyond Flavours 

and fragrances, Frutarom develops, 

produces and markets functional food 

extracts, and natural 

pharmaceutical/nutraceutical extracts. 


Frutarom's revenues in FY 2010 totalled 

US$ 451.1 million, an 8% increase in 

comparison to revenues of US$ 425.2 

million in 2009 in local currency terms. The 

strengthening of the US dollar against 

European currencies offset 1.9% of the 

increase in Frutarom's sales. In terms of 

US dollars, the sales increased by 6.1% 

compared to 2009. 

9

Table 1. 2006-2010 Flavour & Fragrance Industry Leaders (estimated sales volume in millions (preliminary estimates as of March 26, 2011) 

Company 2006 2006 Est. 2006 2007 2007 Est. 2007 2008 2008 Est. 2008 2009 2009 Est. 2009 2010 2010 Est. 2010 

.. 

Country 

Currency 

=US $ 

Market 

Share 

Country  

Currency 

=US $ 


Share 

Country  

Currency 

Note - Top 10 Total figures includes Quest International for Year 2006 and excludes sales of Frutarom for the same period, as 2007 was Frutarom's 1st year in the Top 10. 

*Note - As of March 26, 2011, the following sales figures are estimates based on partial year sales figures where available: Takasago (based on 6 month sales); Figures for Firmenich are the 

author's estimate based on historical performance. Until final figures are available for these companies, the top ten totals are only "estimated". 

=US $ 




Share 

Country  

Currency 

=US $ 


Share 

Country  

Currency 

Givaudan 2,909 CHF $2,387.9 13.3% 4,132 CHF $3,647.0 18.4% 4,087 CHF $3,828.7 18.9% 3,959 CHF $3824.0 19.1% 4,239 CHF $4538.4 20.6% 

Firmenich 2,500 CHF $2,052.1 11.4% 2,847 CHF $2,512.8 12.7% 2,641 CHF $2474.1 12.2% 2,873 CHF $2775.0 13.9% 

~3,100 

CHF 

=US $ 


Share 

~$3318.9* 15.1% 

IFF $2,095.4 $2,095.4 11.6% $2,276.6 $2,276.6 11.5% $2,389 $2,389 11.8% $2326.2 $2326.2 11.6% $2622.9 $2622.9 11.9% 

Symrise 1,230.0 € $1,623.0 9.0% 1,274.5 € $1,860.8 9.3% 1,319.9 € $1837.4 9.1% 1362.0 € $1952.5 9.8% 1571.9 € ~$2106.6* 9.6% 

Takasago ¥113,876 $955.7 5.3% ¥124,231 $1,112.0 5.6% ¥123,973 $1365.6 6.7% ¥114,347 $1228.5 6.1% ~¥117,777 ~$1452.1* ~6.6% 

Mane SA 288 € $380.0 2.1% 307.31 € $448.7 2.3% 332.5 € $462.9 2.3% 376.2 € $539.3 2.7% 480.1 € $643.4 2.9% 

Sensient 

Flavours 

$535.4** $535.4** 3.0% ~$572** ~$572** 2.9% ~$591** ~$591** 2.9% ~$548.7** ~$548.7** 2.7% ~$82.6** ~$582.6** ~2.6% 

T. Hasegawa ¥47,000 $394.4 2.2% ¥50,066 $448.1 2.3% ¥45,421 $500.3 2.5% ¥43,244 $464.6 2.3% ¥45,167 $556.9 2.5% 

Robertet SA 221.13 € $291.8 1.6% 241.14 € $352.1 1.8% 303.17 € $422.0 2.1% 305.1 € $437.4 2.2% 362.25 € $484.5 2.2% 

Frutarom $287.2 $287.2 1.6% $368.3 $368.3 1.9% $473.3 $473.3 2.3% $425.2 $425.2 2.1% $451.1 $451.1 2.1% 

Top Ten 

Totals 

.. $11,867.6 65.9% .. $13,598.4 68.7% ... $14344.2 70.7% ~$14521.4 72.6% ~$16758.4 76.2% 

All Others .. $6,132.4 34.1% .. $6201.6 31.3% ... $5955.8 29.3% ~$5478.6 27.4% ~$5241.6 23.8% 

Total Market .. $18,000 .. .. $19,800 .. ... $20,300 .. $20,000 ~$22,000

Mainstream Industry Trends 

According to John Leffingwell, a Flavour 

chemist who started Leffingwell & 

Associates to act as an information source 

to the Flavour and fragrance industries, as 

well as to supply the industry with 

software, mainstream industry trends don‘t 

change too much—the top ten Flavour 

houses mainly sell the same materials, 

and the top essential oils remain the 

same. John Leffingwell said, ―Although the 

top Flavours are mainly the same, there 

has been a large trend toward natural 

Flavours in all markets. For example, 

when I first started in this industry in the 

1970‘s, about 70% of the favors were from 

synthetic supplies. Today, over 70% of the 

Flavours come from natural sources, such 

as essential oils, and this trend continues 

to increase.‖ 

There have also have been fairly recent 

changes in processes that are significant 

in the Flavour and fragrance industry. The 

‗high throughput screening‘ that has been 

popular within the pharmaceutical industry 

is now found in the Flavour and fragrance 

industry. 

High Throughput Screening is a method 

for discovering new compounds and 

substances with desired activities and 

characteristics. In reference to the more 

well known pharmaceutical high 

throughput screening, for example, if a 

company was interested in a compound 

for lowering blood sugar, they would first 

find an in vitro assay that selected for 

blood sugar lowering compounds. Then 

the company would take entire libraries of 

known compounds and pass them through 

this screen. Those compounds that 

showed a positive result in the assay 

would then be taken to the next phase of 

research and selection. This method 

allows for the screening and potential 

unexpected results of compounds that 

researchers may not normally think of to 

bring into the research and development 

process. 

The way this process is applied in Flavour 

research, on the other hand, is that 



desired taste receptors are cloned by 

researchers, and then libraries of 

compounds are screened. Leffingwell 

gave the example that in Givaudan‘s 

strategy report, they reported a program 

for screening for new cooling compounds 

that they completed using high throughput 

methods. They ended up screening 

28,000 materials against receptors which 

they were able to effectively reduce to 350 

materials that were tasted. 25 

compounds, were then selected for indepth 

application tests. Two final cooling 

agents stood out and have been 

commercialized. 

Another area identified by Leffingwell & 

Associates as being a top trend in the 

industry is bitter blockers. Recently, for 

example, in the US GRAS (Generally 

Recognized as Safe) notification list there 

have been several bitter blockers showing 

up on the list, showing company interest in 

development of these type of compounds 

for food use. Bitter blockers are mostly 

used for masking the bitter off-notes of 

certain sweeteners (both artificial and 

natural). 

Cooling agents also remain a top trend 

among the mainstream Flavour industry. 

For example, as menthol in large 

quantities becomes bitter in Flavour, when 

mixed with other cooling compounds, the 

menthol mixture becomes cooler without 

forming the bitter off-Flavours. For this 

reason there has been an effort by major 

Flavour houses to find other cool Flavours. 

Symrise and Takasago currently have the 

largest synthetic menthol manufacturing 

plants, and BASF has just announced it 

has developed a new process for 

producing synthetic menthol. On the other 

hand, whereas Brazil used to be one of 

the largest natural menthol producers in 

the world, currently India and China are 

the largest sources. Brazil now buys mint 

oils from these sources and processes 

them to crystallize and purify the menthol, 

which they offer at a value-added price. 

11

Supplying the Top Ten 

When it comes to supplying the larger 

Flavour and fragrance houses, Leffingwell 

& Associates emphasize that producers 

should meet certain GMP and quality 

specification standards, which can be 

found from the major essential industry 

associations. Also important is to see 

which substances are allowed in each 

market that is being targeted. For 

example, in the Flavour-Base 2010, the 

regulatory status of Flavour materials is 

given per market area. Although, the 

differences between countries & markets 

regarding what is allowed are growing 

smaller, there are still some significant 

differences in what is allowed and not 

allowed. 

The other very important aspect that was 

identified for supplying today‘s market is 

ensuring a sustainable supply. As this was 

not an emphasis for many years as the 

Flavour and fragrance industry developed, 

we now are experiencing shortage 

problems from overharvesting and 

demand that outpaces the sustainability of 

supply. This is evident with Indian 



Sandalwood oil, Santalum album, which is 

now listed as a vulnerable species by the 

International Union for Conservation of 

Nature, as it is one of the world‘s most 

illegally logged plants. 

In 2007, Givaudan partnered with Mount 

Romance (now part of TFS Corporation), a 

producer of pure Australian sandalwood oil 

from Santalum spicatum. This partnership 

creates a sustainable supply of a specific 

grade of sandalwood oil that is harvested 

by people from the Aboriginal communities 

in the southern part of Western Australia. 

In addition, TFS has also planted over 

3,700 hectares of Indian Sandalwood in 

Western Australia and, when the trees 

reach maturity, they have plans to produce 

a sustainable supply sandalwood products 

for the market. They claim it will be the 

largest sustainable supply of Indian 

Sandalwood in the world. Currently, as it 

is one of the world‘s most valuable 

hardwoods, it is selling for over A$100,000 

per ton of heartwood (Tamil Nadu Forestry 

Department).

Suppliers of Equipment 

The distillation and extraction industry in Africa 

is relatively small and localised outside of the 

North African centers of Egypt and Morocco, 

and Southern Africa (South Africa, Swaziland). 

New entrants to the industry can find it hard to 

identify suppliers of equipment (stills, 

condensers, extractor vessels etc) in stainless 

steel, steam boilers, and other necessary 

materials (drums, jugs, filter papers etc). 

The development of the industry in Africa 

would benefit greatly if there was greater 

sharing of information on the location of 

suppliers. New entrants would find it easier to 

identify necessary suppliers, and the 

concentration of orders on particular suppliers 

would encourage the development of skills 



Africa 

and expertise – this is particularly necessary in 

the areas of fabrication of stainless steel 

vessels and condensers. 

Some contacts of companies involved in the 

manufacture of distillation/extraction 

equipment or the capability to do so (primarily 

the capability to work with stainless steel) or 

supply of materials based in East Africa are 

given below. 

The Newsletter would welcome information 

from Readers on other suppliers of relevant 

equipment and materials from all regions of 

Africa, so that the listing can be expanded. 

Please send any information to 

mns@intracen.org. 

The contacts are provided as a service only. NO RECOMMENDATION IS IMPLIED. 

1. MANUFACTURE OF STAINLESS STEEL DISTILLATION EQUIPMENT: 

KENYA 

ASL – Heavy Fabrication Division 

Ramco Industrial Park 

Mombassa Road 

PO Box 18639-00500 

Nairobi. Kenya 

Tel: +254 20 821567/820296/820394 

Fax: +254 20 820169/651893 

murali@asl.ramco-group.com 

Attn: Mr Ve Balamurali, General Manager 

Warren Enterprises Ltd 

PO Box 8251 


Tel: +254 20 8561 932/3/4 

Fax: +254 20 8561 013 

Attn: Mr S Ramaswamy, Managing Director 

Morris Steel & Company 

Mogadishu Road 

PO Box 18310 


Tel: +254 20 533 627 

Attn: General Manager 

UGANDA 

Specialised Welding Services (previously 

Kasise Kleinsmedie Uganda Ltd) 

Jinja Road, Plot 96 

PO Box 40115 

Nakawa Vocational Training Center 

Kampala 

Uganda 

Tel: +256 (776) 405060/405070/405080 

+256 (772) 227 003 (Samantha Moray) 

sam.moray@sws.co.ug 

Attn: Samantha Moray, General Manager 

www.sws.co.ug 

MADAGASCAR 

Societe Aris Trading 

Lot VB 81X Ambatoroka 

101-Antananarivo. Madagascar 

Tel: +261 20 24 264 96 

Fax: +261 20 22 290 24 

aristrading@freenet.mg 

Attn: Mr James Davidson 

ATICOM 

Lot IT 91A Itaosy 

102 Antananarivo – Atsimondrano. 

Madagascar 

13

Tel: +261 32 07 744 34 

morasatajosoa@yahoo.fr 

Attn: Josoa Andriamorasata 

SOUTH AFRICA 

EDESA 

PO Box 123 

Riebeek Kasteel 7306 

Western Cape. South Africa 

Tel: +27 (82) 334 3324 

info@edesa.co.za 

Attn: Werner Bester 

Manufacture of distillation equipment and 

sales of used equipment. 

BENCO PLANT & ENGINEERING (PTY) Ltd 

159 Van Eeden Crescent, Rosslyn, Karin Park 

P O Box 59. Pretoria, Gauteng. South Africa 

Tel: +27 (12) 541-0398 

Fax: +27 (12) 541-0399 

Attn: Sloam Durbach 

Manufacturer of distillation equipment and 

steam boilers 

POWERSAVE 

PO Box 699 

Hilton 3245. South Africa 

Tel (cell): +27 82 493 8670 

Fax: +27 33 34 33 755 

Attn: Greg Rowe 

gregrowe@telcomsa.net 

Manufacture of steam distillation plants 

Henry S Komar & Associates CC 

2 Hebel Road, Roodepoort, Gauteng, South 

Africa 

Postal address: PO Box 994, Honeydew 2040, 

South Africa 

Tel: +27 11 760 2718 

Fax: +27 11 760 1079 

Attn: Stan Kumar, CEO 

info@komar.co.za; sales@komar.co.za 

www.komar.co.za 

Manufacture of stainless steel distillation and 

processing equipment. Also sales of 

secondhand equipment. 

2. SUPPLIERS OF STEAM BOILERS 

MADAGASCAR 

ARTICOM 

Lot IT 91A Itaosy 

102 Antananarivo – Atsimondrano. 

Madagascar 

Tel: +261 32 07 744 34 

morasatajosoa@yahoo.fr 



Attn: Josoa Andriamorasata 

ARTICOM make a simple, low pressure, wood 

fired steam boiler. 

KENYA 

Boiler Consortium Africa (BCA) Ltd 

PO Box 60780. Nairobi. Kenya 

Tel: +254 20 557837/ 536793/ 4349310 

Tel: +254 722 750131/ 703511/ 

Fax: +254 20 735 331177 

Barry Corlines 

info@boilersafrica.com 

www.boilersafrica.com 

BCA design, manufacture and commission 

boilers, included wood fired steam boilers, and 

are agents for Riello in East Africa. 

SOUTH AFRICA 

Combustion Technology South Africa 

PO Box 30047. Tokai, 7966 Cape Town, 

South Africa 

Tel: +27 21 715 3171 

Fax: +27 21 715 6297 

www.combustiontechnology.co.za 

Combustion Technology are the exclusive 

Southern African distributors of Riello burners 

and Garioni Naval Boilers. 

BENCO PLANT & ENGINEERING (PTY) Ltd 

159 Van Eeden Crescent, Rosslyn, Karin Park 

P O Box 59. Pretoria, Gauteng. South Africa 

Tel: +27 (12) 541-0398 

Fax: +27 (12) 541-0399 

Attn: Sloam Durbach 

Manufacturer of distillation equipment and 

steam boilers 

CAPE BOILER 

16 Natal Street, Parden Island, Cape Town, 

South Africa 

Tel: +27 21 511 6652 

Fax: +27 511 4415 

Attn: Mr Nic Kellerman 

INDIA 

Firetech Boilers Pvt Ltd 

FIRETECH HOUSE, No.211, 2nd Cross, 38th 

Main, 

B.T.M Layout, 2nd Stage, Bangalore 560 

068. India 

Tel: +91-80-6683686; Fax: +91-80-6683921 

Email: firetech@vsnl.net

Manufacture of wood fired steam boilers. 

Indian manufacturer, but has supplied boilers 

to Africa. 

3. SUPPLIERS OF MATERIALS AND 

EQUIPMENT 

(a) Forklift trucks/pallet trucks 

Forktruck Solutions 

16 Kiewiet Close, Okavango Park, Brackenfel 

7560, Cape Town. South Africa 

Postal address: PO Box 3221, Durbanville 

7551. South Africa 

Tel: +27 21 982 1142 and +27 21 981 2649; 

Cell: +27 83 2848 557 

Fax: +27 21 982 1141 

Attn: Dirk van der Westhuizen 

dirk@forktrucksolutions.co.za 

www.forktrucksolutions.co.za 

Sales and rental of new and used forklift 

trucks. Also pallet jacks/stackers and range of 

other warehouse equipment. 

(b) Hoists and lifting equipment 

Blue Cranes, 

Crane House, 10 Mansell Road, Killarney 

Gardens, Minerton, Cape Town, South Africa 

Postal address: PO Box 702, Melkbosstrand 

7437. South Africa 

Tel: +27 21 556 0498/9 

Fax: +27 21 556 0486 

Attn: Mr Kobus Steyn 

joseph@bluecranes.co.za 

www.bluecranes.co.za 

Manufactures full range of hoists, beam girder 

cranes and lifting equipment. Sole supplier of 

Liftket electric chain hoists and wire rope hoist 

units. Repairs and spare parts supply service. 

Supply of associated slings, chains, blocks 

etc. 

(c) Essential oil drums: 

Greif supply a range of steel and coated 

drums, and are present in 45 countries around 

the world. 

Greif Kenya Ltd 

Box9036 - Unga Street 

Shimanzi – Mombasa. Kenya 

Tel: +254 41 2495591 

Fax: +254 41 2494038 

pascal.wanyonyi@greif.co.ke 

Attn: Pascal Wanyonyi 



Greif Nigeria Ltd 

Apapa, Nigeria 

Phone +234 (01) 587 0866 

Fax +234 (01) 587 3084 

vanleer@linkserve.com.ng 

Attn: Olukunle Obadina, 

Greif South Africa Ltd 

Vanderbijlpark, South Africa 

Phone +27 (0) 16 930 1100 

Fax +27 (0) 16 930 1106 

carl.williams@grief.com 

Attn: Carl Williams 

Website: www.greif.co.za 

Greif Mozambique 

Maputo. Mozambique 

Phone +258 21 720153 

Fax +258 21 720724 

vanleer@vironn.com 

Greif Egypt 

Cairo, Egypt 

Phone +20 2588 1110 

Fax +20 2593 3889 

E-mail: koracons@link.com.eg 

Attn: Ayman Korra 

Greif Algeria 

Arzew, Algeria 

Phone + 213 41473723 / + 213 41473724 

Fax + 213 41473730 

Mohamed.Gherbi@Greif.com 

Attn: Mohamed Gherbi 

15

Price Information 

Price indications collected from the markets 

within the US are given for a range of 

essential oils, below. Prices are FOB from 

country of origin, and quoted in US Dollars, 

unless otherwise indicated, and if there are 

volume indications they are quoted in 

Essential oils 

Spice oils 



US Markets 

parentheses. These price quotes were taken 

mostly from medium-small sized importers, or 

small producers. As this news service 

develops, a broader sampling for pricing will 

be conducted, as well as for a larger number 

of products. 

Spice Variety Prices /kg 

Black Pepper India $ 126 CFR (400 kg) 

Cardamom Guatemala $ 425 CFR AIR (50 Kg) 

Cardamom Guatemala $ 525 

Cinnamon Bark Madagascar $ 175 (10-19 kg) 




Cinnamon Bark Madagascar $ 140 (50 kg and more) 

Cinnamon Bark Madagascar $ 280 (25 liter min) 

Cinnamon Bark 75% Sri Lanka $ 275 (200 Kg) 

Cinnamon Leaf Sri Lanka $ 21 (10 Drums) 

Clove bud Madagascar $ 71 (25 liter min) 

Clove bud Indonesia $ 33 CIF (5 Tons) 

Garlic China $ 68 (CIF; 1 Ton) 

Ginger China $ 66 CIF (1 Ton) 

Ginger, fresh Madagascar $ 286 (25 liter min.) 

Nutmeg (10% myristicin) Indonesia $ 76 CFR (1 Ton) 

Star Anise China $ 23 CIF (1 FCL) 

Herb oils 

Spice Variety Prices per kg 

Wild Chamomile Morocco $ 750 CFR (100 Kg) 

Basil Egypt $ 70 CFR AIR (200 Kg) 

Citronella China $ 20 CIF (1 FCL) 

Cumin Egypt $ 150 CIF (1 Ton) 

Cumin seed India $ 70 (200 Kg) 

Marjoram Egypt $ 110 CIF (1 Ton) 

Peppermint 50% China $ 18 CIF (40 Drums) 

Wintergreen, natural China $ 23 CFR (600 Kg)

Citrus Oils 

Spice Variety Prices per kg 

Grapefruit, white (white .37% America $ 28 (6 Tons; EX STORE 

nootkatone) 

CA) 

Lemon America $ 32 (1 FCL; EX STORE PA) 

Petitgrain Paraguay $ 34 CFR (1-2 Tons) 

Lime, Tahiti C.P. Brazil $ 38 (12 Drums) 

Perfumery Oils 

Spice Variety Prices /kg 

Ajowan India $ 26 CFR (1 Ton) 

Cypress Morocco $ 43 CFR (500 kg) 

Davana 45% Davanone India $ 302 CFR AIR (200 kg) 

Eucalyptus 80% China $ 14 CIF (1 FCL) 

Eucalyptus 99.5% China $ 19 CIF (1 FCL) 

Geranium Egypt $ 409-445 CFR 

Geranium China $ 275 CIF (500 kg) 

Geranium Madagascar $ 188 (25 liter min) 

Geranium Madagascar $ 160 (10-19 kg) 




Geranium Madagascar $ 142 (50 kg and more) 

Helichryse (Helichrysum Madagascar $ 82 (10-19 kg) 

gymnocephalum) 





Iary (Psiadia altissima) Madagascar $ 72 (10-19 kg) 



Litsea cubeba (67.5%) China $ 22 CIF (1 FCL) 

Lemongrass India $ 18-19 CFT (3-4 tons) 

Mastic Morocco $ 450 CFR (100 kg) 

Neroli Tunisia $ 800 CFR (10 kg) 

Niaouli Madagascar $ 36 (less than 10 kg) 

Niaouli Madagascar $ 30 (10-19 kg) 





Niaouli Madagascar $ 18 (100kg and more) 

Nagarmotha India $ 191 CFR AIR (50 kg) 

Palmarosa India $ 68 CFR (2 Drums) 

Ravensara aromatica Madagascar $ 85 (10-19 kg) 





Ravensara aromatica Madagascar $ 60 (100kg and more) 

Ravintsara 

camphora) 

(Cinnamomum Madagascar $ 145 (10-19 kg) 

Ravintsara (Cinnamomum Madagascar $ 140 (20-29 kg) 



17

camphora) 

Ravintsara (Cinnamomum 

camphora) 


camphora) 


camphora) 

Madagascar $ 136 (30-39 kg) 

Madagascar $ 133 (40-49 kg) 

Madagascar $ 130 (50 kg and more) 

Rose Bulgarian $ 4,800 CIF (10 kg) 

Rue Morocco $ 140 CFR (200 Kg) 

Sandalwood India $ 2,125 FOB NJ (50 kg) 

Saro (Cinnamosma fragrans) Madagascar $ 98 (10-19 kg) 





Saro (Cinnamosma fragrans) Madagascar $ 81 (100kg and more) 

Ylang grade 1 Madagascar $ 150 (10-19 kg) 




Ylang grade 1 Madagascar $ 127 (50 kg and more) 






Ylang grade 2 Madagascar $ 101 (100kg and more) 






Ylang grade 3 Madagascar $ 83 (100kg and more) 

Ylang complete Madagascar $ 133 (10-19 kg) 





Ylang complete Madagascar $ 105 (100kg and more) 



Price Information 

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT THESE ARE 

ONLY PRICE INDICATIONS.Price indications 

collected from the markets within the EU are 

given for a range of essential oils, below. The 

oils are grouped for convenience only into 

Spice Oils 



EU Markets 

Spice Oils, Seed Oils, Citrus Oils, Herb Oils 

and Perfumery Oils. Prices are wholesale for 

quantities of 25kg or more unless otherwise 

stated. Prices were collected over weeks 48 to 

52. 

Product Origin/Grade Prices per KG 

Clove bud Indonesian €20-25/kg, 1-5 ton lots 

Indian €35-44/kg 

Madagascan €60-65/kg 1kg lots 

Clove stem Indonesian €8-10/kg, 2-5 ton lots 

India €25-30/kg 

Clove leaf Indonesian €17/kg, 2-5 ton lots 

Indonesian n/a container cif 

Madagascar €17/kg spot 

India €15-20/kg 1 kg lots 

Cinnamon bark Sri Lankan 60/65% €155-230/kg 

Cinnamon leaf Sri Lankan €45-50/kg 1kg lots 

India €18-20/kg; €30-40/kg 1 kg 

lots 

Cassia bark China €20-25/kg 

Black pepper Sri Lankan €150-200/kg 1 kg lots 


Nutmeg Indonesian €60-65/kg spot 

Indonesian €100-140/kg 1 kg lots 

Sri Lanka €100/kg 

Ginger Chinese €40-50/kg ton lots 


Sri Lankan €130-150/kg 

Pimento leaf Jamaican €70-90/kg ton lots 

Pimento berry Jamaican €150-160/kg 1 kg lots 

Cardamom Guatemala €300-310/kg spot 

Spice Seed Oils 


Aniseed China €17-20/kg; €60/kg 1 kg lots 

Egypt €90/kg 1 kg lots 

Star Anise India €36/kg 

Coriander seed Russian €55-65/kg; €120 1 kg lots 

Cumin seed Iran & Egypt €70-100/kg 

Egypt €110/kg, 1kg lots 

19

Citrus Oils 


Orange (sweet) Brazilian pera €6-7/kg 

Brazil/Portugal/Spain €15-17/kg, 1 kg lots 

Italy €9/kg 1 kg lots 

Orange (bitter) Italian €50-60/kg 

Bergamot oil Ivory Coast/Italy €70-100/kg 

Lemon Argentine, Spain €22-25/kg 

Italian €40-50/kg, 1 kg lots 

Lime (distilled) Mexican €20-25/kg 

Mexico/Peru €40-50/kg 1 kg lots 

Mandarin (red) Italy €60-70/kg 1 kg lots 

Grapefruit Israel €40-50/kg 

Herb Oils 


Basil India €60-70/kg 1kg lots 

France €120-130/kg 1 kg lots 

Italy €40-50/kg 1 kg lots 

Lavender Bulgaria/France €50-70/kg 

French (high altitude) €80-140/kg, 1 kg lots 

Lavendin French Grosso €35-45/kg 1kg lots 

Spike Lavender Spain €40-50/kg 1 kg lots 

Mints Indian piperita €20/kg 

China piperita €22/kg 1 kg lots 

China piperita €13-14/kg container 

Indian dementholised 

€7/kg 

peppermint oil 

USA Peppermint €35-55/kg 1kg lots 

Chinese Spearmint 60% €18-22/kg 

Chinese Spearmint 80% €24-25/kg 

Indian Spearmint, 58-60% L- €18-22/kg 

carvone 

Menthol Chinese €15-18/kg 

Indian, bold crystals €16-17/kg 

Chamomile (German) Egypt €450-600/kg 

Morocco (wild) €350-360/kg 1kg lots 

Chamomile (Roman) Hungary €900-1,100/kg 1kg lots 

Somalia/France €450-500/kg 

Sage Spain €80-100/kg 1 kg lots 

Rosemary Portugal/Spain/Tunisia €45-50 1 kg lots 

Marjoram Egypt €150-160/kg 1 kg lots 

Thyme Spain €60-70/kg 1 kg lots 

Perfumery Oils 


Eucalyptus globulus & other 

high cineole types 

China €12/kg container lots 

Australian €15/kg 

China €20-30/kg 1kg lots 

Eucalyptus citriadora Brazilian €7-9/kg 




Litsea cubeba China €14-18/kg 


Ylang ylang Comores: Extra S €250-280/kg 

Comores: Troisième €100-120/kg 

Ylang (cananga) Indonesia €60-65/kg 

Patchouli Indonesia €50-60/kg; €140-170 1 kg 

lots 

Geranium China €210/kg 

China, Egypt €300-350/kg 1 kg lots 

Egypt €230/kg drum 

Rose Geranium Madagascar €250-350/kg 1kg lots 

Sandalwood Fiji/E. Indies €1,100-1,500/kg 

Australian €750-900/kg 

Sandalwood african €650-700/kg 

Cedarwood USA €35-40/kg 1kg lots; €8/kg 

container 

Frankincense Somalia/France €230-250/kg, 1kg lots 

Citronella Chinese €14/kg; €22/kg 1 kg lots 

Indonesian €14/kg 

Sri Lanka (Ceylon type) €25-30/kg 1 kg lots; €18- 

22/kg spot 

Lemongrass Indian €12-14/kg; €30-40/kg 1kg 

lots 

Guatemala €20-25/kg; 5 kg lots 

China/India/Guatemala €25-40/kg 1 kg lots 

Palmarosa Indian €50-60/kg 1 kg lots 

Vetiver Indonesian €110-120/kg 

China €60-70/kg 

Indonesia/China €140-150/kg 1 kg lots 

Tea Tree Australia €35/kg; €55-70/kg 1kg lots 

Fennel Italy/Hungary €55-65/kg 1 kg lots 

Juniperberry Croatia €140-150/kg 1 kg lots 

Myrrh Somalia/Ethiopia €300/kg 1 kg lots 



21

News & Updates 

Cinnamon active label extends peach shelf life, 

maintains sensory qualities 

A new active packaging system containing 

essential oils has been found to 

significantly extend the shelf life and 

preserve the quality of one variety of 

peach, according to research. The system, 

consisting of a label infused with cinnamon 

essential oils, was attached to plastic 

packaging and used to lengthen the shelf 

life of late maturing ‗Calanda‘ peaches, 

said Spanish scientists. The tag was 

placed inside a macro-perforated PET 

tray, which included 20 macroperforations. 

Shelf life and quality 

The study by Christina Nerin concluded 

that use of the cinnamon active packaging 

slashed the amount of fruit spoiled after 

being stored for almost two weeks. 

―After 12 days of storage at room 

temperature, the percentage of infected 

fruit in the active label packaging was 13 

per cent versus 86 per cent in the nonactive 

packaging‖, said the group from the 

University of Zaragoza. The fruit normally 

has a shelf life of 3-5 days at room 

temperature. 

The paper, published in the journal 

Postharvest Biology and Technology said 

use of the packaging cut weight loss in the 

fruit and helped it maintain firmness. 

The technology also reduced the 

production of enzymes leading to oxidation 

in the fruit over the course of the storage 

period. The scientists said they reached 

this conclusion after examining the 

influence of the active packaging on the in 

vivo activity of lipoxygenase (LOX), 

polyphenol oxidase (PPO), peroxidase 

(POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), 

catalase (CAT), and of malondialdehyde 

(MDA) content as an indicator of lipid 

oxidation. 



It added that in carrying out sensory 

analysis, ―most positive descriptors were 

not significantly different from the optimum 

quality level (day 0) for peaches stored in 

the active package after 12 days at room 

temperature‖. 

The researchers said it has been more 

usual to incorporate the active packaging 

agent directly into the plastic polymers - 

while use of active labels is less common. 

―Labels are very versatile and also easily 

adapted to an industrial scale and can be 

added just before packaging the food, 

thereby maximizing their functionality,‖ 

said Nerin. 

Conclusions 

She concluded that the self-adhesive 

active label developed by the team placed 

inside the packaging offered an ―efficient 

option‖ for extending shelf life of the fruit at 

room temperature. 

Nerin added: ―This type of active 

packaging is more efficient than the use of 

an active macro-perforated tray of PET, 

probably due to the higher concentration 

of active compounds released by the 

packaging.‖ 

The system also demonstrated an 

improvement in physico-chemical 

properties such as weight loss and 

firmness. 

The cinnamon essential oil also inhibited 

the activity of lipoxygenase. The use of the 

active packaging ―somehow influences the 

activity of some selected enzymes‖, said 

the research. 

The global sensory qualities of the fruit 

were also enhanced so that after 12 days 

of storage at room temperature they were 

―similar to that at the optimum quality 

level‖. 

The panel of 11 assessors detected no 

cinnamon or off-flavours. 

Source: Active label-based packaging to extend the shelf-life of “Calanda” peach fruit: 

Changes in fruit quality and enzymatic activity by Pablo Montero-Pradoa, Angel 

Rodriguez-Lafuente and Cristina Nerin; published in Postharcest Biology and 

Technology ; doi:10.1016/j.postharvbio.2011.01.008

Global industry looks at India as a future hub for 

Fragrances and Flavours 

Fragrances and Flavours Association of 

India (FAFAI) is the national apex body of 

the players in the Fragrances & Flavours 

segment. The body was formed in 1949 by 

a few traders from the segment, with the 

key objective to promote the sector. 

Today, with 800 members, the body, apart 

from manufacturers and dealers from the 

Fragrances & Flavours industry, includes 

those that are from Aroma Chemicals, 

Natural Essential Oils as well as allied 

fields. The association regularly conducts 

biennial seminars across India, on various 

topics that are relevant to the Fragrances 

& Flavours and allied industries. The 20th 

FAFAI seminar was held in Bangalore 

between January 28 and 30, 2011. The 

theme of the event was India – The Future 

of F&F Industry. 

According to Frost & Sullivan India, 

globally, the Fragrances & Flavours 

segment is estimated to be $17.8 billion 

industry of which the top five players 

account for 40 per cent of the market. The 

five largest companies in the industry are 

Givaudan, International Flavours & 

Fragrances (IFF), Firmenich, Symrise and 

Quest International. Japanese firm, 

Takasago, the sixth largest player, has 

revenues close to that of Quest 

International. 

The Indian Fragrances and Flavours 

industry has been growing rapidly 

following liberalisation. The global 

economic slowdown did not have any 

impact on the industry; instead, it clocked 

a growth rate of 12 -15 per cent. With 

globalisation, there have been 

improvements in technology, competition 

and brand images. The global industry is 

looking at India as a future hub for 

fragrances and flavours, stated Rohit 

Seth, Joint Secretary, FAFAI, in an 

interaction over email. Excerpts: 

How would you describe the current 

food fragrances and flavours industry 

scene in India? 

The market for the food fragrances and 

flavours related products is showing strong 

growth. The Indian strength lies in the fact 

that the products are available at 

competitive prices. 



What are India’s capabilities in this 

space? Which are the important 

flavours and fragrances that are 

distinct to India? 

India's capability in this space pertains to 

sandal, jasmine and herbal-related 

fragrances. For flavours, it is about spicebased 

products since India dominates in 

production of spices. 

What is the total size of this sector and 

its growth rate? 

The total size of the industry including 

menthol, sandalwood oil and other 

essential oils is around Rs. 9,000 crore 

and the estimated growth rate is 

approximately 12 per cent. The key 

applications of flavours in the food 

processing sector include confectionaries, 

dairy, bakery and snacks among others. 

Globally what is India’s stand in the 

food fragrances and flavours space? 

India is a market, which the world is 

eyeing, so we expect that India is going to 

place itself at a very commanding position 

in near future. 

Would the country become a hub for 

contract manufacture of food 

fragrances and flavours? 

India has a good potential to become a 

hub for manufacturing, especially, for raw 

materials used by the industry. 

What according to you are the visible 

trends in this industry? 

Strong growth is visible for the industry in 

coming years, going by India‘s inherent 

strength in the space of spices and 

development of fragrances. 

Conventionally, flavours and fragrances 

are mainly customised in raw materials, 

which lead to higher pricing of endproducts. 

The industry is also extremely fragmented 

and is expected to consolidate in the 

coming years. 

23

What are the key challenges faced by 

the companies in the space? 

Global competition is the major challenge. 

Most of the MNCs (multi-national 

companies) have advanced R&D facilities, 

which India is now upgrading. The issue of 

high pricing is affecting the growth of the 

sector. The rise in oil prices also impacts 

the costing of these fragrances and 

flavours. With stringent safety norms 

issued by the Flavour and Extract 

Manufacturers‘ Association (FEMA) and 

International Fragrance Association 

(IFRA), the use of several chemicals in the 

production and creation of flavours and 

fragrances is constricted. 

What are the efforts of the association 

in controlling spurious products? How 

do you, as the president of the 

association, view the growth prospects 

of the sector? 

Source: Food & Beverage News 



Our association is a platform to facilitate 

business for members and we will make all 

efforts to ensure good production 

practices. For the future, we expect strong 

growth of about 12 per cent annually. 

Why did you decide to organise the 

event in Bangalore and how successful 

was it? Where is the next event going 

to be held? 

articipation by more than 950 delegates 

indicates the interest shown by the 

members in the event. We 

selected Bangalore as it was a hub for 

aggarbatti- and dhoop-manufacturing and 

the intent was to highlight this industry. We 

are yet to confirm the venue and date for 

the next event. 

Study notes HPP effectiveness in reducing Listeria 

risk in yoghurt 

High pressure-processing combined with 

mint essential oil could be a promising 

technique for reducing Listeria risk in 

yoghurt-based drinks with no significant 

impacts to their quality attributes, claims 

new research. 

The researchers, based at Ohio State 

University in the US and Abant Izzet 

Baysal University in Turkey published their 

findings in the journal Food Control. 

The authors concluded that the addition of 

plant essential oil reduces HPP process 

severity and lowers costs while remaining 

effective in terms of inactivating L. 

monocytogenes and L. innocua in aryan – 

a product popular in Turkey consisting of 

yoghurt, water and salt (added at a 

maximum level of 1g 100 g-1 to impart 

flavour). 

Multiple listeriosis outbreaks have been 

linked to contaminated cheese and other 

dairy products, note the authors, and they 

stress that there is no reported research in 

the literature investigating the survival of L. 

monocytogenes in yogurt-based drinks 

using pressure treatments. 

Non-thermal food preservation 

technologies, high pressure processing 

(HPP) in particular, have drawn 

considerable attention among scientists 

and the food industry due to the fact that 

they allow minimal food processing and 

fewer preservatives. 

Despite the high costs involved, HPP is 

being used commercially in the both the 

EU and the US, and has been increasingly 

and successfully applied to various foods 

such as dairy, meat, seafood, poultry 

products, vegetables and vegetable 

products, fruit products as well as acidified 

products. 

Method 

The authors said they aimed to evaluate 

efficacy of pressure treatment both alone 

and in combination with mint essential oil 

on inactivation of L. monocytogenes and 

L. innocua inoculated in ayran samples, 

using a control for reference purposes. 

Colour, pH, water activity, and serum 

protein separation were also measured, 

said the scientists, adding that both 

Weibull distribution and log-logistic models 

informed the methodology. 

Ayran samples were inoculated with either 

L. monocytogenes or L. innocua cultures 

at the level of ca. 105-106 CFU mL-1. The 

inoculated samples (100 mL) were 

aseptically

packaged into sterile pouches. After the 

removal of air bubbles, the pouches were 

heat sealed. The sample pouches were 

then placed in a high barrier film bag and 

heat-sealed. 

The sample pouches, said the team, were 

subsequently placed inside a larger high 

barrier film bag and vacuum packed at -97 

kPa. 

An additional set of experiments was also 

carried out to evaluate efficacy of 

combining mint essential oils and pressure 

treatment. The mint essential oil was 

added at the concentrations of 0.05 and 

0.1 mL 100 mL-1 to the inoculated ayran 

samples. These samples were also 

vacuum packaged and subsequently 

pressure treated, added the team. 

Results 

HPP of ayran samples at 600 MPa for 

treatment time of 300 s reduced L. 

monocytogenes and L. innocua by more 

than 5-log units at ambient temperature, 

found the researchers. 



The scientists reported that the addition of 

mint essential oil further enhanced 

inactivation of both bacteria by more than 

1 log cfu 34 mL-1. Combination of mint 

essential oil with HPP provided a reduction 

in pressure treatment severity by 100-300 

MPa or by 210 s to achieve the same 

amount of inactivation relative to HPP 

alone. 

And pressure treatment alone or HPP 

combined with mint essential oil, they 

noted, did not cause significant changes in 

pH, water activity, colour and serum 

protein separation, they added. 

The authors urge further research to 

determine the impacts of HPP combined 

with different plant essential oils on the 

inactivation of spoilage as well as 

pathogenic microorganisms inoculated into 

different foods taking into account the 

impact on physicochemical and sensory 

properties. 

Source: Food Control 

Published online ahead of print: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2011.03.005 

Title: Inactivation of Listeria monocytogenes and Listeria innocua in Yogurt Drink 

Applying Combination of High Pressure Processing and Mint Essential Oils 

Authors: G Evrendilek, V. M. Balasubramaniamb 

Using wastewater to enhance mint production 

When essential oils are extracted from 

plants through the process of steam 

distillation, wastewater is produced and 

subsequently released into rivers and 

streams. Finding new uses for these 

unused by-products could benefit essential 

oil crop growers and processors as well as 

the environment. A team of researchers 

has found that the residual distillation 

water of some aromatic plant species has 

a beneficial effect on yields and can 

increase essential oil content of 

peppermint and spearmint crops. 

Peppermint and spearmint are 

commercially produced for their essential 

oils, dry leaves used in herbal teas, and as 

fresh culinary herbs. Essential oils from 

both mints are widely used in the 

production of chewing gum, toothpaste, 

mouthwashes, confectionaries, 

pharmaceuticals, and aromatherapy 

products. New methods of improving yield 

and essential oil content in peppermint 

and spearmint crops could produce 

economic benefits for large-scale 

production operations and create more 

environmentally sustainable systems. 

One previous study of plant distillation 

wastewater found that wastewater from 

sage, thyme, and rosemary contained 

antioxidants and could be used as an 

ingredient in marinades for turkey meat. 

'We hypothesised that residual distillation 

water could have an effect on peppermint 

and spearmint plants when used as a 

foliar spray,' said Mississippi State 

University professor Valtcho D. 

Zheljazkov, corresponding author of a 

study that tested plant hormones and 

distillation wastewater on peppermint and 

spearmint plants. 

Zheljazkov and colleagues reported on 

their collaborative research in 

HortScience. The team evaluated the 

effects of three plant hormones (methyl 

jasmonate, gibberellic acid, and salicylic 

acid) at three concentrations and the 

25

esidual distillation water from 15 plant 

species applied as foliar sprays on 

biomass yields, essential oil content, and 

essential oil yield of peppermint (Mentha x 

piperita 'Black Mitcham') and spearmint 

(Mentha spicata 'Native'). 

The application of salicylic acid at 1000 

mg/L increased biomass yields of both 

species. Methyl jasmonate at 100 and 

1000 mg/L, gibberellic acid at 10 mg/L, 

salicylic acid at 10 or 100 mg/L, and 

distillation water of seven plant species all 

increased the essential oil content of 

peppermint, whereas the oil content of 



spearmint was increased only by 

distillation water of one plant species. 

'The study demonstrated that the residual 

distillation water of some aromatic plant 

species may have an effect on crop 

species and may be used as a tool for 

increasing essential oil content or 

essential oil yields of peppermint and 

spearmint crops. Further research is 

needed to elucidate the effect of these 

treatments on essential oil composition 

and to verify the effects under field 

conditions,' said Zheljazkov. 

Source: http://www.sciencecentric.com/news/11030443-using-wastewater-enhancemint-production.html 

Mentha oil remains up in futures trade 

The prices of mentha oil for the Feburary 

contract rose by Rs 13.90, or 1.27 per 

cent, to Rs 1,105.50 per kg, with a 

business volume of a single lot at the Multi 

Commodity Exchange (MCX) since fresh 

holdings were created by the traders 

tracking the rise in the demand in the spot 

market. 

The oil for the March contract also moved 

up by Rs 12.80, or 1.16 per cent, to Rs 

1,112 per kg, with a business turnover of 

five lots at the MCX. 

Moreover, the pick-up in the demand from 

the pharmaceutical units at the spot 

market against the reduced supply from 

the growing belts also supported the 

prices. 

Mentha oil is one of the important 

essential oils. It is extracted from herb 

Mentha arvensis through distillation 

process. It is widely used in food and 

flavourings 

Indias mint belt lies in the countrys 

"breadbasket," spanning the states of Uttar 

Pradesh, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, 

Haryana and Bihar. About 80% of the crop 

in India comes from Uttar Pradesh 

(Rampur, Moradabad, Bareilly, Barabanki 

and Badaun) and the balance 20% from 

Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana. 

India will always play an important role in 

world mentha oil market, with a never 

ending demand from the cosmetics and 

food industry and production restricted to 

few countries.

2011 

Events Calendar 

Month Date Event Location Website 

February 16-19 BioFach and Vivaness Nuremberg, Germany www.biofach.de 

April 3-4 

Natural and Organic Products London, 

Europe 

United Kingdom 

www.naturalproducts.co.uk/07/ 

public/enter.aspx 

3-4 Supplyside East Secaucus, NJ USA 

http://www.supplysideshow.co 

m/2011/east/ 

12-14 

Sustainable 

Summit 

Cosmetics 

New York, NY USA 

May 

http://www.sustainablecosmetic 

ssummit.com/ 

17 

Legal & 

Conference 

Regulatory San Francisco, CA 

USA 

www.personalcarecouncil.org 

24-26 FCE Cosmetique Sao Paulo, Brazil www.fcecosmetique.com.br/en/ 

June 

25-27 CITE Japan 2011 Yokohama, Japan 

10th ISCD International 

30-1 June 

Congress 

SCC Annual Scientific 

2-3 

Seminar 

9-10 Sustainable Fragrances Arlington, VA USA 

21-23 

Food Ingredients, Health 

Ingredients, Natural 

Ingredients China 



www.citejapan.info/en/index.ht 

ml 

Shenyang, China www.iscd2011.org 

Las Vegas, NV USA www.scconline.org 

Shanghai, 

China 

http://www.sustainablefragr 

ances.com/home.aspx 

www.ingredientsnetwork.com 

28-30 HBA Global Expo New York, NY USA www.hbaexpo.com 

September 20-21 

Natural 

Conference 2011 

http://www.naturkosmetik- 

Cosmetics 

Nuremberg, Germany branchenkongress.de/de/defaul 

t.ashx 

8-12 ANUGA 

Cologne, 

Germany 

www.anuga.com 

October 

10-14 

22-24 

Supplyside West 

Natural Products 

East 

Expo 

Las Vegas, Nevada 

USA 

Baltimore, MD USA 

http://www.supplysideshow.co 

m/2011/west/ 

http://www.expoeast.com 

25-26 

Society of Cosmetic Chemists 

Long Beach, CA USA www.caliscc.org 

California Suppliers Day 2011 

27

Street address 

International Trade Centre 

54-56 Rue de Montbrillant 

1202 Geneva, Switzerland 

The International Trade Centre (ITC) is the joint agency of the World Trade Organization and the United Nations. 

P: +41 22 730 0111 

F: +41 22 733 4439 

E: itcreg@intracen.org 

www.intracen.org 

Postal address 

International Trade Centre 

Palais des Nations 

1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

Market News Service - International Trade Centre

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