Food & Beverage Asia April/May 2022

12
NEWS
Symrise Research & Technology reveals the multiple facets of
science-powered flavour creation
Symrise’s Research & Technology (R&T)
department in the taste, nutrition and
health segment has written an essay on
the scientific, technological and human
factors that support flavour creation.
relevant role for the flavour. For this, we use
human senses in synergy with technology,”
explained Dr Katharina Reichelt, director
of functional flavour solutions, R&T
taste, nutrition and health at Symrise.
Firstly, the R&T department receives a
project brief with defined objectives and
characteristics. It then works towards the
end goal to provide its customer with a
consumer-preferred solution that meets
their particular specifications. This may
involve creating a completely new solution
or reconstructing an existing taste.
“We start the process by decoding the
inherent principles of a sample that meets
some of the characteristics requested by
the customer. This helps us to get to know
the taste actives and sensory key drivers.
We also learn which ingredients play a
Symrise's key technologies combine
chemical separation methods with
sensory analysis, while flavour creators
can identify which ingredients impart the
different tastes and smells. The company
leverages on artificial intelligence (AI)
with digital tools like predictive modelling,
which help screen the existing Symrise
portfolio to search for suitable ingredients
creators can use to create a flavour.
“We use technology to conduct accelerated
stability tests, predict shelf life and assess
behavior under variable conditions such
as temperature and humidity. Only after
Science-powered flavour creation at Symrise
(Image: Symrise)
another round of sensory testing, we will
incorporate the taste in an end product
application. After that, we ask a panel of
consumers to test it and to give their own
feedback,” said Sylvia Barnekow, director of
food and science application technology,
R&T, taste, nutrition and health at Symrise. ■
BASF steps up to reduce product-related emissions
BASF has reaffirmed its ambitious
climate targets. By 2030, BASF aims to
reduce its greenhouse gas emissions
by 25%, and is maintaining its goal of
net zero emissions globally by 2050.
BASF is pursuing a make-and-buy
strategy, which includes investing in own
renewable power assets and purchasing
green power from third parties. At its
investor update event, BASF provided
an overview of the various measures the
company is implementing at different sites
to reach its corporate climate targets.
• Ludwigshafen: Development of new
technologies and implementation
of new steam supply concept
• Antwerp: Aspiration to become first
Verbund site to approach net zero
in 2030
(Image: BASF)
• Zhanjiang: Planned as a frontrunner
in sustainability from the outset
• Schwarzheide: Prototype for the
transformation at mid-sized sites
By using green power, low-carbon steam,
bio-based feedstocks and highly efficient
processes, BASF is able to offer its customers
net-zero products and products with a
low product carbon footprint (PCF). It has
developed an in-house digital solution
to calculate the PCFs for approximately
45,000 sales products. In this tool, BASF
currently has to use industrial averages
and values from commercial databases
as the basis to include upstream Scope
3 emissions. In order to create more
transparency on Scope 3 emissions, BASF
is working with suppliers to improve data
and to support them by sharing knowledge
of evaluation and calculation methods.
During the period from 2021 to 2025, BASF
continues to expect that capital expenditures
of less than €1 billion will be needed to
develop the low-emission technologies
and scale them up in pilot plants. In this
timeframe, it plans to bring the first new
carbon management technologies to scale
and accelerate the switch to renewable power.
Significantly higher investments are then to be
expected for the construction of production
plants using the new technologies. ■
FOOD & BEVERAGE ASIA APRIL / MAY 2022