2019 Annual General Meeting
Evolving our naturals portfolio
The evolution of Givaudan’s Naturals portfolio provided the inspiration for the exhibition at this year’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), held in Geneva on 28 March 2019.
Around 500 guests convened at the historic Bâtiment des Forces Motrice, of whom 356 were shareholders or proxies (representing 5,136,836 shares or 55.63% of a total of 9,233,586 registered shares).
This year’s exhibition explored the unique contributions of a series of acquisitions and partnerships since 2014 that have expanded Givaudan’s offering with a particular focus on naturals, integrated solutions and Active Beauty: Soliance, Induchem, Spicetec, Activ, Vika, Draco, Centroflora, Expressions Parfumées, Synthite, Naturex and Albert Vieille.
Guests had the chance to experience some of the innovations contributed by these companies first-hand – sampling natural flavours, botanical and detox energy drinks, aromatherapy, hair and body care products, facial cleanser, pure natural essences and a tasty creamy tomato demonstration of integrated solutions.
In his opening remarks to the plenary session of the AGM, Chairman Calvin Grieder shared his pride in the recent acquisitions, the solid 2018 results and Givaudan's performance in an often challenging environment.
”I am impressed by the way our teams responded to challenges, for example having to reformulate a vast number of compositions in response to a supplier disruption impacting the entire industry, and how our business continuously performs as market leader. With our latest acquisitions in 2018, Givaudan has now become the undisputed leader in natural flavours and natural ingredients.”
Calvin Grieder, Chairman
CEO Gilles Andrier emphasised the importance of our evolving offering in naturals as a key driver in delivering organic growth in 2018 and supporting our strategy to ensure long-term success.
“With the acquisition of nine companies since 2014, we have increased our innovation and expanded our capabilities to offer more natural and integrated solutions while becoming closer to local and regional customers. The diversity of our portfolio is what makes Givaudan stand out in the industry and helps us successfully navigate the challenges of market volatility.”
Gilles Andrier, Chief Executive Officer
Guest speaker Laurent Bourdeau, Head of Active Beauty, also highlighted the importance of alliances in Givaudan's journey to become a key player in cosmetic ingredients.
“From a small portfolio of cosmetic ingredients from the acquisition of Quest, Givaudan decided in 2014 to make a significant entry into the market. Our Active Beauty business was created following the acquisitions of Soliance, specialising in biotechnology, then Induchem, adding expertise in biocatalysis and the skin microbiome.
“Now, thanks to our partnership with Draco, and the recent acquisitions of Centroflora and Naturex, we have the opportunity to further expand our offering in botanical extracts, natural colourants, vegetal oils, reinforcing our position in Naturals.”