Content area
Full Text
Fresh from a recent reorganization this year, the flavors and fragrances (F&F) business of Rhodia SA is moving forward with a modest investment plan as the company, like other suppliers in the F&F market, faces greater price pressures from an increasingly concentrated customer base.
"The flavors and fragrances industry is experiencing interesting times," says Sebastien Meric, global business director for the flavors and fragrances business unit at Rhodia. "For sure, we are seeing increased concentration of our customer base in the F&F market, more so on the fragrance side than the flavors side. In turn, there is increased pricing pressure on raw material suppliers."
Reflecting those price pressures, Rhodia announced price increases of between 5 and 10 percent for a range of products including diphenols and their derivatives as well as salicylic acid and its derivatives affecting several flavors and fragrances ingredients. These compounds, based on phenol, are key products in Rhodia's F&F operations. Rhodia's F&F operations are part of the company's recently organized Perfumery, Performance and Agro Enterprise (PPA), which was formed in January 2003. The F&F business unit is the largest in the Rhodia PPA Enterprise, accounting for roughly $145 milllion of the enterprise's $480 million in sales in 2002.
Rhodia has been focused on...