Bush Boake Allen India was acquired by International Flavours and Fragrances (IFF), the world's largest Flavours and Fragrances Company. Bush Boake now has access to IFF's technology in terms of creation, development, application and marketing. Bush Boake is now looking at strengthening its position, in the flavours and fragrances market. Chennaibest.com speaks to Arun Bewoor, Group Country Manager, IFF, about the fragrances industry.

The flavours, fragrances and aroma chemicals industry worldwide is worth about $ 15 billion.

Fragrances are substances used in products which are used on the body - soaps, detergents, toiletries, cosmetics, cleansers and household products. Here again, fragrances play a key part in determining the consumer's preference and choice. Again, when you use a soap or cologne, the decision is based first on the smell.

So the technology in making flavours and fragrances is controlled by seven to eight major worldwide companies, who hold about 70% of the market share. Most of these companies are represented in India. The market is very competitive. There is a tremendous scope for development. But one has to be extra smart in the area of creation, applying that flavour or fragrance to the end product, and showing it to the customer to make a choice.

The fragrance market is worth about Rs 500 crore in India.

In flavours and fragrances, the top 10 houses in India control about 70% of the market and the balance would be occupied by a large number of small manufacturers. It is scattered, and some players in the small sector cater to a niche market. The advantage of dealing with big houses is the access to technology, access to new material and processes. This is the advantage we give to the customers.

Raw material is sourced from all over the world and are also locally sourced. The proportion will be very close to 50-50 or 40-60. No country is self-sufficient in all the raw materials and so all the countries export and import. For example, India exports menthol, sandalwood oil etc, but it imports orange oil, lanoline etc. It depends on the climate, history, expertise etc.

For the fragrance market it is between 10 to 12 %. There is an increased use of toiletries, there is awareness, people want to look good, smell good. Houses are better and cleaner, so the scope is definitely there. One has to be smart to understand the trends and take advantage of the trends. You cannot assume that the market is growing and so will we.

The domestic market is a major opportunity, so most Indian companies cater to the local market. Most multi-nationals have their units all over the world, so it does not make sense to export. But the domestic market provides a large opportunity.

Has the concept of branding taken off in this industry?

Brand is recognised by the people and the resources behind it. Remember, we are not selling to millions of consumers. The decision is made across the table. Brand here has a different connotation. Here it means - What does a particular brand represent in terms of technology, service, the people behind it, financial strength, application marketing etc. But brand per se does not work. We sell only to industrial consumers like the biscuit manufacturers, liquor manufacturers etc. The consumer will not even know who's behind the flavour or fragrance.

To create a trained flavourist or perfumer takes about 6 to 7 years... may be longer. You understand and train a person's nose, thereby he/she can differentiate a large number of fragrances. He understands the chemicals and processes that make up the flavour and fragrance profile and then he is trained to develop it. Basically it means bringing a large number of odiferous chemicals in proper proportions to give a flavour or fragrance of the desired characteristic or profile. A fragrance will contain between 100 to 300 items.

Yes, we do use a number of them, like sandalwood, vettiver (an Indian root, widely used as a cooling agent), geranium etc. Absolutely.

Depends on the brief given by the customer. We have to look at what is it going to be used for; a soap, detergent, perfume, after-shave, cologne or hair-oil, what is the base material? What is the odour of that material? We have a bank of trained perfumers, who do this for us.

Then again it depends on whether the customer is creating a totally new brand category, is he competing against a leader, or is he a leader trying to increase his market share, what is the brand about? Do you use a soap because of the smell, the fatty matter, lather, and advertisement or because somebody is endorsing it? How do you make a fragrance that suits the brand character and profile? A rose is typically delicate, gentle and soothing. Lime is associated with power, masculinity and energy. So you have to match the profile of the product with the profile of the fragrance.

We use about 1,000 raw material for our flavours and fragrances, packaging, and a little bit of engineering. It is not a particularly capital intensive industry.

In India it is important for the end product, as we do not have much of air-conditioning and cold storage. But in our industry, we give a certain shelf life and expect the user to use it within the given period.

We recruit graduates and post graduates in Organic Chemistry for the fragrances industry.

We are one of a very few companies in Chennai who have got ISO 14001 certification, which means we follow and exceed environmental norms. We have also got the ISO 9001 and 9002 certification. We are trying to get the ISO 18000 this year. We ensure that no liquid is wasted out. We treat the water and use it for gardening. We check for air pollution and waste is either incinerated or destroyed before being circulated. No material goes out of the plant, which may be too dangerous for human consumption.

We have very high safety standards. We have got the British Safety Council award for three years in a row now. We are now training a number of organisations on safety standards, pollution standards, health and hygiene. We are considered a model in the South as far as safety and environmental hygiene is concerned.