Two new facilities for food R&D, perfume open in Tuas
These represent an investment of nearly S$30 million in Singapore to strengthen Swiss-Dutch company dsm-firmenich’s capabilities here
SWISS-DUTCH nutrition, health and beauty company dsm-firmenich unveiled two new innovation and smart production facilities on Wednesday (Sept 18) – one focusing on plant-based food innovations and the other on perfume production.
In a statement, the company said these represent an investment of close to S$30 million in Singapore to “strengthen research and development capabilities in food innovation, scale up manufacturing capacities, and to develop a stronger base of regional talent”. Hoping to leverage Singapore’s position as a multicultural melting pot of flavours, FutureBites is dsm-firmenich’s first dedicated facility and regional hub for research and development into plant-based food.
It will improve speed to market and develop customised food solutions to cater to different cuisine and taste preferences in Asia.
It will also work with clients to test and validate food products for the market. The pilot-scale facility in Tuas will also allow experts from different fields of expertise and countries in Asia to collaborate and ensure that the company’s products remain relevant to the Asian market.
One of its products is salted egg CulinaPlant Chunks, which are textured plant-protein chunks. FutureBites also has a plant-based smoothie called Protopia Eco Boost.
dsm-firmenich’s products include dietary supplements, vitamins and perfumes.
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“Singapore was chosen as the location for the first FutureBites studio as it’s a very multicultural country,” said Timothy Elisafan, vice-president in Asia-Pacific for the taste texture and health division at dsm-firmenich.
“Food and flavours are very regional – they vary across countries. Because Singapore is so multicultural, we are able to get people from different cultures and countries that can help us validate the accuracy of our food’s taste and appearance,” said Elisafan.
He added: “It’s also easier to attract experts into Singapore as compared with other markets – the talent pool here is also richer as compared with other countries.”
Health is now a big trend in food in Asia and the world, said Elisafan.
“After the Covid-19 pandemic, people now also want to have more indulgent food, like snacks, ice-cream, chocolate. So food products are now focusing more on combining health and indulgence,” he said.
“When people see a claim on a food product that it has less sugar or salt, people assume it won’t taste good – we aim to make sure that healthy food still tastes good, so people can eat indulgent food without guilt.”
dsm-firmenich said the FutureBites facility is part of its continued investment in Singapore to work on solutions for plant-based proteins, following the opening of its Culinary and SmartProteins Innovation Centre in Tuas in 2021.
Some of the job roles required for the facility include food designers, flavour designers and engineers.
The company also launched a new perfume facility that will function within the company’s existing perfumery manufacturing plant, opened in Tuas in 1990.
This new 11,000 sq m facility, called the Perfumery Automated Compounding Encapsulation (Peace), will improve manufacturing and production. It also houses the company’s only Asia-Pacific production site of its fragrance technology that makes fragrances long-lasting.
dsm-firmenich has 600 employees and 80 scientists and innovation experts across six offices and facilities in Singapore.
“dsm-firmenich’s new facilities in Tuas will strengthen Singapore’s position as a leading global innovation hub for the flavours and fragrances industry,” said Lim Wey-Len, executive vice-president of the Singapore Economic Development Board.
“The new capabilities will enable collaborations with local research and business partners in areas such as novel foods, and allow the company to more effectively serve regional demand.”
The Peace facility, which began construction in 2022, will increase automation rate to at least 70 per cent, and will deliver its first batch of products in the fourth quarter of 2024. THE STRAITS TIMES
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