Symrise Reports 1Q10 Sales, Earnings Increases

HOLZMINDEN, GermanySymrise AG released its fiscal 2010 first quarter financial results that revealed significantly increased sales and earnings. The company saw group sales grow 13.2 percent as the result of an improving market environment. Group EBITDA rose by 42 percent to 83.3 million. The positive sales development and the effects of the restructuring measures implemented in 2009 contributed considerably to the improvement in earnings.

The Flavor & Nutrition division benefited from the recovery of global markets and posted above-average growth in the application areas Beverages and Sweet. Sales rose 22 percent at local currency in the Asia/Pacific region. In North America major customers were primarily responsible for the growth in sales of 16 percent. The regions EAME and Latin America posted strong single-digit growth rates.

The application area Consumer Health, which was launched in the fourth quarter and specializes in functional ingredients for food substitutes as well as flavor solutions for pharmaceutical products, developed well and increased sales by 26 percent at local currency.

During the reporting period Flavor & Nutrition saw sales rise 12 percent at local currency to 186.2 million with an increase in EBITDA from 31.8 million to 42.2 million. The EBITDA margin rose to 22.7 percent.

Dr. Heinz-Jürgen Bertram, CEO of Symrise AG, said: The development of business during the first quarter makes us confident that we will be able to meet our objectives for the current financial year. We want to continue to grow faster than the market as a whole and achieve an EBITDA margin of more than 20 percent. Our strategic focus will be on the further enhancement of our unique profile in the business units Care and Nutrition.