Soliance builds on integration of new operations

France-based ingredients company Soliance says that the integration
of the Acorane and Somaig companies is proving to be a logical step
towards increasing innovation in its active ingredients, reports
Simon Pitman.

The company announced during the first quarter of the year that is was buying up the two companies, which were under the same ownership and to whom Soliance has already been supplying ingredients for a number of years.

"Buying the companies seemed like a logical step and has helped bring further innovation to Soliance," said a company spokesperson.

The company also said that the move will prove vital to position itself as a leading manufacturer of vegetable active ingredients for the cosmetic industry. The acquisitions of Paris-based Acorane and Brittany-based Somaig, which are specialised in the sourcing of plants and in the development of vegetable and micro-algae based active ingredients respectively, will boost both of these core areas.

More specifically, the purchase will enable Soliance to diversify its offer of ingredients with a vegetable origin for skin colouring and to obtain a more complete range of anti-ageing products and to reinforce its research and development activity in the service of the industries of this sector.

Currently the company says that over ten of its vegetable origin ingredients have been successfully tested for cutaneous colouration and anti-aging properties, which is expected to lead to a number of future deals to supply the cosmetics market. One of its main ingredients, Tepholine, is already being produced and distributed.

The company says that the increasing demand for ingredients such as Tepholine is pushing demand to new heights and, combined with the recent acquisition, it is consequently predicting rapid future growth, with turnover estimated to reach €12 million for the coming year.

Currently the company is centred on the domestic market, but it is expected that 50 per cent of its sales will be derived from the export markets in the future, with the UK, US, Germany, Italy, Spain, South Korea and Taiwan expected to be the biggest customers.

Soliance is a subsidiary of the French group ARD (Agro Industrie Recherches et Développements), a private research center of cereal and sugar cooperatives of the Champagne Ardenne region and Chamtor. Most notably, the group has developed a production process for hyaluronic acid, as well as a range of 100 per cent vegetable surfactants.