IMCD strengthens German food and beverage innovation with new lab

IMCD has officially reopened its fully modernised food & nutrition application laboratory in Cologne, marking a major investment in technical capability for Germany’s food and beverage sector.

The upgraded facility forms part of a new life science hub, bringing together food & nutrition, pharmaceutical, and beauty & personal care laboratories under one roof for the first time.

The move significantly expands IMCD’s ability to support manufacturers with recipe development, formulation troubleshooting, regulatory guidance and cross‑category innovation — capabilities increasingly in demand as brands race to meet evolving consumer expectations around taste, texture, nutrition and functionality.

Daniel Kany, business unit manager food & nutrition at IMCD Germany, said the new hub represents a step change in how the company can collaborate with customers: “The new Life Science Hub strengthens interdisciplinary product development and provides our food and beverage customers with a best‑in‑class environment for application support, technical consulting and regulatory support. The aim is to develop innovative and market‑ready solutions.”

By consolidating three specialist laboratories, IMCD is positioning itself as a more integrated partner for manufacturers navigating complex formulation challenges across food, nutrition, health and personal care.

The Cologne Food & Nutrition Laboratory is equipped to support innovation across bakery, beverages, confectionery, dairy, edible oils and fats, fruits and vegetables, savoury applications and nutrition products. As part of IMCD’s global laboratory network, the site can draw on international expertise while tailoring solutions to German market needs.

Local specialists focus on taste optimisation, texture improvement, nutritional enhancement and functional performance, helping manufacturers accelerate development cycles and refine product quality.

The new hub also houses IMCD’s long‑established Pharmaceutical Technical Centre (PTC), which has supported drug and supplement formulation for more than a decade. With advanced equipment for solid, semi‑solid and liquid dosage forms, the PTC brings deep knowledge in excipients, flavour masking and regulatory compliance — expertise increasingly relevant as food and nutrition products blur into health‑positioned formats.

Alongside it, the Beauty & Personal Care Laboratory supports formulation for skincare, sun care, haircare and cosmetics, offering prototype development, application testing and trend‑focused training.

IMCD expects the co‑location of these three laboratories to unlock new opportunities for cross‑disciplinary innovation. Shared equipment, a test kitchen and close collaboration between technical teams allow faster problem‑solving and more agile development.

Katja Wilmes, application technologist for food & nutrition, said: “With our modern equipment, the test kitchen and interdisciplinary interfaces, we can support customers even more specifically with demanding recipes. Whether we intensify taste, improve mouthfeel, extend shelf life or enrich products with nutrients, we combine the right ingredients with technical expertise.”

For manufacturers, the expanded Cologne hub offers a practical environment to co‑create market‑ready concepts, troubleshoot formulation challenges and adapt products quickly to shifting consumer trends. As the German food and beverage industry faces rising pressure to innovate — particularly in health, sustainability and sensory performance — IMCD’s investment provides a valuable resource for accelerating development.