DSM to become a Health, Nutrition & Bioscience company

Royal DSM, a global, science-based company, made the strategic decision to fully focus its resources and capabilities to address the urgent societal and environmental challenges linked to the way the world produces and consumes food. Consequently, “DSM is simplifying its operating structure and reorganizing its Health, Nutrition & Bioscience activities into three Business Groups, each with clear opportunities to benefit the health of people and the health of the planet, underpinning DSM’s growth plans”, the company says in a press release. At the same time, DSM confirms it has started a review of strategic options for its Materials businesses, including a possible change of ownership.

With a growing global population, the world is facing multiple systemic and interconnected food system challenges that impact the health and wellbeing of people, animals, and the planet. Advancements in digital technology and bioscience offer realistic scalable solutions to tackle these challenges, creating new markets and innovation opportunities. DSM, with its strong combination of scientific competencies and growing portfolio of nutrition and health solutions, says it is ideally positioned to capture these opportunities.

Geraldine Matchett and Dimitri de Vreeze are DSM’s co-CEOs. They commented: “Our planet is rapidly approaching critical and irreversible environmental tipping points, as warned in the recent IPCC report. Climate change is already creating huge challenges for food systems worldwide, while at the same time food production remains one of the largest contributors of greenhouse gases. As a global leader in the science behind better health and nutrition, we have the opportunity, capability, and therefore responsibility to apply our resources and expertise where they can have the greatest impact. By focusing exclusively on our health, nutrition and bioscience activities we will be able to operate with greater agility and impact, and meet the growing need for better and more sustainable nutrition”.

DSM will become a fully focused Health, Nutrition & Bioscience company

At the heart of DSM’s transformation is the creation of three market-focused Business Groups. Each Business Group will be much closer aligned with their respective customers and, through the integration of activities currently performed by the DSM Innovation Center, will be fully equipped to rapidly develop impactful science-based market-ready innovation. The new Business Groups will be:

• A Food & Beverage Business Group that combines the food, beverage and pet food activities of the current DSM Food Specialties and DSM Nutritional Products divisions. This Business Group, representing more than €1bn in existing sales, will be uniquely able to meet the needs of customers and consumers by developing sustainable taste, texture, and health solutions. The Business Group’s portfolio includes innovations such as EverSweet™, a natural calorie-free sweetener, and CanolaPRO®, a plant-based alternative protein. It will also be home to the dairy-based flavorings from First Choice Ingredients, pending regulatory approval of this recently announced acquisition.
• A Health, Nutrition & Care Business Group with about €2.5bn of sales, aiming to keep the world’s growing population healthy through nutrition and care. This Business Group provides sustainable, science-based and innovative solutions for consumers in early-life nutrition, dietary supplements, pharma, medical nutrition, personal care, fragrances, biomedical materials, and nutrition improvement for the most vulnerable communities. It includes ampli-D®, the rapid-acting and potent form of vitamin D, an extensive algal lipids portfolio, personalized nutrition initiatives such as Hologram Sciences, as well as Glycom, the world’s leading supplier of HMO-prebiotics.
• An Animal Nutrition & Health Business Group with more than €3bn in existing sales that will focus on specialty solutions for a radical, yet achievable, transformation in the sustainability of animal protein production. Incorporating essential products such as vitamins and carotenoids, the recently acquired Erber Group, one of the world’s largest suppliers of eubiotics and market leader in mycotoxin risk management, as well as a wide range of impactful innovations such as methane inhibitor Bovaer® and fish-oil algae-alternative Veramaris. This Business Group also includes precision initiatives with data-driven decision-making tools for famers like Sustell™, and for veterinarians and animal health practitioners like Verax.

DSM reviews options for its Materials businesses

DSM has two Materials businesses that, within the above context, will likely not be able to maximize their full potential to drive the important industrial shift to a bio-based and circular economy. Going forward, the Materials Business Group will therefore be managed largely on a stand-alone basis and the global support functions will be realigned accordingly. DSM is reviewing strategic options for both Materials businesses, including a possible change of ownership.

As a Health, Nutrition & Bioscience company, DSM has ambitious targets across People, Planet, and Profit. The company recently announced an acceleration in its greenhouse gas emissions reduction target. DSM now aims to reduce emissions from its own operations by 50% by 2030, a significant step-up from the original target of 30% and based on strong progress during recent years.