IMCD modernizes and reopens its Cologne Food & Nutrition laboratory, creating an integrated Life Science Hub to accelerate interdisciplinary innovation.
IMCD Group, a globally recognized partner in the distribution and formulation of specialty chemicals and ingredients, has officially reopened its fully modernized Food & Nutrition application laboratory at its site in Cologne, Germany. The comprehensive upgrade of the facility represents a significant investment in technical capability and customer collaboration, reinforcing the company’s commitment to supporting innovation across the food, nutrition, and life sciences sectors.
With this reopening, IMCD offers food and beverage manufacturers a highly practical and technology-driven environment where new formulations, market-oriented product concepts, and collaborative innovation initiatives can be developed and tested. The enhanced laboratory infrastructure is designed to bridge the gap between ingredient expertise and real-world application, enabling customers to accelerate time-to-market while meeting evolving consumer demands and regulatory requirements.
The Cologne reopening marks a strategic milestone for IMCD Germany. For the first time, the company has consolidated three specialized laboratory domains Food & Nutrition, Pharmaceutical, and Beauty & Personal Care—within a single integrated Life Science Hub. This co-location is intended to foster interdisciplinary cooperation and knowledge exchange, allowing insights from one sector to inform innovation in another. According to Daniel Kany, Business Unit Manager Food & Nutrition at IMCD Germany, the new hub creates a best-in-class setting for application development, technical consulting, and regulatory guidance, all aimed at delivering innovative, market-ready solutions for customers in the food and beverage industry.
The Food & Nutrition laboratory itself combines extensive market understanding with advanced laboratory technology and covers a broad range of application areas. These include bakery, beverages, confectionery, dairy, edible oils and fats, fruits and vegetables, savoury products, and specialized nutrition. As part of IMCD’s global laboratory network, the Cologne facility supports customers in addressing complex formulation challenges. The local technical teams focus on optimizing taste, texture, nutritional value, and functional performance. Manufacturers benefit from hands-on formulation development, access to a diverse ingredient portfolio, and deep technical expertise that supports both product differentiation and compliance.
Alongside Food & Nutrition, the Pharmaceutical Technical Centre (PTC) in Cologne continues to play a key role. With more than a decade of experience, the PTC supports the development of pharmaceutical and dietary supplement formulations using modern technologies for solid, semi-solid, and liquid dosage forms. The centre assists customers in creating patient-friendly products and leverages a wide selection of excipients from leading suppliers. Expertise in areas such as flavor masking further enables innovative dosage solutions. Regulatory advice, professional training, and global knowledge exchange are integral components of the PTC’s offering.
The Beauty & Personal Care laboratory completes the Life Science Hub by supporting brands in the creation of innovative formulations for skin care, sun protection, hair and body care, fragrances, and cosmetics. At the Cologne site, technical experts collaborate closely with customers in an adjacent beauty studio to design customized product prototypes. The laboratory also provides formulation workshops, sample kits, application testing, and seminars focused on emerging trends and novel ingredients.
Bringing all three laboratories together under one roof generates powerful synergies. As Katja Wilmes, Application Technologist for Food & Nutrition at IMCD Germany, explains, the combination of modern equipment, a dedicated test kitchen, and interdisciplinary interfaces allows IMCD to support customers more precisely in developing demanding recipes. Whether enhancing flavor intensity, improving mouthfeel, extending shelf life, or enriching products with added nutrients, IMCD integrates the right ingredients with strong technical know-how. The result is innovative, adaptable solutions that respond quickly to changing market conditions and consumer expectations.
