Swiss flavours and fragrances leader Givaudan opened 2026 with resilient top-line momentum, reporting sales of CHF 1,875 million in the first quarter, up 2.8% like-for-like (LFL), despite a 5.2% decline in Swiss francs.

 

The company said it began the year with “solid sales growth,” coming off a strong prior-year comparison of 7.4% LFL, while maintaining what it described as high operational and supply chain performance. 

 

Growth was broad-based, with high-growth markets rising 4.0% LFL and mature markets up 1.7% LFL, though both slowed versus last year’s stronger baselines.

 

Givaudan also flagged a tougher input-cost environment in 2026, noting it is rolling out price increases “in collaboration with its customers” to fully offset higher costs.

 

The Fragrance & Beauty division remained the key growth engine, with sales of CHF 1,004 million, up 5.9% LFL. The segment benefited from strength across regions and customer groups, although growth moderated from last year’s elevated comparisons.

 

Within the division, Fine Fragrance rose 9.6% LFL, while Consumer Products increased 7.8% LFL, nearly flat versus a strong prior year. However, Fragrance Ingredients and Active Beauty declined 5.9% LFL, reversing earlier gains.

 

The Taste & Wellbeing business posted CHF 871 million in sales, slipping 0.4% LFL and down 10.0% in Swiss francs.

 

Regional performance was uneven. Asia Pacific grew 4.1% LFL, and North America edged up 0.1% LFL, but Europe declined 0.4% LFL. More pronounced weakness came from South Asia, Africa and the Middle East (–7.1% LFL) and Latin America (–3.1% LFL).

 

By category, growth in Snacks, Dairy and Natural Colours was offset by weaker demand in Beverages and Savoury.

 

Looking ahead, Givaudan reaffirmed its 2030 strategy, “Driving sustainable growth with customers,” positioning the next five-year cycle around high-value innovation and expansion into adjacent markets.

 

The company reiterated long-term targets of 4–6% average like-for-like sales growth and over 12% average free cash flow, alongside sustainability commitments including net-zero-aligned emissions reductions across scopes 1, 2 and 3 by 2030.

 

It also said it will continue pursuing acquisitions aligned with its strategic focus, as it seeks to balance growth, margin resilience, and sustainability transformation.