In 1917 A.L. van Ameringen comes from the Netherlands to the United States to work for Polak and Schwarz; Van Ameringen soon leaves the company to start his own essential oils import business in downtown Manhattan.
In 1929, van Ameringen forms a partnership with a colleague, Dr. William T. Haebler, and after acquiring an aromatic chemical plant in Elizabeth, New Jersey, van Ameringen-Haebler, Inc. is born. Van Ameringen decided in the mid-1920s to boost sales by persuading manufacturers of bar soaps and detergents to add fragrances to their products. Several adopted this suggestion and found that the new ingredient caused their sales to soar.
In 1958, the two companies, Polak & Schwarz (P&S) and van Ameringen-Haebler. announced their merger to become International Flavors & Fragrances Inc. IFF was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 1964.
The merger allowed the company to become a major supplier in the flavor and fragrance business and to grow internationally almost overnight. The new venture, named International Flavors & Fragrances Inc., proved an instant success and immediately found such broad markets in the European food industry that new facilities in Holland, Switzerland, France, and Brazil were added to augment the company's older American factories.
In 2000 International Flavors & Fragrances acquired Bush Boake Allen, Inc.(BBA), an international chemical company with $499 million in annual sales. The acquisition made IFF the largest flavors and fragrances company in the world,
In late 2019, International Flavors & Fragrances merged with DuPont’s nutrition and biosciences unit, creating a $45 billion consumer giant.
International Flavors & Fragrances
