85 Years of Catalysis at Firmenich

This review relates 85 years of catalysis performed at Firmenich. A special emphasis is shown on how the industry has always focussed on improving the environmental profile of the perfumery ingredients produced and on making them more sustainable. In particular through the application of one of the key principles of Green Chemistry, no. 9, which concerns catalysis. These trends have of course impacted the choice and the need for industrial processes that generate less waste, use less solvent and minimize energy requirements. This review has been organized around key transformations used at Firmenich, and a comparison between stoichiometric and catalytic approaches for some important perfumery ingredients is presented.