Fabrice Taulane is director of the global business and tobacco unit of MANE SA, an iconic French firm involved in the development and manufacture of flavorings, aromas, and fragrances for foods, beverages, cosmetics, perfumes, personal hygiene products, pharmaceuticals and, of course, tobacco. He joined MANE more than 25 years ago, and first started working in the tobacco arena in 2004.
Tobacco Asia (TA): MANE is active in practically every corner of the world today. The company’s footprint is huge. However, your involvement in tobacco and related sectors – such as vape and oral nicotine products – is comparatively limited…
Fabrice Taulane (FT): I’d have to say ‘yes’ and ‘no’. Yes, it is true that we are not very visible in terms of tobacco because we are primarily focusing on one product, our flavor capsules. We have a patent for our capsules, so that is what we are concentrating on. Demand is huge throughout the industry. As for the ‘no’ part, it only concerns at this point tobacco sector-related products that we didn’t have the time to focus on until a few years ago. But now, our capsule business is consolidated, and we have of course noticed that there is demand from the tobacco industry for MANE flavors for other products also. We have enormous expertise in creating different flavors and fragrances. It’s in our DNA, it’s our core business. So we are starting to move heavily into these other applications as well… vapes, pouches, the kretek industry. In addition, we remain the world’s only capsule supplier that simultaneously also is able to provide the flavor solution for those capsules. And thanks to our expertise in other fields, such as flavors for beverages or sweets, we are successfully translating them over to the tobacco industry to offer flavor solutions never before seen in that segment.
TA: So apart from your capsules, are you already actively promoting those other solutions?
FT: Of course. We are participating in all the tobacco exhibitions. We are quite active, I would say. Don’t forget that MANE is an international company, over 150 years old, 100% family-owned, with US$2 billion turnover in 2024, and with more than 8,000 employees worldwide. That makes us the fifth largest flavor and fragrance manufacturer globally. We also operate factories around the world, which gives us the opportunity to serve customers locally.
TA: Can you guesstimate how much of your total annual volume turnover is derived from the tobacco sector?
FT: This is something that we would like to keep confidential and cannot disclose. However, I can give you a hint. Between flavors and fragrances, the annual share of flavors is 55%, fragrances is 40%, and the rest is other products. Tobacco flavors is a portion of the 55%. So, it’s a quite significant business for sure. And we hope to keep it growing in the near future, especially in Asia.
TA: What’s MANE’s situation in Asia in terms of facilities?
FT: MANE has 31 factories around the world, but the biggest ones are in China, Indonesia, Thailand, and India.
TA: There is little doubt that Asia is one of the world’s most dynamic places when it comes to tobacco, but maybe not so much when it comes to vaping, heated tobacco, and nicotine pouches, all of which are heavily regulated, especially in Southeast Asia and China. On the other hand, conventional tobacco is big in Indonesia. A few words about that…?
FT: Well, kretek is certainly a focus for us in Indonesia, and in fact Indonesia is one of our biggest markets for flavors and fragrances. We have 3 different factories around Greater Jakarta. I also can disclose that, starting sometime next year, we expect to begin producing capsules there as well, because the capsule business is still growing in the region, and especially in Indonesia. But we also can serve East Asia from there.
TA: Competition is nevertheless very stiff. In Indonesia, for instance, MANE has to compete against companies like Trisarti, fellow French outfit Argeville, and of course Germany’s Hertz Flavors, the latter having its own tobacco sector-dedicated factory near Surabaya in East Java. How does MANE prevail against this overwhelming competition?
FT: Our philosophy is that there is space for everybody. Of course, we are competing against them, but our goal is not to be the number one in the flavor and fragrance industry. Our goal is to grow and transfer a healthy company to the next family generation to continue serving the industry in the best way possible, closely collaborating with the tobacco sector also. We understand from our vast experience that the tobacco sector is not so different from other industries. Building a good relationship and being a trustable partner is tantamount.
TA: So it’s not cutthroat competition you are after, but rather organic and sustainable growth?
FT: Exactly.
TA: MANE also has a factory in Thailand, just north of Bangkok. What are they doing?
FT: It’s actually one of the biggest factories that we have in Asia. However, they are focused on perfume fragrances and flavorings for other commercial products, not tobacco flavors. The reason for that is that Thailand still maintains a tobacco monopoly in the form of the Tobacco Authority of Thailand [TOAT]. Anyway, Southeast and East Asia is already served by the Indonesian facilities.
TA: How about China, which has a very strict tobacco monopoly as well?
FT: That’s true. But just so you know, our factory in China is 100% owned by MANE. We don’t have a joint venture with the Chinese government. It’s a very unusual arrangement. Also, only last year, we opened a second factory, in Pingu, just a one-and-a-half-hour drive outside of Shanghai, where our original factory is located. We are not only serving China from these two facilities but also export to the rest of Asia. China herself is very complex in terms of tobacco, of course. So it’s imperative to be active there. It’s where the biggest tobacco business is for MANE.
TA: Marvelous. And the Middle East, Fabrice… what’s going on there for MANE?
FT: It’s certainly one of the regions where tobacco is significant, where you have diverse applications, like shisha. We do very good business there; also in the cigarette industry because the Middle East hosts some of the latest independent tobacco companies that have so far escaped “Big Tobacco’s” acquisition drives. Nicotine pouches are also taking off big time there, and we will probably see a lot of new investment in that field.
TA: Are you producing on location in the Middle East?
FT: No, we don’t have any production facilities there yet. We are serving the Middle East from France.
TA: Turkey… you surely must be doing something there… and India?
FT: Yes, we do have significant business in Turkey, of course, because obviously the country is a true tobacco industry hub. India likewise holds a lot of business opportunities for MANE. We acquired a company called Kancor there 8 years ago, giving us local access to the tobacco business in the region.
TA: Overall speaking, which world markets would MANE deem its most important ones in terms of tobacco and related products? Does any region stand out?
FT: It’s quite evenly spread out in terms of business or revenues, really. But in terms of activity, I would say the one region that is for sure growing for us is Asia in general. Moreover, as I already mentioned, there is Indonesia but also India. India still has countless independent [tobacco] companies around and we are aiming at their oral products, you know, Indian-style chewing tobacco and this kind of thing.
TA: Alright, we have covered pretty much everything about Asia. Europe I almost do not need to mention, as MANE has always been very strong there. But how about the big elephant in the room, Russia?
FT: Uh, Russia… it’s a country where we used to have business. But I am sure you have heard that the EU imposed a new set of sanctions on Russia on July 20, including tobacco flavors. So, we are not allowed to deal with Russia anymore.
TA: Okay, so let’s summarize our little chat about MANE’s global strategy in a few sentences, please.
FT: Well, our global strategy is to maintain our capsule activities. Notwithstanding the fact that capsule filter cigarettes were banned in the EU in 2015, it’s a booming segment elsewhere – and again particularly in Asia. As a patent holder and as a leading capsule producer, this is really important for us. And then there also is rising demand from the tobacco sector in terms of flavors for cigarettes, for vapes, for nicotine pouches, and other nicotine delivery products.
MANE is trying to meet all needs as much as we can by being different from our competitors in terms of what we offer. The tobacco industry is very, very innovative. They have to be, considering all this pressure from regulations and legislations. Do you know of any other industry that is so creative? I don’t. But we at MANE will be ready for any surprises that may come along. After all, it is this readiness that has sustained our company for over 150 years.