Why do odours vary between different products?

This week, Helen Blaby spoke with Dr Stewart House (General Manager of Endeavour Speciality Chemicals) to understand how chemicals are used to give a distinctive flavour and aroma to everyday items….like peach cobbler!

Click on the link below to listen to Dr Stewart House take on why odours vary between different products, at time 38:30 on BBC Radio Northampton’s conversations with Helen Blaby.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p070ks9c

Endeavour is a leading manufacturer of high impact aroma chemicals (HIACs). HIACs are used to give ‘top notes’ to flavours - defined as those aromas which hit the nose quickly and then dissipate.  As well as contributing to the aroma of the flavour, HIACs add considerably to the taste of a flavour.

A sense of smell is closely linked with memory. Smelling a particular item may bring to mind a particular memory; such as the smell of cinnamon or cloves reminding an individual of Christmas. Memories can be good and bad. Those that are bad can make an individual think that the item smells offensive, when in fact another person may associate the smell of the same product with a good memory and find it smells wonderful.

There are certain odours that we all find repulsive, such as rotten meat and rubbish. This is considered to be is a warning sign from the brain; maybe evolution has trained us to be this way to protect ourselves!

Manufacturing HIACs require specialised skills. The chemistry used to generate them and the highly odorous nature of the products themselves, make it essential that containment of such powerful odours is a prerequisite to manufacture. Endeavour has these skills, gleaned from over 25 years’ experience in the production of these HIACs.

Click here to learn more about Endeavour Speciality Chemicals.

Endeavour Speciality Chemicals is sister company to Robinson Brothers. Together, we offer the scale-up synthesis of HIACs. Click here to view our high impact aroma product range.


Robinson Brothers Limited | West Midlands | B70 0AH UK
E: [email protected]
T: +44 (0)121 553 2451
External link: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p070ks9c