Univar to distribute Novozymes portfolio in Russian bakery market

Global chemical and ingredient distributor Univar Solutions has entered an agreement to distribute Novozymes’ enzymes for the bakery industry in Russia.

Through this agreement, Univar intends to strengthen its footprint in the Russian food and beverage market.

Novozymes distribution head Christian Hertz said: “Rising consumer expectations for bread quality and recent regulations aiming to decrease bread returns, and consequently bread waste, will drive interest for Novozymes’ proven solutions.

“Additionally, the growing trend toward health and wellness awareness is shaping the product portfolio of bread manufacturers, which increases the need for innovation. Novozymes looks forward to expanding the availability of these solutions through the cooperation with Univar Solutions.”

Initially, the focus will be on the baking industry within Moscow and St Petersburg, which covers 50% of the total Russian bakery market.

With recent Russian government regulations to reduce food waste through retailer incentives, a key focus for Univar will be on improving the freshness and quality of baked goods through the Novozymes Novamyl baking freshness enzyme.

Novozymes added that Novamyl can be used with bakery products such as bread, rolls and lean sweet baked goods within artisanal and packaged/industrial segments.

Univar Solutions Europe, Middle East and Africa commercial manager Paul Harvey said: “Our collaboration with Novozymes provides Univar Solutions an exciting opportunity to invest in expanding our food ingredients business into Russia.

“We see significant growth potential for the Novozymes portfolio to provide innovative process solutions to the baking industry with the support of our new bakery team.”

In April, Axiom Foods selected ingredient distributor Univar as the preferred distributor for its plant-based portfolio in the US.