The heart of this multinational company’s product development plants its roots firmly in Haddenham
On 7th April global herb and spice manufacturer, McCormick, launched its Technical Innovation Centre (TIC) in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire. The first of its kind in the EMEA region, it will be at the heart of product development across the food industry. With an investment of £1.5m in the TIC build project, it clearly demonstrates McCormick's innovation leadership within the sector and showcases its passion for flavour.
Rick Gill, Vice President, EMEA Technical and Research & Development: “Our new Technical Innovation Centre is an excellent example of McCormick's continued investment in new product development and passion for flavour. We want to lead in innovation and deliver winning products with superior flavours, positive nutrition and value, while ensuring those products are created with local tastes and flavour preferences in mind.”
The TIC includes the following state of the art facilities, which are also in line with McCormick’s continuous efforts to minimise its impact on the environment:
A Create IT® room for ideation and concept development
Modern kitchens for culinary testing and recipe creation
A high tech sensory area for product evaluation with minimal distraction
Central to the TIC is the Create IT® process, which is at the core of McCormick’s global new product development, and demonstrates the company’s proven track record in the development of products with maximum flavour impact, utilising its expertise in herbs and spices. The process is a collaborative method of creating new and improved products by using a highly specialised team of consumer insight, marketing, sensory, culinary and product development professionals. As a leader in innovation, McCormick has a full range of creative and analytical talent at its disposal, creating customised flavour and spice blends that are supplied extensively across the food industry.
Sustainable aspects were purposefully included into the build project to reduce the Centre’s carbon footprint.
These include:
Carpeting made from recycled materials
Extensive use of natural light
Recycled glass partitioning
Low-wattage lighting
Automated on/off sensors
Minimal paper consumption
James Millward, Commercial Director, McCormick (UK) Ltd: “McCormick is committed to the use of its expertise for the creation of innovative products and to providing solutions that deliver impactful flavour. The TIC gives us the ability to invite our customers to come and work hands-on with us to deliver some great results together. We are also looking forward to utilising the TIC to be able to share valuable insight with chefs and gain important feedback from them too.”
Furthermore, McCormick’s passion for flavour innovations has contributed to McCormick’s net sales globally: $3,336.8 billion USD in 2010, with 10 per cent coming from innovations launched over the past three years.
In addition to the completion of the TIC in Haddenham, McCormick has been developing TIC’s in Australia and China, upgraded four pilot technical plants in EMEA, including one in Littleborough, UK, and upgraded two Technical Development Centres; one in South Africa and one in the United States. For further information, please visit HYPERLINK "http://www.mccormickcorporation.com/" http://www.mccormickcorporation.com/.