With a series of acquisitions in recent years, Innovad has transitioned from a feed additives blending company to a larger global group and a primary producer, but maintaining its key focus on customers.
In this Industry Perspectives, we discuss progress with Group CEO Ben Letor, who is now responsible for multiple businesses which now include four manufacturing plants, 15 operating localised legal entities and a team of more than 200 collaborators.
With acquisition comes the task of integrating businesses and harnessing their full potential, a key focus for Mr Letor, who will launch the business’s new look at Eurotier.
In this interview, he explains strategy for the overall group and individual brands, as well as discussing how the consolidated group will continue to ensure high-quality, effective products through shared research, innovation, and robust manufacturing and distribution processes.
[Feedinfo] Innovad Group bought Herbonis in April last year, with both companies having a previous track record of growth and acquisition. What is the overall size and scope of the group now, and its main focus?
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[Ben Letor] Over the last three years, Innovad has embarked into a transformational journey, shifting from a feed additives blending company having an international footprint into a larger global group primary producer. It now has four specific manufacturing centres, 15 localised operating legal entities dedicated to strengthening the local customer experience, operated by a team of over 200 collaborators, focused on an innovative platform of solutions and services, including its patented bio-monitoring tool Mycomarker® and its natural plant-based bioactive Panbonis®. |
Ben Letor, CEO, Innovad |
This accelerated ambition, sustainable growth and leadership were made possible through a series of strategic acquisitions i.e. Scentarom (basic developer and manufacturer of fragrances and flavours) in March 2022, Herbonis (leader in a niche market with deep understanding of bioactive properties of plants with proprietary analytical tools) in May 2023, and Oligobasics (upcycled plant-based patented gut health support product line made in Brazil).
The focus remains on helping the industry to better diagnose health disorders or intoxication with some breakthrough blood biomonitoring techniques, and providing a dialogue on how to mitigate such issues with selected solutions, mostly plant-based, upcycled or non-medicated.
Natural solutions represent a megatrend in our industry to address sustainability objectives as well as consumer demand, provided that such plant-based alternatives are well-researched, well-documented, cost-effective and with the lowest carbon footprint. Innovad Group is investing heavily in such solutions.
The Innovad Group intention is also to foster an extraordinary culture among employees and partners, driving excellence and innovation.
[Feedinfo] Can you tell us how this new, larger Group will operate going forward? Will you continue with the Innovad and Herbonis brands, and what should we expect from you in terms of strategy, both overall and for the individual brands?
[Ben Letor] To align to this sustainable strategy, Innovad Group was created, supported by a new organisational structure and branding, fuelled by a collaborative culture with the ultimate aim to strengthen the customer experience, and leveraging on multiple skills available through the various locations at global and local level. As a group, we empower by integrating the wisdom of nature with scientific advancements to improve animal well-being, believing that nature and science together offer the best care.
Choosing Innovad Group means opting for full-service solutions, trusted scientific expertise, powerful integrated pioneering innovation around biomonitoring technology and pure plant-based ingredients knowledge, and a technical and commercial team located in most regions for connecting locally. We have a solid commitment to sustainable practices, with a CSR and ESG voluntary strategy and agenda, and are fully engaged in caring for people, the planet, and animals.
We are one Innovad Group family – we think and act ‘Customer First’. We foster a culture of excellence and collaboration, cultivating a strong environment among our employees and partners. This unity reinforces our identity as one cohesive family, leading to better service and innovation. Our commitment to ‘customer first thinking and acting’ ensures that every decision enhances customer satisfaction and success. We provide solutions to specific challenges, helping customers achieve their goals.
Our group includes powerful brands like Innovad (multiple solution provider), Herbonis (pure plant based), Scentarom (flavours), Addco (concentrates), Oligobasics (Brazil-specific), each powering its unique identity and USPs while contributing to our collective mission.
The Innovad Group brand strategy will serve our two strong brands; Innovad, “Create Trust and Care” and Herbonis “Reading Nature” moving forward:
Innovad is known for its solution-driven additives approach towards animal disorders and diseases and its health bio-monitoring tools. These tools provide comprehensive insights into animal health and enable data-driven decisions for enhanced welfare.
Innovad (Create Trust) will refresh its brand with a new logo and updated design. The updated positioning (Create Trust and Care) as solution provider for the animal and farmer continues our scientific approach and effective mode of action and ingredients. With the integration into the Innovad Group we aim to better care for our customers and animals, based on trust and relationships. Proactive care is central to our approach, anticipating animal and customer needs to address potential health issues before they escalate. This not only improves health outcomes but also builds lasting customer relationships.
Herbonis specialises in natural feed supplements, featuring the bioavailable plant ingredient, derived from sustainably sourced plants, enhancing feed's nutritional profile.
Herbonis (Independent by Nature) will evolve towards a particular and dedicated brand (Reading Nature) of products with pure plant-based ingredients containing very specific, quantifiable, and controlled molecules, Panbonis as the most renowned product, but more to come. The Herbonis brand masters the whole chain of plant ingredients and the brand cultivates a spirit of pioneering, identifying new applications for new plant-based components. Despite unity with the rest of the Group, Herbonis maintains its unique brand profile, specialising in natural, scientifically-backed feed supplements that enhance animal health and productivity.
At Eurotier, our new look will be launched globally.
[Feedinfo] As Innovad, you are well known for providing solutions for a broad spectrum of animal diseases and disorders and for your biomonitoring work. Will this change going forward, and how will it integrate with the Herbonis approach?
[Ben Letor] As explained, the synergy between these core brands strengthens our market position and enables us to address customer needs more holistically with enhanced, trusted research and scientific capabilities. The pioneering and scientific spirit of Herbonis will infuse into the whole group naturally.
Herbonis is dedicated to ‘Reading Nature’, integrating the wisdom of nature into animal health. This mission drives us to pioneer natural health solutions, ensuring effective and sustainable care. Our approach combines a deep understanding of natural processes with a transparent scientific methodology, grounding every product we develop in solid research and efficacy.
Herbonis stands out with its natural, scientifically-backed feed supplements that enhance animal health and productivity. Our products, derived from plants, are a sustainable natural source. We maintain full ownership and control over the entire process, ensuring the highest quality and bioavailability of active ingredients. Currently, Herbonis is investigating the benefits of an upcycled material from virgin olive oil production, which has shown unparallel natural anti-oxidant properties. There is more to come from nature!
The Herbonis brand symbolises the plant-hub of the Innovad Group and its pioneering approach, ensuring that we remain at the industry's forefront, providing solutions that are both innovative and effective.
[Feedinfo] What can customers expect to see as a result of these changes?
[Ben Letor] The market is seeing the commitment of the consolidated group towards continuing to ensure high-quality, effective products through shared research, innovation, and robust manufacturing and distribution processes.
Additional resources are being allocated to deep dive into the mode of action of those new upcycled plant-based ingredients that require thorough investigation to deliver the expected benefits and the right application.
[Feedinfo] What do you see are the biggest issues facing the livestock sector going forward, and how will the re-focussed business address these?
[Ben Letor] One of the biggest challenges of the industry is to continue transform its practices towards a more sustainable way of raising and feeding animals in an economic manner, addressing the ever-growing metabolic health issues in connection with the scale up of the industry. Pioneering and developing innovative practices, bio-monitoring tools with deeper knowledge of the microbiota and its interaction with the host is key. Innovad Group’s goal is to contribute towards shifting carefully to better practices for all stakeholders, including people, the environment, and animal well-being. That is the promise we made.
