LANXESS doubles capacity for high-purity benzyl alcohol in North America 

Pittsburgh – May 25, 2023Specialty chemicals company LANXESS has doubled the production capacity for benzyl alcohol at its U.S. site in Kalama, Washington to support the growth of its established customer base in the Americas. The capacity expansion is the result of various technical upgrades.

 

With our innovative purification process, LANXESS is the world’s leading producer of benzyl alcohol. The Kalama site now serves as the central hub in our global plant network of four sites producing high-purity benzyl alcohol,” said Holger Hueppeler, global head of LANXESS’ Flavors & Fragrances business unit. “By doubling Kalama’s production capacity we can provide fast international deliveries and offer a resilient supply chain that can cope with increasing geopolitical uncertainties.”

 

Three grades for a wide range of applications

 

Benzyl alcohol is used as a preservative, solvent, fragrance fixative and intermediate and is highly valued due to its low volatility and low toxicity. The colorless liquid with a pleasant, mild aroma is suitable for many customer needs. The parenteral grade has a purity of 99.9 percent, offering the highest quality for pharmaceutical products such as preservatives for injection solutions. The NF/FCC grade, given to chemicals that meet the requirements of the United States National Formulary (NF) and the Food Chemicals Codex (FCC), is an effective, high purity preservative for personal care products and cosmetics. The stable odor profile is beneficial in the production of fragrances and food flavorings. It can also be used as a solvent in technical applications. The technical grade benzyl alcohol is an excellent solvent and starting material in chemical synthesis.

 

LANXESS also produces benzyl alcohol at its sites in Krefeld-Uerdingen (Germany), Botlek (Netherlands) and Nagda (India).

 

About LANXESS’ Flavors & Fragrances business unit

 

The LANXESS Flavors & Fragrances business unit develops and produces the world’s broadest portfolio of fragrances and flavors, preservatives and animal nutrition products. Its products are found in various everyday consumables, such as cosmetics and personal care products, detergents and cleaning agents, beverages, baked goods, candles, oils and animal feed. The portfolio also includes specialty chemicals for industrial applications, including pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and the construction industry.

 

The business unit operates production sites in five locations on three continents and all are ISCC Plus certified. Through the use of green electricity and sustainable raw materials, these sites will produce mass balance certified renewable alternatives for the entire product portfolio by the end of 2023, reflecting the business unit's strong commitment to sustainability.

 

The business unit has around 750 employees and is part of LANXESS' Consumer Protection segment which generated sales of about EUR 2.4 billion  in 2022.

 

For more information, visit https://lanxess.com/en/Company/Corporate-Structure/Business-Units/Flavors-and-Fragrances

Information for editors:
All global LANXESS news releases and their accompanying photos can be found at http://press.lanxess.com.
Recent photos of the Board of Management and other LANXESS image material are available at http://photos.lanxess.com.

 

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