The expansion will see Naturex establish a sales office in the country’s capital, Santiago de Chile, from where the business will be offering the full Naturex ingredients portfolio for its three principled business categories: cosmetics, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals and dietary supplements.
The company acquired the Chile Botanics business in a move to expand its footprint in both the fast growing Chile and South American markets, while the acquisition also included a manufacturing facility in Linares.
The Chilean branch becomes part of a network of three sales offices and two factories in Latin America. Guillaume Levade, Sales Director – Latin America is heading the sales office, which will support the development for its three strategic market categories.
Chile is a dynamic and fast developing market
Chile is a very dynamic country with one of the highest GDPs per capita within the Latin America region, the company pointed out.
“This indicator confirms the potential of the country. Combined with the fact that Chile has the most free-trade agreements in the world, we think there is an exceptional opportunity for Naturex to grow our business in this country and facilitate the development of our presence in neighboring countries,” said Levade.
Meanwhile, the Latin American market as a whole remains a top priority for Naturex and the company continues to invest in the area in order strengthen ties to its customers.
Tapping into Chile's natural resources
The company will also look to Chile’s natural environment for opportunity, it said, where is already sources Quillaja saponaria, a native tree rich in saponins from the Chilean forest.
Because of the high level of saponins, the extract has become popular in a range of supplements and natural-based cosmetics, as a well as being a food and drink ingredient.
The product is sustainably harvested in partnership with local authorities, said Naturex, and the wood is extracted to obtain quillaia extracts with different levels of purity.