Following a 2017 incident beyond BASF’s control in the citral plant in Ludwigshafen, BASF was forced to declare force majeure for its citral and isoprenol-based aroma ingredients, its Vitamin A and E products and several carotenoids.
Human nutrition
Due to a more demanding quality testing process relative to its animal nutrition business, BASF expects to lift force majeure for Vitamin A and E products as well as carotenoids for its human nutrition business from the middle of the third quarter of 2018 onwards, in a step-wise approach.
Aroma ingredients
BASF expects to lift force majeure for the majority of its citral and isoprenol-based aroma ingredients in the fourth quarter of 2018 due to different manufacturing steps needed in this production chain relative to its vitamin production.
As the company os one of the main suppliers of aroma ingredients for customers in the flavour and fragrance industry, the company prioritises making volumes of downstream products available, while building up stocks in parallel.
Thus, conditions to lift force majeure, such as the building of safety stocks, will be fulfilled later in its aroma ingredients business than in its animal and human nutrition businesses. The lifting of force majeure for selected aroma ingredients campaign products will follow subsequently.
Customers will be informed by respective sales contacts
Customers will be informed directly by their respective sales contacts as soon as the timing for lifting force majeure for specific products is confirmed.
Envisaged delivery dates will be communicated, always considering lead times, which are region-, country- and product-specific, taking from a few days to several weeks or months.
