Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/550316
68 tobaccoasia in Germany, which has recently upgraded its man- ufacturing facilities to an annual capacity exceed- ing 3,000 tons of flavor concentrates. Producing in Germany also assures superior quality standards and strict adherence to all applicable regulations. For example, all Flavoriq-supplied e-flavors or liquids are produced in a HACCP-certified envi- ronment using pharmaceutical-grade (UPS) and food-grade ingredients. Additionally, Hertz Fla- vors follows GMP guidelines and has for the past ten years held DIN EN ISO 9001:2011 certifica- tion. To ensure highest quality and product integ- rity, Hertz flavor specialists deploy state-of-the-art methods such as GC-MS or NIR analytics, and every batch of liquid leaving the production lines is also tested on its nicotine content. A big development challenge is to imitate the taste of a burnt cigarette, according to Hertz. "While our [traditional] tobacco flavors are highly valued in the market, e-cigarettes simply do not provide the platform to create the taste sensation that comes from the combustion of tobacco. But we might be able to tackle this issue eventually with the help of upcoming technologies like the combination with 'heat-not-burn', for example," Hertz said. But another challenge is rooted in the hardware itself, i.e. the e-smoking or vaping device in which the new product is supposed to be used. "We've rejected certain projects if, during the lab testing stage, we recognized off-notes by vaping with flavorless liquids from the e-cig materials." On the customer side, further challenges include product variety and complexity. "Many [clients] realize that they are more successful with only 5-20 flavors. Due to the different nicotine levels and country-specific regulations in the future (EUTPD), this is becoming an issue," elaborated Hertz. While Hertz was not prepared to discuss Flavoriq's turnover during its first year of opera- tion, he divulged that he expected to double the company's total number of clients this year. "This should, of course, also allow for an equal or even larger increase in our [volume] turnover. What I can say is that after our first year in business we're already well-established in the industry due to high investments of both money and time. Mainly thanks to our cooperation with many market lead- ers, we also believe to already be one of the leading in-bulk suppliers of e-flavors and e-liquids in Eu- rope, often shipping order quantities not in terms of kilograms but, indeed, tons." Newly developed flavors injected into a cigarette filter for manual testing Drop by drop to flavor perfection Manual testing of a new e-liquid flavor