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Draft:Oterra

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  • Comment: In preparing this draft, I disclose that AI assistance was used as follows: I used Claude by Anthropic to support me in finding sources, structure the text, and check it against Wikipedia's guidelines on references and style. I have checked every cited source and reviewed and edited the final text myself, and I take full responsibility for its content. Mikkeladapt (talk) 11:51, 29 September 2026 (UTC)
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Oterra
TypePrivate
IndustryFood ingredients
PredecessorChr. Hansen Natural Colors
Founded2021 (as independent company)
Headquarters
Hellerup[1]
,
Denmark
Key peopleArnd Kaldowski (executive chairman)
ProductsNatural colourings
Revenue€447 million (2024/25)[2]
OwnerEQT
Number of employees
1,234 (31 August 2025)[2]
Websiteoterra.com

Oterra is a Danish manufacturer of natural colourings for food, beverages, dietary supplements and pet food. The company was formerly the Natural Colors division of Chr. Hansen and became independent in 2021, when it was acquired by the private equity firm EQT and renamed Oterra.[3][4][5] The group's parent company is Oterra Holding ApS, and its main Danish operating company is Oterra A/S. In the financial year ending 31 August 2025, the group had revenue of €447 million and 1,234 employees.[2][6]

History

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Separation from Chr. Hansen

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In September 2020, Chr. Hansen agreed to sell its Natural Colors division to the EQT IX fund for €800 million, as part of a strategy to concentrate on microbial and fermentation products. At the time, the division had about 650 employees and more than 1,600 customers, and reported revenue of €224 million in the 2018/19 financial year, with organic growth of around nine percent per year over the preceding five years.[7][8] The sale was completed on 31 March 2021 and covered operations in more than 30 countries.[9] Cees de Jong became chairman and Odd Erik Hansen chief executive of the new company.[4][3]

In May 2021, the company changed its name to Oterra, a name derived from the Latin word for "earth". Chief executive Odd Erik Hansen said the change marked the business as "an independent natural colour-focussed company".[4][3]

Acquisitions

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Oterra made four acquisitions between 2021 and 2022 after becoming independent.[5] The first, announced in April 2021 and completed two months later, was SECNA Natural Ingredients Group, a producer of colourings such as anthocyanins from black carrot and grape, with approximately 80 employees operating in Spain and Italy.[10][11] In December 2021, it completed the purchase of the natural colours business of Diana Food from Symrise, including production sites in Cossé, France, and Holbeach, England, which brought the company to ten production sites.[12][13] The same month, it acquired Food Ingredient Solutions, a manufacturer of colours and antioxidants founded in 1999, with production facilities in Teterboro, New Jersey, and Marshfield, Missouri; it was Oterra's first acquisition in the United States.[14]

In July 2022, Oterra acquired Akay Group, an Indian natural ingredients manufacturer founded in 1995 with four plants in southern India and more than 400 employees. The two companies had operated a joint venture producing colours from turmeric and paprika since 1995.[5]

Expansion in the United States

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After entering the US market through the acquisition of Food Ingredient Solutions, Oterra opened a 14,400 square metres (155,000 sq ft) production, application and innovation site in Mount Pleasant, Wisconsin, in December 2024.[15] The company's US headquarters, including its application laboratories, is located near Milwaukee.[16] In 2025, US health authorities pressed food manufacturers to phase out petroleum-based dyes.[17] In this context, Bloomberg News reported on Oterra's capacity to meet the resulting demand for natural colourings.[18] Trade press in 2026 cited the company's warning that natural colours depend on crops that must be planted in advance, and that late conversions risked higher costs and limited supply.[19]

In May 2026, Oterra entered a partnership with the California biotechnology company Debut to develop a fermentation-based alternative to the synthetic dye Red 40, with the aim of obtaining US Food and Drug Administration(FDA) approval and reaching the market within three years.[20][21]

Products

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Oterra produces colourings from fruit and vegetable concentrates for use in products such as dairy, confectionery, ice cream and beverages.[7] Its raw materials include beetroot, turmeric, paprika, black carrot and a sweet potato variety bred by Chr. Hansen for its colour.[12][5][16] At the time of the 2021 name change, its portfolio comprised around 1,000 products.[4]

In 2023, after a seven-year process, the FDA approved a blue colouring extracted by Oterra from the fruit of jagua. Unlike blue from spirulina, it withstands the high temperatures used to make gelatin desserts and extruded cereals.[16] According to Chemical & Engineering News, the company's work has included the natural colours that Kraft Heinz adopted for its macaroni and cheese in 2015, developed while the business was part of Chr. Hansen, and the removal of Red 40 from McDonald's strawberry milkshakes. Oterra's scientists told the magazine that natural colours could not yet fully match the brightness of synthetic dyes in some products, such as breakfast cereals.[16]

Leadership

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Odd Erik Hansen was chief executive from the 2021 sale until Martin Sonntag succeeded him in January 2024.[3][22] After Sonntag stepped down in March 2026, Oterra appointed Susanne Arfelt Rajamand as chief executive from 12 October 2026; Arnd Kaldowski was appointed chairman of the board in October 2025.[23][24][25]

References

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  1. ↑ "Key figures". Oterra. Retrieved 25 September 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 "Annual Report 2024/25 – Oterra Holding ApS" (PDF). Oterra Holding ApS. pp. 7, 36. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Gelski, Jeff (21 May 2021). "After sale, Chr. Hansen Natural Colors changes name to Oterra". Food Business News. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Chr. Hansen Natural Colors announces company name change to Oterra". FoodNavigator. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Oterra acquires natural color supplier". Food Business News. 8 July 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  6. ↑ "Oterra reports full year (2024/25) results with strong growth" (Press release). Oterra. 14 January 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  7. 1 2 "Chr. Hansen to sell colors division to EQT IX". Food Business News. 28 September 2020. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  8. ↑ Devenyns, Jessi (1 October 2020). "Chr. Hansen to sell its natural colors business to PE group for $940M". Food Dive. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  9. ↑ "Chr. Hansen completes Natural Colors divestment to EQT". FoodIngredientsFirst. 1 April 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  10. ↑ Mundt-Nielsen, Kasper (20 May 2021). "Nyt navn til Chr. Hansen Natural Colors". Fødevarefokus (in Danish). Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  11. ↑ "Natural colors: Oterra completes Secna Natural Ingredients Group acquisition". FoodIngredientsFirst. 29 June 2021. Retrieved 24 September 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Oterra closes acquisition of Diana Food's business". Food Business News. 30 December 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  13. ↑ Addy, Rod (5 January 2022). "Natural colours company takes over UK site". Food Manufacture. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  14. ↑ Oller, Samantha (6 January 2022). "Oterra makes first US acquisition with Food Ingredient Solutions". Food Dive. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  15. ↑ Barston, Neill (6 December 2024). "Oterra delivers expansion of its US natural colours operations". Confectionery Production. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Blois, Matt (8 May 2025). "Is now the time for natural food colors?". Chemical & Engineering News. Vol. 103, no. 13. Retrieved 28 September 2026.
  17. ↑ Aleccia, Jonel; Perrone, Matthew (23 April 2025). "RFK Jr. is pushing the food industry to voluntarily drop petroleum-based artificial colors". Fortune. Associated Press. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  18. ↑ "Natural Dye Maker Oterra Says There's Enough to Meet US Demand". Bloomberg News. 9 July 2025. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  19. ↑ Hyslop, Gill (1 September 2026). "Big Food's colour promises are colliding with supply chain reality". ConfectioneryNews. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  20. ↑ Zimmerman, Sarah (6 May 2026). "Oterra to scale natural alternative to Red 40 food dye in new partnership". Food Dive. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  21. ↑ Mridul, Anay (8 May 2026). "Oterra & Debut to Develop Precision-Fermented Alternative to Red 40 Food Dye". Green Queen. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  22. ↑ "Oterra announces new CEO". Petfood Industry (Press release). Oterra. 5 December 2023. Retrieved 24 September 2026.
  23. ↑ Kerwin, Nicole (11 March 2026). "Oterra CEO steps down". Pet Food Processing. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  24. ↑ "Oterra appoints new CEO". Pet Food Processing. 19 August 2026. Retrieved 23 September 2026.
  25. ↑ "Oterra appoints board chair". Snack Food & Wholesale Bakery. 13 October 2025. Retrieved 24 September 2026.
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