Chr. Hansen
Chr. Hansen is a Danish bioscience company that develops microbial cultures, enzymes, natural food colors, and probiotic strains for enterprise customers across the food, nutritional, pharmaceutical, and agricultural industries. It operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Novonesis following the 2023 merger with Novozymes.
- Company typePublic
- Founded1878
- HeadquartersHørsholm, Denmark
- Headcount5,001–10,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Chr. Hansen does
Chr. Hansen Holding A/S is a Danish bioscience company founded in 1878 and headquartered in Hørsholm, Denmark, that develops natural solutions for the food, nutritional, pharmaceutical, and agricultural industries. Its core technology is biosolutions based on microbial fermentation, enzymes, bacterial cultures, and natural food colorings derived from biological sources — including lactic acid bacteria for dairy and plant-based fermentation, IP-protected probiotic strains such as BB-12™, protective cultures branded as FreshQ® 5.0, plant- and algae-based colorants (beetroot, turmeric, spirulina, anthocyanins), silage inoculants, and feed enzymes. The company's product portfolio spans Food & Beverages (cultures, enzymes, natural colors), Human Health (probiotics and microbiome solutions), Animal & Plant (silage inoculants, feed enzymes, bio-based crop protection), Bioenergy, Household Care, and Industrial Bioprocessing.
Chr. Hansen operates as a B2B ingredient supplier, selling microbial ingredients, enzymes, and natural food colors directly to enterprise food, nutraceutical, cosmetic, and agricultural manufacturers. Revenue is generated through volume-based ingredient supply and licensing/royalty arrangements on proprietary strains, with quote-based pricing typical for industrial ingredient customers. The company leads the global food cultures market with a 24-28% share, supplies fermentation scale and IP-protected strains to major food and beverage producers including Danone, Nestlé, and Yakult Honsha, and runs the Feed Enzyme Alliance in partnership with dsm-firmenich (now brought in-house via Novonesis's 2025 acquisition). Its go-to-market combines enterprise field sales, clinical R&D investment to substantiate health claims, strategic co-development partnerships with major food companies, and downstream distribution via hypermarkets and supermarkets for finished probiotic products.
Following its December 2023 merger with Novozymes, Chr. Hansen operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Novonesis A/S (NASDAQ Copenhagen: NVZMY), a combined bioscience group targeting a €60 billion biosolutions market opportunity and reporting $4.92 billion in FY2025 revenue with 7% organic growth in Q1 2026.
Chr. Hansen firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Chr. Hansen
- Legal name
- Chr. Hansen Holding A/S
- Website
- https://chr-hansen.com
- Company type
- Public
- Founded year
- 1878
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 5,001–10,000 employees
- Short description
- Chr. Hansen is a Danish bioscience company that develops microbial cultures, enzymes, natural food colors, and probiotic strains for enterprise customers across the food, nutritional, pharmaceutical, and agricultural industries. It operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Novonesis following the 2023 merger with Novozymes.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Chr. Hansen industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Industrial Biotechnology / Food Bioscience Ingredients
- NAICS
- Food Manufacturing (311), Dairy Product Manufacturing (3115)
- SIC
- Food And Kindred Products (2000), Dairy Products (2020), Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Probiotics (Human & Animal Strains, Spore-Formers, Synbiotic Bases) (AFAJAJAE)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Probiotics & Digestive Health Supplements (CRADAGAF), Probiotic/Fermented Functional Cultured Dairy (Added Cultures/Prebiotics) Manufacturing (AFAHADAJ), Probiotic & Live-Culture Beverage Production (Shots, Tonics) (AFAFAHAE), Probiotic, Prebiotic & Gut-Health Foods Manufacturing (Fermented Functional Foods, Synbiotics) (AFAKAJAH), Probiotic/Prebiotic Functional Beverage Production (Non-Fermented) (AFAFAFAE), Swine Specialty/Functional Feed (Gut Health, Probiotics, Acidifiers, Enzymes) (AFADABAI), Probiotics (Strains, Spore-Formers, Synbiotic Components) (AFAJAKAE)
Keywords
Where Chr. Hansen is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Hørsholm
- HQ country
- Denmark
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Chr. Hansen business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Operations, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Probiotic ingredients B2B: Chr. Hansen supplies probiotic ingredients to food, nutraceutical, and cosmetic manufacturers through fermentation scale, IP-protected strains, and B2B partnerships
- Natural food colors: Major manufacturers including Chr. Hansen maintain competitive advantages through integrated sourcing networks, proprietary processing capabilities, and economies of scale for natural food coloring ingredients
- Food cultures and bacterial cultures: Supply of lactic acid bacteria and microbial food cultures for dairy and plant-based dairy alternatives, with Chr. Hansen leading the competitive landscape with 24-28% market share
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
Chr. Hansen product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Chr. Hansen manufactures and sells microbial cultures, food enzymes, natural food colors, and probiotic ingredients for B2B customers across food & beverage, human health, animal nutrition, and agricultural industries. The portfolio includes the BB-12™ probiotic strain, FreshQ® 5.0 protective cultures, lactic acid bacteria for dairy fermentation, silage inoculants, and spirulina-based colorants, organized into biosolutions verticals including Food & Beverages, Human Health, Animal & Plant, Bioenergy, Household Care, and Industrial Bioprocessing.
Product overview
Chr. Hansen (now part of Novonesis following its merger with Novozymes in 2023-2024) operates as a biosolutions company offering a broad portfolio of microbial ingredients, enzymes, and natural food colors. The company's offerings span multiple industry verticals including Food & Beverages (bacterial cultures, food enzymes, natural colors), Human Health (probiotics including the documented BB-12™ strain), Animal & Plant (silage inoculants, feed enzymes), Bioenergy (enzymes for biofuel production), Household Care, and Industrial Bioprocessing. The portfolio includes platform products like FreshQ® 5.0 protective cultures for clean-label preservation. The combined entity positions itself as a leader in biosolutions addressing food systems, health, and sustainability challenges.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- BB-12™ Probiotic Strain The world's most documented Bifidobacterium probiotic strain, used in dietary supplements, functional foods, and beverages for gut health applications. Targeted at human health manufacturers and nutraceutical brands.
- FreshQ® 5.0 Protective Cultures
Quantifiable outcome
- Leading 24-28% market share in global food cultures market
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Chr. Hansen
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Chr. Hansen technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Chr. Hansen partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- dsm-firmenichcoreNovonesis and dsm-firmenich have worked together for over 25 years on innovating and distributing enzymes for animals as the Feed Enzyme Alliance. Novonesis acquired dsm-firmenich's animal feed enzyme business, bringing sales and distribution activities under the same roof as research and innovation.
- UPL Ltd.minorBio-based crop protection partnership between UPL Ltd. and Chr. Hansen Holding A/S, reflecting the industry's shift toward sustainable and resistance-managed formulations.
- DanonecoreDanone teamed up with Chr. Hansen on dairy and plant-based innovation as part of the Partner for Growth initiative, focusing on developing new probiotic and culture solutions for dairy and plant-based products.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Chr. Hansen competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Novozymes: Now merged with Chr. Hansen to form Novonesis. Was historically the most direct peer in industrial enzymes and microbial solutions, serving overlapping food, beverage, animal nutrition, and bioenergy customers globally.
- Lesaffre: Privately held French global leader in yeast and fermentation products. Directly comparable as a B2B supplier of microbial cultures, probiotics, and fermentation ingredients to food, bakery, and nutraceutical manufacturers.
- Lallemand: Canadian family-owned yeast and bacteria producer with a major probiotics and fermented functional ingredients business. Overlaps with Chr. Hansen in dairy cultures, human probiotics (incl. L. rhamnosus GG), and animal nutrition.
- dsm-firmenich: Dutch-Swiss specialty nutrition and health ingredients major; 25-year Feed Enzyme Alliance partner with Chr. Hansen before divesting animal feed enzymes to Novonesis. Comparable across animal nutrition, human health probiotics (i-Health), and food enzymes.
- Corbion: Dutch specialty ingredient company producing lactic acid, functional ingredients, and microbial solutions for food and personal care. Directly comparable in dairy cultures and fermentation-derived food ingredients.
Broad incumbents
- International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): Global ingredient major following the DuPont Nutrition & Biosciences merger; offers cultures, enzymes, and probiotics through the Health & Biosciences division. Competes with Chr. Hansen across dairy cultures and food enzymes for major CPG customers.
- Kerry Group: Irish taste & nutrition major serving food and beverage manufacturers. Comparable as a broad-line B2B ingredient supplier with probiotics, enzymes, and functional ingredient portfolios competing for similar CPG wallet share.
- ADM (Archer Daniels Midland): Global agribusiness major with a Human Nutrition and Health & Wellness ingredients portfolio including probiotics (Biopolis) and natural colors. Comparable as a broad-line supplier to food, beverage, and nutraceutical manufacturers.
Regional players
- AB Mauri: Baking yeast and ingredient arm of Associated British Foods. Comparable as a global microbial/baking ingredient supplier with overlapping food cultures and bakery ingredient customers.
Emerging players
- Evonik Industries: German specialty chemicals company with a probiotics (Evonik Probiotics) and animal nutrition business. Overlaps with Chr. Hansen in animal health probiotics and gut-health ingredients, serving feed and supplement markets.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Chr. Hansen social profiles
Digital presenceChr. Hansen financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Chr. Hansen leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
Chr. Hansen subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
Chr. Hansen funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Chr. Hansen M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Chr. Hansen
What does Chr. Hansen do?
Chr. Hansen manufactures and sells microbial cultures, food enzymes, natural food colors, and probiotic ingredients for B2B customers across food & beverage, human health, animal nutrition, and agricultural industries. The portfolio includes the BB-12™ probiotic strain, FreshQ® 5.0 protective cultures, lactic acid bacteria for dairy fermentation, silage inoculants, and spirulina-based colorants, organized into biosolutions verticals including Food & Beverages, Human Health, Animal & Plant, Bioenergy, Household Care, and Industrial Bioprocessing.
Is Chr. Hansen a public or private company?
Chr. Hansen is a public company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Chr. Hansen founded?
Chr. Hansen was founded in 1878. It employs 5,001 to 10,000 people.
Where is Chr. Hansen based?
Chr. Hansen is headquartered in Hørsholm, Denmark, in the Europe region.
How does Chr. Hansen make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Probiotic ingredients B2B is the primary driver. The others are natural food colors and food cultures and bacterial cultures.
Who are Chr. Hansen's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Novozymes, Lesaffre, Lallemand, dsm-firmenich and Corbion. Broad incumbents are International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF), Kerry Group and ADM (Archer Daniels Midland). AB Mauri is listed as a regional player. Evonik Industries is listed as an emerging player.
Does Chr. Hansen have an API?
No public API is recorded for Chr. Hansen.
What industry is Chr. Hansen in?
Chr. Hansen's product category is Industrial Biotechnology / Food Bioscience Ingredients. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAJAJAE, Probiotics (Human & Animal Strains, Spore-Formers, Synbiotic Bases), with a secondary code of CRADAGAF, Probiotics & Digestive Health Supplements. Its NAICS code is 311 and its SIC code is 2000.