Ever looked forward to enjoying a food or beverage only to be let down by the experience? This sense of disappointment could be because the processes that make the product easy and safe to consume can strip it of its natural taste and smell.

A solution to this problem for manufacturers around the world comes not from one of the world’s technological hubs or the industrial might of China, but from the rural town of Griffith, in New South Wales’ Riverina region.

It’s the home of Flavourtech, whose patented technologies capture natural flavours and aromas at the beginning of manufacturing for addition back to the product at the end of processing.

Opening a jar of instant coffee manufactured using Flavourtech technology releases appealing aromas and flavours that may otherwise be lost during processing. Similar results can be achieved for other food and beverage products, such as fruit juice or confectionery, creating products that taste more like the raw material they were made from.

Flavourtech’s signature innovation is its Spinning Cone Column (SCC), which was created to remove sulphites from grape juice during winemaking. During its development, Flavourtech founder Andrew Craig discovered it could also remove the alcohol from wine.

The real game-changer, though, was the use of the SCC for extracting natural flavours, says Flavourtech General Manager and Chairman Leon Skaliotis. “All those added flavours you might find in things like muesli bars, pasta sauce or candy, if it’s natural, there’s a high chance it’s been captured using the SCC.”

Flavourtech has supplied its equipment to customers ranging from individual wineries to multinational conglomerates in more than 60 countries, and established pilot plants in the Netherlands and the US, with another planned for India.

“We know our equipment helps our customers to differentiate themselves from their competitors by producing better-tasting products,” Leon says. “They come back and buy a second piece of equipment, or a third, because they’re providing something new to their customers.”

With 90 per cent of sales going to export markets, Flavourtech leans heavily on its banking partner for a range of services to assist with this. NAB provides international payment security and verification, currency hedging and letters of credit to smooth the path to new sales.

“Flavourtech are great to deal with, very motivated to get new business,” says Debra McCann, NAB’s Senior Business Manager in Griffith.

Despite a focus on international markets, Flavourtech is fiercely loyal to Griffith, where it employs a team of 70 and is preparing to expand its factory.

“We’re very wedded to the Griffith community, and to trying to make regional Australia smarter, more innovative and more effective,” Leon says.