*Content courtesy of McCormick & Company Inc.
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*Content courtesy of McCormick & Company Inc.
- 2025 Sales: $6.8 billion (across all categories)
- Headquarters: Hunt Valley, Maryland
McCormick & Company Inc.
Our story began in 1889, when founder Willoughby McCormick started selling root beer and flavor extracts from his Baltimore cellar. From those humble beginnings to becoming founding members of the Flavor and Extract Manufacturers Association (FEMA), McCormick has remained at the heart of flavor innovation.
As the industry expands toward broad-based ingredient solutions, our distinction lies in maintaining a 100% focus on flavor. It’s what defines us and what continues to inspire everything we do. Rooted in a natural heritage and deep culinary expertise, we’re uniquely positioned to meet today’s consumer demand for healthier, cleaner products that never compromise on taste. Unique and distinctive is our dual identity: both a flavor house and a global consumer brand leader. With insights spanning every channel—from home kitchens to foodservice—we understand flavor from every angle, enabling us to predict trends and create experiences that resonate across cultures and cuisines.
Wellness-Driven Flavor, Global Heat Trends, Sustainable Sourcing and AI-Powered Taste Innovation
Q&A with Brendan M. Foley, chairman, president, and chief executive officer, McCormick & Company Inc.
Q: How is your company adapting to global changes in dietary habits and flavor expectations?
Foley: As global dietary preferences evolve, the growing focus on wellness is redefining consumer expectations of flavor. Today’s consumers prioritize quality of life, seeking foods that deliver functional benefits alongside taste. This shift is driving demand for products that are natural, clean-label, and nutritionally balanced—without compromising taste. McCormick is well-positioned to meet this demand, grounded in our long heritage of expertise in natural ingredients.
For over 20 years, the McCormick Science Institute (MSI) has sponsored independent research on the health benefits associated with the use of culinary herbs and spices on diet quality. MSI supports peer reviewed published research highlighting the positive physiological effects of herbs and spices to make nutritious foods more appealing.
Our health and wellness innovation pipeline continues to grow as customers reformulate existing products and launch new health-forward offerings. Reformulations target sodium, sugar, and artificial ingredient reduction while enhancing nutrient density, without compromising taste. These improvements also deliver sustainability benefits, such as reducing carbon footprint specifically when dairy is replaced by plant-based alternatives.
Advanced taste technology is enabling this transformation at scale. McCormick Optify taste modulation platform enhances creaminess, juiciness, and saltiness in reduced-fat or reduced-sugar formulations and minimizes off-notes in plant-based proteins. Our technology enables the use of proprietary ingredients that effectively balance bitterness from functional ingredients, allowing consumers to enjoy healthier, flavorful choices.
We continue to strengthen our extracts portfolio—spanning fruit, vanilla, herbs, and spice tonalities derived through cold-pressed extraction and steam distillation—to meet growing consumer and customer demand for clean labels.
McCormick’s proprietary encapsulation technology preserves the fresh taste of natural flavors when converted to powder, performing exceptionally across citrus, coffee, aged beer and savory umami profiles.
Q: What emerging flavor trends are you seeing?
Foley: Spotting what’s next has long been our competitive edge, powered by a global reach that connects kitchens, cultures, and consumers everywhere. Our 26th Flavor Forecast continues that tradition, uncovering the trends shaping tomorrow. From early calls like pumpkin spice and chipotle to today’s bold new directions, our predictions don’t just follow trends—they define them.
For 2026, we’re celebrating black currant as the Flavor of the Year—a tart-yet-sweet berry symbolizing our key trends: Attainable Opulence, Simple to Spectacular and Sauce from Somewhere. These reflect consumers’ desire to elevate everyday meals, find beauty in simplicity, and explore global flavors through innovative sauces and spreads.
And then there’s heat—our signature competency. We’ve been measuring, mastering, and reinventing it since 1983, from the science of capsaicin to the sensory warmth of ginger, pepper, and mustard. Today, 84% of global consumers are seeking that thrill, and heat has evolved beyond intensity into artistry. We see it in three forms: the unapologetic burn of Heat for Heat’s Sake, the personality of Super Hero Chilli, and the nuanced balance of Complex Fire, where sweet meets spicy in perfect harmony.
Our Flavor Forecast has consistently anticipated this evolution—from wasabi (2007) and gochujang (2012) to mala (2020) and aji amarillo (2025)—showcasing how heat and global flavor exploration continue to define the future of taste.
Q: What role do you see sustainable sourcing playing in the future of the flavor industry? And how are you preparing for potential supply chain disruptions?
Foley: Sustainable sourcing will be central to the future of the flavor industry as consumers increasingly demand environmentally responsible products. At McCormick, we view sustainability as both a responsibility and a strategic advantage—essential for ensuring quality, cost efficiency, and long-term supply security. Our global supply chain sources over 14,000 ingredients from over 85 countries, many of which face climate and social challenges. To build resilience, we embed sustainability into our business processes and decision-making.
Through our Grown for Good framework for key iconic ingredients, recognized at Farm Sustainability Assessment (FSA) 3.5 Silver level by the Sustainable Agriculture Initiative Platform—we advance regenerative agriculture, biodiversity, and fair labor across our supply chain, positively impacting more than 54,000 acres of farmland, 53,000 farmers in 11 countries. In Madagascar, for instance, our participation in the Sustainable Vanilla Initiative supports over 25,000 farming households and distributes millions of seedlings to promote biodiversity and regenerative farming.
These combined efforts strengthen farmer livelihoods, secure ingredient quality, and mitigate risks from potential supply chain disruptions, ensuring that sustainability remains integral to both our business performance and the future of flavor.
Q: How is AI or machine learning being integrated into your flavor development process?
Foley: AI and machine learning are deeply integrated across McCormick’s flavor creation process, from consumer insights and sourcing to product development. These digital tools enhance how we engage with customers, enabling faster, insight-driven innovation with greater agility and high-impact in the marketplace.
First in Flavor, McCormick’s proprietary multi-step trend identification process, pinpoints flavors just before they reach widespread adoption. By integrating menu insights, search behavior, social engagement signals, e-commerce performance, and strategic evaluation, the tool identifies emerging tastes at the optimal moment for scaling. This data-driven approach accelerates speed to market and increases the success rate of innovation.
Our partnership on a cloud-based platform provides real-time traceability across our supply chain, capturing data on field mapping, production, and sales. McCormick is uniquely positioned across the full spectrum of the vanilla value chain from orchids to retail. This modern agritech approach ensures all vanilla shipments are fully traceable back to the farms, reinforcing transparency and trust while delivering the authentic flavors consumers love.
Flavor design is both an art and a science, traditionally requiring years of expertise and extensive experimentation. To accelerate this process, McCormick co-developed SAGE, an AI-powered system built on decades of proprietary sensory science, taste profiles, and consumer preference data. SAGE helps product developers create innovative flavor experiences with improved taste, quality, cost efficiency, and sustainability—reducing trial-and-error and strengthening customer relationships.
Culinary Heritage, Science and Digital Innovation to Shape the Future of Flavor
For more than 135 years, McCormick has evolved alongside changing consumer expectations while making life more flavorful. By combining culinary expertise, scientific research, responsible sourcing, and digital innovation, we are shaping the future of flavor and reinforcing our position as the world’s most trusted source of flavor.
