Risks RelatedIf our suppliers are unable to Our Businesssupply us with sufficient quantities of ingredients and Industryraw materials to meet our needs, we would need to seek alternative sources of such materials (which may result in higher transportation or procurement costs) or pursue our own production of such ingredients or direct acquisition of such raw materials. However, for certain of our ingredients and raw materials we rely on a limited number of suppliers where there are not readily available alternatives. If we are unable to obtain or manufacture alternative sources of such ingredients or raw materials at a similar cost, we may seek to (i) reformulate our products and/or (ii) increase pricing to reflect the higher supply cost. To mitigate our sourcing risk, we maintain strategic stock levels for critical items. However, if we do not accurately estimate the amount of raw materials that will be used for the geographic region in which we will need these materials or competitively price our products, our margins could be adversely affected.

On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization designated COVID-19 was identified in China in late 2019as a global pandemic. Since then, government and since then has spread globally. Governmentlocal authorities, including those in countries where we have manufacturing and other operations, have taken various measures to try to contain thisthe spread such asof the pandemic, including the closure of non-essential businesses, reduced travel, the closure of retail establishments, the promotion of social distancing and remote working policies where appropriate. These

While increase in vaccination rates and new treatment measures have impactedproven effective to date, the COVID-19 pandemic remains a serious threat to the health of the world's population and certain countries and regions continue to suffer from outbreaks or have seen a resurgence of infections, especially with the emergence of new variants of the virus. The continuing uncertainty related to the COVID-19 pandemic leads to continued volatility and risk of new government restrictions or market disruptions. The scope, location and timing of such restrictions or disruptions (if any) are difficult to predict and may furthermaterially impact our workforceoperations in the future. The pandemic may also affect our operating and operations, and the operations of our customers, vendors and suppliers.financial results in a manner that is not presently known to us or that we currently do not expect to present significant risks.

The COVID-19 pandemic has subjected and may continue to subject our operations, financial condition and results of operations to a number of risks, including, but not limited to, those discussed below:

Although we do not currently anticipate any impairment charges related to COVID-19, the continuing effects of a prolonged pandemic could result in increased risk to us of asset write-downs and impairments, including, but not limited to, equity investments,property, plant and equipment, goodwill and intangibles.other intangibles, and equity investments. Any of these events could potentially result in a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations.

The combination of large, diverse and independent businesses is complex, costly and time-consuming. Designing and building our combined operating models along with the necessary business processes, systems and infrastructure in connection with our combination with the N&B Business may divert significant management attention and resources and disrupt our legacy business. The failure to meet the challenges involved in integrating the businesses and to realize the anticipated benefits of the transaction could cause an interruption of, or a loss of momentum in, our business activities and could adversely affect our results of operations. The overall combination with the N&B Business may also result in material unanticipated problems, expenses, liabilities, competitive responses, employee turnover and loss of customer and other business relationships. In addition, even if the operations of the N&B Business are integrated successfully, the full benefits of the transaction may not be realized, including, among others, the synergies, cost savings or revenue growth that are expected. These benefits may not be achieved within the anticipated time frame or at all.

The difficulties of integration or realizing the full benefits of the N&B Transaction include, among others:

In connection with the N&B Transaction, our consolidated indebtedness and that of our subsidiaries include the indebtedness incurred by N&B in the debt financings completed prior to the N&B Transaction, increasing our indebtedness by $7.5 billion. As of December 31, 2020,2021, our total debt consisted of $4.4was $11.400 billion. Despite our level of indebtedness, we expect to continue to have the ability to borrow additional debt.

The full benefits of the Frutarom acquisition depend on the continuing realization of cost synergies through global footprint optimization across manufacturing, the realization of procurement synergies, organizational and operational efficiencies in overhead expenses, as well as revenue growth and synergies by leveraging customer relationships across a much broader customer base and cross-selling legacy IFF and Frutarom capabilities. These benefits and the expected revenue growth may not be achieved within the anticipated time frame or at all. Further, additional unanticipated costs may be incurred as we continue to work towards achieving the full cost and revenue synergies. If the anticipated benefits from the Frutarom acquisition are not fully realized, or take longer to realize than expected, the value of our common stock, revenues, levels of expenses and results of operations may be adversely affected.

As a result of our acquisition of Frutarom and the N&B Transaction, the number of our customers significantly increased and became more diverse. Our historical customer base was primarily comprised of large and medium-sized food, beverage and consumer products companies. Based on 2020 sales, we had approximately 33,000 customers, approximately 65%With the completion of which are small and mid-sized companies. Following the N&B Transaction, our customer base has further increased significantly.significantly and, based on 2021 sales, we had approximately 42,000 customers, approximately 59% of which are small and mid-sized companies. This substantial increase in and diversity of our customer base requireshas required us and may continue to require us to adjust, among other things, our product development, manufacturing, distribution, marketing, customer relationship and sales strategy as well as adapt corporate, information technology, finance and administrative infrastructures to support different go-to-market models. We may experience difficulty managing the growth of a portfolio of customers that is more diverse in terms of its geographical presence as well as with respect to the types of services they require and the infrastructure required to deliver our products. If we are unable to successfully gain market share or maintain our relationships with these customers, our future growth could be adversely affected.

From time to time, we evaluate acquisition candidates that may strategically fit our business and/or growth objectives. If we are unable to successfully integrate and develop acquired businesses, we could fail to achieve anticipated synergies and cost savings, including any expected increase in revenues and operating results, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial results. Furthermore, even if successfully integrated, the acquisition target may fail to further the Company’s business strategy as anticipated, expose the Company to increased competition or other challenges with respect to the Company’s products or geographic markets, and expose the Company to additional liabilities associated with the acquired business, technology or other asset or arrangement. We may also incur asset impairment charges related to acquisitions thatif we fail to maintain and integrate the acquired businesses and such impairments charges would reduce our earnings.

Additionally, weWe also evaluate and enter into collaborations, joint ventures or partnerships from time to time to enhance our research and development efforts or expand our product portfolios and technology. The process of establishing and maintaining collaborative relationships is difficult and time-consuming to negotiate, document and implement. We may not be able to

The markets in which we compete are highly competitive. We face vigorous competition from companies throughout the world, including multi-national and specialized companies active in flavors, fragrances, enzymes, pharmaceutical excipients, nutrition and specialty ingredients, as well as consumer product companies which may develop their own flavors, fragrances or ingredients. Incompeting products. For instance, in the flavors industry, we also face increasing competition from ingredient suppliers that have expanded their portfolios to include flavor offerings. Some of our competitors specialize in one or more of our product sub-segments, while others participate in many of our product sub-segments. In addition, some of our global competitors may have more resources than we do or may have proprietary products that could permit them to respond to changing business and economic conditions more effectively than we can. Consolidation of or partnerships among our competitors may exacerbate these risks.

As we continue to enter into adjacent markets, such as cosmetic ingredients, functional foods, specialty fine ingredients and nutrition products, we may face greater competition-related risks in these markets than with our core historic flavor and fragrancesother businesses. For example, the specialty fine ingredients market is more price sensitive than the flavors market and is characterized by relatively lower profit margins. Some fine ingredients products are less unique and more replaceable than competitors’ products. There is no assurance that operating margins will remain at current levels, which could substantially impact our business, operating results and financial condition.

Competition in our business is based, among other things, on innovation, product quality, regulatory compliance, pricing, quality of customer service, the support provided by marketing and application groups, and understanding of consumers. It is difficult for us to predict the timing, scale and success of our competitors’ actions in these areas. In particular, the discovery and development of new products, protection of our intellectual property and development and retention of key employees are critical to our ability to effectively compete in our business. Advancement in technologies have also enhanced the ability of our competitors to develop substitutable products. Increased competition by existing or future competitors, including aggressive price competition, could result in the loss of sales, reduced pricing and margin pressure and could adversely impact our sales and profitability.

Failing to identify and make capital expenditures to achieve growth opportunities, being unable to make new concepts scalable, or failing to effectively and timely reinvest in our business operations, could result in the loss of competitive position and adversely affect our financial condition or results of operations.

Attracting, developing, and retaining talented employees including our perfumers, scientists and flavorists, is essential to the successful delivery of our products and successhas become more difficult and costly in the marketplace.current labor market with historically high employee resignations. Furthermore, as we continue to focus on innovation, our need for scientists and other professionals will increase.increase and may result in increased labor costs. The ability to attract and retain talented employees is critical in the development of new products and technologies which is an integral component of our growth strategy.

Competition for employees can be intense and if we are unable to successfully integrate, motivate and reward the acquired Frutarom employees, employees from the N&B Business or our current employees in our combined company, we may not be able to retain them. If we are unable to retain these employees or attract new employees in the future, our ability to effectively compete with our competitors and to grow our business could be adversely affected.

During 2020,2021, our 25 largest customers, eacha majority of which was awere multi-national consumer products company,companies, collectively accounted for 39%29% of our sales in the aggregate. Large multi-national customers’ market share, especially in the consumer product industry, continues to be pressured by new smaller companies and specialty players that cater to or are more adept at adjusting to the latest consumer trends, including towards natural products and clean labels, changes in the retail landscape (including e-commerce and consolidation), and increased competition from private labels, which have resulted and may

In addition, large multi-national customers and, increasingly middle market customers, continue to utilize “core lists” of suppliers to improve margins and profitability.profitability in the flavors and fragrance segments. Typically, these “core list" suppliers are then given priority for new or modified products. Recently, these customers are making inclusion on their “core lists” contingent upon a supplier providing more favorable commercial terms, including rebates, which could adversely affect our margins. We must either offer competitive cost-in-use solutions to secure and maintain inclusion on these “core lists” or seek to manage the relationship without being on the “core-list.” If we choose not to pursue “core-list” status due to profitability concerns or if we are unable to obtain “core-list” status, our ability to maintain our share of these customers’ future purchases could be adversely affected and therefore our future results of operations.

Our ability to differentiate ourselves and deliver growth largely depends on our ability to successfully develop and introduce new products and product improvements that meet our customers’ needs, and ultimately appeal to consumers. Innovation is a key element of our ability to develop and introduce new products. We cannot be certain that we will be successful in achieving our innovation goals, such as the development of new molecules, new and expanded delivery systems and other technologies. We currently spend approximately 7.0%5% of our sales on research and development; however, this investment level may vary in the future if available resources to invest in research and development are limited due to our ongoing integration and restructuring efforts. Our research and development investments may only generate future revenues to the extent that we are able to develop products that meet our customers’ specifications, are at an acceptable cost and achieve acceptance by the targeted consumer market. Furthermore, there may be significant lag times from the time we incur research and development costs to the time that these research and development costs may result in increased revenue.

Consequently, even when we “win” a project, our ability to generate revenues as a result of these investments is subject to numerous customer, economic and other risks that are outside of our control, including delays by our customers in the launch of a new product, the level of promotional support for the launch, poor performance of our third-party vendors, anticipated sales by our customers not being realized or changes in market preferences or demands, or disruptive innovations by competitors.

As a company engaged in the global development, manufacture and distribution of products, we are subject to the risks inherent in such activities, including industrial accidents, environmental events, strikes and other labor disputes, product quality control issues, safety, licensing requirements and other regulatory issues, as well as natural disasters, public health crises, such as pandemics or epidemics, international conflicts, geopolitical events, terrorist acts and other external factors over which we have no control. For instance, the Russia-Ukraine conflict could adversely impact, among other things, certain of our local markets and suppliers, global and local macroeconomic conditions, foreign exchange rates and financial markets, raw material, energy and transportation costs, and cause further supply chain disruptions.

While we operate research and development, manufacturing and distribution facilities throughout the world, many of these facilities are extremely specialized and certain of our research and development or creative laboratories facilities are uniquely situated to support our research and development efforts while certain of our manufacturing facilities are the sole location where a specific ingredient or product is produced. If our research and development activities or the manufacturing of ingredients or products were disrupted, the cost of relocating or replacing these activities or reformulating these ingredients or products may be substantial, which could result in production or development delays or otherwise have an adverse effect on our margins, operating results and future growth.

We rely on information technology systems, including some managed by third-party providers, to conduct business and support our business processes, including those relating to product formulas, product development, manufacturing, sales, order and invoice processing, production, distribution, internal communications and communications with third parties throughout the world, processing transactions, summarizing and reporting results of operations, complying with regulatory, tax or legal requirements, and collecting and storing customer, supplier, employee and other stakeholder information. Cyber securityCybersecurity incidents, data breaches and operational disruptions are constantly evolving, becoming more sophisticated and are conducted by groups and individuals with a wide range of expertise and motives, including foreign governments, cyber terrorists, cyber criminals and malicious employees and other insiders and outsiders. We and our third-party providers are subject to risks posed by such incidents, which can take many forms, including code anomalies, “Acts of God,” data leakage, hardware or software failures, human error, cyber extortion, password theft or introduction of viruses, malware, and ransomware, including through phishing emails.

A disruption to our information technology systems could result in the loss of confidential business, customer, supplier or employee information, litigation or fines and may require substantial investigations, repairs or replacements, or impact our ability to summarize and report financial results in a timely manner, resulting in significant financial, legal, and relational costs and potentially harming our reputation and adversely impacting our operations, customer service and results of operations. As we work on upgrading and integrating N&B’s and Frutarom’s systems with IFF’s systems, these risks may be exacerbated. Additionally, a security or data breach could require us to devote significant management and financial resources to address the problems created, and, as a result of the private rights of action provided for under the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”), the California Consumer Privacy Act (the “CCPA”) and other laws relating to data protection and privacy in other jurisdictions, in the event of such breaches, additional private litigation against us may result. These types of adverse impacts could also occur in the event the confidentiality, integrity or availability of company, customer, supplier or employee information are compromised due to a data loss by us or a trusted third party. We or the third parties with which we share information may not discover any such incidents and loss of information for a significant period of time after the incident occurs. In addition, our remote work arrangements, as a result of COVID-19, we are facing increased operational challenges as we take measures to support and protect employee health and safety, including implementing work-from-home policies for employees. In particular, our remote work arrangements, coupled with stay-at-home orders, may pose challenges for our employees and our IT systems and extended periods of remote work arrangements could introduce operational risk, including cybersecurity and IT systems management risks.

Although we have developed systems and processes that are designed to protect our data and customer data and to prevent data loss and other security breaches and expect to continue to expend additional resources to bolster these protections, these security measures cannot provide absolute security and we may be unable to detect or prevent a breach or disruption in the future. Additionally, while we have insurance coverage designed to address certain aspects of cyber risks in place, such insurance coverage may be insufficient to cover all losses or all types of claims that may arise.

As part of our growth strategy, we have increased our presence in emerging markets by expanding our manufacturing presence, sales organization and product offerings in these markets, and we expect to continue to expand our business in these markets. With our acquisition of Frutarom in 2018 and the closing of the N&B Transaction, in February 2021, each of which also had a significant presence in emerging markets, our business in these markets has meaningfully grown. In addition to the currency and international risks described below, our operations in these markets may be subject to a variety of other risks. Emerging markets typically have a consumer base with limited or fluctuating disposable income and customer demand in these markets may fluctuate accordingly. As a result, decrease in customer demand in emerging markets may have an adverse effect on our ability to execute our growth strategy.

Further, there is no assurance that our existing products, variants of our existing products or new products that we make, manufacture, distribute or sell will be accepted or be successful in any particular developing or emerging market, due to local or global competition, product price, cultural differences, consumer preferences or otherwise. In addition, emerging markets may have weak legal systems which may affect our ability to enforce our intellectual property and contractual rights, exchange

We have significant operations outside the U.S., the results of which are reported in the local currency and then translated into U.S. dollars at applicable exchange rates for inclusion in our consolidated financial statements. The exchange rates between these currencies and the U.S. dollar have fluctuated and will continue to do so in the future. For example, as of July 1, 2018, we concluded that Argentina’s economy is highly inflationary under US GAAP, as it has experienced cumulative inflation of approximately 100% or more over a three-year period. While our current operationsfuture, with the fluctuations being particularly pronounced in Argentina represent less than 3% of our consolidated net sales and less than 1% of our consolidated total assets, continuing inflation in Argentina could adversely affect our profitability in a specific period.certain emerging markets. Changes in exchange rates between these local currencies and the U.S. dollar will affect the recorded levels of sales, profitability, assets and/or liabilities. Additionally, volatility in currency exchange rates may adversely impact our financial condition, cash flows or liquidity. Although we employ a variety of techniques to mitigate the impact of exchange rate fluctuations, including sourcing strategies and a limited number of foreign currency hedging activities, we cannot guarantee that such hedging and risk management strategies will be effective, and our results of operations could be adversely affected.

We operate on a global basis, with manufacturing and sales facilities in or supply arrangements with companies based in the U.S., Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Greater Asia. During 2020,2021, approximately 80%72% of our combined net sales were to customers outside the U.S. and we intend to continue expansion of our international operations. As a result, our business is increasingly exposed to risks inherent in international operations. These risks, which can vary substantially by location, include the following:

The occurrence of any one or more of these factors could increase our costs and adversely affect our results of operations.

OurMany of our products are a subset ofingredients in a wide assortment of global consumer products throughout the world. Historically, demand for consumer products using our products, such as flavors and fragrance compounds and ingredients, was stimulated and broadened by changing social habits and consumer needs, population growth, an expanding global middle-class and general economic growth, especially in emerging markets. However,

Recently, impacts of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in increased volatility and economic uncertainty, and may lead to significant negative impacts on consumer spending, demand for our products, the ability for our customers to pay or our suppliers to supply, our financial condition and the financial condition of our suppliers or customers. It is currently anticipated that these challenging economic uncertainties will continue to affect certain of our markets during 2021 which could adversely affect our sales, profitability and overall operating results. Even prior to COVID-19, the global economy had experienced significant recessionary pressures and declines in consumer confidence and economic growth. The predictions surroundinggrowth, and if those conditions emerge again or the global recessionary economic environment has,impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues, our operating results and future growth may in the near future, increase unemployment and underemployment, decrease salaries and wage rates, increase inflation or result in other market-wide cost pressures that willbe adversely affect demand for consumer products in both developed and emerging markets. In addition, growth rates in the emerging markets have moderated from previous levels. Reduced consumer spending may cause changes in our customer orders including reduced demand for our flavors and fragrances compounds or ingredients, or order cancellations. The timing of placing of orders and the amounts of these orders are generally at our customers’ discretion. Customers may cancel, reduce or postpone orders with us on relatively short notice. Significant cancellations, reductions or delays in orders by customers could affect our quarterly results.affected.

We must continually anticipate and react, in a timely and cost-effective manner, to changes in consumer preferences and demands, including changes in demand driven by increasing awareness of health and wellness and demands for transparency or cleaner labels with respect to product ingredients by consumers and regulators. Consumers, especially in developed economies such as the U.S. and Western Europe, are rapidly shifting away from products containing artificial ingredients to all-natural, healthier alternatives. In addition, there has been a growing demand by consumers, non-governmental organizations and, to a lesser extent, governmental agencies to provide more transparency in product labeling and our customers have been taking steps to address this demand, including by voluntarily providing product-specific ingredients disclosure. These two trends could affect the types and volumes of our ingredients and compounds that our customers include in their consumer product offerings and, therefore, affect the demand for our products. If we are unable to react to or anticipate these trends in a timely and cost-effective manner, our results of operations and future growth may be adversely affected.

Federal, state, local and foreign governments, our customers, consumers and consumersshareholders are becoming increasingly sensitive to environmental and other sustainability issues. In response, we have committed to a sustainability strategy through which we continue to assess our combined environmental footprint following the N&B Transaction and the Frutarom acquisition, with the intent of identifying synergies, gaps and opportunities in our sustainability efforts.

As part of our assessment so far, we have been upgrading Frutarom’s sustainability practices to better align them to our legacy IFF practices and we have begunare also integrating the N&B Business’ practices, both of which may require significant costs and time to implement. Our assessment may reveal additional gaps between the N&B Business or Frutarom operations on the one hand and our sustainability practices and goals on the other hand, which may require significant costs to remedy.

Despite our efforts, the increased focus on sustainability may result in new regulations and customer requirements that could affect us. These could cause us to incur additional direct costs or to make changes to our operations in order to comply with any new regulations and customer requirements. We could also lose revenue if our customers divert business from us because we have not complied with their sustainability requirements or if we are not successful in integrating N&B Business’ and Frutarom’s sustainability metrics. Increased shareholder activism with respect to sustainability or other governance issues or management concerns could also lead to increased costs. These potential costs, changes and loss of revenue could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition.

We sell certain accounts receivable on a non-recourse basis to unrelated financial institutions under “factoring” agreements, thatsome of which are sponsored solely and individually, by certain customers. The cost of participating in these programs was immaterial to our results in all periods. Should we choose not to participate, or if these programs were no longer available, it could reduce our cash flows from operations in the period in which the arrangement ends.

A significant portion of our assets consists of long-lived assets, including tangible assets such as our manufacturing facilities, and intangible assets, including goodwill.goodwill and customer relationships.

As a result of our recent acquisitions, including the 2018 acquisition of Frutarom and the N&B Transaction, as of December 31, 2020,2021, we had recorded approximately $8.3$26.920 billion of intangible assets and goodwill, including $4.3$4.289 billion of goodwill associated with the acquisition of Frutarom. The N&B Transaction will add approximately $20.5Frutarom and $11.817 billion of goodwill and other intangible assets to IFF’s consolidated balance sheet.associated with the Merger with the N&B Business. Our results of operations and financial position in future periods could be negatively impacted should future impairments of our long-lived assets, including intangible assets or goodwill occur.

At least annually, we assess both goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment. We test for impairment by comparing the estimated fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount. If the carrying amount of a reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value, we record an impairment charge based on the difference of the two. Intangible assets with finite lives are also tested for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable. Such events and changes in circumstances could include a sustained decrease in our market capitalization, increased competition or unexpected loss of market share, increased input costs beyond projections (for example due to regulatory or industry changes), our inability to recognize the anticipated benefits of acquisitions, unexpected business disruptions (for example due to a natural disaster, public health crises, such as pandemics or epidemics or loss of a customer, supplier, or other significant business relationship), acts by governments and courts, operating results falling short of projections, or significant adverse changes in the markets in which we operate.

Fair value determinations require considerable judgment and are sensitive to changes in underlying assumptions, estimates and market factors. Estimating the fair value of reporting units requires us to make assumptions and estimates regarding our business performance, future plans, future annual net cash flows, income tax considerations, discount rates, growth rates, and based on industry, economic, regulatory conditions and other market factors. Moreover, management will make significant accounting judgments and estimates for the application of acquisition accounting under GAAP, and the underlying valuation models. IFF’s business, operating results and financial condition could be materially and adversely impacted in future periods if IFF’s accounting judgments and estimates related to these models prove to be inaccurate.

To the extent any of our acquisitions, including the acquisitions of Frutarom and the N&B Business, do not perform as anticipated and our underlying assumptions and estimates related to their fair value determination are not met, whether due to internal or external factors, the value of such assets may be negatively affected and we may be required to record impairment charges.

The funding obligations for our pension plans are impacted by the performance of the financial markets, particularly the equity markets and interest rates. Funding obligations are determined under government regulations and are measured each year based on the value of assets and liabilities on a specific date. If the financial markets do not provide the long-term returns that are expected under the governmental funding calculations, we could be required to make larger contributions. The equity markets can be very volatile, and therefore our estimate of future contribution requirements can change dramatically in relatively short periods of time. Similarly, changes in interest rates and legislation enacted by governmental authorities can impact the timing and amounts of contribution requirements. An adverse change in the funded status of the plans could significantly increase our required contributions in the future and adversely impact our liquidity.

Assumptions used in determining projected benefit obligations and the fair value of plan assets for our pension and other postretirement benefit plans are determined by us in consultation with outside consultants and advisors. In the event that we determine that changes are warranted in the assumptions used, such as the discount rate, expected long-term rate of return on assets, or expected health care costs, our future pension and postretirement benefit expenses could increase or decrease. Due to changing market conditions or changes in the participant population, the assumptions that we use may differ from actual results, which could have a significant impact on our pension and postretirement liabilities and related costs and funding requirements.

In 2017, the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (the “FCA”), which regulates LIBOR, announced that it intends to phase out LIBOR by the end of 2021. Currently thereIt was unclear at that time whether or not LIBOR would cease to exist, if new methods of calculating LIBOR would be established such that it continues to exist after 2021 or if replacement conventions would be developed. In March 2021, the FCA confirmed that publication of all of the LIBOR settings for Euro, Sterling and Swiss Franc and some of the LIBOR settings for Japanese Yen and US dollars ceased in December 2021 and the remainder of the LIBOR settings for US dollars will cease in June 2023. To identify a successor rate for LIBOR, financial regulators in various countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union and Switzerland, have formed working groups with the aim of recommending alternatives to LIBOR denominated in their local currencies. Some of the financial regulators have identified the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) as their preferred alternative rate for LIBOR.

SOFR is no definitive information regardingobserved and backward-looking, which stands in contrast with LIBOR under the current methodology, which is an estimated forward-looking rate and relies, to some degree, on the expert judgment of submitting panel members. Given that SOFR is a secured rate backed by government securities, it will be a rate that does not take into account bank credit risk (as is the case with LIBOR). Whether or not SOFR attains market traction as a LIBOR replacement tool remains in question. Although certain financial regulators have indicated their preference for SOFR as the preferred replacement rate for LIBOR, it is unclear if other benchmarks may emerge or if other rates will be adopted. As such, the future utilization of LIBOR or of any particular replacement rate.is uncertain.

Even if the financial instruments transition to using alternative benchmarks like SOFR successfully, the new benchmarks are likely to differ from LIBOR, as the alternative benchmark rate may be calculated differently. Borrowings under our revolving credit and term loan facilities are at variable interest rates based on LIBOR. Although our revolving credit and term loan facilities include mechanics to facilitate the adoption by us and our lenders of an alternative benchmark rate in place of LIBOR, no assurance can be made that such alternative rate will perform in a manner similar to LIBOR and may result in interest rates that are higher or lower than those that would have resulted had LIBOR remained in effect. Further, transitioning to an alternative benchmark rate, such as SOFR, may result in us incurring expense and legal risks, as renegotiation and changes to documentation may be required in effecting the transition. Any of these occurrences could materially and adversely affect our borrowing costs, financial condition, and results of operations.

We currently manufacture goods in the United Kingdom for distribution in the European Union and vice-versa and therefore may be adversely affected as a result of the United Kingdom’s departure from the European Union (“Brexit”) in 2020. The impact of the withdrawal could,has and may continue to, among other outcomes, exacerbate the disruption of the free movement of goods, services and people between the United Kingdom and the European Union, undermine bilateral cooperation in key geographic areas and significantly disrupt trade between the United Kingdom and the European Union or other nations as the United Kingdom pursues independent trade relations. In addition, Brexit has causedand continues to cause legal uncertainty, which could last indefinitely, and may potentially create divergent national laws and regulations as the United Kingdom determines which European Union laws to replace or replicate. Given the lack of comparable precedent, it is unclear what the financial, trade and legal implications of the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union will be and how the withdrawal will continue to affect us. Adverse consequences concerning Brexit or the European Union could include deterioration in global economic conditions, instability in global financial markets, political uncertainty, volatility in currency exchange rates, or adverse changes in the cross-border agreements currently in place, any of which could have an adverse impact on our financial results in the future.

The development, manufacture and sale of our products are subject to various regulatory requirements in each of the countries in which our products are developed, manufactured and sold. In addition, we are subject to product safety and compliance requirements established by governments, non-governmental organizations, including industry or similar oversight bodies, or contractually by our customers, including requirements concerning product safety, quality and efficacy, environmental impacts (including packaging, energy and water use and waste management) and other sustainability or similar issues. Changes to regulations or the implementation of additional regulations, especially in certain highly regulated markets served by us following the N&B Transaction,we are active in, such as regulatory modernization of food safety laws and evolving standards and regulations affecting pharmaceutical excipients, microbials, or in reaction to new or next-generation technologies, including advances in protein engineering, gene editing and gene mapping, or novel uses of existing technologies has required and may in the future require us to reduce or remove certain ingredients, substances or processing aids from the product portfolio and may result in significant costs or capital expenditures or require changes in business practice that could result in reduced margins or profitability.

We use a variety of strategies, methodologies and tools to minimize the likelihood of product or process non-

Gaps in our operational processes or those of our suppliers or distributors can result in products that do not meet our quality control or industry standards or fail to comply with the relevant regulatory requirements, which in turn can result in finished consumer goods that do not comply with applicable standards and requirements. Products that are mislabeled, contaminated or damaged could result in a regulatory non-compliance event or even a product recall by the FDA or a similar foreign agency. For instance, the Company determined that certain grades of microcrystalline cellulose (Avicel® PH 101, 102, and 200 NF and Avicel® RC-591 NF) were found to be out-of-specification (collectively, “OOS Avicel® NF”). Although the Company does not expect this issue to affect the functionality of Avicel® NF grades or to pose a human health hazard, corrective actions have been implemented to improve operational and laboratory conditions.

Our contracts often require us to indemnify our customers for the costs associated with a product non-compliance event, including penalties, costs and settlements arising from litigation, remediation costs or loss of sales. As our flavors and fragrance compounds and ingredients and our nutrition and health, food and beverage and pharma offerings are used in many products intended for human use or consumption, these consequences would be exacerbated if we or our customer did not identify the defect before the product reaches the consumer and there was a resulting impact at the consumer level. Such a result could lead to potentially large-scale adverse publicity, negative effects on consumer’s health, recalls and potential litigation, fines, penalties, sanctions or other regulatory actions. In addition, if we do not have adequate insurance or contractual indemnification from suppliers or other third parties, or if insurance or indemnification is not available, the liability relating to product or possible third-party claims arising from mislabeled, contaminated or damaged products could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Furthermore, adverse publicity about our products, or our customers’ products that contain our ingredients, including concerns about product safety or similar issues, whether real or perceived, could harm our reputation and result in an immediate adverse effect on our sales and customer relationships, as well as require us to utilize significant resources to rebuild our reputation.

Our business operations and properties procure, make use of, manufacture, sell, and distribute substances that are sometimes considered hazardous and are therefore subject to extensive and increasingly stringent federal, state, local and foreign laws and regulations pertaining to protection of the environment, including air emissions, sewage discharges, the use of hazardous materials, waste disposal practices and clean-up of existing environmental contamination.

Failure to comply with these laws and regulations or any future changes to them may result in significant consequences to us, including the need to close or relocate one or more of our production facilities, administrative, civil and criminal penalties, fines, sanctions, litigation, costly remediation measures, liability for damages and negative publicity. If we are unable to meet production requirements, we can lose customer orders, which can adversely affect our future growth or we may be required to make incremental capital investments to ensure supply. For example, we recentlyhave completed negotiations with the Chinese government concerning the relocation of a second fragrance facility in China. Idling of facilities or production modifications has caused or may cause customers to seek alternate suppliers due to concerns regarding supply interruptions and these customers may not return or may order at reduced levels even once issues are remediated. If these non-compliance issues reoccur in China or occur or in any other jurisdiction, we may lose business and may be required to incur capital spending above previous expectations, close a plant, or operate a plant at significantly reduced production levels on a permanent basis, and our operating results and cash flows from operations may be adversely affected.

The global nature of our business, our increased size and employee count, the significance of our international revenue, and our focus on emerging markets and presence in regulated industries create various domestic and local regulatory challenges and subject us to risks associated with our international operations. The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, or FCPA, and similar anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws and regulations in other countries generally prohibit companies and their intermediaries from making improper payments to foreign officials for the purpose of obtaining or keeping business or for other commercial advantage. In addition, U.S. public companies are required to maintain records that accurately and fairly represent their transactions and have an adequate system of internal accounting controls. Under the FCPA, U.S. companies may be held liable for the corrupt actions taken by directors, officers, employees, agents, or other strategic or local partners or representatives. As such, if we or our intermediaries fail to comply with the requirements of the FCPA or similar legislation, governmental authorities in the U.S. and elsewhere could seek to impose substantial civil and/or criminal fines and penalties which could have a material adverse effect on our business, reputation, operating results and financial condition.

We operate or may pursue opportunities in some jurisdictions, such as China, India, Brazil, Russia and Africa, that pose potentially elevated risks of fraud or corruption or increased risk of internal control issues. In certain jurisdictions, compliance with anti-bribery laws may conflict with local customs and practices. From time to time, we have conducted and will conduct internal investigations of the relevant facts and circumstances, control testing and compliance reviews, and take remedial actions, when appropriate, to help ensure that we are in compliance with applicable corruption and similar laws and regulations. For example, in August 2019, during the integration of Frutarom, we were made aware of allegations that two Frutarom businesses operating principally in Russia and Ukraine made certain improper payments, including to representatives of a number of customers. Our investigation substantiated the allegations that improper payments to representatives of customers were made and that key members of Frutarom’s senior management at the time were aware of such payments. We did not uncover any evidence suggesting that such payments had any connection to the U.S. In addition, Frutarom grew through rapid acquisition and, as part of our integration efforts, we have implemented our anti- corruptionanti-corruption and similar policies throughout a number of those acquired companies, many of which were not previously subject to these U.S. laws.

Given the international scope of our business, we also sell certain of our products to countries that are subject to U.S. and other sanctions under general authorizations regarding such products. Compliance with sanctions laws is highly technical and requires careful oversight, and it is possible that actions taken by us, our subsidiaries or our suppliers may cause us to be in breach with these laws, which could have a material adverse effect to our business. Detecting, investigating and resolving actual or alleged violations of the FCPA or other anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws and regulations is expensive, could consume significant time and attention of our senior management and could subject us to investigations and inquiries by governmental and other regulatory bodies. Any allegations of non- compliancenon-compliance with such laws and regulations could have a disruptive effect on our operations in such jurisdiction, including interruptions of business or loss of third-party relationships, which may negatively impact our results of operations or financial condition. Any determination that our operations or activities are not in compliance with such laws and regulations could expose us to severe criminal or civil penalties or other sanctions, significant fines, termination of necessary licenses and permits, and penalties or other sanctions that may harm our business and reputation.

We rely on patents, trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets to protect our intellectual property rights. We often rely on trade secrets to protect our proprietary fragrance and flavor formulations, as well as ourproducts, manufacturing processes, extract methodologies, and other processes, for our nutrition, natural colors for food and natural antioxidants for food protection, as this does not require us to publicly file information regarding our intellectual property. From time to time, a third party may claim that we have infringed upon or misappropriated their intellectual property rights, or a third party may infringe upon or misappropriate our intellectual property rights. We could incur significant costs in connection with legal actions to assert our intellectual property rights against third parties or to defend ourselves from third-party assertions of invalidity, infringement, misappropriation or other claims. Any settlement or adverse judgment resulting from such litigation could require us to obtain a license to continue to use the intellectual property rights that are the subject of the claim, or otherwise restrict or prohibit our use of such intellectual property rights. Any required licensing fees may not be available to us on acceptable terms, if at all. For those intellectual property rights that are protected as trade secrets, this litigation could result in even higher costs, and potentially the loss of certain rights, since we would not have a perfected intellectual property right that precludes others from making, using or selling our products or processes. The ongoing trend among our customers towards more transparent labeling could further diminish our ability to effectively protect our proprietary flavor formulations.products.

We vigilantly protect our intellectual property rights, including trade secrets. We have designed and implemented internal controls intended to restrict access to and distribution of our respective intellectual property. Despite these precautions, our intellectual property is vulnerable to unauthorized access through employee error or actions, theft and cybersecurity incidents, and other security breaches. Protecting intellectual property related to biotechnology is particularly challenging because theft is difficult to detect and biotechnology can be self-replicating. Accordingly, the impact of such theft can be significant.

For intellectual property rights that we seek to protect through patents, we cannot be certain that these rights, if obtained, will not later be opposed, invalidated, or circumvented. In addition, even if such rights are obtained in the U.S., the laws of some of the other countries in which our products are or may be sold do not protect intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws of the US.U.S. If other parties were to infringe on our intellectual property rights, or if our intellectual property rights were the subject of unauthorized access leading to competitive pressure or if a third party successfully asserted that we had infringed on their intellectual property rights, it could materially and adversely affect our future results of operations by, among other things, (i) being required to cease production and marketing or reducing the price that we could obtain in the marketplace for products which are based on such rights, (ii) increasing the royalty or other fees that we may be required to pay

We are subject to taxes in the U.S. and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Our future effective tax rates could be affected by changes in the mix of earnings in countries with differing statutory tax rates, changes in the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities, changes in liabilities for uncertain tax positions, cost of repatriations or changes in tax laws or their interpretation. Any of these changes could have a material adverse effect on our profitability.

We have and will continue to implement transfer pricing policies among our various operations located in different countries. These transfer pricing policies are a significant component of the management and compliance of our operations across international boundaries and overall financial results. Many countries routinely examine transfer pricing policies of taxpayers subject to their jurisdiction, challenge transfer pricing policies aggressively where there is potential non-compliance and impose significant interest charges and penalties where non-compliance is determined. However, governmental authorities could challenge these policies more aggressively in the future and, if challenged, we may not prevail. We could suffer significant costs related to one or more challenges to our transfer pricing policies.

We are subject to the continual examination of our income tax returns by the Internal Revenue Service, state tax authorities and foreign tax authorities in those countries in which we operate, and we may be subject to assessments or audits in the future in any of the countries in which we operate. The final determination of tax audits and any related litigation could be materially different from our historical income tax provisions and accruals, and while we do not believe the results that follow would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, such results could have a material effect on our income tax provision, net income or cash flows in the period or periods in which that determination is made.

In addition, a number of international legislative and regulatory bodies have proposed legislation and begun investigations of the tax practices of multi-national companies and, in the European Union, the tax policies of certain European Union member states. One of these efforts has been led by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, an international association of 34 countries including the U.S., which has finalized recommendations to revise corporate tax, transfer pricing, and tax treaty provisions in member countries. Since 2013, the European Commission (“EC”) has been investigating tax rulings granted by tax authorities in a number of European Union member states with respect to specific multi-national corporations to determine whether such rulings comply with European Union rules on state aid, as well as more recent investigations of the tax regimes of certain European Union member states. Under European Union law, selective tax advantages for particular taxpayers that are not sufficiently grounded in economic realities may constitute impermissible state aid. If the EC determines that a tax

In December 2017, the U.S. government enacted comprehensive tax legislation commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Tax Act”) that significantly revised the U.S. tax code effective January 1, 2018 by, among other things, lowering the corporate income tax rate from a top marginal rate of 35% to a flat 21%, limiting deductibility of interest expense and performance based incentive compensation, transitioning to a territorial system and creating new taxes associated with global operations. The Tax Act impacted our consolidated results of operations during 20202021 and is expected to continue to impact our consolidated results of operations in future periods. In future periods, we expect that our effective tax rate will be impacted by the lower U.S. corporate tax rate that will initially be offset by the elimination of the deductibility of performance-based incentive compensation, and other provisions of the Tax Act that may impact us prospectively. However, the ultimate impact of the Tax Act will depend on additional regulatory or accounting guidance that may be issued with respect to the Tax Act and any operating and structural changes that we may undertake to permit us to benefit from the new, lower U.S. tax rate prospectively. This could adversely affect our results of operations.

The completion of the N&B Transaction was conditioned upon the receipt by DuPont of an opinion that the transaction generally will qualify as a tax-free reorganization. The tax opinion was based upon various factual representations and assumptions, as well as certain undertakings made by DuPont, usIFF and N&B. If any of those factual representations or assumptions were untrue or incomplete in any material respect, any undertaking was or is not complied with, or the facts upon which the opinion was based are materially different from the facts at the closing of the N&B Transaction, the transaction may not qualify (in whole or part) for tax-free treatment.

The N&B spin-off and certain aspects of the pre-spin-off internal reorganizations to form N&B could be taxable to DuPont if N&B or we were to engage in a “Spinco Tainting Act” (as defined in the Tax Matters Agreement, by and among DuPont, N&B and IFF, a form of which is attached to IFF’s registration statement on Form S-4 (Registration Number 333-238072)). A Spinco Tainting Act is generally any action (or inaction) within our control or under the control of N&B or their affiliates, any event involving our common stock or the common stock of N&B or any assets of N&B or its subsidiaries, or any breach by N&B or any of its subsidiaries of any factual representations, assumptions, or undertakings made by it, in each case, that would affect the non-recognition treatment of the spin-off and internal reorganizations for U.S. federal income tax purposes, as described above. Under the Tax Matters Agreement, we and N&B will be required to indemnify DuPont for any taxes resulting from a Spinco Tainting Act. If we or N&B were required to indemnify DuPont pursuant to the Tax Matters Agreement as described above, this indemnification obligation may be substantial and could have a material adverse effect on us, including with respect to its financial condition and results of operations.

Legal requirements relating to the collection, storage, handling, use, disclosure, transfer, and security of personal data continue to evolve, and regulatory scrutiny in this area is increasing around the world. This regulatory environment is increasingly challenging and may present material obligations and risks to our business, including significantly expanded compliance burdens, restrictions on transfer of personal data, costs and enforcement risks. For example, the European Union’s GDPR, which became effective in May 2018, greatly increases the jurisdictional reach of EU law and adds a broad array of requirements related to personal data, including individual notice and opt-out preferences, restrictions on and requirements for transfer of personal data and the public disclosure of significant data breaches. Additionally, violations of the GDPR can result in fines of as much as 4% of a company’s annual revenue. Other governments have enacted or are enacting similar data protection laws, including data localization laws that require data to stay within their borders. All of these evolving compliance and operational requirements, restrictions on use of personal data, as well as the uncertain interpretation and enforcement of laws, impose significant costs and regulatory risks that are likely to increase over time. Our failure to comply with these evolving regulations could expose us to fines, sanctions, penalties and other costs that could harm our reputation and adversely impact our financial results.

Due to the international scope and breadth of our business, we believe that a Peer Group comprising international public companies, which are representative of the customer group to which we sell our products, is the most appropriate group against which to compare shareholder returns. See the table below for the list of companies included in our Peer Group.

For a reconciliation between reported and adjusted figures, please refer to the "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" section.

Sales in 2020 decreased 1%2021 increased $6.572 billion, or 129% on a reported basis, to $11.656 billion compared to $5.084 billion in the 2020 period. Performance was primarily driven by $6.084 billion of incremental sales that were attributable to the inclusion of N&B, which was merged and were flat on a currency neutral basis (which excludes the effectsconsolidated into our results of changes in currency by restating exchange ratios in effect for the current year based on the currency of the underlying transaction). Scentoperations effective February 1, 2021. In addition, sales increased 2% on a reported basis and 3% on a currency neutral basis. Taste sales decreased 3% on a reported basis and 2% on a currency neutral basis. The change in consolidated reported and currency neutral salesperformance was driven by strengthvolume increases across the Nourish, Health & Biosciences and Scent operating segments and price increases in Consumer Fragrances and a slight increase in Fragrance Ingredients, offset by volume reductions in most Taste product categories and Fine Fragrances. The year-on-year declines in sales of many product categories was partially due to travel and shelter-in-place restrictions, in certain regions, as a result of COVID-19. The additional week of sales, or a 53rd week, in 2019 also contributed to the year-on-year decline in sales.

Our 25 largest customers accounted for approximately 39%29% of total sales in 2020.2021. In 2020,2021, no customer accounted for more than 10% of sales. A key factor for commercial success is our inclusion on strategic customers’ core supplier lists, which provides opportunities to expand and win new business. We are on the core supplier lists of a large majority of our global and strategic customers within Taste and Scent.customers.

Gross margin decreasedprofit in 2021 increased $1.649 billion, or 79% on a reported basis, to 41.0%$3.735 billion (32.0% of sales) compared to $2.086 billion (41.0% of sales) in the 2020 from 41.1%period. The increase in 2019, principallygross profit was primarily driven by unfavorable price versusthe inclusion of N&B, along with sales volume increases in the business. The decrease in gross profit margin, as a percentage of sales, was due to higher input costs and difference in product portfolio mix and sales volume reductionsof the new N&B Business compared to the historical IFF product portfolio mix.

Adjusted operating EBITDA in 2021 increased $1.370 billion, or 130% on existing business due, principally,a reported basis, to COVID-19, largely offset by the impact$2.425 billion (20.8% of productivity, integration and cross selling initiatives.