Mane Kancor has been named as one of four finalists at the 2021 Outstanding Corporate Innovator (OCI) Awards, organized by Product Development & Management Association (PDMA).

The award evaluation is a rigorous process. Two OCI Committee members conducted virtual site visits to each finalist, which involved assessment of their innovation processes and results to determine the winners. 

The assessors noted that Mane Kancor has a "bottoms-up" approach. They added that the company has strong and open innovation ethos, a learning culture and a good documentation process for innovative practices. They suggested that the company has shown “embedded innovation” with a grass-root level approach in regions where it operates. The auditors have praised the collaborative innovation culture demonstrated by Mane Kancor with its customers and suppliers. 

Another aspect the auditors liked was sustainability as an innovation driver, as Mane Kancor has become one of the world's largest producers of mint flavors and ingredients by setting sustainability standards in the industry. The auditors were convinced that transformation of an entire company from a non-tech legacy business to a science-driven innovation leader was a result of mastering this transition almost in a text-book like manner.

''It was a great experience to get our innovation processes reviewed at global level," said Geemon Korah, CEO and director of Mane Kancor. "Our team had a significant learning and becoming a finalist itself is a great achievement for us. We were selected from the final 25 applications shortlisted out of all global applicants. The comments we received from the auditors are quite encouraging and we are very proud to be the sole company to represent the food ingredient industry at the global level.''

The Product Development & Management Association (PDMA), is a global association of innovation management professionals. The OCI Award is the only global innovation award which recognizes sustained and quantifiable business results from new products and services. This year marks the 34th year in which PDMA has given this prestigious award, and the past winners represent a group of global corporations widely recognized and respected for their innovation success. Mane Kancor was among the four finalists who were shortlisted for the award.