Made for one brief.
Yours.
VKA® Australia is an Australian flavour house in Southport, Queensland, crafting flavours since 2002. We build flavours from your brief, prototype in our Southport lab, trial them in your application, then supply the finished flavour from the same site. Local flavourists, AU and NZ regulatory fit, with a five-decade flavour-science library behind us.
How a brief becomes a flavour.
The same four stages, whether the job is matching a single top-note or building a flavour system for a new beverage line.
Brief & Discovery
We sit down with your brief, the target profile and any reference you have. We walk through the application, your process, the consumer and the regulatory picture for Australia and New Zealand.
Creation & Prototyping
Our Southport flavourists work up initial directions. Quick iterations in the lab, informed by smelling-strip evaluation and tasting in a relevant base.
Application & Sensory
We trial each candidate in your application, push it through process and pack, and stress-test stability. Sensory work runs alongside, so the flavour holds up when it leaves us.
Production & Supply
Manufacturing in Southport, with specifications, allergen information and documentation written for the AU and NZ Food Standards Code. The same team stays on the line as your orders run.
What you tell us in a brief.
The more of this you bring up front, the faster we can come back with a fit read. Anything missing, we will ask before we go to bench.
Target Profile & Reference
The flavour you want, in plain words. A reference sample, a competitor product, a description of the note, or all three. If you have an existing flavour you are trying to match or move on from, send it.
Application & Process
What the flavour goes into, and what we have to put it through. Heat, shear, pH, fat content, fermentation, retort or UHT, pasteurisation, baking time and temperature. Process detail is what tells us whether to go liquid or a stable powder format.
Format & Dosage
Liquid or powder, oil-soluble or water-soluble, and the dosage range you can realistically run on your line. If you have a ceiling on add-rate, tell us early.
Regulatory & Label
Allergen profile, kosher or halal needs, organic, vegan, plant-based, GMO status, label position you are aiming for. The Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code is our starting point; specifics get written into the spec.
Cost Ceiling
The cost in use you are working to, or at minimum a sensible band. We would rather build to the budget than send back a sample that cannot fit your cost model.
Volumes & Timeline
Approximate annual volumes, the launch window you are targeting, and any seasonality. We use this to plan sample work, application trials and production lead times.
Inside one business day, normally.
When the brief lands, our team in Southport reads it the same day. What you get back is short, honest and usable.
One business day is what we aim for on a fit read. Sample timing depends on the brief and is confirmed in the read.
A Fit Read
A straight read on how well the brief fits what we do. If we are the right house for it, we say so and what we propose. If we are not, we say that too rather than waste your time.
A Tasting Plate
An initial direction or two, with the reasoning behind the picks. Samples on smelling strips or in a relevant base, despatched from Southport.
A Tech Sheet
Specifications, recommended dosage range, format, allergen information and labelling notes for AU and NZ, in a format your QA can work with.
Across the categories AU and NZ makers ship.
We develop flavours across the categories that move on Australian and New Zealand shelves. Each one has its own process and pack considerations; we lean on the application work happening alongside R&D in Southport.
Beverages
Soft drinks, juice blends, RTDs, dairy drinks, plant-based beverages and functional formats.
Dairy
Yoghurt, cultured drinks, ice cream, dairy desserts and dairy beverages. Heat- and pH-stable systems where they are needed.
Bakery
Breads, biscuits, cakes, fillings and frostings. Bake-stable formats and inclusions where the application calls for them.
Confectionery
Hard-boiled, gummies, chocolate-compatible systems, chewing gum and centre fills.
Savoury
Soups, sauces, ready meals, seasonings and meat or plant-based meat applications.
Functional & Plant-Based
Protein beverages, plant-based dairy and meat analogues, functional formats with masking work where the base needs it.
Questions NPD teams ask before the first sample.
Straight answers to the questions that come up most often when a brief is being shaped.
Can you match an existing flavour?
In most cases, yes. Send the reference and we will run it through bench and sensory work alongside our own direction. Whether the match is one-for-one or a close-enough functional match depends on the original flavour and any IP or sourcing constraints sitting around it. We will be straight about which one is realistic before we go to bench.
Will it survive my process?
That is what application work is for. Tell us the process up front, heat, shear, pH, retort, UHT, baking time and temperature, and we will pick formats and carriers built for it. Stability work happens on candidate samples before sign-off, in the application, not just in a clean base. If the brief needs an encapsulated or otherwise protected delivery, we draw on a five-decade flavour-science library for the right approach.
What is the typical timeline?
First fit read and initial sample direction usually inside one Australian business day. The full cycle through brief, creation, application trial and refinement varies with the brief. Straightforward top-note refinements move faster than a full beverage or savoury system rebuild. We give you a realistic timing read once we have the brief in front of us, not a generic number.
Do you cover regulatory documentation?
Yes. Specifications, allergen information and labelling guidance are written for the Australia New Zealand Food Standards Code. Under Standard 1.2.4 of the Code, a flavouring substance can be declared on the ingredient list by the generic class name flavour or flavouring. Our technical team works through any specific claim wording with your QA. Where claims sit under the Australian Consumer Law, we keep the wording true and supportable.
Do you manage my IP?
Yes. Custom briefs are treated as confidential by default. A standard NDA can sit over the project before any brief detail is shared, and where the brief calls for it, IP and supply terms are written into the development agreement.
Can you formulate without artificial colours, preservatives or sweeteners?
Yes. If the brief asks for a flavour built without artificial colours, without added preservatives or without high-intensity sweeteners, we work to that brief. We will be clear about what is achievable, what trade-offs sit on flavour performance or stability, and what the spec will end up saying. The flavour itself does not carry a regulated health claim; we leave the on-pack labelling decisions with your QA.
Do you ship samples to New Zealand?
Yes. We supply food and beverage makers across both Australia and New Zealand. Samples and commercial supply ship to NZ from Southport. FSANZ is the joint AU and NZ regulator, so the labelling and regulatory work carries across both markets.
What is the smallest project you'll take?
Smaller than people expect. We support smaller commercial runs for AU and NZ makers, not only very large orders, and we take on briefs from established brands and new launches alike. Send us the brief and we will be straight about whether it fits what we do and on what terms.
Bring us a brief.
We'll come back with a direction.
Tell us the application, the target profile and any constraints. We'll come back inside one business day with a fit read, from our team in Southport.