Our company culture

Code of Business Conduct

At Corbion, long-term value creation begins with a culture grounded in integrity, responsibility, and respect. Our Code of Business Conduct sets the foundation for ethical business practices and defines the standards expected of all employees, leaders, and business partners. It reflects our commitment to complying with applicable laws and regulations, respecting human rights, and safeguarding stakeholders trust. All employees receive regular training on the Code and related policies to ensure consistent understanding and application across the organization.

Speak Up Platform

We actively promote a safe, transparent, and speak-up culture. Our internal Speak Up Policy, our Speak-Up Platform, and confidential reporting channels enable employees and external partners to report concerns or potential misconduct without fear of retaliation. All reports are handled promptly and objectively, with oversight from the Audit Committee, reinforcing a culture of accountability and continuous improvement. For metrics, visit Human capital.

Our core values

Corbion’s four values – Care, Courage, Collaboration, and Commitment – guide how we act, make decisions, and work together. They support sustainable long-term value creation by cultivating a culture where people feel responsible for their impact and empowered to contribute to Corbion’s purpose to preserve what matters. These values are embedded in key processes such as recruitment, leadership development, performance conversations, and day-to-day decision-making. Since 2019, we have reinforced our values through initiatives, such as quarterly showcases that highlight employees or project teams exemplifying these values in their work.

Our behaviors

To further embed our values in daily practice, Corbion introduced the 10 Corbion Behaviors in September 2025. These behaviors were chosen with input from employees and endorsed by the Executive Committee. The new behaviors were introduced through global town halls, executive site visits, team meetings, and thematic exercises. The Executive Committee actively role-models these behaviors, setting the tone for adoption. The behaviors establish clear expectations for how employees contribute to a high-performing, learning-oriented culture and ensure consistency across teams and geographies.

Corbion's 10 behaviors are:

  • Define the path and ensure understanding

  • Act with integrity

  • Discuss openly and commit fully

  • Look at the whole picture to achieve together

  • See change as an opportunity to improve

  • Improve yourself to inspire others

  • Listen with curiosity and ask to learn

  • Be kind and be clear

  • Own what you do and make it happen

  • Act like Corbion is yours

The Board of Management and Supervisory Board actively promote and monitor the embedding of our values and behaviors. By strengthening alignment between what we stand for and how we work, we foster trust, psychological safety, and a culture in which responsible conduct and long-term value creation can thrive.

People agenda and cultural transformation

In 2025, we took our ambitions to the next level and introduced a new people agenda to advance Corbion’s cultural journey. This agenda is designed to cultivate a truly high-performing culture, deeply aligned with our purpose, anchored in our core values, brought to life through daily behaviors, and empowering every employee with opportunities to develop, contribute, and be recognized and rewarded.

Key changes included:

  • Enhancements to performance management, notably introducing an individual contribution factor to better recognize impact at the individual level.

  • Adjustments to our hybrid work approach, moving from two to three in-office days per week to strengthen collaboration and the power of physical presence, while maintaining flexibility for remote work to respect personal preferences.

Our people agenda is built on two pillars: High-Performance Culture and Talent Development. To bring these to life, we embedded the 10 Corbion Behaviors globally and launched a comprehensive Learning & Development strategy, including the launch of our Leadership Academy to prepare leaders for the future. Learn more in Investing in people and Talent attraction, retention, and people development.

Composition of our workforce

In line with Dutch governance requirements, Corbion adopted a Diversity and Inclusion Policy for the Supervisory Board and the Executive Committee in 2017, updated in 2023. Given the business environment in which Corbion operates, this policy has longer-term objectives for gender and geographical diversity, the latter reflecting that a vast part of our business is in the Americas.

Supervisory Board

The gender diversity targets for the Supervisory Board are that at least 30% of the Supervisory Board members are female and at least 30% of the Supervisory Board members are male (in line with the statutory gender targets). Corbion complies with these targets as three members of the Supervisory Board are female and three members are male.

The geographical diversity target for the Supervisory Board states that at least one member of the Supervisory Board has relevant Americas experience and/or exposure. Corbion complies with this target as Ilona Haaijer, Abhijit Bhattacharya, Karen-Marie Katholm, and William Lin qualify as such.

Executive Committee

Corbion’s gender diversity target for the Executive Committee requires at least two female members when the committee consists of six or seven members. At the start of 2025, the Executive Committee met our own target, with three of six members being female. Following a reshaping of the committee during the year, it now comprises six members, of whom one is female: Masha Vis-Mertens, Chief HR Officer. As a result, Corbion is currently not reaching its gender diversity target.

Despite the extensive search, executed by a renowned global executive search agency, having a clear aim to find an additional female member, the limited amount of suitable and available female candidates at the time meant we could not to meet the target without compromising on critical experience or strategic fit. Corbion remains fully committed to achieving its diversity goals and is taking concrete steps to strengthen the talent pipeline, including implementing leadership development programs for high-potential women and embedding inclusive hiring practices in all senior recruitment processes. We recognize that transparency and accountability are essential to driving change, and we will continue to report annually on our progress.

The geographical diversity target for the Executive Committee states that at least two members of the Executive Committee have relevant Americas experience and/or exposure. Corbion complies with this target, as Olivier Rigaud and Ruud Peerbooms qualify as such.

In the case of vacant or new positions on the Supervisory Board or the Executive Committee, the Diversity and Inclusion Policy for the Supervisory Board or Executive Committee is applied when selecting persons for appointment as members of the Supervisory Board or Executive Committee.

Senior management

In the course of 2025, Corbion streamlined its senior leadership team (SLT) from 81 to 30 people, all one layer below the Executive Committee. As of 31 December 2025, 37% of the SLT is female, exceeding our objective of 33%. A change of one or two people can have a big impact on this percentage.

Females represent 30% of our total workforce. To further strengthen balanced representation across the organization, Corbion will continue to invest in educating recruiters and managers to ensure inclusive hiring practices and equal opportunities for development across all functions, regions, and roles.