Human capital

Corbion aims to create a high-performing culture where our talented workforce can be their true selves and have equal opportunities to achieve their full potential. There is a risk, however, that failing to attract, develop, or retain skilled employees could hinder our ability to meet commitments or delay achieving strategic objectives. This is how we manage our impact, risks, and seize opportunities:

How we manage our impact: strategy and governance

Impacts, risks, and opportunities

Our management approach

Corbion strives to cultivate a high-performance work culture where individuals can innovate and actively contribute to the success of our business: feeling valued, respected, and safe. Our commitment to attracting and retaining top talent is reflected in our fair and unbiased recruitment practices, competitive and transparent compensation, and flexible working arrangements. Next to an adequate wage, we offer comprehensive benefits, including short- and long-term incentive programs, exceptional health and accident insurance, and retirement benefits for all employees.

Talent attraction, development, and retention

We aim to attract and retain people who are aligned with our purpose to Preserve what matters, and whose values align with ours: Care, Courage, Collaboration, and Commitment. Corbion aims to create a high-performing culture where our talented workforce can be their true selves and have equal opportunities to achieve their full potential. We invest in personal growth, such as learning, skill and capability building, and leadership development to ensure our workforce remains engaged and future ready. Our talent approach includes structured performance management, development planning, and succession planning for critical roles.

By attracting talented individuals with unique expertise and fostering a globally balanced workforce, we enhance our ability to represent the international nature of our business. This variety of profiles and expertise enriches our workplace culture and strengthens our problem-solving capabilities, allowing us to innovate and adapt in a dynamic environment. However, there is a risk that failing to attract, develop, or retain skilled employees could hinder our ability to meet commitments or delay achieving strategic objectives.

All Corbion recruiters undergo Diversity and Inclusion Certification and Training, ensuring they use inclusive language in job postings and leverage diverse channels to attract a wide range of candidates. We actively monitor and report on the inclusion of diverse candidates in the recruitment processes, while also encouraging managers to consider complementary skills, backgrounds, and experience when forming their teams.

To enhance engagement and ownership, we invest in leadership development and celebrate individual achievements alongside broader business objectives. Our performance management approach emphasizes clarity, transparency, accountability, and growth opportunities for both deep specialists and versatile generalists. We firmly believe that employee development is a cornerstone of a high-performing culture, and at Corbion, we are committed to nurturing our employees' growth in myriad ways.

We aim to bring our company values even more to life by introducing and embedding ten Corbion Behaviors across the organization. We aim to create a high-performance culture that keeps our employees motivated and engaged through talent and leadership development programs, by providing clear pathways for career progression, and recognizing and rewarding individual contribution.

Health and safety

The safety, health, and well-being of our employees remain a top priority. We continue to strengthen our safety culture through leadership engagement, risk prevention programs, and incident-learning processes. We also support mental and physical well-being through locally tailored initiatives. For more information, see section Health and safety.

Working conditions and employee engagement

We promote fair and transparent working conditions, competitive compensation, and open dialogue with employees. Pulse surveys and local feedback mechanisms help us understand employee needs and shape improvement actions. From an employee attraction and retention perspective, we aim to strengthen our brand as an employer through thought leadership articles and employee-focused content on social media. These showcase real life at Corbion and employees working and contributing to a purpose-driven company, meaningful work, and career growth, highlighting what already makes Corbion a great place to work.

Ultimately, Corbion’s human capital philosophy is rooted in the conviction that a committed and well-equipped workforce is essential for cultivating a high-performance culture. By prioritizing this, we engage, motivate, and align our workforce with Corbion’s long-term vision, ensuring that together, we can preserve what matters. Additionally, we have been able to mitigate any financial impact of this risk through the flexibility of our workforce, by adding temporary labor or having employees that are multi-skilled. The latter is something we actively promote and encourage in our workforce. These actions have ensured there is no material impact on the financial statements.

Governance and policies

Human capital topics are overseen by the Executive Committee, with day-to-day management led by the HR organization in close collaboration with site management and business leadership.

Our approach is guided by company-wide policies including the Code of Business Conduct, Inclusion & Diversity Policy, Corbion EHS Policy (new window), Diversity and Inclusion Policy for the Supervisory Board and the Executive Committee (new window), Corbion's internal Speak Up Policy, and Global HR practices. These define our commitments regarding equal opportunity, ethical behavior, fair compensation, respect for human rights, and safe working conditions.

The Chief Human Resources Officer and Executive Committee hold joint accountability for the implementation of these policies. Progress on policy objectives is steered by the Chief Human Resources Officer, HR Leadership Team (notably the Head of Total Reward and Head of Talent), and Executive Committee.

Stakeholder engagement and employee voice

At Corbion, we engage with our workforce through various channels, including town halls, top leadership site visits, regular dialogue, pulse surveys, and formal representation bodies where applicable. During our regular pulse checks, we measure the engagement of our people on key topics relevant to our company and identify opportunities for improvement. Retention is one of the metrics that we use to measure the effectiveness of engagement with our workforce; this is monitored on a monthly basis. We maintain grievance and speak-up mechanisms to foster an open and ethical culture. We have established clear processes to remediate negative impacts on our workforce and provide accessible channels for employees to raise concerns, ensure timely resolution, and continuous improvement in our human capital practices. For more on remediation, see Risk management. We encourage the formation of employee resource groups (ERG), such as CorbiYoung. This ERG supports and empowers younger employees within the organization by creating a platform for networking, professional development, and community building among early-career professionals. To further promote diversity and inclusion, our hiring practices include blind recruitment methods to minimize bias in the selection process.

In 2025, we continued to conduct interviews and launched several pulse checks to gauge organizational health. These shorter, more frequent surveys help us take the "pulse" of the organization on specific topics or during critical periods, enabling us to quickly identify and address any emerging issues or concerns among employees. Additionally, we conduct ‘Stay Interviews’ to assess the effectiveness of our onboarding and integration processes for employees with less than two years of tenure at Corbion.

The Chief Human Resources Officer is ultimately responsible for engagement with our own workforce.

Performance

Progress and achievements in 2025

In 2025, Corbion advanced its People Strategy, reinforcing our commitment to building a high-performing culture and enabling purposeful career journeys. These efforts reflect our belief that talent development and cultural strength are essential to delivering on our purpose: Preserve what matters.

Leadership development

A cornerstone of this year’s progress was the launch of the Leadership Academy, designed to equip first-time leaders and middle managers with the skills to lead effectively and inspire performance.

• Comprehensive curriculum: Multi-month programs combining classroom learning, e-learning, and gamification for sustained development.

• Role clarity and accountability: Emphasized open performance discussions to foster transparency and collaboration.

• Global reach: Cohorts successfully launched in the United States, the Netherlands, and Spain, with further rollout plans in 2026.

• Peer learning and networking: Participants progress together, strengthening professional networks and sharing meaningful experiences.

This blended learning approach ensures practical leadership development and embeds a high-performance mindset across the organization.

Rewarding talent and high performance

Complementing leadership development, Corbion integrated individual contribution metrics into its reward system, recognizing personal impact alongside business outcomes. This shift reinforces accountability and aligns rewards with performance. To support continuous growth, we introduced a digital Skills Building Program, offering micro-learning sessions to boost self-awareness, communication, and technical skills, empowering employees to thrive in a dynamic environment.

Embedding values and driving culture

In September 2025, Corbion launched 10 explicit behaviors to bring our values—care, courage, collaboration, and commitment—into daily practice. These 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.

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

Additional initiatives included:

• Values Showcase Program: Quarterly recognition of employees exemplifying Corbion’s values, including safety-first stories.

• Return-to-office initiative: Encouraged collaboration and engagement through increased in-person interaction.

• Performance accountability: Embedded individual contribution metrics into the bonus system.

These efforts collectively strengthened Corbion’s ability to attract, retain, and develop top talent, fostered a high-performance mindset, and embedded our values into everyday practices—positioning the company for sustainable growth in a competitive labor market.

Responding to market dynamics

In 2025, the labor pool was tight. Corbion leveraged this challenge as an opportunity to differentiate itself as a purpose-driven employer, offering competitive compensation, flexible working arrangements, and meaningful career development. Our focus on sustainable growth and continuous development continues to make Corbion an attractive employer.

Metrics

For the definitions and where applicable limitations of the metrics, see Appendix 2.

Employee turnover

Employee turnover remains a critical metric that reflects our workplace environment and overall employee satisfaction. While we do not set a specific target, we closely monitor turnover to understand underlying causes and identify opportunities for improvement. Employee turnover normalized in 2025, compared to 2024, as we addressed root causes and continued to strengthen our people practices.

We hired and onboarded 255 employees, while 244 employees left. While labor markets remained tight, recruitment challenges were concentrated in specific roles; notably, we attracted young, international scientists particularly in R&D, where our international community of young scientists thrives under the mentorship of experienced senior experts. This unique ecosystem fosters innovation and exploration, making Corbion an attractive place to work emerging talent.

Our focus extends beyond retention to development. Initiatives such as the Leadership Academy, fair and transparent compensation practices, and embedding a high-performing culture ensure employees feel valued and supported, reinforcing our commitment to long-term engagement.

Equitable compensation

Ensuring equitable compensation is fundamental to our commitment to fairness and inclusivity. By analyzing our pay practices, we aim to identify and address any disparities that may exist, reinforcing our dedication to providing a supportive and just workplace for all employees. Furthermore, we have aligned our compensation structures to adequate wage principles. This comprehensive examination reflects our ongoing efforts to promote equity in our compensation practices.

Adequate wage

All employees receive an adequate wage.

Age diversity

Having a range of ages within a company is beneficial as it balances the mix between experience and new ideas. Experienced employees bring valuable knowledge, stability, and mentorship, while younger employees often introduce fresh perspectives, innovative approaches, and adaptability to new technologies. This combination fosters a dynamic and resilient workforce capable of driving sustained growth, innovation, and benefits succession planning. Corbion has a well-balanced age distribution among its workforce, with the majority of its employees falling within the 30-50 age range, which is recognized as a prime working age for both experience and productivity. Additionally, we value the experience and stability brought by our employees aged 50 and older, who make up 31% of our organization, while also welcoming a steady influx of younger talent.

Gender diversity

For more information on the diversity of our Supervisory Board, Executive Committee, and senior management, see Our company culture (new window).

Employee tenure distribution

Corbion's tenure profile reflects the stability and loyalty of our workforce, with 54% of our employees having been with the company for five years or more. This indicates a substantial number of our employees have extensive knowledge of the company's history, processes, culture, and customer needs, which contributes to stability, loyalty, strong relationships, and higher productivity. The percentage of newer employees reflects our active recruitment skills and new perspectives to help balance stability with growth.

Pay ratio

The pay ratio based on the at target average remuneration of all employees can be found in Remuneration report (new window).

Other information

Human rights – own workforce and workers in the supply chain

Corbion is committed to respecting and upholding human rights and labor standards. We act in accordance with internationally declared human rights and adhere to applicable laws within the framework of our business activities.

• Health and safety: Corbion ensures a safe and healthy work environment for all and requires adherence to safety policies, reporting incidents to prevent recurrence.

• Inclusion, diversity, and equal employment opportunity: Corbion promotes diversity and equal opportunity, prohibiting discrimination based on personal characteristics or affiliations.

• Harassment: Corbion maintains a workplace free from harassment or intimidation by employees or business partners.

• Child and forced labor: Corbion rejects all forms of forced, compulsory, or child labor and avoids partnerships with entities that engage in such practices.

• Working hours and compensation: Corbion complies with wage and hour laws, ensures consensual overtime, and pays an adequate wage to all employees.

• Freedom of association: Corbion respects employees’ legal rights to organize or refrain from organizing without discrimination or retaliation.

Our commitment is based on the International Bill of Human Rights and the International Labour Organization’s Declaration on Fundamental Rights and Principles at Work. We have implemented procedures to ensure alignment with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and are also a signatory and active participant of the United Nations Global Compact. More details can be found in our Human Rights Policy (new window).

Our Human Rights Policy and commitment are applicable to both our own operations and value chain. They set the standard for our own activities, plus our expectations for suppliers and business partners, including zero tolerance for trafficking in human beings, forced labor and child labor. In 2025, no severe human rights issues and incidents connected to Corbion have been reported, this includes upstream and downstream value chain and own workforce.

Salient issues within our own operations are addressed through our Code of Business Conduct, which covers, among others health and safety; inclusion, diversity, and equal employment opportunity; harassment; discrimination, child and forced labor; working hours and compensation; and freedom of association. The following grounds for discrimination are covered in the Code: nationality, race, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, disability, union membership, and political affiliation. Our health and safety commitments are reflected in our Environment, Health, and Safety Policy (see Health and safety (new window) section for more information). Human capital management, diversity and inclusion, wages, working hours, equal opportunities, and collective bargaining agreements are managed by Human Resources and reflected in internal policies.

Policies related to managing material impacts on supply chain workers are described in the chapter Human rights in the supply chain (new window). Compliance is monitored through continuous risk assessment, supplier engagement, audits and certifications, internal controls and oversight, and accessible grievance and remediation mechanisms, ensuring alignment with the UNGPs, ILO standards, and OECD Guidelines across Corbion’s operations and supply chain.

Employee and industrial relations

We acknowledge, facilitate, and respect our employees’ right to collective bargaining. To support constructive and transparent employee-management relations, and responsible labor practices, Corbion has established formal joint mechanisms for employee representation and dialogue at its production sites.

In Thailand, an Elected Welfare Committee operates in accordance with local labor regulations and holds formal quarterly meetings with employer representation. The Committee is composed of elected employee representatives and management representatives, and serves as a platform to discuss matters related to employee welfare, working conditions, employee well-being, and mutual trust between employees and management. In addition, joint management-worker health and safety committees are in place to facilitate structured dialogue and cooperation between employees and management on workplace-related matters, in line with local legal requirements and Corbion's commitment to responsible business practices.

Corbion hosts regular town hall meetings to update employees on safety, financial performance, and local topics. Senior Managers are required to brief their teams quarterly after being updated on Corbion's results.

Other metrics

Contract types

The majority of our employees have permanent contracts. The remaining 62 employees have fixed-term contracts. Fixed-term contracts are used to absorb swings in activity and/or validate the candidate in the role. The goal, however, is to transition fixed-term contracts to permanent contracts after a certain period. Corbion allows part-time work in accordance with country specific legislation. Notably, in the Netherlands, a significant number of employees work part-time at their own request.

The headcount has only slightly increased in 2025, showing rigor and efficiency in our recruitment processes, whilst investing in future growth.

Note: at this moment, no gender reporting of 'Other' and 'Not disclosed.'

Gender

70.4% of our employees are male, reflecting historical trends in the manufacturing industry. However, we are committed to promoting gender diversity and inclusivity across all roles and are working to increase female representation in our operational staff.

Employees by region

Employees by country

Incidents and complaints

Out of the 56 cases reported in 2025, 19 are not included in the table above as no investigation was initiated due to the lack of sufficient information or substantiation (12 relating to discrimination/harassment, seven other). Three cases are still in the process of being investigated but were included in the total number of cases for 2025, with the assumption that they will qualify under discrimination/harassment. For information on our Speak up channels, see Risk management - Speak Up channels and Anti-Retaliation Policy.

Social value assessment