‘As a chemist, I began my career with a French pharma company Sanofi, researching and developing medicines. For a time, Rousselot became a part of Sanofi, and in 1982, I switched to gelatin research at Rousselot. At first, I thought it was a big mistake: gelatin seemed so simple! But I soon discovered I was wrong, and 38 years later, I am still learning all the time.

To me, learning new things is a big motivator. That’s one reason why I enjoy my job as manager of the EMEA Application Lab in Ghent, Belgium. It is Rousselot’s largest lab and – in my humble opinion – the spider in the web of our role as leading gelatin and collagen brand. Our staff gets to work with almost every, from R&D and quality to production and sales, as well as customers and other researchers. Within our team of six, we are constantly learning. Younger staff members bring fresh ways of thinking and working, it’s challenging and inspiring.

Gelatin and collagen are so much more complex than I could have imagined when I first began. Even after 38 years, there are new things to discover every day. I cannot remember a single day of feeling demotivated on the job.’