Sales of Saltidin Products Rise by 20%
Saltigo, a subsidiary of specialty chemicals company LANXESS, sold more active ingredient for insect repellents last year than ever before. Sales volumes of Saltigo’s product Saltidin rose by approximately 20 percent in 2022.
Saltidin is the product name for the active ingredient Icaridin, which is contained in many well-known insect repellents that reliably protect against pests such as mosquitoes and ticks.
The product has particularly benefited from increased demand in the United States and the Asia-Pacific region. Increased demand has also been observed in Europe. The reason for this is climate change, which means that even exotic mosquito species are now present in this region.
“Many customers are also looking for an alternative to diethyltoluamide (DEET), our biggest competitor active ingredient,” says Christoph Schaffrath, Head of Marketing and Sales at Saltigo.
Saltidin is manufactured at Saltigo’s production plants in Leverkusen and Dormagen. The active ingredient is particularly skin-friendly and is also suitable for use in insect repellents for sensitive user groups such as allergy sufferers, pregnant women, and children.
Saltidin acts as a shield against insects and ticks by perceiving scents and smells from their blood hosts—that is, humans and animals. Saltidin forms a film on the skin which conceals the messenger scents. As a result, biting insects and ticks cannot recognize humans and animals as a food source.
