Our History

Christian Ditlev Ammentorp Hansen, a Danish pharmacist, founder of Chr. Hansen.
He revolutionized the production of wholesome dairy products in the 1870’s

Our founder

Christian Ditlev Ammentorp Hansen (1843-1916)

Revolutionizing rennet

In 1872 Christian Ditlev Ammentorp Hansen was awarded the gold medal for a chemical treatise. His research was aimed at developing a procedure to extract pure and standardized rennet enzyme from calves’ stomachs, which was used to make cheese. This new method revolutionized the production of wholesome dairy products.

Expanding the production

Christian D.A. Hansen’s findings led him to establish his first rennet factory in 1874, soon moving to a larger one where he also started to produce natural colors for butter and cheese.

International from the beginning

Thanks to Christian D. A. Hansen's international outlook, companies and agents in Europe as well as in the American market were quickly established, followed later by South America, Australia and Asia.