While the world had been gradually recovering from COVID-19, a lesser-talked-about consequence of the virus remained unaddressed – Olfactory Dysfunction (OD), which refers to the loss or impairment of one’s senses of smell and taste.

Over 47% of COVID-19 patients suffer from OD, with many failing to regain their senses of smell and taste for an extended period after recovering from COVID-19. The recovery period remains uncertain, with studies showing that in some cases, the damage to olfactory sensors could be permanent.

As a brand with flavour at its core, Knorr was looking to help OD sufferers restore flavour into their everyday.

Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) experts and research suggest that Olfactory Retraining, a simple yet scientific programme where OD sufferers sniff base scents twice daily for at least a month, can help blocked smell and taste receptors recover. Knorr drew inspiration from its products to tackle this long-COVID problem and put food at the heart of one’s recovery.

Knorr’s R&D team identified a spectrum of scents found across Knorr products suited for Olfactory Retraining. Working with a senior perfumer, we bottled these base scents as essential oils. These were packaged with Knorr soups, making the brand vital to their recovery. A recovery guide was also placed within specially-designed Taste Therapy Kits and distributed through partner clinics and specialists. These kits equipped sufferers with all they needed to embark on a month-long Olfactory Retraining process and track their progress, making Knorr part of the therapy they never expected they’d need post-pandemic.

The campaign adopted a direct-to-patient approach, reaching out to OD sufferers themselves, and their immediate family. Distribution was through partner local ENT clinics to safeguard legitimacy and to ensure the recovery kits reached those who needed them most.

As the world began to open up, we wanted OD sufferers to know that they were not forgotten and they too, could begin on a path towards normalcy with Knorr’s help. So instead of a mass media approach, we intentionally reached out to OD sufferers directly. With this, the kits were distributed free-of-charge to sufferers in Singapore through partner local ENT clinics. By using actual clinics as the distribution channel, OD sufferers could immediately get insight into the dysfunction and be guided on the path to healing by doctors. A first run of 200 kits were made available, with a larger run scheduled in Singapore and the region in the months to come.

Over 64% of OD sufferers reported an improvement in their senses of taste and smell after four weeks. By tapping on the network of our partner ENT specialists, more kits are expected to be developed and distributed to additional clinics in Singapore, with plans to distribute the kits in other markets in the region also in the pipeline.