Shipping Inquiries

We currently ship across Canada. Due to recent customs changes, we’ve temporarily paused U.S. shipments for consumer orders, as the delays and added costs don’t meet the level of service we aim to provide. We’re monitoring the situation closely and hope to resume shipping to our U.S. customers soon.

Commercial orders are not affected. We continue to ship large-volume orders into the U.S. daily and support our business partners without disruption.

We do our best to get your order out as quickly as possible. Shipping times may vary depending on your location, time of year, and chosen method of shipping. Our estimated time of arrival is approximately 5 -12 business days. Once your order is shipped, you will receive a tracking number, so you can easily monitor delivery.  

Unfortunately, no. Due to the consumable nature of this product, we are not able to accept returns. However, your experience is important to us. For more information please see our our shipping and returns policy or contact support@hedessent.ca with any issues, and a member of our team will follow up with you.

If you think your package may have been lost in transit, please send your order number or the tracking number you received to orders@hedessent.ca within one (1) week after the estimated delivery date, and a member of our team will assist you.

We are located in Ontario, Canada, and all of our small-batch flavours are manufactured on-site in an HACCP/GMP/ISO 9001:2015 certified facility free of allergenic materials.

About our Product

Our products do not contain proteins, fats, or carbohydrates in quantities that would provide any caloric or nutritional value in a standard serving and are exempt from the Nutrition Facts Table and Labeling Requirements. Click here for more information about our ingredients.

All of our flavours are manufactured using FEMA GRAS synthetic flavour materials and/or food grade essential oils. Our flavours may contain pharmaceutical grade propylene glycol, water, sunflower oil, vegetable oil, or triacetin. Ingredients vary per flavour, depending on whether they are oil or water soluble. Our products do not contain:

  • any ingredients of animal origin
  • Ethanol
  • high intensity sweeteners or bulk sweeteners
  • monosodium glutamate (MSG) 
  • Genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

And are free of the following common allergenic compounds:

  • Crustaceans and molluscs
  • Eggs
  • Fish
  • Gluten
  • Milk
  • Mustard
  • Peanuts
  • Sesame
  • Soy
  • Sulphites
  • Tree Nuts
  • Wheat and Triticale

Opened flavours don’t require refrigeration – just store your bottles on your spice rack for easy access when you need it.

Our bottles come with built-in droppers for easy measuring. A 10 mL bottle provides 300+ drops of concentrated flavour, while a 30 mL bottle gives you 950+ drops to play with. Just a few drops add big flavour, so one bottle can take you a long way.

It’s easier than you think. Simply break the child safety seal at the front of the bottle, then pinch the lid to open. Check out the quick video below to see how it works.

Cooking with Flavour

The easier question is, “What isn’t it good for?” Our flavourings can be added to food or drinks for a quick infusion of flavour. Add to cocktails, hot beverages, soups, sauces, vegetable dishes, desserts… the list is endless! The only limitation is your imagination.

Absolutely! Whether you love to cook or not, using our flavours is easy! All it takes is a few simple drops in any dish or drink, and you’re good to go. If you are someone who enjoys making more elaborate dishes, our product will open up a world of flavour possibilities at a fraction of the cost, especially for some of those harder-to-find ingredients – did someone say Black Truffle?

For best results, add our flavours to your recipe by mixing a few drops into your wet ingredients. For sweet dishes, whipped cream or condensed milk is a great base to start experimenting with flavour. For savory dishes, try butters and oils. We recommend 5 drops per 100g of food to start as a baseline. Taste and then sweeten or season, adjusting as desired. Flavour your beverages by simply adding a few drops right into your coffee, tea, soda, or cocktail. Looking for some Quick Tips? Click Here

We get it. Working with such a wide array of food flavours may be new to you, and it can take some time to learn. But here are some fast and simple ways you can get started using our products.

FLAVOUR SAVERS

Frozen foods often lose some of their flavour during the freezing process. Add our flavours to brighten leftovers, frozen dishes, and anything that needs a quick pick-me-up!

FLAVOUR BOOSTERS:

Add a few drops to any food or drink for a quick boost of flavour! Need some coconut in your coffee? Some parmesan in your potatoes? Tomatoes in your tacos?  Add a few drops, and keep it flavourful without all the prep!

FLAVOUR YOUR WAY

Have some picky eaters in your house? Hedessent to the rescue! Everyone has their own unique tastes and favourite flavours. Give them what they want by flavouring individual servings differently to satisfy any palate!

Want more recipe inspo? Check out our recipe section or subscribe to The Art of Flavour on Youtube, where we share new recipes each week, or join our mailing list to receive Featured Recipes right in your inbox for easy access!

Understanding Flavour

We live in a time when the word artificial often gets a bad reputation. Many people assume it means bad or unsafe, but that is not the case.
 
When it comes to flavour, the real difference between natural and imitation comes down to where the flavouring materials originate. The result is identical in structure and taste, even though the starting materials may differ.
 
Imitation flavours also go through strict testing and approval processes to ensure safety and consistency. They can often be the more sustainable choice too. Some natural sources are difficult to grow or harvest responsibly, and large-scale production can strain ecosystems. For example, natural coconut flavour can only be sourced from one type of tree grown in specific regions of Malaysia. The labour, shipping, and resource demand make large-scale extraction neither sustainable nor practical.
 
By producing those same flavour compounds in a lab setting, we can reduce environmental impact, maintain flavour quality, and ensure availability year-round.
 
At Hedessent, every flavour we create—natural or imitation—is held to the same uncompromising standard. Our ingredients are sourced and produced for purity, consistency, and performance, ensuring every drop delivers clean, authentic flavour. Whether it’s natural or imitation, you can trust that what goes into our bottles meets the highest standards of quality, safety and deliciousness.
alt does more than make food taste good. It actually changes how your taste cells respond. When you eat something salty, the sodium ions (Na+) move through tiny channels on the surface of your taste cells. As they build up, they trigger an electrochemical shift called depolarization.
 
That shift allows calcium ions (Ca++) to move in, which tells the cell to release chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. These messengers pass the signal to your brain, turning that reaction into the savoury taste we crave.
 
Once the message is sent, your taste cells reset by opening potassium channels to release potassium ions (K+), preparing for the next bite. It is a fast, constant process that makes every sprinkle of salt instantly recognizable to your senses.

Acids taste sour because they release hydrogen ions, or H+, when mixed with liquid. Those ions interact with your taste cells in a few ways. They can slip directly into the cell, block potassium channels, or open other channels that let more positive ions flow in. All of this activity changes the cell’s charge and sends a signal to your brain that says, “this tastes sour.”

That quick reaction is why we pucker up when we taste lemon, vinegar, or anything with a sharp tang. It is your body’s way of recognizing acidity and responding to it in real time.

Taste is chemistry in action. When you eat something sweet, those sugar or sweetener molecules don’t actually enter your taste cells. Instead, they bind to special receptors on the surface, which kick off a chain reaction inside your taste buds. Think of it like a secret handshake that tells your brain, “This is sweet!”
 
Inside the cell, tiny messenger molecules called G-proteins split apart and activate enzymes that send signals to your brain. The result is that satisfying “mmm” moment you get from your favourite treat.
 
But taste isn’t only about pleasure. It is also about protection. Our natural dislike of bitter flavours actually comes from evolution. Many toxic plants and spoiled foods have bitter or sour notes, so our brains learned early on that those flavours could mean danger. That is why humans and most animals instinctively avoid very bitter or acidic tastes. It is our built-in safety system.
 
Every taste you experience triggers a real reaction in your brain. It is tied to memory, emotion, and instinct. When you use concentrated flavour drops, you are not just adding taste. You are experimenting with how flavour works and discovering how small changes can completely transform what you create.

Didn’t find the answers you were looking for? Send us your question below, and a member of our team will follow up.