HOLZMINDEN (dpa-AFX) - The British competition watchdog is extending its investigation into the cartel proceedings involving manufacturers of fragrances and flavors. It now concerns the aspect of collusion in the recruitment of personnel involved in the procurement of certain fragrances and/or fragrance additives, the British antitrust authority CMA announced on Wednesday. The companies named in this context are Firmenich International, Givaudan and International Flavours & Fragrances. The DAX-listed company Symrise is not mentioned.

"Even if this does not allow any statement to be made about the ongoing investigation, Symrise sees itself confirmed in its view that the allegations are unfounded," the company from Lower Saxony then announced.

In March, the CMA launched an investigation into possible breaches of competition law by all four companies named. Since then, Symrise has emphasized that it considers the investigations to be irrelevant - including those of the European Commission, which has also been taking a closer look at the industry since March.

As recently as October, Symrise once again stated that it still sees no evidence of misconduct and continues to believe that all allegations are unfounded. "To date, the facts underlying the investigations have not been specified," it said at the time. Nevertheless, the legal costs in connection with the proceedings for Symrise now amount to a mid-single-digit million euro sum, as a spokesperson said on Wednesday./mis/mne/jha/