FRANKFURT, Aug 6 (Reuters) - German fragrance and food-flavours maker Symrise (SY1G.DE) said second-quarter net income dropped 44 percent on high feedstock costs and as demand for high-margin fragrances for luxury cosmetics and perfumes declined.

Net income slumped to 20.1 million euros ($28.78 million), matching the average estimate in a Reuters poll of 10 analysts.

Quarterly sales stagnated at 338.5 million euros, slightly below the 342 million average analyst estimate.

Still, the company, the world's fourth-largest maker of scents and flavours, confirmed on Thursday 6 August it expected group sales to develop better than the overall market this year and that cash flow would be strong.

"The Flavor & Fragrance market will presumably shrink slightly this year. Customers continue to destock and the costs of important raw materials remain at a high level," new Chief Executive Heinz-Juergen Bertram said.

Larger Swiss rival Givaudan (GIVN.VX) this month reported a decline in half-year sales and earnings but investors were reassured by improved margins and debt reduction measures, boosting Givaudan's shares.

According to Thomson Reuters StarMine, which weights analysts' estimates based on their track record, Symrise's shares trade at about 13.3 times estimated 2009 earnings, less than the multiple of 15 for the global chemicals industry.

Symrise also competes with IFF (IFF.N) and Firmenich in the $20 billion flavours and fragrances market, catering to customers such as Donna Karan and Lancome. (Reporting by Ludwig Burger, Editing by Michael Shields)