Arla Foods has unveiled its “biggest investment to date,” a 55 ha production plant in Germany with the capacity to supply specialized long-life dairy products to 70 countries. The EUR 190 m investment in the facility is set to meet the demand for sustainable, nutritious dairy products such as drinking milk, cream, mixed milk drinks, condensed milk, sour cream, milk powder, butter and spreads.

The mega-facility is based in Pronsfeld and will draw milk from farmers in Rhineland-Palatinate, North Rhine-Westphalia, Luxembourg and Belgium, including Wallonia and Flanders. The facility’s primary function is to increase the production of milk powder. It supports the company’s expected annual branded volume growth of 5 to 7 % in international business, which is in line with its five-year strategy called Future26.

“We will strengthen and expand our business in international markets such as the Middle East, West Africa and Southeast Asia, where the demand for affordable, nutritious dairy products exceeds local production and supply,” says Peder Tuborgh, CEO, Arla Foods. The global export focus will include China, Kuwait and the Maldives.

The facility includes a production plant with a 51-m-high drying tower that can process 685 m kg of milk a year. The end product will be around 90,000 t of milk powder. The facility also manufactures products for B2B for the food industry, which processes milk powder into chocolate or baked goods.