Swiss dairy firm Emmi has opened a spray-drying tower for producing goat's milk powder in its facility in Etten-Leur in the Netherlands.
The spray-drying tower is energy efficient and meets the growing demand for goat’s milk powder, which is used in baby food production.
With the CHF 40 million (€40.2 million) investment in the project, Emmi is also creating economic prospects for regional goat’s milk suppliers, the company noted.
Etten-Leur is the production site for Emmi's two subsidiaries: Goat Milk Powder and Bettinehoeve.
'Further Strengthen Our Position'
Ricarda Demarmels, CEO of the Emmi said, "The increased production capacity and the facility’s technological design enable us to further strengthen our position in this attractive niche with the newly established Emmi Nutritional Solutions and to tap into new markets and segments."
The new facility features energy-efficient energy pumps and recovery technologies. It relies on an electric heat pump instead of a gas-powered steam system.
The company says this will reduce annual CO2 emissions by more than 6,000 tonnes.
Air compressors recover the energy used for cooling and use the residual heat from the Bettinehoeve facility, which produces speciality cheese.
The new facility will also reduce water consumption by 20% as it is equipped to recirculate the condensate from the steamed milk into the water cycle.
Read More: Emmi To Develop 'Renewable Energy Ecosystem' In Switzerland
Emmi Nutritional Solutions
The company’s milk powder business is managed by Emmi Nutritional Solutions (ENS), which brings together all procurement, production and sales activities.
The new unit consolidates AVH dairy trade, a goat and sheep’s milk powder trader that has been part of the Emmi Group since 2013, and Goat Milk Powder, a goat milk’s powder producer in which Emmi has held a stake since 2016.
Emmi claims that pure goat’s milk powder can improve or prolong people’s quality of life, from infancy and childhood to advanced age.
In recent years, the demand for pure, high-quality goat’s milk powder, especially in the form of baby formula, has seen a steady increase.
Emmi is expanding the product range to include an assortment of milk-based end products, including protein-enriched powders that boost general health and meet special nutrition requirements for adults and elderly.
© 2023 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest fresh-produce news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
