FrieslandCampina to build sustainable dairy processing plant in the Netherlands

13 Mar 2019 --- Dutch dairy producer Royal FrieslandCampina N.V. is exploring options to build a sustainable dairy processing plant in the Netherlands. The plant is intended for the processing of milk into fresh dairy products, ingredients used for the production of early life and adult nutrition and cheese manufacturing. It would be built according to the latest insights in the area of technology and sustainability, says the company.

The announcement comes at a time when dairy sustainability is in the spotlight. Earlier this week, Arla Foods pledged to operate globally from a carbon net zero standpoint by 2050. These goals will be “entirely offset by improvements elsewhere in the supply chain and be even more closely aligned with nature to increase biodiversity further,” the company says.

Jan-Willem ter Avest, a spokesperson at FrieslandCampina tells FoodIngredientsFirst that the company’s goal is to “produce climate-neutral dairy in 2050 and reduce the use of scarce natural resources such as water, raw materials and fossil fuels.” 

With this new facility, FrieslandCampina would increase the flexibility of its supply chain to meet growing market demand for special milk flows and accommodate anticipated growth for the coming years. Due to the potential size of the new plant, as well as sustainability and technical requirements, a greenfield location is foreseen.

“At this point, we are exploring opportunities. There is no design and also we did not choose a location in the Netherlands yet. With this new facility, we would increase the flexibility of our supply chain to meet increasing market demand for special milk flows and accommodate anticipated growth for the coming years. We want to lead with sustainability,” says ter Avest. 

Milk used in the production process on site will be sourced from FrieslandCampina’s own member dairy farmers. The dairy products and ingredients will be marketed and sold to, among others, global customers. Financial details and information about the number of employees have not been disclosed.

The announcement is part of a wider push by the dairy company towards sustainability. Last month, Rabobank agreed to grant rewards on the basis of similar biodiversity criteria to FrieslandCampina. 

In August 2018, the number of dairy farmers to receive solar panels through the FrieslandCampina Solar program more than doubled compared to the previous year. The Dutch multinational dairy cooperative said that initially, 344 additional dairy farms would participate which eventually became 462 bringing the total number of participants in the FrieslandCampina Solar program to 772 dairy farms. 

In April 2018, FrieslandCampina pledged to strengthen its sustainability strategy by introducing a certified Top Dairy line focusing on animal welfare and biodiversity. The dairy cooperative proposed a desire to debut a top dairy line with an extra focus on animals, nature, climate; dairy with a lower CO2 equivalent, as part of its “Nourishing by Nature” strategy.