FDBusiness.com

Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of cocoa and chocolate products, has inaugurated an extension to its dedicated spray-drying production facility in Kagerod in southern Sweden. This SFr10 million (Eur8 million) investment increases the capacity of Barry Callebaut’s centre of competence for beverages for producing spray dried products by up to 50%.

With the capacity extension at its specialty production site, Barry Callebaut will be able to further grow the company’s Gourmet & Specialties Products business, serving professional users with convenient products offered under a variety of beverages brands. The newly installed spray tower will commence production in December 2011. The capacity increase will partly be used for fulfilling a long-term supply agreement Barry Callebaut signed with an international specialty coffee company at the end of 2010.

Juergen Steinemann, chief executive pf Barry Callebaut, says: “The inauguration of the new spray tower in Kagerod marks another important milestone in growing our Gourmet & Specialties Products business. In the last decade we have continuously invested in our Beverages business and built an innovative center of competence in the south of Sweden.”

The Beverages division is a part of the Gourmet & Specialties Products business of Barry Callebaut. Headquartered in Sweden, it is a leading player inEuropein the area of cocoa based powder solutions used in chocolate, cocoa and cappuccino beverages. Through its Beverages division, Barry Callebaut serves the vending and office coffee industry as well as the HORECA (hotels, restaurants and caterers) business. At its site in Kagerod, Barry Callebaut operates an integrated, state-of-the art production site, where most of the beverages products are manufactured. They are mainly marketed inEurope, but are also delivered to customers all over the world.