‘A huge growth market’

By commissioning the new powder plant, Emmi aims to gain a foothold in a growing segment in the Netherlands not only with goat’s milk powder but also with other raw materials. Another exciting aspect of “Europe’s most sustainable spraying tower” is the excellent collaboration with Dagmersellen.

Abig step towards the future: in Etten-Leur in the Netherlands, the new powder tower at the location of Emmi subsidiaries Goat Milk Powder (GMP) and Bettinehoeve was commissioned. ‘This will triple our previous capacity,’ says Reto Mattli, Strategic Development Officer Division Europe. Sybren Ewijk, Managing Director of Bettinehoeve, adds: ‘based on our North Stars, the key figures for our long-term success, we expect significant growth in goat’s milk powder. The plant will enable us to achieve the highest quality standards that our customers expect of us for baby food.’

Almost a fifth of the goat’s milk produced annually in the Netherlands will in future be processed by Emmi Nutritional Solutions (see box). ‘The new facility will open up promising segments and enable us to tap into attractive new markets,’ says Robin Barraclough, Head of the business division Europe. The powder business has been merged into a strategic unit, and the product range is being expanded and goes beyond baby nutrition.

Protein powder

‘We are also moving away from pure goat’s milk powder and focusing more broadly on foods that are enriched with protein, for example for older consumers, athletes and vegans,’ says Reto. ‘With the new factory, we are ideally positioned for the powder business, which is a huge growth market,’ says Reto.

Flagship project in the field of sustainability

The new spraying tower is a flagship in terms of sustainability. ‘The plant with a heat pump system for generating heat from electricity instead of gas for a large part of the factory gives us a competitive advantage at a time of high energy prices,’ says Sybren. ‘With this new system, we are able to use the residual heat from our cheese factory across the street for our powder facility.’ The hot air in the spraying tower is currently still produced using gas, ‘but we’ve already thought further, so we can switch to renewable energy,’ says Geri Schatt, Head of Sustainability at the Emmi Group.

Support from Switzerland

Construction began in mid-2021 during the pandemic. ‘It was very difficult at times, but we always believed in it and Martin van Putten did a fantastic job as a project manager,’ says Reto. Another important key to success was the collaboration with the drying team from Dagmersellen, which actively supported the team in Etten-Leur for months.

The networking of Dutch and Swiss specialists in the powder segment is of value to Emmi as a whole. ‘We have created an excellent human and professional foundation for the future,’ enthuses Hans Heer, Head of Liquid/Powder in Dagmersellen. For around three months, one or two members of his team were in the Netherlands. In recent years, Dagmersellen has built numerous extensions and new buildings, which is why it has accumulated a great deal of expertise. ‘We were able to take this backpack of experience to the Netherlands and equip it with new insights.’ The collaboration with the Dutch was great. ‘We were welcomed in a very appreciative and friendly way.’

Perfect team spirit

Five employees from Dagmersellen provided support in Etten-Leur. ‘The entire sixteen-strong drying team made this possible, with those in Switzerland filling in the gaps for those who were absent,’ says Hans. ‘The team spirit was perfect.’ Friendly, unifying, appre - ciative: this is what Swiss-Dutch collaboration felt like. ‘For me, it was another great experience, which Emmi made possible for me,’ says André Lötscher, Drying Team Leader. Hans adds: ‘we enthusiastically pursued the same goal together. This brought us together and to experience real Emmi moments.’ It is also positive that around 20 new employees have been hired to operate the new facility. ‘They are part of our exciting growth journey,’ says Sybren.

New name: Emmi Nutritional Solutions (ENS) Goat Milk Powder G.V., which consists of a cooperation between goat’s cheese manufacturer Bettinehoeve B.V. and goat’s and sheep’s milk powder distributor AVH dairy trade B.B, merged with AVH and was renamed. The company is now called Emmi Nutritionial Solutions (ENS), subdivided into ENS Niederlande and ENS International. This will enable us to strengthen the powder business and merge it into a single strategic unit.