Danone has just opened its new Nutricia factory in the Netherlands. The state-of-the-art facility cost 240 million euros and is designed to meet the demand for specialised baby food.
Specific health needs
At 240 million euros, the new Nutricia factory in Cuijk (the Netherlands) is one of Danone’s biggest investments ever in the European production network. The factory will mostly produce specialised baby food (for example for babies who are allergic to cow’s milk) as well as ordinary baby food. At full capacity, more than 600 different products can be manufactured for babies in over 90 countries.
The worldwide demand for food for babies with specific health needs is on the rise. Today, between 2 and 5 percent of all babies develops a cow milk allergy within their first year. This new factory should meet that increasing need.
Sustainability
A lot of attention went to sustainability in the development of this manufacturing facility. The new factory will double the production capacity, but still use 60% less water and 25% less energy. The factory’s carbon dioxide emissions will also be halved. To further diminish its ecological impact, the facility operates on 100% renewable electricity and all of its waste will be recycled.
In addition, the factory solely uses dairy ingredients from Western Europe: the region with the world’s lowest carbon dioxide emission from dairy production. Last month, Danone scored very well in a CDP study that tried to gauge how environmentally friendly major companies really are.
