Belgium facility to double capacity
Cargill’s cocoa and chocolate business has broken ground on a US $48m (€35m) investment to double the capacity of its Belgian chocolate production facility in Mouscron over the next two years.
The additional capacity will meet growing demand for chocolate in confectionery, bakery, dairy and artisanal applications from European customers.
Cargill’s cocoa and chocolate business provides its customers with a large variety of Belgian chocolates, including custom made recipes and chocolate of sustainable origin. The investment will increase capacity of both liquid dark or milk chocolate and solid chocolate drops and chunks. The new facility will source raw materials like cocoa butter from Cargill’s integrated cocoa processing plants in The Netherlands and in France.
“With this investment, Cargill demonstrates its commitment to providing our customers with a broader and more bespoke service and enlarged range of chocolate recipes to meet their individual needs,” says Jos de Loor, president, Cargill Cocoa & Chocolate. “The extension of our state-of-the-art facility in Mouscron along with our food ingredient expertise will support our cocoa and chocolate growth strategy.”
The new production lines will be operational in summer 2014 and will lead to the creation of about 40 jobs over the next two years.
