BENEO invests in Wijgmaal rice starch plant in Belgium

Functional ingredients manufacturer BENEO has announced a €50m ($56m) investment in its Wijgmaal rice starch plant in Belgium to increase the production capacity by 50% to meet the growing demand for its rice starches.

The investment will increase the production line from two to three.

BENEO Speciality Rice Ingredients operations managing director Roland Vanhoegaerden said: “We fundamentally believe in the value of this investment, with demand for rice starch coming from both natural and organic growth, as well as from new projects and applications.

“One of the key reasons for our confidence is the ‘clean label’ trend, where food manufacturers are moving away from artificial additives and replacing them with natural alternatives, such as rice starch.”

The expansion will be carried out in two stages and is slated for completion in March 2022.

Phase one of the investment will take place at the tail-end of the production process for current lines.

Under this phase, the installation of a third drier and dewatering line will enable the company to boost efficiency.

Phase two of the expansion will involve the front-end of the production process, beginning from soaking through to the separation of the starch from the proteins in the valorisation step.

The facility currently employs 180 people and will add up to 20 full-time positions during the expansion phase.

BENEO noted that it has been making significant investments in the facility and recently invested in its docking station, which enabled the firm to accept two barges instead of one.

This has resulted in two-thirds of rice raw material being now received by barge and only one-third by truck.

Vanhoegaerden added: “The impact is on cost-saving, but also the environment, due to lower carbon emissions and a reduction in traffic. Our factory is in the middle of an urban area and by increasing barge use, we can reduce congestion and noise levels in the neighbourhood.”

In March, BENEO announced a €50m investment to expand its chicory root fibre production facility in Chile.