Arla opens global innovation centre in Denmark

International dairy company Arla Foods has opened its new global innovation centre in Aarhus, Denmark.

With this new facility, Arla intends to create new technologies and products by working hand-in-hand with chefs, scientists, consumers and customers.

At its new innovation centre, the company will focus on the development of value-added products as part of its Good Growth 2020 strategy.

It will also work with scientists and universities to perform research on dairy farming, prevention of lifestyle diseases, and packaging technologies to transport milk and fresh dairy commodities across continents.

The centre will hire nearly 150 specialists from different parts of the world.

Arla Foods CEO Peder Tuborgh said: “As a dairy cooperative, we are built on farmers getting together in the 1880s to create better opportunities together.

“Our new global innovation centre will apply that same approach to our research and development of not just new products but also new ways to consume them.

“The global food industry has never been more competitive than it is today, especially in Europe and across the emerging markets with its booming middle class of consumers in Asia, Africa and beyond.”

Arla’s new Innovation Centre features a small and compact dairy pilot plant, a wide range of laboratories, the Consumer House, the Customer Collaboration Lab and modern office facilities.

Designed as a carbon neutral building, the building also meets the requirements of the Low Energy Building Class 2020 set by Danish building regulations.

The centre is also equipped with water-saving fixtures throughout and has a total of 525m² solar cells on the roof to produce renewable energy.

Arla products are currently retailed in more than 100 countries, and the majority of the products are sold in countries such as the UK, Germany, Sweden, and Denmark.

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Image: Arla’s new Innovation Centre in Aarhus, Denmark. Photo: © Arla Foods.