ofi opens new dairy facility in New Zealand

ofi (olam food ingredients) has opened the first phase of its dairy processing plant located in Tokoroa, which is in the Waikato region of the north island of New Zealand. The facility is designed to produce ingredients such as whole milk powder to meet the growing demand for applications in dessert, bakery, beverage and confectionery categories.

The first milk powder was produced at the new Tokoroa plant in August and the first overseas shipment of whole milk powder was exported in September.

Sandeep Jain, Managing Director and CEO, Dairy, at ofi, said: “As we continue to expand our dairy manufacturing capabilities and innovation infrastructure, the new Tokoroa plant will become part of a global network that spans major milk consumption markets, such as South-East Asia, China, the Middle East and Africa. The new plant also complements a suite of enhancements made to ofi’s dairy production facility and Ingredient Excellence Centre (IEC) in Johor, Malaysia, back in September — which combined with our Customer Solutions Center based in Singapore, enables us to co-create bespoke food and beverage solutions for our customers. Our dairy business is well positioned to serve increased demand from our global customer base and co-create innovative applications at scale — driving additional focus on the value-added capabilities within our portfolio.”

The Tokoroa dairy ingredients forms part of ofi’s wider natural ingredients portfolio that includes cocoa, coffee, nuts and spices, combinations with dairy for customised products such as yoghurts, protein bars and ready-to-drink tea, coffee and cocoa beverages.

The next stage of investment will see capability added to the facility to develop high-value dairy ingredients. This will help to expand ofi’s range and enable it to look at ways to grow the value of its milk.

The new facility will also help address its customers’ innovation, traceability and sustainable souring requirements, engaging those who wish to secure ingredients from New Zealand’s milk pool.

A biomass boiler fuelled by sustainably sourced wood residue expected to be commissioned in Q1 ’24 will power the plant enabling milk processing to be energy-efficient.

The New Zealand team has grown from two to around 60 people, with 80% from Tokoroa.