The region’s most modern dairy plant is situated in a 30-meter high building. In a huge tower tank, the by-product of cheese production will be utilized, for example, for producing baby food.
“It is the beginning of a new era because it is a pioneer technological development for Debrecen’s dairy industry in Hungary and even in Europe”, stressed Laszlo Papp, the Mayor of Debrecen.
The company works and develops in an industry that was threatened with extinction a few years ago. At the plant, 8,500 tonnes of cheese are produced each year and 250,000 litres of milk are processed every day by using world-class technology to produce milk powder. Now, the milk storage capacity of the company is expanded and they can take 750 thousand litres of milk from local farmers.
“Debrecen is the champion of investments; we have announced 25 investments in the last four years. We have achieved this success with the support of the Debrecen and in partnership with the government”, emphasized Peter Szijjarto, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
Thanks to the development, hundreds of new jobs have been created in Debrecen.
Alföldi Tej in a nutshell: Continuous Grows and Investment
The company “Alföldi Tej” is a cooperative. Since 2012 the net sales of the company has increased by 20-25 per cent each year.
They produce many of their own branded fresh and UHT products and products for commercial chains as well. Most of the chains are partners, but today this type of business accounts only for 35 per cent of the production.
They produce unique brands for chains such as the “Fabulous” for CBA, “Anni-Panni” for Coop, and “Kokárdás” for Aldi.
The remaining 65 per cent is provided by the Hungarian brand introduced in 2010, followed by the Riska available from 2012, and the smallest part is represented by brand “Alföldi” that is on the market since 2007.
“With the expansion of the cheese and powder dairy division, we equal the size of the largest Hungarian dairy processor. With two plants, we cover 17 counties and ensure one-quarter of the country’s total milk production”, said Tibor Mélykuti, CEO of Alföldi Tej.
