Arla Foods UK makes a major move in mozzarella

Arla Foods UK will invest more than £179m/$222m – its biggest investment in the UK to date - to add new production capabilities to its Taw Valley Creamery site in Devon. Construction is expected to complete in 2026 and the facility will start producing mozzarella by 2027, with the majority of product slated for export to global foodservice players.

During Taw Valley’s revamp, the co-op will introduce patented technology at the site to speed up the cheese maturation process, reducing it from 14 days to 1; this technology will also better cater for customers that need their cheese to brown, melt or stretch in a certain way.

“This exciting development will enable Arla to grow its cheese business and provide us with more opportunities to export our nutritious products across the world, which should bring even more value to all our farmer owners,” an Arla Foods UK spokesperson told us. “The decision to invest in the UK means we can utilise the milk pool available – which means we can create new products that will add value to our farmers milk.”

“Our mozzarella business has seen double-digit growth over the past five years and we have great relationships with key customers, particularly in global foodservice – and it’s our ambition that our mozzarella will mainly be used within the foodservice market – for the likes of pizza toppings.”

Mozzarella is the most consumed cheese in the US according to the latest USDA data, with Americans consuming 12.55lb per person in 2022. For reference, around 11.4lb of cheddar per person was consumed in the same year, and just 1.08lb of Swiss cheese. The AHDB reported that the UK mozzarella market has grown by 6.1% in volume and 24.3% in value in the last year, quoting Nielsen IQ data. Export-wise, 43,415 tons of mozzarella were exported from the UK in 2023, up 6.8% on 2022. The majority (88%) of product went to Europe but other markets, such as Asia saw a 163% increase in exports, with over half of that demand coming from China (1,082 tons); MENA also took 1,500 tons.

The UK investment will have no impact on Arla Foods’ two other mozzarella production sites in Denmark. The co-op already expanded its Branderup Dairy plant having invested to more than double its production of mozzarella in 2019.

Bas Padberg, Arla Foods UK MD, said ‘it’s only natural that we look for further opportunities to grow so we can continue to return a fair price back to our farmer owners’. “We want to continue to increase the value of our farmer owners’ milk, which we believe can be achieved through exploring further export opportunities,” he added.

Peter Giortz-Carlsen, COO of Arla Foods Europe, adds: “Our mozzarella business has seen double-digit growth over the past five years and we have strong relationships with key customers, particularly in global foodservice, and it’s from that very solid starting point we are announcing the investment today.

“But we also know that we have to work hard to maintain that position amongst the global leaders in the category and deliver on our strategy.

“This investment allows us to stay among the leaders within mozzarella, serve our customers even better and at the same time improve profitability for our farmer owners’ milk.”