Danone Opens New Sustainable Nutricia Plant in the Netherlands to Meet Growing, Global Demand for Specialized Infant Formula

-  €240 million facility in Cuijk is among Danone's largest investments in its European production network in the last ten years, building on the Netherland's agricultural heritage and Nutricia's scientific capabilities

-  Plant will produce highly specialized infant formula – including formula for specific health conditions, and will employ close to 500 employees once fully operational

-  State-of-the-art, sustainable, zero-waste facility powered with 100% renewable electricity

CUIJK, The Netherlands, March 25, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Danone proudly announces the official opening of its new Nutricia Cuijk production facility. The opening ceremony, taking place in the presence of a broad range of stakeholders, including the Minister of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Carola Schouten, as well as industry and healthcare representatives, marks the completion of a three-year journey to build a state-of-the-art, energy-efficient, zero-waste plant. The facility will primarily produce specialized infant formula that meets the needs of infants diagnosed with specific medical conditions – such as cow's milk protein allergy, as well as standard infant formula. The €240 million investment is among Danone's largest in its European production network in the last ten years.

"At Danone, we believe the health of people and the planet are interconnected, as expressed through our company vision 'One Planet. One Health'.  Our new Nutricia Cuijk facility is a significant investment towards achieving that vision. At this facility, we'll be producing food for vulnerable babies; and we're also doing everything we can to preserve a healthy and clean environment for future generations," said Veronique Penchienati -Bosetta, Executive Vice President, Danone Specialized Nutrition.

Nutricia Cuijk to meet rising demand for specialized infant formula for babies with specific health needs

The new Nutricia Cuijk plant has been built to spec to further support the expansion of Danone's range of specialized infant formula products specially tailored for babies with specific health needs. The global prevalence of allergy, for example, is steadily rising, and approximately 2-5% of infants develop cow's milk protein allergy within the first year of life.¹ The Nutricia Cuijk plant employs a specific manufacturing process² to produce foods for special medical purposes containing extensively hydrolyzed protein to meet the specific nutritional needs of infants diagnosed with this type of allergy.