Arla Foods starts own-label butter production at UK site

Arla Foods has started production of own label retail packet butter at Westbury Dairies for its major retail customers in the UK. Tthe company took delivery of two new 150,000 litre silos in September, which will be needed for the storage of cream as production on site increases.

Last September Arla took full control of the butter operation at Westbury and, in line with its growth agenda, the company is developing the site to manufacture retail packet butter and has extended the existing building to create a dedicated butter making and packing facility. The new silos are the first of 13 that will eventually be installed.

In addition to the extension, modifications have been made to the existing building to enable the installation of two retail packet butter lines and a bulk butter line, which will allow Arla to continue producing bulk butter for catering companies and food manufacturers. Arla will also be installing new processing facilities, and all work is expected to complete in 2012.

Andy West, Arla’s senior director at Westbury, says: “The extension will allow us to supply more of the UK market with retail packet butter from British cream. To date a proportion of Arla’s retail own label butter has been produced at our Settle creamery, but the increased capacity available at Westbury means that we can consolidate all of Arla UK’s own label butter requirements into one site.”