The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending €50 million (US$53 million) to Mlekpol, Poland’s largest dairy manufacturer under the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI) – a key component of the European Commission’s €315 billion Investment Plan for Europe.

Based in Grajewo, Poland, the 2,200-employee co-operative plans to use the funding for the construction of a new processing facility that will have production capacity of three million liters of milk and whey per day, and will enable the company to lift the efficiency of its production of value-added dairy products such as high purity whey and milk protein, and high quality baby food.

The launch of the project is scheduled for 2018, with full production capacity being achieved in mid-2019.

“Mid-sized companies like Mlekpol are not only important in their regions, they are the backbone of Europe’s growth and employment,” said EIB Vice-President Vazil Hudák, head of the bank’s activity in Poland.

“Often, such companies find it unjustifiably hard to obtain finance suited to their needs. One of the EIB’s top priorities is to address this. In order to offer tailor-made financing solutions for our customers, we strive to develop innovative products, and we are delighted to see that core initiatives like the EFSI deliver right where they are needed.”

Poland

Poland is the largest agri-food industry producer in Central and Eastern Europe according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the seventh largest in the European Union. Dominated by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), the country was home to 2,600 companies working within the sector producing products valued at US$64 million in 2014.

The segments representing the highest value for the country are meat, dairy, beverage, confectionary, and baking – and so far this week, this is the second transaction that GAI News has reported on within the top two segments, after Thailand’s Charoen Pokphand Foods Plc (CP Foods) announced it had agreed to acquire a 33 percent stake in Polish poultry group, SuperDrob for $51.5 million.

Established 23 years ago, family-run SuperDrob has six subsidiaries and major processing plants located in Karczew and Lódz from where it produces fresh poultry meat along with a range of prepared chicken products including grilled and breaded stuffed chicken and chicken nuggets, as well as sausages and ham that it sells under its own brand.

The company exports approximately half of its products across Europe to Great Britain, France, Germany and other EU countries as well as to China. In 2015 its sales saw a year-on-year jump of 10 percent to reach a value of €212.4 million (US$222.5 million).

-Lynda Kiernan

Lynda Kiernan is Editor with GAI Media and daily contributor to GAI News. If you would like to submit a contribution for consideration please contact Ms. Kiernan at lkiernan@globalaginvesting.com