Aptamil and Nutrilon early nutrition from Danone
The new facility will support Groupe Danone's early life nutrition brands, including Aptamil and Nutrilon.

PARIS — Groupe Danone said it is investing €240 million ($254 million) in a new facility to support its early life nutrition brands, including Aptamil and Nutrilon, for both standard and specialized products. The facility will be built in Cuijk in The Netherlands and will start production in late 2017.

Danone said the new plant represents its largest investment in its European production capabilities and will double its capacity in The Netherlands. Production at the facility will be exported to more than 80 countries worldwide, Danone said.

Felix Martin Garcia, Danone
Felix Martin Garcia, executive v.p. of the Danone Nutricia Early Life Nutrition division

“Building our new production plant in Cuijk is a major step for Danone and Nutricia,” said Felix Martin Garcia, executive vice-president of the Danone Nutricia Early Life Nutrition division. “It will give us the capacity we need to meet rising demand for our early life nutrition products and is consistent with our 2020 roadmap calling for strong, profitable and sustainable growth. We are also delighted to be making this investment in The Netherlands, where our Nutricia brand has had a proud heritage stretching back over more than 100 years.”

Danone said it chose the Cuijk location because of the “expert know-how” of current staff and for the site’s proximity to Danone’s research and development center in Utrecht, which is the company’s global hub for research dedicated to early life nutrition and advanced medical nutrition.

The new facility will meet Danone’s targets for sustainability, offering high energy efficiency and complying with the strictest CO2emission standards.