Cargill Provides R&D Support for Domestic Production

Cargill Provides R&D Support for Domestic Production Cargill continues to support knowledge and development in food. The INFUSE Application Centre established by Cargill in Bursa Orhangazi serves domestic producers in international research and development activities. Cargill, which offers innovative solutions for sustainable, healthy, conscious and life-simplifying food products, has commissioned a comprehensive dairy products pilot facility equipped with cutting-edge technology that enables production at industrial scale to be carried out in small batches in Bursa Orhangazi. The INFUSE Application Centre functions as an innovation platform for food producers, with products that have high import dependency being developed in Turkey to provide substantial support for domestic production.

Cargill Food META Food Ingredients Product Manager and Board Member Responsible for Marketing Cem Beysel made the following statements on the subject:

"Domestic production is as important as domestic consumption. For the production of some products, raw materials must come from abroad. Our fundamental strategy here is to contribute to domestic production. While contributing to the development and marketing of products with high import dependency, the added value created also remains in our country." Beysel emphasized that the INFUSE Application Centre is a pilot facility for testing, particularly in the texture-providing product category. Beysel continued as follows: "In our facility, which can simulate any type of dairy product manufacturing plant one-to-one, we work across all dairy groups from dairy beverages to desserts and plant-based whipped cream, from yogurt to cheese. We can call it a small-scale model of a dairy production facility. We develop recipes together by replicating manufacturers' equipment and production processes. We particularly focus on a wide range of products with significant market potential, such as cheese, labneh and cream products. While developing products together at our centre equipped with top-level technology, we also provide services. In short, we act as a companion on the journey." [caption id="attachment_147367" align="aligncenter"] Cem Beysel[/caption]

"Production is not interrupted, providing speed and cost advantage"

Highlighting that product development work in the dairy industry is very laborious, Beysel continued: "For example, stopping a production line with a capacity to process 10-20 tonnes per hour to try a new product both leads to time loss and is quite costly. Moreover, milk is a highly perishable product, so it must be processed without delay. A trial may not succeed at the first attempt; trials may need to be repeated for adaptation to the production line. Looking at all these aspects, developing an innovative product becomes almost impossible. Here we prepare prototypes of dairy products in a way that will provide the best response to customers' needs and support them in achieving their goals. Thus, they can produce their formulations more cost-effectively and faster domestically by taking advantage of the comprehensive research and product testing opportunities we provide." Beysel noted that the facility in Orhangazi serves producers not only in Turkey but also in the Middle East and Africa. Stating that there is no other facility providing such comprehensive services in the region known as META, Beysel noted that they have been in communication with all customers in the region and conducting work since November 2020. Beysel said, "To date, we have conducted prototype work in 14 different product categories, with nearly 600 prototypes. We have developed 12 products, and production and sales of these products have begun." Cem Beysel noted that during their 62 years of operations in Turkey, a sustainable future for food has always been their priority. Beysel concluded his remarks as follows: "In Turkey, using 100 per cent domestic raw materials, we offer innovative products and services to our food producer customers in line with consumer trends. In addition to food, we operate in the bioindustry and animal nutrition sectors, and with our rich product portfolio, we touch every aspect of life. Our aim is to share Cargill's global experience spanning 157 years, our knowledge accumulated in research and development in line with our sustainability commitments, in a way that also supports local production, and to provide benefit."