Fonterra is eyeing global exports for mozzarella cheese, after completing work on a new plant at its Clandeboye site in New Zealand.
The company said it is doubling production and "creating enough mozzarella to top more than 300 million pizzas a year".
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The mozzarella is destined for global pizza and pasta restaurant chains across China, Asia and the Middle East.
Steve McKnight, Clandeboye site manager, said the site will begin 24 hour production today (14 May), with farmers supplying winter milk to help meet global demand for individual quick frozen grated mozzarella.
"We’re seeing the popularity of cheese really take off in Asia, so the timing of this upgrade couldn’t be better. To meet orders from that market, we will be producing cheese 24 hours a day, making use of our new lines and taking winter milk from our farmers in Canterbury, Southland and Otago," McKnight said.
Robert Spurway, MD of Fonterra's global operations, said the co-operative has seen growth in consumer and foodservice categories.
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By GlobalData"Foodservice products such as cheese give a high value on return and, thanks to our strength in research and development, we’re able to cut months off the production time of this mozzarella to deliver on our velocity proposition. The additional capacity will bring volume to that equation."
