GERMANY – Delfi completes major expansion project at its Hamburg plant

MILAN – Delfi Cocoa Europe, a division of Petra Foods Limited, has completed a major expansion project at its Hamburg cocoa plant which, according to the company, has increased processing capacity to 100,000 tonnes of beans annually from 35,000 tonnes.

The plant is a joint venture between Singapore’s Petra Foods and the London-based Armajaro group. The plant has been modernised with investment of around EUR80m since being purchased in 2007. It handles both cocoa bean grinding and butter production.

The expansion enables production of a wide range of new cocoa powders for the chocolate and confectionery industries, John Chuang, ceo of Petra Foods, told a news conference in Hamburg.

The Hamburg plant will supply Germany’s large chocolate and food industries along with other countries in West and East Europe, Scandinavia and other buyers worldwide.