Dairy expert Lacpol Group

DAIRY EXPERT

Lacpol Group, with headquarters in Warsaw, is one of Poland’s leading industrial groups; its main business is the production and sale of dairy products to markets around the world.

Lacpol has been active on the dairy market for more than 25 years. “Initially Lacpol was a trading company with exports of dairy products as its main activity”, says Mr Kazimierz Los, the Lacpol Group president of the board. “The company saw a dynamic development in 1990 when we purchased many dairy producers in Poland. Thus, we turned from a typical trading company into a production and trading group of companies.”

Nowadays the group consists of nine manufacturing facilities and services, a cold store, two wholesalers of dairy products, two hotels in Krynica Zdroj and a certified laboratory. Manufacturing facilities are located throughout Poland. Lacpol is also the publisher of “Przeglad Mleczarski” (“Review of the Dairy”) a journal focused on the issues of the dairy industry, which has been published for more than a hundred years. Each of the Lacpol facilities specialises in the production of a particular segment of dairy products. This form of activity allows the group to apply and use specialised production technologies, as well as those considered traditional.

Thanks to the extensive collaboration with global food corporations, as well as with renowned research institutions, Lacpol products are well known throughout the world. “Exports account for 60–65 per cent of our total sales. Countries from the European Union region are our main foreign markets; however, our products are also well-known in Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, China and North Africa. Sales of our dairy products to the EU countries and to countries outside the EU are carried out directly by Lacpol in Warsaw, while domestic distribution of products is carried out directly by the individual production plants and Lacpol Gdynia,” explains Mr Los.

Total annual sales of the group are estimated as more than PLN 800 million (more

than €200 million). “The first half of 2013 was very profitable for the Lacpol Group. Our sales went up by 20 per cent compared to the first half of 2012. There are two main reasons behind this increase in demand: dry weather in New Zealand, the country which is the biggest dairy products exporter, and revival of demand for dairy products in China and North Africa. There is also another positive trend: butter is back in consumers’ favour,” explains Mr Los. Fresh and dry dairy products

The Lacpol Group’s offer includes a full range of fresh and dry dairy products. The latter market segment is the company’s export flagship. Dry products are obtained by the complete evaporation of water from the fresh foodstuff. Lowering the water content to just a few per cent gives powdered products a much longer life. They can be used by virtually every branch of the food industry, both as one of many components or as a central feature of the product. Dry products, such as powdered milk, are especially valued in such regions as North Africa where the climatic conditions adversely affect the quality and shelf life of fresh products.

The group’s production capacity and the broad experience of its plants that manufacture powdered products, allow full modification of the composition of the final product, which is the milk powder intended for further processing. Milk and its derivatives can

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Fresh cow’s milk is the base for all the products. It is subject to various forms of processing and heat treatment. Microbial vaccines used by Lacpol are tested in terms of quality by in-house research laboratories. Microbiological material used in the manufacture of products comes only from strains that have not been genetically engineered.

Raw milk used by Lacpol comes directly from selected farmers. In the process of manufacturing, the group cooperates with reputable

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companies. For example it works with Christian Hansen, a company that develops natural ingredient solutions for the food, pharmaceutical, nutritional and agricultural industries, in developing solutions for the immunisation of cows. It also works with Ecolab, a global provider of water purification solutions, disinfectants, cleaning products, energy technologies and services to the food, energy, healthcare, industrial and hospitality markets. Permanent development

Although the Lacpol Group’s situation is very stable, the company is not resting on its laurels. Permanent development is a part of the company’s philosophy. “We have been constantly investing in further development. Our annual investments are estimated as PLN 20–30 million (€5–6 million). Recently a new cheese plant was built in our facility in Piotrkow Kujawski. It is one of the biggest and most modern facilities of this kind in Poland. A new line for cheese maturing was also installed in our other dairy, located in Zalesie. This plant can be described as ‘one big cheese maturing facility’. Each dairy that belongs to the Lacpol Group is updated on a regular basis,” assures Mr Los. n

Visit: www.lacpol.com.pl