French dairy giant Lactalis has put cash into its production in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The privately-owned group has opened a new plant in the north of the country.
Lactalis has spent €2.4m ($2.6m) on its site in Gradačac to boost the manufacturing of UHT products.
In a brief statement, the company told Just Food the move would allow it to increase the production of its Dukat and Alpsko Mleko brands.
Lactalis, which has been present in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2007 after buying dairy group Inmer, is lining up more investment at the site next year.
It plans to spend €1.3m next year to expand its production of yogurt.
According to the website for Lactalis’ local unit, the business processes 50m litres of milk. Half the finished products made by the subsidiary are exported.
Research by GlobalData, Just Food’s parent, forecasts the combined market for dairy, soy drinks and milk alternatives will grow 2.8% by volume in 2023 to 166.9m litres.
White milk, the largest segment, is predicted to see volumes rise 2.6% to 131.7m litres.
Other capex moves by Lactalis so far in 2023 include a new project to boost its production of whey in the US.
