GEA has completed a new freeze-dried instant coffee plant on a green field site in Vietnam for Tata Coffee Vietnam Company Limited, a subsidiary of Tata Coffee Limited, India. The new plant was inaugurated on March 6.
Vietnam is the world’s second largest producer of green coffee. The plant, located in the Binh Duong Province, produces 5,000 metric tons of freeze-dried coffee per year. GEA supplied the technology for the entire production line from roast bean treatment through to the packing of the freeze-dried powder.
Previous work carried out for Tata Coffee includes a coffee extraction and evaporation plant that GEA built for the company in India in 2013. GEA's experience building coffee plants in Vietnam proved useful as GEA project managers were able to provide Tata with support in sourcing experienced and reliable local partners for managing, utilities, installation, and workshop facilities.
The factory required nearly 1 million labor hours to build. The site has been certified for LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) and is expecting BRC (British Retail Consortium) certification shortly.
“This type of project is ideal for us at GEA because our expertise and scope of supply allows us to build the entire coffee line using our own resources,” said Kim Knudsen, head of sales, Coffee and Freeze Drying at GEA. "This means we can maintain control and take responsibility for the entire project from start to finish.”