Cargill opens new culinary experience hub in Belgium

Global food company Cargill has announced the opening of a Culinary Experience Hub in its research and development (R&D) facility in Vilvoorde, Belgium.

The new hub will be used by Cargill’s customers in Europe, as well as the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region to address their food formulation challenges. It will also be used to facilitate co-creation of new ingredients and recipes.

Cargill EMEA R&D leader André van der Wulp said: “Imagine you’re a Cargill customer trying to identify the best ingredients for consumers.

“You could hear about an ingredient’s specifications and functionality, and perhaps sample a prototype. Or you could come to Cargill in Vilvoorde to co-create and taste a freshly prepared plate of food products like the consumer would at home or in a restaurant.”

The facility is equipped with a bakery pilot plant, a regional frying centre and a culinary tasting area for dairy, bakery, convenience foods, culinary and beverage applications.

Cargill said that the Vilvoorde Culinary Experience Hub is integrated with a network of innovation centres, which offer R&D, applications and technical service support to company’s customers across the globe.

Cargill noted that its new centre employs more than 150 scientists and technologists.

Wulp said: “Cargill’s Vilvoorde Culinary Experience Hub houses a team of culinary experts and chefs that collaborate with customers to develop on-the-spot innovative solutions that specifically address the challenges and demands of consumers.

“Our quality products combined with a dash of culinary creativity help us and our customers come up with new, on-trend food solutions that don’t compromise on taste, quality and affordability.”

In September, Cargill invested $5m at its Mouscron facility in Belgium to improve capabilities at the plant to produce chocolates with reduced sugar levels.

The investment comes in response to the increasing demand for chocolate products with less sugar content.