Danish ingredients company Danisco announced this week that it is to use new production facilities in Denmark to produce Natamax - a natural, biological preservative.
The new facilities, worth around DKK 90 million (€12.1m), have just been commissioned at the Grindsted site and are dedicated to the production of Natamax, which is a biological protectant used by the global food industry.
Danisco has held the rights to Natamax, originally developed by Pfizer, for the past five years. Up until now, the ingredient was produced at a Pfizer plant in the USA. Natamax, produced on the basis of fermentation, is used in foods. In the dairy industry, it is used for surface treatment of cheese products to prevent formation of mould. It is also used in dried sausages and in fruit juice to control yeast and mould, which can spoil foods and in extreme cases develop hazardous toxins.
According to the company, the Natamax product is doing well in USA, Mexico, South America and Europe and is growing in popularity in the Middle East and Asia - countries with warm climates .
Danisco has chosen to place the production of Natamax in Denmark due to the Grindsted site's extensive fermentation know-how. Where fermentation normally takes 24-48 hours, the fermentation process involved in the production of Natamax takes 11 days (24 hours a day).