Tetra Pak acquires Chaswill Process Technology
A spokesman for Tetra Pak told FoodProductionDaily: “Chaswill Process Technology is a project management and engineering company that has carried out a large number of projects in the dairy, beverage and prepared food industries in South Africa and the rest of the sub-Sahara region.”
The acquisition is said to add expertise in engineering, automation and project execution resources in line with Tetra Pak’s plans to grow its business in the region.
Acquisition and integration
Tim High, president Tetra Pak Processing Systems said: “This acquisition and integration of resources will help us strengthen and accelerate the growth of our business in South Africa and sub-Sahara Africa.”
The operation will retain its base in Cape Town and trade under the name Tetra Pak Chaswill as part of Tetra Pak South Africa (Pty) Ltd. Some 42 staff are employed at the Cape Town site which includes a stainless steel assembly workshop.
The average annual turnover of Chaswill over the past three financial years has been about €6m (ZAR 55m).
For more than 20 years the company has undertaken projects in the beverage, prepared food and dairy sectors in South Africa and Sub Sahara Africa.
According to a statement on Chaswill’s website: “Our expertise includes consultation, process design and product development, project management, construction management and commissioning.
“The essence of our knowledge and skills is guided by leading-edge technology. Clients include a selection of South Africa's top companies in the food, beverage (fruit juice, wine and beer), dairy and chemical industries.”
Chaswill is currently organised into four divisions: Process engineering, automation division, components and industrial mixers.
Services include: Feasibility studies, mass and energy balances, automation system design, project management, construction management, commissioning and process design and product development.
Rising prosperity
Meanwhile, earlier this month Tetra Pak forecast a 30% surge in the consumption of global liquid dairy products during current decade fuelled by rising prosperity and urbanisation in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Global demand for white milk and Other Liquid Dairy Products (OLDP) — including flavoured milk, drinking yoghurt, sweetened condensed milk, lactic acid drinks and infant milk — is expected to grow to about 350bn litres by 2020, compared with 270bn litres in 2010.
Tetra Pak president and CEO Dennis Jönsson said: “The emergence of a significant middle-class, urbanisation and the expansion of modern shopping habits by busy, health-conscious and well-informed consumers is raising the consumption of packaged milk in developing countries.
“The consumers of this decade are looking for greater convenience and uncompromising quality and safety.”
