Barry Callebaut AG, the world's leading manufacturer of high-quality cocoa and chocolate products, announced plans for additional investments in the core chocolate molding capacity in its facility in St Albans, Vermont. The company also said it entered into an agreement to purchase the assets of the Chatham, Ontario facility of Batory Industries Company. Together with its facility in Robinson, Illinois, Barry Callebaut will have two facilities to service customers in the Midwest market.

These expansion projects will accommodate growth in the region by adding approximately 60,000 tonnes to production capacity, investing a total of CHF 26.8 million (EUR 22.5 million / USD 27.9 million).

Juergen Steinemann, CEO of Barry Callebaut, said: "Barry Callebaut remains consistently dedicated to accelerating top line growth and significantly investing in the future. Through investment in our existing facilities and expansion through acquisition in North America, we have found an ideal solution to address current and future business growth.  The increase of our production capacities will support the further development of our industrial business in the region while also gaining geographic advantage with our customers by adding a key Midwest facility."

Coupled with 2011 investments in Mexico and Pennsauken, New Jersey, and with the January 2012 acquisition of the Gourmet products manufacturer, Mona Lisa Foods Products, Inc. in Hendersonville, North Carolina, Barry Callebaut's two-year investments in the North American region total CHF 95.9 million (EUR 80.4 million / USD 99.7 million); a clear demonstration of the company's dedication to its strategic pillars in this vital market.