Nestlé has opened a new UHT milk plant at its factory in Kurunegala, Sri Lanka with an investment of LKR500m ($3.2m).

The plant was inaugurated by the country's Central Bank Governor Indrajit Coomaraswamy and Board of Investment of Sri Lanka chairman Upul Jayasuriya.

Coomaraswamy said: "Nestlé is also a fine example of a company that has fully integrated itself into the domestic economy through its many initiatives to empower the lives of 20,000 local dairy farmers."

"The new UHT milk plant we opened will positively impact the farmers we work with daily."

Jayasuriya said: “We are currently preparing for an investment drive in Sri Lanka. I am happy to note that through their dairy development initiatives, Nestlé began their journey in investing in Sri Lanka’s future over thirty years ago, contributing significantly to the development of the country.

“Their new investment will further increase import substitution and exports in the country. I want to offer my thanks to Nestlé for giving me this opportunity to witness this reality and wish them all the success in their future investment plans.”

Nestlé managing director Shivani Hegde said: “The new UHT milk plant we opened will positively impact the farmers we work with daily, strengthening our efforts to develop the local dairy industry, contribute to its prosperity, and ultimately, enhance the quality of life of the people of Sri Lanka.”

With the opening of this new plant, Nestlé intends to expand the production capacity of its dairy products. Through this expansion it intends to offer local consumers more milk and milk-based products.

The new plant will produce ready-to-drink products such as Milo, Nespray Nutri-Up, Nescafé Ice and Nestomalt.

Image: Nestlé opens UHT milk plant at its factory in Kurunegala, Sri Lanka. Photo: Courtesy of  Nestlé Sri Lanka