Muntons to invest £4.5m to increase production capacity

Stowmarket-based Muntons, the malted ingredient and malt manufacturer, has announced a £4.5million investment at its plant to increase malt extract capacity.

A new 27-metre high building is being constructed on their Stowmarket site to house the new multi-stage evaporator, which will demand involvement from both local design, mechanical and electrical construction firms, along with companies from across Europe in the construction process.

Muntons has announced it is investing £4.5m to increase production capacity at its Stowmarket plant / Picture: Muntons

The addition of a new and more rapid and more energy efficient evaporator will help to boost production by around 15% by removing production bottle-necks, allowing them to process more. The existing evaporator will then be available to process specialist malt extracts such as ultra-dark malt extracts and enzyme-rich diastatic extracts.

Nigel Davies, Muntons Technical and Sustainability Director said: “It seems that people like malt. Demand for malted ingredients is at an all-time high – good news for us, but also bringing its problems, as every tonne of malt extract made is sold as fast as it is produced.” He continued: “The steady drift towards natural products away from fats and sugar as people embrace a healthier lifestyle coupled with health awareness and obesity has been brought into sharp focus through a succession of high-profile media exposés. This has triggered the introduction of traffic lights on packaging, targeted reductions in sugar and fat and has also steered manufacturers towards ‘better-for-you’ products generally, as consumers seek healthier alternatives.”

The investment also means Muntons will recruit five more production operatives within their production area over the course of the next few months.