DENMARK – The Danish dairy cooperative, Arla Foods has created a new Product and Innovation division and appointed Lars Dalsgaard as new Senior Vice President to lead the organisation effective April 1, 2019.
This is the dairy company’s approach to driving the innovation and product development capabilities.
The company said the new company fit strengthens its innovation and global product agenda while positioning it to become one of the leading dairy innovators in the world.
As one of the world’s leading dairy companies, we must be in a position to drive and lead dairy innovation on a global scale in order to increase the value of our products and create new business for Arla worldwide
Hanne Sondergaard, Executive Vice President and CMO.
Under the new organisation, Arla will bring together its current product management and research and development functions to better leverage on competencies and technologies.
Both research & technology development and product development & management functions will be housed under one umbrella involving all products and packaging related activities.
“The new set up will enable closer collaboration with our commercial zones, markets and supply chain, ensuring that we are driving our global innovation and product agendas from the strongest possible position to maximise the value of our products,” said Hanne Sondergaard, Executive Vice President and CMO.
“With the aim for half of our growth to come from innovation, it’s a key element of our strategy and an essential element in our mission to create the highest possible value for the milk supplied by our cooperative owners.”
Strengthening the innovation agenda
Alongside the newly created organisation, Arla has unveiled a new innovation model with a goal to double the impact in half the time.
It complements the global innovation centre which Arla opened in Denmark in 2017 to reinforce innovation in regard to Good Growth 2020 strategy of growing branded sales and expanding organic dairy sales in the next four years.
Plans to invest in the global centre were revealed in 2013, pegged at a cost of DKK 270 million (US$40 million), playing a pivotal role in the company’s collaboration with its customers.
The center, located in Aarhus features the world’s most advanced technology within food development and Arla’s expertise in innovation.
In August last year, Arla Foods unveiled plans to build a state-of-the-art innovation centre in Nr. Vium, the second facility of the kind in Denmark to enhance its whey protein capabilities.
“We will be more experimental, faster to market and roll out successes with speed.
We’re also placing innovation leadership in market and global or zone brand teams who are closest to our consumers and customers.
“As one of the world’s leading dairy companies, we must be in a position to drive and lead dairy innovation on a global scale in order to increase the value of our products and create new business for Arla worldwide,” said Hanne.
