French yeast manufacturer Lesaffre inaugurates Fermentis campus installed with state-of-the-art technology
FRANCE – Fermentis, a Lesaffre business unit dedicated to fermented beverages such as beer, wine, and spirits, has inaugurated a new campus in Marquette-Lez-Lille, on the historic site of the Lesaffre grain alcohol and genever distillery founded in 1853 by Louis Lesaffre and Louis Bonduelle, the group’s co-founders.
The 3,000 m2 Fermentis Campus, houses new facilities, including a brewery with more than 50 fermenters, laboratories, partly dedicated to sensory analysis, and a reception and training center.
The exterior is decorated with green spaces, where hop fields, vines, and an orchard that have been planted, while inside the campus, a state-of-the-art pilot infrastructure to produce fermented beverages has been installed.
The technical hall, installed with several dozen fermentation tanks equipped and connected to the best monitor and analyze the fermentation processes, was designed to test yeasts, bacteria, and yeast derivatives under thousands of different conditions.
The campus is also fitted with a sensory analysis laboratory dedicated to the physicochemical analysis of the products.
In addition to sensory analysis, tests will be carried out daily in two additional laboratories (one for microbiological analysis, the other for physicochemical analysis) adjacent to the technical room.
“The inauguration of the Fermentis Campus is a milestone in the history of Lesaffre. It is in keeping with the group’s identity: an innovative place that encourages meetings and is a synthesis of our research and industrial know-how. The state-of-the-art equipment made available to the Fermentis by Lesaffre teams, and the Fermentis Academy, allow them to work to develop and maintain proximity with our customers,” Brice-Audren Riché, CEO of Lesaffre, noted.
“For 170 years, we have been growing and growing alongside them. With this new campus, which perfectly combines history and cutting-edge technology, our Group is reaffirming its position as a major world player in the field of fermentation and micro-organisms, while proudly displaying its glorious heritage and capacity for innovation.”
The Fermentis Campus also has an amphitheater that can seat up to 160 people, and the company said numerous Fermentis Academy training sessions will be held.
“This Campus, designed for our clients and partners to interact with them and accompany them, reflects our values of hospitality, conviviality, and commitment.” Stéphane Meulemans said.
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