RUSSIA – Kerry, the global taste and nutrition company, are delighted to announce the opening of its first plant in Russia yesterday, in the Istra district of Moscow.

According to the company, the new production and warehouse complex occupies a site covering more than 7,000 square meters and employs over 50 people.

Production begins immediately with ingredients for the meat processing and snacks market.

The facility was officially opened by Minister for Agriculture for the Moscow Region, Andrei Razin and Edmond Scanlon Kerry Group Chief Executive.

“Kerry has had a presence in Russia since 2006, and I am delighted to be here today to officially open its first production facility.

For us it demonstrates the company’s commitment to our great country and Kerry’s desire to continue to develop and grow its business in Russia.

The opening of this modern and sustainably developed production plant will not only contribute to the development of the food industry in our region, but in all of Russia,” said Minister Razin.

The company added that at full capacity, the plant is designed to produce 26,000 tons of products per year to meet increased local demand for products that meet local consumer taste and nutrition preferences.

“Kerry has been in business in Russia for over 12 years, we opened our regional development and application centre in 2014, and the building of this state-of-the-art facility was for us the next logical step in the development of our business in the region.

Over the years, our business here has gone from strength to strength and as the Russian food industry has developed and expanded, so have we and so has our customer base,” commented Mr. Scanlon.

“This facility means we can now deliver an even better service and get closer to our customers in this part of the world, while offering locally produced goods, using locally sourced raw materials.”

Products from this new facility will supply Kerry customers in the Russian market from Kaliningrad to Vladivostok, as well as the countries of the Customs Union and the CIS: Belarus, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Azerbaijan and beyond. 

Olivier Picard, Managing Director, Kerry Russia said “We believe in the development of the Russian market – the volume of retail trade in the country, according to forecasters, will increase by 6.8% by 2020 and we believe we can play a part in this and in the growth of foodservice.

Additionally, the Russian Federation is the main gateway to the countries of the customs union and the CIS, areas we also see providing future growth potential.”