The Puratos Group has started a major expansion of its Belcolade facilities in Erembodegem (Belgium), which will mean not only increased capacity and flexibility to better serve customers around the world, but also accelerated innovation. With future generations in mind, the entire site will become carbon neutral. It will run on 100% renewable electricity so it will be completely free of fossil fuels and it will get 90% of its water from rain. These measures are essential for the company to meet its commitment to achieve carbon neutrality by 2025.

“With consumer demand for sustainable Belgian chocolate rapidly accelerating, and as the only Belgian family-owned producer of that for professionals here, it was an obvious move for us to expand in Erembodegem,” states Youri Dumont, director of the chocolate business unit at Puratos. “We will nearly double our Belcolade output over the next five years, with customers benefiting from inspiring innovation brought to market faster than ever before.”

In 1988, Puratos invested in a factory and launched the Belcolade brand, offering the best quality chocolate produced exclusively in Belgium at Erembodegem. This expansion, says Dumont, “will bring benefits to our valued customers, partners, employees, and the local area, recruiting around 100 colleagues in the coming years. With our larger team of experienced, passionate, and trusted experts, state-of-the-art equipment and a heritage firmly rooted in the heart of Belgium, we’re looking forward to bringing even more unique, delicious and sustainable Cacao-Trace chocolate to the market ”.