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Lesaffre subsidiary LIS by Lesaffre is investing in new drying capacity and processing technology at its Strasbourg facility in France.
The company, which specialises in drying services for ingredient manufacturers, has integrated the Lesaffre Culinary Strasbourg facility into its operations and installed new fluidised-bed drying equipment.
The investment adds to LIS by Lesaffre’s existing drying infrastructure and is designed to give the business greater flexibility in serving both internal and external customers.
LIS has more than 60 years’ experience in spray drying and provides processing services for food, nutraceutical, pharmaceutical and cosmetic ingredients. Its capabilities range from laboratory-scale product development and testing through to industrial production, alongside services including liquid formulation, powder blending and contract packaging.
The integration of the Strasbourg site expands LIS by Lesaffre’s geographic reach in Europe while bringing additional drying capacity into its network. Existing equipment at the facility includes a box dryer with a capacity of approximately 4,000 tonnes per year.
Alongside the additional capacity, LIS has invested in a new fluidised-bed (FB) system, which the company describes as multifunctional technology capable of supporting several powder-processing applications.
These include intensive granulation to improve powder dispersibility, flowability and compressibility; coating to protect active ingredients; co-drying to enable precise dosing of a compound onto a carrier; and over-drying to adjust moisture content.
Franck Auger, general manager of LIS by Lesaffre, said: “These investments not only enable us to expand our production capacity, but above all to gain unique technological agility."
Auger added that the expanded capabilities would allow the company to offer a broader range of services and customised solutions for innovative applications and support its entry into new markets.
The Strasbourg investment comes as LIS positions itself to serve a wider range of ingredient-processing requirements. The company operates production sites in France and Poland and describes itself as a European partner for drying services across the human and animal food, nutraceutical, cosmetic and pharmaceutical markets.
LIS is part of Lesaffre, the global fermentation specialist, which reports €3.2 billion in revenue and employs 11,700 people across its operations worldwide.
