Teta Pak is investing EUR36m ($49m) to complete a EUR60m upgrade at its packaging material plant in Izmir, Turkey.
The overhaul will double the factory’s annual capacity to 10 billion packs and extend its range to 15 packages, including Tetra Brik Aseptic 1000 Edge, Tetra Gemina Aseptic 1000 Crystal and Tetra Top 500 Midi and Tetra Top 1000 Carton Bottle.
Tetra Pak‘s Greater Middle East region has grown at an average of 10% a year over the last decade, which has driven demand from the Izmir facility.
Amar Zahid, who takes over as cluster vice president for the region on 1 July, said the Middle East is also eager for packaging options that provide “differentiation and improved functionality”.
“Customers in this region are not only growing, but also eager for innovation that could set them apart from competition,” he said.
“During the last three years, our customers have launched more than 100 products in new packages.”
By January 2015, with new machines in operation, the Izmir plant will provide “faster lead time” as well as “a wide range of packaging options”, he added.