GEA develops process line for UK's largest butter-making plant

The facility will produce 45,000 tonnes of butter each year

GEA Process Engineering (GPUK) has supplied process engineering services and equipment to the Müller UK & Ireland Group to develop a complete butter-making process line at its new £17 million plant in Market Drayton, Shropshire.

The plant, the largest in the UK, is capable of producing up to 45,000 tonnes of butter each year. The project was completed from contract award to first product in nine months.

Martin Jackson, GPUK director of sales, said: “It gave us the opportunity to use our process engineering and automation expertise to bring together technologies from throughout the GEA Group including: butter-making, evaporation, refrigeration, valves, pumps and heat exchangers. This allowed us to develop the complete line from cream reception to finished butter.

“We also had to fit the plant into an existing building, which was very tight, so it gave the designers something to think about.”

GPUK has previously worked with Müller on projects in both the UK and Germany.