Valio Invests in Cheese Maturation Warehouse and Automation

Valio is investing in a new cheese maturation warehouse, which will be built at its production plant in Joensuu, Finland. The value of the investment is around 30 million euros. Construction of the warehouse, which will be built adjacent to the production plant, will start immediately and be completed by the end of 2027.

The investment covers the construction of the production plant’s maturation warehouse expansion and automation of its operations. Construction will begin this month. At the same time, the old maturation warehouse will be renovated to accommodate the production lines being relocated from the production plant in Vantaa, Finland. Cheese slicing and grating, as well as processed cheese production, are being relocated from Vantaa to Joensuu. The investment is part of Valio’s plans to move production gradually from the Vantaa plant to Joensuu during 2025-2027.

Because of the investment, the entire cheese production process will be brought under one roof at the Joensuu plant. Milk collected from Valio’s farms is pasteurized to make cheese, which is then salted and ripened in the warehouse. After maturing, the cheese moves to further processing, such as for block packaging, slicing or grating. In the future, processed cheese will also be produced at the plant. The new maturation warehouse is highly automated, which brings efficiency and savings to the production plant’s operations. In cheese production, the aim is to make the best possible use of all possible side streams.

“The expansion will create a total of about 100 new jobs at the Joensuu production plant within a couple of years,” notes Joensuu plant director Petri Liukka. “New positions will be created as the new production lines and facilities are gradually taken into use. At this stage, we have already recruited 15 new employees, and a few dozen more positions will become available on the slicing lines later this year. Valio employees from the Vantaa plant have also transferred to positions in Joensuu.”

Most of Finland’s dairy farms are located in an area stretching from Ostrobothnia to eastern Finland. The Joensuu production plant receives milk from 800 dairy farms located mainly in North Karelia, Finland, and it produces one-third of Valio’s cheeses. The plant’s annual production volume is approximately 25 million kg of cheese blocks, consumer packaged cheeses, cream cheeses and milk powders. The main products of the Joensuu plant are Valio’s Polar cheeses, Salaneuvos cheeses and Viola cream cheeses. In the future, processed cheeses, such as Valio’s Koskenlaskija, Aamupala, Olympia and Kippari slices and grated cheese, will also be produced at the Joensuu plant. Approximately 20% of the products made at the Joensuu production plant are exported.