To meet local bakeries’ increasing demands, Mühlenchemie GmbH & Co. KG, Ahrensburg, Germany, and its long-standing distribution partner ABP, Ankara, Turkey, have opened a production plant for flour improvers and flour fortification premixes in Izmir, Turkey. The joint venture is intended to meet the challenges facing flour improvement in Turkey and neighboring regions.

ABP has been Mühlenchemie’s distribution partner since 1992. The two firms have now established the joint venture ABP Mühlenchemie Gıda Sanayi ve Ticaret Anonim Şirketi as an equal partnership. The new company has set up a research and production facility of its own to be in a better position to meet the needs of the region’s milling industry. By doing so, it has cleared the way for sustainable growth in Turkey.

“Thanks to the new production plant and our joint venture with ABP, we are now able to serve the dynamic Turkish market for agricultural products and food more systematically and flexibly,” says Mühlenchemie’s managing director Lennart Kutschinski. “A knowledge of local conditions and good relations with our customers, including thorough advice, are essential for our business if we are to offer additional value with individual system solutions. In ABP and Mühlenchemie, two excellent partners have intensified their cooperation to ensure a successful future.”

Kemal Kantar, owner of ABP, welcomes the closer business relationship: “The two companies have the same attitude to quality. We have been importing Mühlenchemie’s products for over 20 years. But since the demands made by our local mills are much greater these days, production on the spot is the logical conclusion if we are to continue our partnership.” The production plant currently employs 16 people and is managed by Aysegül Isik.

The new company is Mühlenchemie’s sixth research and production facility. It also has plants in Germany, Russia, Mexico, China and India; operates in more 120 countries; and maintains close relations with more than 1,000 mills.