Kraft Foods opens new biscuit R&D centre in Paris

Kraft Foods has opened its new European Biscuit Research and Development Centre in Saclay, France, a suburb of Paris.

The new facility will support product development for many of Europe’s biscuit brands, including LU, belVita, Oreo, Mikado, Prince, Saiwa and TUC.

Kraft Foods chairman and CEO Irene Rosenfeld was present for the ribbon cutting, which represents the culmination of a two-year-project, with a total investment of €15 million.

“France is an important market for biscuits in Europe and for Kraft Foods’ snacking business globally. This investment makes good business sense, supporting us in our efforts to drive future biscuit innovation and growth,” says Timothy Cofer, president of Kraft Foods Europe.

Kraft Foods is the biscuit market leader in Europe with more than 15% market share.In 2011, the company’s European Biscuit business has been growing more than two times faster than the European biscuits market overall.
This growth has been driven by the recent relaunch of the LU brand, the introduction of the belVita breakfast biscuit, and the expansion of Oreo cookies into major markets across Europe.