Albert Heijn’s own-brand quark and skyr will in future be sourced from Heerenveen. This move by Albert Heijn, in collaboration with its strategic partner A-ware, is a response to the growing popularity of these products.

By relocating production to Heerenveen, a larger proportion of the quark and skyr range will carry the ‘Beter voor natuur & boer’ logo. Milk from Dutch farmers participating in the programme will be used for this. As part of the ‘Better for Nature & Farmers’ programme, Albert Heijn enters into multi-year agreements with farmers and producers covering areas such as biodiversity, climate, animal welfare and sustainable farm management. Over 1,200 farmers and producers are now part of the programme.

Relocating production to Heerenveen will significantly reduce the number of transport kilometres. This is expected to save around 40 lorry journeys per week, which equates to more than 1 million lorry-kilometres per year. The modernised factory also increases production capacity. The packaging has also changed since this summer. The round packaging has been replaced by a square version, meaning more products fit into a lorry and around 25 per cent fewer journeys are required.

Photo: Albert Heijn