• Barry Callebaut increases the efficiency of its global logistics
• Lokeren, Belgium, home base for new Global Distribution Center to be ready by Q3 2021
• New building will be BREAAM Outstanding certified, highest standards for sustainable buildings, in line with Barry Callebaut’s Forever Chocolate plan

Barry Callebaut Group – the world’s leading manufacturer of cocoa and chocolate products – further anchors Barry Callebaut’s activities in Belgium by building a new Global Distribution Center (GDC) in Lokeren, Belgium.

The new GDC, comprising of a low bay and a fully automated high bay warehouse (together more than 60,000 m²), will serve as a logistics hub for the global distribution of chocolate produced by Barry Callebaut: This includes the vast majority of products in the Gourmet & Specialties and Decorations segment, as well as solid chocolate for Food Manufacturers customers. The new GDC allows Barry Callebaut to consolidate its activities currently located across several locations in the region of Aalst, Belgium. This will optimize and increase the efficiency of Barry Callebaut’s product distribution.

The warehouse site will be realized by Warehouses De Pauw (WDP). Barry Callebaut will rent the GDC based on a long term rental contract. The handover of the site is expected for the third quarter of 2021. In addition to the 85 people currently employed, Barry Callebaut expects to have additional vacancies based on the projected growth for the GDC activities.

The new site supports Barry Callebaut’s goal to become carbon positive by 2025, as described in the Group’s sustainability plan, Forever Chocolate. The logistics hub will be fully energy-neutral, certified by BREAAM¹, by investing in, amongst others, solar panels, use of materials with low life-cycle cost, geothermal energy, charging stations for electric vehicles, and extensive facilities for cyclists.

¹ BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) BREEAM is a sustainability certificate related to the performance of a building throughout its life cycle. BREEAM is a well-established sustainability label for buildings in Europe. BREEAM applies a multi-criteria approach: The certification process examines not only the energy consumption of a property, but also land use, ecology, the construction process, water use, waste, pollution, transport, materials, health and comfort. A building can receive an overall rating of Acceptable, Pass, Good, Very Good, Excellent or Outstanding.

About Barry Callebaut Group:
With annual sales of about CHF 6.9 billion (EUR 6.0 billion / USD 7.1 billion) in fiscal year 2017/18, the Zurich-based Barry Callebaut Group is the world’s leading manufacturer of high-quality chocolate and cocoa products – from sourcing and processing cocoa beans to producing the finest chocolates, including chocolate fillings, decorations and compounds. The Group runs about 60 production facilities worldwide and employs a diverse and dedicated global workforce of more than 11,500 people.
The Barry Callebaut Group serves the entire food industry, from industrial food manufacturers to artisanal and professional users of chocolate, such as chocolatiers, pastry chefs, bakers, hotels, restaurants or caterers. The two global brands catering to the specific needs of these Gourmet customers are Callebaut^® and Cacao Barry^®. The Barry Callebaut Group is committed to make sustainable chocolate the norm by 2025 to help ensure future supplies of cocoa and improve farmer livelihoods. It supports the Cocoa Horizons Foundation in its goal to shape a sustainable cocoa and chocolate future.