Zaandam, the Netherlands, 28 September, 2022
Yesterday, in the presence of Belgian Prime Minister, Alexander De Croo, Delhaize opened its new wine bottling plant in Brussels. Standing at 9,500 square metres, it is the largest in the Benelux, representing an investment of €30 million. The plant will not only bottle wine for Delhaize customers, but also for other Ahold Delhaize brands in Europe and the U.S. and brands outside Ahold Delhaize. With this new plant, Ahold Delhaize strengthens its wine expertise in a sustainable and efficient way.
- It serves multiple Ahold Delhaize brands in Europe and the U.S.
- The plant builds on a long tradition. The first Delhaize wine bottling plant opened in 1880.
- Capacity of bottling 18.000 bottles per hour.
- Reducing carbon emissions through bulk transportation.
In the bottling plant, wines from different vineyards from around the world arrive in bulk, in tankers or via containers. They are stored in large barrels in the wine cellar until they are ready to be bottled. Before the wine is bottled or boxed and goes to the store, the wine goes through a number of processes such as filtering. The filtration and storage processes are still carried out in the traditional way.
Reducing carbon emissions through bulk transportation
It is the ambition to bottle a natural product such as wine in a sustainable way. That is why Delhaize has invested in sustainable systems such as water and heating for cleaning and maintaining the temperature in the building. Besides that, the wine is stored underground as there is an almost constant temperature in winter and summer without the need for cooling or heating. Importing wine from all over the world in bulk, instead of bottled wines not only halves transportation costs, it also reduces the wine's carbon emissions.
Sharing expertise
Delhaize wants to continue to offer affordable high-quality wine to customers. The wine that is bottled in the new plant will not only be available in Delhaize stores, but also at other brands within Ahold Delhaize. By doing so, the brands are sharing expertise with a focus on innovation, sustainability and affordable prices for customers.
Wouter Kolk, CEO Ahold Delhaize Europe & Indonesia:
"The great local brands of Ahold Delhaize all have their own special or local expertise. I am always proud when we can share knowledge in a way that benefits our other brands, and their customers. Today it becomes clear that Delhaize’s 140+ years of experience in bottling wines is taken to an even more ambitious level. My congratulations to the Delhaize team for this strong and sustainable achievement!"
Art of the heritage Wine has always been an important product for Delhaize. Shortly after Delhaize was founded in 1867, it opened its own wine bottling plant in 1880 in Brussels. This tradition continues with the opening of the new, high-tech wine bottling plant which can bottle the equivalent of 14 Olympic swimming pools per year and has a storage capacity of three million liters of wine.
New wine bottling plant in numbers:
- Investment of €30 million
- 9,500 m² surface area
- Serves multiple Ahold Delhaize brands: Delhaize, Albert Heijn, Gall & Gall, AB Vassilopoulos, Mega Image, Albert, Hannaford and Food Lion.
- Storage capacity of three million liters of wine
- 18,000 bottles bottled per hour
- Four bottle lines
- 8 km of pipes in which wine is transported
- 150 different wines
- 73 employees and wine experts
- Half of the bottles sold at Delhaize come from this bottling plant
