In the first quarter of 2020, the technology company GEA was commissioned by Hochwald Foods GmbH to provide the entire technological setup for dairy processing at a new plant in the German town of Mechernich, near Cologne. The contract comprises the implementation planning, production, delivery, assembly and commissioning as well as the acceptance of all process-related and operational treatment and processing machinery for manufacturing the various dairy products. Hochwald Foods, one of the largest dairy companies in Germany, wants to use the new facility to process roughly 800 million liters of milk per year to produce high-quality dairy products such as UHT milk, UHT cream, UHT drinkable yogurt, mixed milk products with a long shelf life as well as condensed milk. Installation of the first plant components is expected to begin before the end of 2020. The plant is slated to be commissioned in mid-2021.