The European Investment Bank has agreed a €50 million loan to Lactinov Services SAS, a wholly owned subsidiary of French dairy cooperative Lact’Union, to finance investments planned between 2026 and 2029.
The funding will support upgrades at Lact’Union sites in Abbeville and Braine in the Hauts-de-France region, including work to increase industrial capacity, modernise facilities and cut the carbon footprint linked to manufacturing processes, according to the European Investment Bank (EIB).
The loan is backed by a guarantee from InvestEU — an EU programme that supports investment by providing financial backing to projects.
The EIB said the investment programme also covers measures to improve food safety and strengthen the protection of the group’s information systems, as well as plans to move further into higher value-added products, including liquid nutritional products.
“This is the first time the EIB has granted a loan to Lact’Union,” EIB Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle said.
Wider EIB financing for agriculture and the bioeconomy
Lact’Union chairman Frédéric Hennart said the funding would support investment for cooperative members, employees, customers and local communities.
Chief executive Olivier Buiche stated it would help modernise sites, develop new technologies and improve energy efficiency.
The EIB declared that the loan sits within its broader support for agriculture and the bioeconomy, including a pan-European €3 billion package of channelled loans launched by the EIB Group at the end of 2024, designed to mobilise €8.4 billion of investment for farmers and small and medium-sized businesses.
