Foreign investors must ensure maximum depth of milk processing - A.Lukashenko

June 18, Shklov / Vladimir Matveev - BELTA /. Foreign investors must ensure the maximum depth of milk processing. This was stated by the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko today, during his visit to Unimilk Shklov LLC, a BELTA correspondent reports. Addressing the operational director of Unimilk Company OJSC (Russia) Mikhail Galuev, Alexander Lukashenko noted that the focus should be primarily on the depth of processing. "I want you to produce the entire range of products," said Alexander Lukashenko. According to the head of state, "exporting milk in cartons is good, but it's not what we need." "If you work as you do at home and care about the country, you will receive full support and will work in the volumes you desire," the President of Belarus told Mikhail Galuev. The head of state noted that Unimilk Shklov is a kind of experimental project. "We will not massively pursue attracting foreign investors in processing for obvious reasons: we have enough of our own enterprises," noted Alexander Lukashenko. The President of Belarus stated that there are no problems with processing in Belarus, especially since the demand for dairy and agricultural products as a whole in the global market is only increasing. The joint venture Unimilk Shklov was established on August 27, 2009. According to the constituent documents, the shares in the authorized capital of Unimilk Shklov LLC are: Unimilk Company OJSC - 51%, Shklov Butter Factory OJSC - 49%. Unimilk actively cooperates with Belarusian producers and purchases significant volumes of skimmed milk powder, butter, and condensed milk. In addition, the company, together with the Rogachev and Glubokoye condensed milk plants, produces condensed milk for the markets of Russia, Ukraine, and Kazakhstan. In accordance with the development concept of Shklov Butter Factory OJSC, the enterprise's export capacity is currently 150 tons per day, and by August 2010, it should reach 200 tons per day, or more than 70 thousand tons per year. The planned export revenue after the implementation of the first stage will exceed $30 million per year. Currently, the second stage, costing over $15 million, is under development. It is planned that as a result of the second stage implementation, by October 2011, Unimilk's export potential in Shklov will increase to 450-500 tons per day, or 160-170 thousand tons per year, with export revenue of $70-80 million. -0-