German milk producer Meggle and the Lebanese MJ Group opened a 20 million leva production facility in Sofia's north industrial zone on Sunday. Twelve million leva of the investment in the plant was spent on the most modern equipment and state-of-the-art technologies in milk processing in Eastern Europe.

Mayor Stefan Sofianski and Joseph Anton Meggle III, owner of the German company and grandson to its founder, cut the ribbon at the inauguration ceremony. Meggle helped in the milking of the cow Kristine.

The plant's capacity allows it to process about 25 million litres of milk yearly but, in the beginning, only 10 million litres of capacity will be used. Michail Kojuharov, general manager of the plant, said that, depending on the market, the current rate of production could be increased to its maximum.

The management commented that the purchasing price of milk would most probably not be affected by Meggle entering the market.

Jobs for 100 employees were opened with the start of the German-Lebanese joint venture. Workers operate on two shifts but the management intends to increase the staff and continue with a round-the-clock working schedule.

The investors plan to make Bulgaria a centre of the milk industry in the Balkans and the Middle East, said Maurice Djabra of MJ Group at the inauguration ceremony. This segment of the market is still underdeveloped in Bulgaria, he added.

The Meggle works in Sofia have the only production line for coffee cream in the region and export of this product to Romania and Poland started before the official opening of the plant. One-fourth of the coffee cream output will be exported.

The plant will produce condensed milk and cream, and a butter-producing line will be installed by next February. Almost half of the total production of the facility will be exported to neighbouring countries.

After Danone and the Greek Delta, Meggle is the third foreign company investing in the Bulgarian milk processing industry.

The plant in Sofia is the German company's first one on the Balkans and the seventh in Eastern Europe. Meggle is a family company, established in 1887. Its 2000 turnover exceeded $500 million.

The Lebanese MJ Group has been investing in Bulgarian food industry for several years now. It has a share in the coffee factory Nova Brasilia in Sofia.