Business news

8 May 2026

Mozzarella cheese workshop opens at Shchuchin enterprise

SHCHUCHIN, 8 May (BelTA) - A new workshop for the production of mozzarella cheese has been officially opened at the Shchuchin dairy enterprise, BelTA has learned.

The production capacity of the Shchuchin branch allows for the processing of 520 tonnes of milk per day. The branch produces up to 40 tonnes of cheese, up to 160 tonnes of whole-milk products, up to 20 tonnes of butter, and up to 12 tonnes of powdered dairy products per day. The enterprise employs 570 people.

Between 2024 and 2026, the enterprise implemented a project to acquire technological equipment for the production and packaging of mozzarella and pizza cheese. Italian equipment was installed in previously unused space within the existing brining department. As a result, daily milk processing capacity increased by 100 tonnes, the product range was expanded, and 18 new jobs were created.

The product range will include mozzarella in the form of balls and “mozzarella pizza” in blocks, which will account for 30% and 70% respectively of the total planned mozzarella cheese output.

“We don’t have much oil; we have milk. One of the main sources of our prosperity and income, aside from the fact that it’s the most delicious food for us, is all dairy products. This is also our marketable product and our brand,” said Grodno Oblast Governor Yuri Karayev. “Others have mineral resources; we have milk production. This high-tech, powerful production needs no advertising.”

“We visited the old premises, which were modernized to accommodate the new line. It’s an Italian line. This high-tech equipment was installed by our engineering company into an old workshop that was renovated. We had to make an effort to fit it in and arrange it properly so as not to disrupt the technological process across the flows and lines. We saw how much electronics there is, how many computers, how many processes are automatically controlled. It’s an extremely complex process,” Yuri Karayev added.

The enterprise is not stopping its development; design documentation is already being prepared for the construction of a whey processing workshop and the reconstruction of the wastewater treatment facilities.

The Shchuchin branch of the Molochny Mir enterprise is based on Shchuchin Creamery, which was established in 1969. The enterprise has been reconstructed several times. At the end of 2012, the Slonim Dairy Products enterprise was merged into the plant. In December 2019, Shchuchin Creamery was reorganized by merging it into Molochny Mir.

According to Konstantin Burak, Belarusian President’s Aide - Inspector for Grodno Oblast, the opening of the new workshop is a successful example of cooperation between Western and Belarusian manufacturers of technological equipment under current conditions, and a logical continuation of the economic policy implemented at the enterprise, which relies on process automation and thereby reduces production costs. “This example is a counterargument to those who like to make snide remarks about merging weak farms with strong ones. In 2019, Shchuchin Creamery, despite significant investment, was in a not-very-good situation; it was merged into Molochny Mir. What do we have now? Nearly 80% of the equipment here is not new. But if under the old management it didn’t deliver the desired results, now, after automation and the organization of a well-designed workspace, production has increased. And this with the same human resources,” Konstantin Burak said. He also emphasized that today’s labor achievements are the best tribute to the memory of the victorious generation, those who stood firm in the fight against fascism, liberated their native land, and thanks to whom Belarusians live in a free, strong, independent state under a peaceful sky.

From 2019 to 2025, reconstruction and technical modernization were carried out at the enterprise. Last year, an automated line for the production and bottling of dairy products in PET bottles with a capacity of 8,000 bottles per hour was installed. The bottles for bottling are produced at the enterprise as well.