JDE Peet’s Opens Transformed Innovation Laboratory in Utrecht to Accelerate Coffee Breakthroughs
Amsterdam – Qahwa World
JDE Peet’s (EURONEXT: JDEP) has announced the opening of its fully revamped modular Innovation Laboratory in Utrecht, the Netherlands, marking a major milestone in its efforts to accelerate next-generation coffee breakthroughs.
The upgraded facility reinforces the company’s commitment to scaling customer-led innovations and highlights the strategic importance of its global R&D center in Utrecht. With a modular setup, the Innovation Lab allows teams to rapidly develop new coffee products, processes, and packaging materials that can be quickly scaled across JDE Peet’s global manufacturing network.
This investment complements the recent opening of the company’s innovation facility in Joure, which focuses on next-generation extraction and freeze-drying technologies. Together, both facilities represent a combined investment of €8 million.
Key focus areas for the Utrecht Innovation Lab include single-serve, capsule, ready-to-drink, and instant coffee formats, alongside the development of sustainable packaging solutions. In support of JDE Peet’s Common Grounds sustainability goals, the new laboratory also integrates advanced heating and ventilation systems designed to recycle heat and reduce energy consumption.
Carolyn Adams, Chief R&D Officer at JDE Peet’s, said:
“We’re proud that our next generation of coffee innovations will be developed in the home of our oldest and most beloved brands – Douwe Egberts. Coffee is one of the most exciting and fast-evolving consumer categories, with new flavors and formats emerging almost every week. The agile, modular setup of our Innovation Lab enables us to rapidly respond to consumer insights and quickly scale new flavors and formats – whether hot, cold, wet, or dry – to full factory production. As we deliver our ‘Reignite the Amazing’ strategy, this investment will allow us to significantly accelerate the time-to-market of the next generation of coffee breakthroughs in response to changing consumer needs and trends.”
The Utrecht Innovation Laboratory offers a flexible, modular workspace equipped with advanced technologies for coffee product development. These include high-precision grinders and capsule fillers for single-serve and portioned espresso, technologies for JDE Peet’s liquid Cafitesse products, facilities for ready-to-drink cold coffee, and advanced freeze-drying systems for next-generation instant coffee — an important growth area for the company.
Recent innovations developed at the Utrecht Lab include improved non-dairy creamers, energy-efficient roasting methods, home-recyclable paper packaging for freeze-dried instant coffee in the UK, and the ongoing development of mono-material packaging to enhance recyclability.
