Yogurt Production Increases with Advanced Filling Technology
Reykjavik Creamery overcame production challenges by upgrading to a state-of-the-art filling machine, improving efficiency and consistency to help the company grow.
Operators at Reykjavik Creamery control their Modern Packaging filling machine via an easy-to-use HMI touchscreen, which has significantly enhanced the company’s labor efficiency by streamlining training and operation, minimizing reliance on operators with extensive experience.
Reykjavik Creamery
Reykjavik Creamery is located on a 400-acre organic dairy farm in Pennsylvania’s scenic Cumberland Valley—a property owned by the company. Reykjavik is a contract manufacturer specializing in premium cultured dairy and yogurt production, with a focus on Icelandic skyr yogurt, as well as Greek yogurt varieties, and quark.
The company was founded in 2016 by Gunnar Birgisson, former CFO of Coca-Cola Iceland, with the goal of bringing authentic Icelandic skyr to the U.S. market. In 2019, Reykjavik produced its first batch of cultured dairy products for a customer. While the pandemic in 2020 slowed the company’s growth, business took off by 2022, with both demand and production significantly increasing.Reykjavik Creamery is a contract manufacturer specializing in premium cultured dairy and yogurt production, with a focus on Icelandic skyr yogurt, as well as Greek yogurt varieties, and quark.Reykjavik Creamery
Reykjavik’s 30,000-sq-ft facility is equipped with the latest machinery and technology to produce those cultured dairy products in volume, but one area on the line was a persistent challenge to production, and by extension, the continued growth of the company.
“In 2019, we started with a small rotary filler, capable of 60 cups per minute,” remembers Birgisson. “This filler was a logical first step as we were building the business from scratch. However, it quickly proved problematic, requiring constant maintenance with significant downtime.
“A year later, we upgraded to an inline three-lane filler, which, once the initial kinks were worked out, became a solid option and contributed significantly to Reykjavik Creamery’s growth. However, it was still complicated to operate, finicky, and had a steep learning curve for the operator. Additionally, it lacked the desired level of enclosure and didn’t have the speed to keep up with our expanding production needs.”
Upgrade leads to growth
In early 2023, Reykjavik turned to Modern Packaging to help solve its cup-filling woes, and purchased an inline filler with six lanes from the company, which can handle cups of all sizes with easy changeovers for different products—a crucial feature for a contract manufacturer. It also features a servo-drive and automatic weight adjustments, a clean-in-place system, an efficient lid dispenser, and easily adjustable pistons to accomodate different product viscosities.
The six-lane Modern Packaging filler at Reykjavik Creamery features individual load cells for each cup, allowing for precise weight adjustments in real-time.Reykjavik Creamery
“To put it simply, it’s like going from a small Fiat to a Mercedes-Benz,” Birgisson says. “Downtime is minimal, only occurring during flavor changes and foil reloading. As a result, we can now produce twice the number of single-serve cups per hour compared to the old filler and six times the number of multi-serve 24-oz and 32-oz cups with lids. This new filler has positioned us to take on larger customers with high-volume needs for multi-serve cups.”
The Modern Packaging machine is also equipped with a HEPA air filtration system to enhance hygiene by reducing airborne yeast and mold particles. This feature is crucial in extending the shelf life of products produced at Reykjavik.
“Yeast and mold can be in the air at dairy plants, so we have a HEPA-filtered room with positive air at our facility,” explains Donald Everett, CFO/COO at Reykjavik Creamery. “When we get to the filling stage for our products, we want to make sure all the air around the cups is extra HEPA filtered and extra clean around that process, because the cups are exposed for a few seconds before the lids go on. So, the HEPA filtration on our filling machine cleans the air right there, where the yogurt is being put into the cup right before the lid goes on.”
The Modern Packaging filler also features individual load cells for each cup, allowing for precise weight adjustments in real-time. This innovation reduces product giveaway and improves overall efficiency. The machine’s robust construction ensures consistent sealing, and minimizing the occurrence of leaking cups, which was a frequent issue with the previous filling equipment.
Installation and operation
Operators at Reykjavik control the machine and make adjustments via an easy-to-use HMI touchscreen. The Modern filler has significantly enhanced the company’s labor efficiency by streamlining training and operation, minimizing reliance on operators with extensive experience, and ensuring more consistent performance across shifts. The company was able to avoid hiring additional staff for night shifts, as the increased production capacity could be managed within the existing workforce.
Furthermore, Reykjavik’s partnership with Modern highlighted the importance of post-installation support and training. The company experienced a seamless transition to the new system, thanks to the comprehensive technical support provided by Modern. This support was crucial in ensuring the machine operated at optimal efficiency. The ability to quickly address and rectify any operational hiccups minimized downtime and reinforced the reliability of the new system.
Reykjavik Creamery is located on a 400-acre organic dairy farm in Pennsylvania’s scenic Cumberland Valley—a property owned by the company.Reykjavik Creamery
With the filler fully integrated into Reykjavik’s production line, the company has been able to increase its daily production capacity from 50,000 cups of cultured dairy products in a 10-hour shift, to 140,000 cups in the same timeframe. Looking ahead, the company is poised to leverage its enhanced production capabilities to explore new market opportunities, with plans to expand its product range, increase distribution, and expand operations, with the addition of new culture tanks, milk silos, and an additional ultra-filtration machine. These enhancements will allow Reykjavik to maximize the use of its new filling machine within a 24-hour production cycle.
“Given our current growth rate, we anticipate needing an additional filler in about two years, and we have no plans to look anywhere but Modern Packaging for that,” Birgisson says. “Without the Modern Packaging filler, our ability to grow would have been significantly limited. The need for a new filler was clear and always part of our plan, and we are very happy with the decision to install this excellent Modern Packaging machine. It has been instrumental in supporting our current growth.”
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Reykjavik Creamery is a contract manufacturer specializing in premium cultured dairy and yogurt production, with a focus on Icelandic skyr yogurt, as well as Greek yogurt varieties, and quark.Reykjavik Creamery
