Mozzarella production in Dagmersellen – one big cosmopolitan family
23,000 tonnes – that’s how much mozzarella the Swiss population eats per year. Around 40 per cent of this is produced by the Cream Cheese Team at the Emmi production site in Dagmersellen.
Mozzarella is by far the most popular cheese among consumers, especially at warmer times of year. Then the work for the Cream Cheese Team in Dagmersellen is particularly challenging. "We can hardly keep up with production in the summer," explains team leader Thomas Krähenbühl. But there is also a lot going on in winter: Production takes place all year round and around the clock.
In the cooker
The day starts for the cooker at midnight. He melts the cheese, salts it and kneads the water into it until it has that typical fibrous structure. Finally, the cheese is moulded into balls, sticks or pearls.
In the filling plant
The plant operators begin at two o’clock in the morning. They put the mozzarella into sachets and monitor the production line.
In the packing zone
In the packing zone, packers check the number of pieces. Then the products are put into crates, either automatically or by hand. Finally, they are stacked onto pallets, labelled with the necessary information and driven into the refrigerator by forklift truck.
The first shift ends at 10 o’clock in the morning, and the second lasts until around 8 o’clock in the evening. In the evening, production stops until midnight, when the filling plants are cleaned.
From temporary to permanent
"We have a total of around 50 employees in summer and about 40 in winter," says team leader Thomas.
There are about 20 people in the team per shift. Some of these are temporary employees. Whenever possible, temporary employees are also trained on the machines in order to counteract staff shortages. In a few cases this has also led to permanent employment.
“We are a cosmopolitan crew with many long-term employees“
Good team spirit, even when it's hectic
The atmosphere in the team is good even when there's a lot going on. "We have many long-term employees with us – the longest-serving employee has been with us for 40 years. We know each other and treat each other like family," says Thomas.
The professional backgrounds of the team members are interesting. There are skilled cooks, bakers, polymechanics, a plastics technologist, as well as dairy technologists. "We are a cosmopolitan crew, with colleagues from many different countries."
Winning teams
The example of the Cream Cheese Team in Dagmersellen is not an isolated case. Emmi fosters a working culture that enables all employees to work together well and demonstrate a high level of commitment. Employee development is firmly anchored in our strategy as another way of ensuring that our business stands the test of time.
Emmi offers its employees many development opportunities and attaches great importance to modern management and organisational methods. We provide an environment where everyone feels welcome, valued and inspired.
