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PowerBar Factory Visit
PowerBar has saved many a cyclist from bonking out. How they produce their nutritional bars shows just how much attention to detail they put into it.
It happens to all of us. After putting too much into the first half of the ride, our body starts to shut down and the bonk kicks in. There is only one solution, reach into your jersey pocket or backpack and pull out the PowerBar Energize bar to get back on your feet!
I can’t count how many times a PowerBar Energize bar has saved me and gave me the energy to ride the rest of my route. So when I found out that a few colleagues were going to check out the factory, I jumped at the chance.
PowerBar makes more than bars of course.
For example, protein shakes.
Here, another example of their Protein drinks.
On the road
After a 2 hour ride from Aachen, Germany, we arrived in an industry park in Voerde, North Rhine-Westphalia. We searched for the PowerBar sign, but couldn’t find a thing. Then my colleague, Jonas, reminded us that PowerBar no longer belongs to Nestlé, but instead to Active Nutrition International.
The home of PowerBar, Active Nutrition.
Me and Jonas ready for the tour.
Smocks all around
We were greeted in the foyer by Marcus, the Sales Director, and before he showed us around, we had to fill out some paperwork and receive our protective clothing. It’s easy to see that Active Nutrition International follows strict quality and hygiene standards.
The Voerde factory has roughly 60 employees and produces all of PowerBar’s bars from Energize to 52% Protein-Bar. Thorsten, the Factory Manager, explained that the former Nestlé factory met the highest standards in the industry. However, he has a goal to optimise the production of PowerBar products, and to improve the quality control beyond its already unbeatable standard.
The raw goods.
All the ingredients are mixed here.
Baking the bars.
Bar production
Before moving on to the factory floor, we had to go through a check. Smocks, hair nets, beard nets, disinfection and then we could pass through the gates to the production area.
To keep mistakes down to a minimum, the majority of the process is automated. This allows for 24/7 production with the employees working in shifts. The automated process includes mixing the ingredients, laying out the ‘carpet’ of dough, cutting and after cooling, packaging.
The bars are packed by a fully automated machine.
PowerBar bars on display.
Quality control
To produce PowerBar’s complete bar assortment, over 200 different ingredients are used. Before the ingredients even get to the mixer, they are sifted to the smallest kernel ensuring that there are no foreign bodies. The bars are checked at every step in production to make sure everything is perfect.
Because PowerBar produces nutrition supplements for top athletes, they also ensure that all their products meet anti-doping regulations. Additionally, various labs preform tests on PowerBar supplements to guarantee that they do not contain illegal substances.
From Voerde to the World
My colleagues and I were impressed by Active Nutrition International’s production standards and the high-quality PowerBar products they produce. Now, every time I take a bite into one of the bars to keep the bonk at bay, I think about how they are made and the attention to detail give to each one.
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