CAMPINAS, BRAZIL — Cargill has opened an innovation center in Brazil to support its growing Latin American business. The new facility cost approximately $12.6 million, is 20,000 square meters and features multiple laboratories for product development testing in the areas of beverage, baking, confectionary, convenience foods and dairy.

“Cargill’s Latin American business is growing rapidly and our customers — local, regional and global — are increasingly turning to Cargill to help them develop new products and improve the formulations of existing products,” said Sergio Rial, a senior vice-president with Cargill. “This exciting new facility unites our diverse technical capabilities and ingredient portfolio under one roof and enables Cargill to efficiently partner with customers and the academic community to develop meaningful new consumer products.”

The company said the innovation center will serve as a regional product development hub, particularly for the company’s customers in Argentina and Venezuela. It also will promote and facilitate the exchange of best practices across Latin America and globally among Cargill’s more than 1,000 food and beverage scientists and researchers.

“By focusing research and development efforts in the region, Cargill further encourages connectivity with other locations where it does business around the world, creating an environment that favors process, ingredients and product improvements,” Mr. Rial said.