Cream of the Crop: Gilles Gerard

Gilles Gerard has spent his entire professional career – nearly three decades – with the same company, Luxlait, and has no intention of leaving anytime soon.

"Being the head of a company that is recognized worldwide for its quality and ethically irreproachable products is really inspiring and motivating to me," Gerard enthuses. "The world of agrifood is exciting because it’s continuously changing, and this sector is essential for the population. The fact that our mission is to feed the world is a driving force for me, too."

Having joined the Luxembourg-based dairy goods manufacturer as a project engineer in 1996 after graduating with a master’s degree from Polytech Nancy in France, Gerard ascended the ranks until he was named Deputy CEO in 2012. Six years later, he stepped into the role of CEO.

"The fact that our mission is to feed the world is a driving force for me."

"I have a very different approach to business from my predecessor, Claude Steinmetz," Gerard says. "His background was more financial, mine was more technical. So I realized when I took over the position that I had the opportunity to change a lot of pillars within the company. I changed the strategy, I invested heavily in new equipment and I’ve worked with the team to develop a lot of new products."

Gerard is also a firm believer in the power of involving staff in decision-making processes in order to make them feel valued.

"I am a participative leader – I want feedback, and I want people to agree with our strategy," he says. "In 2023, I changed the structure of the company to be flatter, because for me, that’s the best way to run a company – we have to be equal."

This year, Luxlait celebrates its 130th anniversary, a milestone that proves the company’s ability to adapt and evolve continuously in order to remain relevant.

"At 130 years, this means we have a lot of experience and unrivaled know-how, but being innovative is equally important for Luxlait," Gerard says. "We want to invest in new technology to meet growing consumer needs. We are setting up systems that enable us to be efficient and effective, and are working on AI to be better tomorrow," he adds.

Future Goals

Today, the company encompasses 700 employees, processes almost 200 million liters of milk a year, and exports more than 70 percent of its end products across the globe from Europe to Africa and the United Arab Emirates. With such an impressive range of products spanning milks, cream, butter, desserts, cheeses, yogurt and ice-cream, Luxlait also offers private labels and startups the opportunity to create new products.

"We have the ability to adapt quickly to customer requirements," Gerard explains. "Meaning, if you come and ask to start a new product, we can offer you the possibility to make a small batch, which is something not common in the market."

Sustainability is a primary facet of Luxlait’s strategy over the next few years, and relates in a major way to its commitment to innovation.

"Three years ago, we equipped our industrial roof with photovoltaic [solar] panels," Gerard says. "We have the biggest industrial roof in Luxembourg equipped with solar. That gives us almost 10 percent of our electrical consumption."

Luxlait has also invested in a circular water-waste system, as well as LED for the lighting and frequency variator in its motor drive systems, with the long-term goal to reduce its carbon footprint and reach total carbon neutrality by 2050.

Impeccable Quality

With 100 percent of its products supplied by partners originating from Europe, Luxlait is able to be particularly discerning in terms of regulations and certifications.

Suppliers must adhere to strict auditing, which ensures the highest quality of products and standards, even going so far as to have veterinarians visit farmers to teach them how to be more eco-friendly.

"Due to the fact that our company is in the middle of the geographical center, we are really close to all our farmers," Gerard explains. "So our product quality is impeccable and widely recognized."

"At 130 years, this means we have a lot of experience and unrivaled know-how, but being innovative is equally important."

Working alongside such crucial packaging suppliers as Jokey, Luxlait is collaborating to create solutions that are less carton and plastic-dependent, using bio-sourced as opposed to petroleum products, where at all possible.

Now, to ensure it is set up for another century even more successful than the last, the company is open to exploring innovation in all of its guises – even exploring the possibilities of AI.

"We are looking at how we can use AI to simplify or help staff plan production," Gerard says.

"Because in Luxlait, we have more than 350 different products, meaning production is quite complicated. On the technical side, we’re also in the process of implementing AI to help our technicians solve issues with machinery.

"It’s incredible… scary, but interesting — an important step for the future."