History

The history of Mlékárna Hlinsko dates back to 1939. The dairy was founded by the Swiss company Nestlé. The actual construction of the dairy, later nicknamed "nestlovka", officially started on 4 July 1940. Nestlé chose the site based on the purity of its nature and the quality of its milk. Hlinsko is located in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands, an area especially known for its pure nature, resembling Alpine pastures.

The production technologies were supplied to the dairy mainly by German, Swiss and Danish companies. The dairy started operating on 1 April 1943. In its first year of operation, Mlékárna Hlinsko processed 2 million litres of raw milk into milk powder, condensed milk, butter and buttermilk powder. To give you an idea, Mlékárna Hlinsko currently processes more than 200 million litres of milk per year.

The year 1947 brought the expansion of milk powder production. Milk powder has gained popularity for its bacterial purity and the stability of its acidity and fat content. It was these qualities that led the trend back then to ensure infants’ good health development. Mlékárna Hlinsko expanded its product portfolio to include milk powder for infants and thus became a leader in baby food services. The first exports of products to more than 25 countries around the world were also realised around then.

In the post-war period, Mlékárna Hlinsko was the only producer of milk powder, buttermilk powder, butter and condensed milk in the then Czechoslovakia. In February 1948, the so-called "nestlovka" was taken over by the Dairy Food Industry national enterprise. The Swiss were determined to ensure that the unique recipe for sweetened condensed milk never become public knowledge. However, it turned out that the employees of Mlékárna Hlinsko under the Swiss management managed to obtain the weight ratios of the individual raw materials, and the production of the legendary condensed milk could continue.

The story of the Tatra brand dates back to 3 November 1964, when Mlékárna Hlinsko started producing sweetened condensed milk. From that moment on, the dairy products have been accompanied by motifs of traditional mountain pastures, which at that time supported Czechoslovak reciprocity. Tatra currently processes 200 million litres of milk per year and the production programme has been expanded to include long life milk, butter, cream, ice cream, ice chips and quark, which was put on the market in 2015. For professional chefs and pastry chefs, we supply products under the Tatra Professional brand within the gastro segment.

The actor Oldřich Nový sent a letter to Mlékárna Hlinsko, in which he described his story with the then-new Jesenka. In his letter, Oldřich Nový described how he used to attend long meetings and regularly opened Jesenka to have with his coffee. Sometimes, the neck of the tube was clogged with solidified fat that prevented access to the sweetened cream. As the actor pressed it with his hand, the back cap of the tube popped and the contents of Jesenka shot out. To the great mirth of the meeting attendees, he sprayed several of his seated neighbours.

„Legendary brands Jesenka, Piknik and Pikao“

Mlékárna Hlinsko is proud of its technology for the production of sweetened condensed milk, which is unique in the world. The recipes we currently use are proven by decades of practice. From the first day of production to the present day, we have used the same procedures, production practice, recipes and, above all, technological equipment.

Mlékárna Hlinsko has unique technological equipment. Pressurised evaporators were manufactured for Mlékárna Hlinsko, the only company in the world, by SONP Kladno. Thanks to these unique machines, our Pikao, Piknik, Jesenka and Salko products have a distinctive and inimitable taste.

Mlékárna Hlinsko prides itself on its premium quality products. The processed milk is always from Czech farms and is regularly inspected. Mlékárna Hlinsko has long invested in the latest technologies and in quality management systems.

Since 1998, a system for the management of control and critical points in production (HACCP) has been in place. Since 2004, the company has held the IFS certificate.

The quality of the products is evidenced by awards from various competitions, such as Dairy Product of the Year, where Mlékárna Hlinsko succeeded in 2019 with its Ice Coffee, and in 2021 was awarded for its quark dessert Mlsni.si.