Glanbia Ingredients Ireland has invested €17m in the expansion of a butter facility in County Kilkenny, which will allow it to increase its capacity in line with projected growth in global butter consumption.
The expansion includes the installation of a new butter churn and silo, robotic packing line and improved intake and storage facilities, and will allow Glanbia Ingredients to increase its output from 55,000 metric tonnes to 80,000 metric tonnes of butter every year. The additional €17m brings the total amount invested in the site – now of one Europe’s largest butter processing facilities – above the €100m mark.
The company said that the investment would help it to meet demand in the growing butter market, with global consumption of the product expected to rise by 4.5% every year during the next three years. A “centre of excellence for lactic butter”, the site will supply butter for the Kerrygold brand – owned by Ireland’s dairy board, Ornua – which is particularly successful in export markets such as Germany.
Last month, we reported that Glanbia Ingredients had invested a further €235m in new facilities in Counties Kilkenny and Cavan; the company expected milk production among its suppliers to increase by more than 60% by 2020, following the abolition of European Union (EU) milk quotas.
EU commissioner for agriculture and rural development Phil Hogan celebrated the opening of the facility: “Glanbia has a long history as one of the innovative, dynamic and forward-looking Irish companies that are essential to the future of Irish exports and the creation of sustainable, well-paying Irish jobs. This commitment to the Ballyragget facility represents a strong statement of ambition to grow globally from its Irish roots. This outward looking approach to ambitious growth, while staying committed to the company’s rural base, encapsulates the type of business I am working to facilitate in my role as commissioner.”
Glanbia Ingredients Ireland CEO Jim Bergin added: “The opening of our expanded butter facility represents an important step in our program of extensive investment in Ireland. We have ambitious plans for growth and have invested €235m in Ireland in recent times, including €17m in this project. Our heritage in butter-making in Ballyragget dates back almost 50 years and our newly upgraded facility ensures that the most modern techniques are utilised to deliver a top quality product to our global customers.”
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