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Scottish dairy producer Rowan Glen is investing more than £1 million in its Palnure manufacturing site in Dumfries & Galloway, as it prepares to expand beyond yogurt into new dairy categories, including cottage cheese.

The investment comprises more than £600,000 from Rowan Glen alongside a £400,000 grant awarded through the Scottish Government’s Food and Drink Processing Scheme Scotland.

The programme will include changes to the factory layout, new production equipment and the creation of a high-care environment across its filling operations.

Scheduled for completion by March 2027, the upgrades are expected to increase the site’s manufacturing flexibility and support Rowan Glen’s expansion into additional cultured dairy products.

The company said the upgraded facility will enable it to manufacture cottage cheese in a range of pack formats, while providing scope to explore further chilled dairy opportunities across retail and foodservice.

The investment follows the restart of Rowan Glen as an independent Scottish dairy business after the previous operation at Palnure closed in November 2022, resulting in the loss of 45 jobs.

A nine-person team led by Baxter subsequently worked to relaunch the business. Rowan Glen said its workforce has since grown to around three times the size of the original restart team.

Rowan Glen's managing director, Alan Baxter, said: “When the previous business closed and everyone was made redundant, there was a real possibility that those 45 jobs would never return and Rowan Glen could disappear for good. A small group of us were prepared to take a big risk to make sure that wouldn’t be the end of Rowan Glen."

He continued: “We knew the skills and experience that existed in the team, and we knew there was real affection for the Rowan Glen brand across Scotland. Everything we’ve achieved since has been built on the commitment and hard work of that original team and the people who have joined us along the way."

“When you’re building a business, there’s rarely time to stop and appreciate how far you’ve come. This investment is one of those moments. It’s a massive step for Rowan Glen and a big vote of confidence in our people, the brand and the future of Rowan Glen."

“The Scottish Government’s Food and Drink Processing grant will allow us to accelerate our plans, significantly upgrade the factory and strengthen our manufacturing capability. It will give us much more flexibility to develop new products and move into areas such as cottage cheese, creating a better platform to innovate, grow and make more great Scottish dairy products here in Palnure.”

The company currently sources all of its milk from farms in Dumfries & Galloway and said the expansion could enable it to process greater volumes of Scottish milk.

It added that cottage cheese production would provide an additional use for skimmed milk, while cream separated during processing could be supplied to other food manufacturers.

Rowan Glen currently supplies retail and foodservice customers, with its branded yogurts stocked by major supermarket retailers across Scotland. The Palnure facility produces around 20 million pots and bottles of cultured dairy products annually.