IRELAND – Glanbia Ingredients Ireland, global leaders in performance nutrition and the Dutch family business, Royal A-Ware have entered a strategic partnership to build a new global cheese manufacturing facility in Belview, Co Kilkenny, Ireland.
According to the company, the facility will attract an investment of US$159.17 million (€140 million) and will produce cheeses in different formats for global markets.
Glanbia is Ireland’s largest
dairy processor and the
investment is part of the
continued plan to diversify
its product mix.
Set to be commissioned in 2022, the world-class facility will have the capacity to process 450 million litres of milk per annum.
It will be able to create 80 jobs at the facility while during the construction phase, 100 people will be employed on a temporary basis.
Roya A-Ware indicated that milk used in the production process on site will be sourced from local suppliers and the cheese will be marketed and sold to global customers.
“With this announcement, Royal A-ware is taking another step towards achieving its goals of working with strategic partners to build efficient and sustainable supply chains and offering its customers an enhanced product portfolio.
It also gives our company access to additional volumes of high-quality cheeses through a local dairy supply chain,” said Jan Anker, Chief executive of Royal A-Ware Group.
The proposed new facility will be located at a greenfield site near to Glanbia Ireland’s infant nutrition plant at Belview, Co Kilkenny.
Glanbia is Ireland’s largest dairy processor and the investment is part of the continued plan to diversify its product mix.
Commenting on the partnership, Michael Creed TD, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine said: “The agri-food sector is Ireland’s largest indigenous industry supporting over 174,000 jobs across rural Ireland, from farms to food processing. Investments like this cheese manufacturing facility in Belview are a critical response to the challenges posed by Brexit, in terms of developing new products and new markets.”
Glanbia Cheese, a joint venture business between Glanbia and Leprino Foods, last year said it plans to build a new US$147.79 million (€130 million) mozzarella production facility in Portlaoise, Ireland.
The facility, expected to begin operation in 2022, will have a production capacity of 45,000 tonnes of mozzarella annually, according to Glanbia.
