DAIRYGOLD PLANS €50M INVESTMENT IN MITCHELSTOWN
Dairygold have applied for planning permission for a €50million expansion and upgrade of its Mitchelstown facility which will bring with it the future potential for 50 new jobs in the town.
However, a company spokesman stressed that any additional employment would only come over a number of years as the company prepares to increase production once EU milk quotas are phased out in 2015.
The plan includes a proposal to create a new entrance to the Castlefarm site from the roundabout on the Kildorrery road. Once in operation it is hoped that the new entrance will divert significant volumes of traffic including heavy lorries away from the centre of Mitchelstown.
“At the heart of the new development will be a drying facility capable of processing 16,000 gallons of milk per hour. It will comprise of a number of additional elements to the existing facility including milk intake, storage silos and storage bays, new evaporators and dryers and a product packing and a loading bay,” a statement from Dairygold confirmed.
“The Castlefarm facility in Mitchelstown is the centre of Dairygold’s food ingredient production. The plant now produces milk powders and specialist ingredients for the growing nutritional market worldwide.
"In order to support the strengthening of its food ingredients business Dairygold is planning to expand and upgrade the facility to increase overall production capacity at the plant to cater for the potential growth in milk volumes following the phasing out of EU milk quotas in 2015,” the statement added.
The application for planning permission was discussed at this week’s meeting of the Northern committee of Cork County Council where Mallow based Councillors Dan Joe Fitzgerald and Noel O’Connor lamented the company’s decision to ignore the town in favour of Mitchelstown.
Published:
Thursday 23rd October 7:39pm
