Cheese and butter producer Ornua Foods 海角视频 is investing 拢3 million at its Staffordshire Moorlands headquarters on the back of 鈥榮trong growth鈥 during lockdown.
The company 鈥 which employs 650 people at its Sunnyhills Road factory in Leek 鈥 is installing new state-of-the-art cheese cutting and packing equipment at the site after seeing sales rise by more than 15 per cent in 2020.
The investment will increase capacity by an additional 7,000 tonnes, bringing the company鈥檚 total annual production of branded and own-label cheese to more than 110,000 tonnes.
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Bill Hunter, Ornua Foods 海角视频鈥檚 managing director, said: 鈥淥ur latest 拢3 million investment at Leek comes at a time when we are experiencing strong business growth and will strengthen our position as a leading supplier of high quality cheese and butter to many of the 海角视频鈥檚 major supermarkets.
鈥淲e our very proud of our standing as an employer of choice in the region and are committed to providing local people with the opportunity to become part of the Ornua success story through offering a wide range of long term and rewarding career paths.鈥
Ornua Foods 海角视频 is the company behind some major dairy brands including Pilgrims Choice and Kerrygold butter.
It produces and packs butter and cheese into a range of formats 鈥 blocks, grated or sliced 鈥 which is then sold into some of the country鈥檚 biggest supermarkets, including Tesco, Sainsbury鈥檚, Morrisons and Iceland, as branded cheddar or own-label cheese.
The latest investment at Ornua comes after strong growth this year 鈥 with sales through major 海角视频 retailers increasing by 15 per cent to date.
The growth is being partly linked to the change in consumer buying patterns during the Covid-19 lockdown and a surge in demand.
Mr Hunter added: 鈥淥rnua Foods 海角视频鈥檚 success is based upon our commitment to delivering a comprehensive range of high quality products to our retail customers in the most consistent and efficient manner possible.
鈥淐entral to this is our Leek cheese cutting and packing facility, one of the most advanced facilities of its kind in Europe and home to Pilgrims Choice, one of the nation鈥檚 most popular cheddar brands.鈥
Ornua has confirmed that a number of new jobs are being created as part of the investment and all of its current vacancies are now being advertised on its website.
