2nd June 2015
Ministers Bruton and Nash announce the creation of 100 New Jobs
East Coast Bakehouse to be developed following €15million investment
A new Irish biscuit company, East Coast Bakehouse, launched today (Tuesday) announcing an investment in a new large scale commercial biscuit manufacturing facility located on Ireland’s east coast in Drogheda and the creation of 100 jobs.
The €15 million investment will transform a recently renovated 50,000 sq.ft. food production facility at Donore Rd business park in Drogheda, Co. Louth into a state of the art bakehouse, innovation facility, warehouse and offices. The building, which is the size of a football pitch, is ideally suited to its new purpose with ample space to house the long production lines required for efficient biscuit baking complete with suspended product cooling lines.
The domestic biscuit industry is worth €170 million, and the UK market is valued at over €2 billion. The East Coast Bakehouse will produce its own new brand and will also manufacture retail private label, serving both the domestic and export markets.
This project is supported by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation through Enterprise Ireland.
Commenting at the launch, CEO, East Coast Bakehouse, Michael Carey said, “Every week over €3 million worth of biscuits is purchased and enjoyed by Irish consumers, almost all are currently imported. We aim to provide a new commercially competitive local Irish source of biscuits. There is also a great opportunity to provide high quality biscuits to UK retailers.”
“We carefully evaluated a number of locations for our facility before selecting Drogheda, and our location on Ireland’s east coast will play a key role in the future of our company. We have worked very closely with Enterprise Ireland on this project and we have been encouraged by local support so far for the development of this facility.”
“We are very pleased to be launching this new venture. Our management team combined has over 60 years experience in the sector and our drive to bake better biscuits, using select ingredients in a sustainable manner will become key to our business’ success in the coming years”, he concluded.
Welcoming the investment, Richard Bruton TD, Minister for Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation said “As I have said before, at the heart of our jobs plan is creating a powerful engine of Irish industry, alongside the strong multinational sector, creating jobs in every town and county in the country. East Coast Bakehouse is a great company and a great example of what we are trying to achieve with our plan – an Irish company, in a sector we are strong in, winning export markets and creating large numbers of jobs in Drogheda. I wish the East Coast Bakehouse team every success with this great project”.
Minister for Business and Employment, Ged Nash TD said that he was delighted to welcome East Coast Bakehouse to his home town of Drogheda. “Given the strong export focus of the project, Drogheda is ideally placed and the investment and the jobs that will flow will be a great boost to the local economy. This is the largest jobs announcement for Drogheda in many years and I want to wish the team every success with East Coast Bakehouse. I have been hugely impressed by the company’s plans for creating a biscuit manufacturing facility which will be on a par with any in these islands.”
Outlining the significance of Enterprise Ireland’s support for the establishment of this major manufacturing company Michael Cantwell, Head of Enterprise Ireland’s Food Division said, “As Ireland’s largest indigenous sector, a thriving Food & Drink industry is critically important to our economic wellbeing. The establishment of the Eastcoast Bakehouse, the most significant new consumer foods company in Ireland for a decade and led by such an experienced team will further underpin Ireland’s world-wide reputation in food innovation. We warmly congratulate the founders on this major achievement and Enterprise Ireland looks forward to working closely with the company to scale this ambitious business and create jobs in this region”.
The founders of the new business are CEO, Michael Carey, Marketing & Innovation Director, Alison Cowzer, Commercial Director, Daragh Monahan, Operations Director, James Yarr and Chief Financial Officer, Gerry Murphy. This group were the management team that successfully established the Jacob Fruitfield Group before it was sold in 2011 to Valeo Foods.
Eddie Cullen, Managing Director of Ulster Banks Corporate Banking Division said, 'As one of Irelands most important indigenous industries, Ulster Bank is a proud supporter of the Food and Drink sector. Our goal is to work with both existing and new customers in this sector and we are delighted to be involved in this start-up business, the only large-scale biscuit manufacturing plant in Ireland. We recognise the importance of working with these businesses and we look forward to supporting The East Coast Bakehouse with the next stages of their business growth and development.'
ENDS
For further information:
Anne-Marie Curran, Drury | Porter Novelli, 087 286 4079, annemarie.curran@drurypn.ie
Shane Nolan, Drury | Porter Novelli, 086 083 5402, shane.nolan@drurypn.ie
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