The Government of Ireland, along with industry partners, will invest €35m in the construction of a new dairy facility in the University of Limerick and the expansion of Teagasc’s Moorepark Technology in Fermoy, Cork.
This is in line with Irish dairy processing sector's aim to position itself well before the milk quotas are lifted, reported RTE News.
Of the total amount being provided, around €25m will be invested in a Dairy Processing Technology Centre (DPTC) in the University of Limerick, while the remaining €10m will be used in the modernization of a pilot plant facility in Moorepark.
The DPTC is a collaboration of eight companies including Arrabawn, Aurivo, Carbery, Dairygold, Glanbia, Kerry, Lakeland Dairies and Tipperary; and 10 Research Performing Organisations.
With this investment, Irish milk pool is expected to increase by 50% by the end of this decade.
The companies partnering in the DPTC together process 85% of Ireland's milk pool, produce €2.35bn of Ireland's annual dairy exports and provide over 25,000 direct and indirect jobs.
Commenting on DPTC, Ireland Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Minister Richard Bruton said: "The food sector is a key area that we have targeted as part of our Action Plan for Jobs. This is a sector which offers massive potential for regional employment, which is a major focus of our 2015 plan, and clearly the removal of milk quotas offers huge opportunities that we must exploit in a planned and strategic way in order to support jobs growth.
"That is why Minister Coveney and I have decided, through our agencies Enterprise Ireland and Teagasc, to make this significant investment in innovation in the dairy industry.
"This market focused technology centre supported by my Department will bring industry, the education system and Government together to develop commercial new technologies which will support the growth of the dairy industry here in the coming years. In this way, we can crucially create more jobs across the regions, and ultimately improve communities' right across the country."
Image: The Dairy Processing Technology Centre will be hosted by the University of Limerick. Photo: courtesy of University of Limerick.
