ABP has announced an investment of £17 million (€19.4 million) for the planned redevelopment of its processing plant in Perth, Scotland.

The redevelopment – which was announced by Fergus Ewing, cabinet Secretary for the Rural Economy and Connectivity – includes an extension and upgrade of the facilities chilled storage area, dry goods storage, maturation and meat production facilities and staff amenities.

On completion the project – which is supported by the Scottish Government’s Food Processing, Marketing and Co-operation grant scheme – will create 80 new jobs.

The announcement follows a further £3 million (€3.4 million) investment in cold storage and refrigeration facilities on the site over the past year.

Commenting on the announcement, Tom Kirwan, managing director of ABP’s UK division, said: “We look forward to beginning work and transforming Perth into one of the most modern facilities of its kind in the UK.

The improvements will benefit everyone from our farmer suppliers through to our colleagues and the local economy.

It will create 80 additional jobs on site and provide significant employment during the construction phase.

ABP in Scotland

ABP has had a presence in Scotland since 1982 and acquired the Perth facility in 1997. ABP Perth employs 280 staff and works with 1,600 farmers across Scotland. It has recently started to source all of its electricity from renewable sources.

The plant has also played a “key role” in helping ABP achieve quadruple accreditation from the Carbon Trust in recognition of the progress it is making in reducing its environmental impact, the company claims.

The Carbon Trust Standard is the world’s leading independent certification of an organisation’s impact on the environment, verifying action on energy use, CO2 emissions, water use and waste output.