Glanbia Ingredients Ireland (GII) is to seek planning permission for a major expansion at its Wexford cheese plant.

The proposed €35m investment is supported by Enterprise Ireland and will double peak milk processing capacity at the plant on the outskirts of Wexford town.

Glanbia acquired Wexford Creamery in May 2014.

During 2015, it says the Plant at Rocklands produced almost 20,000 tonnes of high-quality cheddar cheese, as well as a valuable stream of high-quality whey for further processing at GIanbia’s Ballyragget, Co Kilkenny facility.

Glanbia says the investment will secure the future of the plant’s 48 employees, as well as generating 60-70 jobs during the construction phase. It will also sustain a large number of indirect jobs in the local economy.

Jim Bergin, chief executive of GII, the  proposed investment is a tremendous vote of confidence in the staff at our Wexford plant, which produced record volumes of cheese in 2015.

“Our milk suppliers in Wexford are amongst the fastest growing and most progressive in the GIanbia catchment area. This investment will also enable further growth in our highly popular Wexford Cheese brand, which is being marketed in Ireland, the UK, the USA and, most recently, the Middle East”.

Glanbia Ingredients Ireland is launching Wexford branded cheese into the Middle Eastern region with a range of quality Irish cheddars available in 2.5 and 5 kg packs into the Horeca/Food Service and Deli Retail sectors – all of which will be showcased at next week’s GulFood in Dubai, the world’s biggest annual food and hospitality show.