08/08/2013

100 Jobs Created At L'Derry Bakery

100 jobs are to be created as part of a £1.4m expansion at a L'Derry bakery.

Magherafelt-based McErlain’s Bakery supplies products across Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland for sale under retailers’ own brands.

35 of the 100 new positions have already been created, with the remaining 65 positions to be introduced over the next two years.

McErlain’s also says it plans to invest in new plant and machinery and extend its product development area as part of the investment.

The bakery has been awarded £352,000 by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) under its EU Processing & Marketing Grant Scheme.

Enterprise Minister Arlene Foster visited the premises this morning.

She said: "Bakery is a well established and intensely competitive sector so this investment is very welcome news for the food industry, a key contributor to Northern Ireland’s economy. The 100 new jobs being created as part of McErlain’s long term development strategy is a positive boost for the local community in Magherafelt.

"This project demonstrates McErlain’s clear desire to innovate and grow its sales outside Northern Ireland. It also highlights the NI Executive’s commitment and cross departmental approach to support the development of local businesses."

McErlain’s is also recruiting a Brand Manager and an Account Manager to help boost sales and awareness of its Genesis Crafty brand across Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland.

Invest NI has offered McErlain’s an additional £53,000 of support towards these marketing activities.

Brian McErlain said: "We recognise the need to further expand our sales beyond Northern Ireland and have focused on developing new innovative products and enhancing our branding, sales and marketing in a bid to secure new export business. Support from DARD and Invest NI is helping us enhance our production and marketing capabilities to meet the demand of new customers and cement our position within the highly competitive bakery industry."

(IT/MH)

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