CREDITON Dairy has announced a major £12 million investment in 2019 in its flavoured and functional milk processing facility.

The investment will see a significant expansion in Crediton’s processing capacity and capabilities in line with its strategic focus of being a recognised leader in the production of added value milk drinks.

The latest investment at the dairy will see the creation of a second, new production hall containing two new, high speed, fillers taking the number of filling lines at Crediton Dairy to seven.

In addition to increasing processing capacity, importantly these will provide Crediton with greater flexibility to produce a wider range of innovative flavoured and functional milks utilising new production techniques and packaging formats.

Having invested £14 million since the management buy-out in 2013, Crediton Dairy has made significant progress in building its capability to produce high quality, added value flavoured and functional milk drinks.

These include its branded Arctic iced coffee range, Moo flavoured milks and innovative functional milks such as Flora Pro Activ, Lactose free milk and most recently a2 milk, as a result of a supply partnership with the a2 Milk Company™. The additional £12 million investment in a new production hall at Crediton will enable further growth and innovation including the development of a range of enriched functional milks.

Work on building the new production hall will commence in March and it is expected that the new facility will be completed by Autumn 2019.

Commenting on the announcement, Tim Smiddy, Managing Director of Crediton Dairy said: “This latest investment at the dairy is fully in line with our strategy of becoming a leader in the fast growing flavoured and functional milk drinks segments of the market.

“The new production hall will increase our processing capacity, capability and flexibility and will allow us to develop further an exciting range of innovative branded and own-label products that meets growing consumer demand.”

Crediton Dairy is one of the UK’s leading dairy drinks businesses producing a comprehensive range of fresh flavoured and functional chilled milk drinks, iced coffee drinks and long life milks and creams.

Independently owned, financially strong and professionally run, today Crediton Dairy products can be bought in more than 13,500 food retail stores across the UK and in numerous overseas markets.

Its modern, self-contained and well-invested dairy located in the heart of Devon is amongst the very best dairy processing facilities in the industry delivering high levels of processing efficiency, product quality and customer service.

Mel Stride, the MP for Central Devon, commented: “This is great news for Crediton and the surrounding area. I have visited this important local employer on a number of occasions over the years. It has a very strong management team and it is doing a great job of expanding this important local business.”

Frank Letch MBE, the Mayor of Crediton, said: “In these uncertain economic times it is pleasing to see Crediton Dairy investing in this ground breaking development.

“I congratulate the managers on their faith in their new products and on their workforce’s ability to compete in this competitive field.

“They are putting Crediton on the national map and I wish them every success!”