Massive end of year boost for Longford as C&D Foods to create 100 new jobs

The pet food division of ABP Food Group, C&D Foods, has announced an investment of €48 million for its flagship facility at Edgeworthstown.

The investment, which includes the creation of one hundred (100) new roles in engineering, operations, supply chain and quality assurance will increase the site’s production capacity by 25%.

This is in addition to the employment of approximately one hundred, during the construction phase which is underway.

The investment, which is supported by Enterprise Ireland, will result in an extension of the building along with the creation of additional state of the art automated multi-packing and pouch filling lines using the most sustainable innovations available.

Commenting on the announcement, Colm Dore, Managing Director, C&D Foods, said: “This is an exciting and significant step forward for our business. We are seeing a trend across Europe where consumers are favouring pouched pet food for smaller companion animals, and we are in prime position to continue to capitalise on the growing demand for these types of products.

Mr Dore added, “This investment will enable the company to maintain its position at the forefront of the pet food market while also leading to the creation of new high skilled jobs and positive economic development in our local community.”

Minister of State for Trade Promotion, Digital and Company Regulation Dara Calleary TD announced the news last Wednesday (December 22).

Minister Calleary said, “I am delighted to join the C&D Foods team to celebrate the announcement of the expansion of their facilities and the creation of jobs here in Longford. A key priority for this Government is to foster regional enterprise development and create jobs across all the regions of Ireland. “

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Minister Calleary continued, “C&D Foods is an Irish company that has experienced impressive growth, producing premium pet food and today’s expansion announcement is a great boost for Longford as well as the wider Midlands region, paving the way for this home-grown company to significantly scale its business. The Government, through Enterprise Ireland, looks forward to continued engagement with C&D Foods to support the growth of the business into the future.”

Leo Clancy, CEO, Enterprise Ireland said, “A key goal for Enterprise Ireland is to support companies to make the transition to the low-carbon, resource-efficient economy of the future by increasing their level of innovation and all the while improving their competitiveness. We have worked closely with C&D foods to support them with their sustainability strategy, reducing carbon by investing in carbon abatement technologies and driving productivity through investing in digitalisation technologies.

“This large investment into the new showcase plant in Edgeworthstown reflects highly on the entire Irish food sector - pooling together innovation with best-in-class facilities to drive sustainable practices. We look forward to working closely with C&D Foods to optimise their full international growth potential, creating and sustaining jobs here in Longford.”

Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach, Department of Foreign Affairs and Department of Defence, Peter Burke TD warmly welcomed the great news on the continued growth and expansion of C&D Foods.

Minister Burke commented, “100 new jobs and an investment of €48m will have a hugely positive impact on the local and regional economy. Balanced regional development is a key Government strategy and this is one good example of projects coming on stream and positively impacting locally."

C&D Foods is the pet foods division of ABP Food Group. C&D Foods is one of the largest own label pet food manufacturers in Europe with production facilities in eleven locations across the continent. C&D Foods employs 500 staff in Ireland and a further 1,400 across Europe.

In 2021 C&D announced a €60 million contract with Donegal based packaging company ProAmpac in Gweedore. ProAmpac is now a strategic supplier of pet food pouches for C&D operations across Europe. Both parties are currently working on the development of more sustainable pet food pouch packaging including recyclable options.

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