THE IRISH GOVERNMENT has unveiled a plan to create new flour mills in the country, saying it will boost the competitiveness, sustainability and relience of the bakery value chain.
Currently, Ireland has only one industrial-scale flour mill, despite the Irish bakery market being worth almost €1bn annually.
Enterprise Ireland will oversee and administer the initiative and will engage directly with firms considering new or expanded milling operations of scale.
As well as making the industry more competitive, it is hoped the move will help reduce costs for smaller businesses.
"This initiative is a powerful display of our intent to become more self-sustaining as an economy and will improve the competitiveness within Ireland's food and drink sector," said Peter Burke, Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment.
"The Irish bakery market is worth an estimated €995m annually with exports of more than €200m.
"With over 7,000 people employed across 600 businesses, this scheme will reduce costs for these SMEs.
"Driving down costs for our small businesses is something I have been prioritising within the Department since my appointment."
It is also hoped that domestic production of milling wheat will aid Irish tillage farmers and protect vital sectors against the backdrop of global financial and geopolitical pressures.
Tom Cusack, Head of Food at Enterprise Ireland, said: "Enterprise Ireland looks forward to working with companies assessing new investment opportunities in flour milling infrastructure.
"The initiative will support projects of scale that deliver improvements in efficiency, sustainability and supply chain resilience, contributing to long-term competitiveness in the bakery sector."
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