C&C plans €200m upgrade following boom in Bulmers
The upgrade — which will be phased in over the next 18 months — will also create 150 jobs when fully operational.
The main elements of the development will be additional apple pressing and fermentation operations and a larger fresh cider storage facility, more than doubling the existing storage capacity.
A new automated warehouse facility, with capacity for 120,000 pallets, is also planned, as are two new bottling halls.
C&C’s Clonmel facility covers 250 acres, with about two-thirds given over by orchards.
All of its cider manufacturing for both the Irish and British markets is done at the Co Tipperary site.
According to Brendan McGuinness, managing director of C&C’s cider division: “This is the group’s largest ever capital investment programme and is designed to resolve our current supply difficulties and provide an ample level of spare capacity going forward.”
The new development is also in direct response to the growth in market share enjoyed by Bulmers here and Magners in Britain.
New figures released this week by AC Nielsen claim that the nationwide roll-out of Magners in Britain, which started in March (prior to that it was available only in London and Scotland), has continued to show good growth with the brand now available in more than 70% of British pubs.
The brand’s volume growth in the six months to August has been measured at 250% in Britain and a four-fold volume increase is expected over the course of C&C’s full current financial year.
Bulmers, meanwhile, is also outperforming the long alcohol drinks sector here.
