Jobs boost as food firm expands operations

Health food outlet Chopped is looking at Cork as one of its major regions for growth, company bosses said after announcing more than 400 jobs in Ireland and the UK.

The company, which has salad mixtures as its signature dish, is opening 20 outlets in 2017, promising to create 430 jobs. There will be 320 new employees for Ireland and 110 for its UK expansion.

The company will double its outlets in Ireland to 40 as well as six in the UK. The outlets in Cork, Waterford and Wicklow will join existing Chopped locations in Dublin, Kildare and Galway.

Founder Brian Lee said Cork was a big focus of its expansion.

“We will be opening our first Cork store in the next two months and are in the advanced planning stages to open another towards the end of the year. These new outlets will create 30 jobs in Cork by the end of 2017.

“We are also in talks with other potential franchisees for additional Cork stores. Cork will be a vital location for Chopped’s expansion over the next number of years as we continue our rollout across the country,” he said.

There were also further jobs announced at Citrix in Dublin. The IT company said 150 roles were being created as it added 26,000sq ft of office space at its East Wall base. The jobs will primarily consist of inside sales and technical support services roles.

Dundalk, Co Louth-based data analytics company Diaceutics said it was adding 30 jobs. The company, which helps connect patients to the right drugs, said the expansion would allow it to develop in markets including the US, Europe, Asia and South America.