Farmers are struggling along with just about every other sector of the Welsh economy.
The gloom is being lifted by the opening of a new dairy in Carmarthenshire. The new business, Proper Welsh, is located on the site of the defunct Whitland Creamery which shut in 1994. Initially there will be work for a a 14 strong workforce but this is expected to rise to 40 over the following years as the business grows.
Proper Welsh has invested £1.5m in the new business and anticipates the processing and bottling of about 10 million litres of milk annually. It is expected that the new dairy will help sustain dairy farmers in the locality.
The company’s director Richard Arnold explained that currently milk from farms in west Wales is sent to England for bottling before being returned to Wales. This is a waste of time and Proper Welsh aims to transport milk to Welsh stores within 24 hours from the time of collection from the farms.
Its mission statement obviously appeals to Welsh businesses as 50 stores have already placed orders. The company operates a bottling facility in north Wales and is adamant that it makes sense to produce, process and bottle the milk within Wales rather than outsourcing any part of the process beyond.
Local farmers will benefit from the dairy ensuring that consumers receive the freshest possible Welsh milk. The company is not resting on its laurels and has plans to open a creamery at some stage in the future.