Irish Distillers Pernod Ricard has announced a €17 million investment in its Clondalkin-based bottling factory, as the maker of Jameson and Paddy and Powers Irish Whiskey celebrates 50 years at its Fox and Geese facility.
The investment has been officially announced by Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton TD, and is said to reflect ‘the incredible pace of growth in the Irish whiskey category’. It is set to increase bottling capacity at the site from 5 million 9-litre cases of Jameson to 7.5 million cases per year by 2017.
Announcing the investment, which is expected to create 30 new jobs, Minister Bruton said, “I am delighted to welcome this great announcement by Irish Distillers. At the heart of our ‘Action Plan for Jobs’ is targeting better supports at areas where we have the capacity to grow exports and jobs.
“Irish whiskey is one such area, and in recent years we have seen hundreds of extra jobs in this area on the back of rapidly growing exports. Today’s announcement by Irish Distillers is a great example of how investment in this area can create much-needed jobs right across the country.”
The Fox and Geese bottling site in Dublin was originally home to bottling of Powers Irish Whiskey, which relocated from Drury Street in 1965.
Anna Malmhake, CEO of Irish Distillers, commented on the news, “This is part of a wider investment programme which saw €200 million expansion of our distillery in Midleton and our maturation facility in Dungourney, Co Cork.
“Our long-term vision is for Irish whiskey to regain its place as the biggest whiskey category in the world. Investing in critical infrastructure such as the Fox and Geese bottling facility will enable us to realise that vision,” she added.
© 2015 - Checkout Magazine by Jenny Whelan.
