Construction of a new Food Technology Centre for Cumbria is to get underway next week (8 October) when local building contractors, Team Northern Construction Limited based in Milnthorpe, begin work at the Redhills site. Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency and its Distinctly Cumbrian programme have developed the Food Technology Centre project as part of their support for food and drink producers in the county and it represents an investment of over £1.5 million. At the heart of the development are five commercial kitchen units, each one equipped to a professional standard. There will also be shared ambient, chiller and freezer storage areas, a packing and labelling line and specialist equipment as well as a distribution hub for tenants and for other local food businesses. "We have been supporting businesses in the food and drink sector with grant funding for several years," said Pauline Herbert of Distinctly Cumbrian, "and we hope that this is a natural progression in terms of support for growth." "We identified a gap in provision for people running small food and drink businesses. Either people produce in their home kitchens or there is the leap up to operating from factory units. The Food Technology Centre should provide facilities to bridge that gap. We are hoping that some businesses will relocate into the Centre full time while other units will be available on a more flexible basis for seasonal production or to deal with peak orders." CREA Chief Executive, Bob Clark has been involved in the project from the start: "We have been able to secure funding from Northwest Regional Development Agency and Europe to develop this concept and several small businesses have already indicated their interest," he said. "The Food Technology Centre will give them the opportunity to expand into new facilities, to share costs with other similar businesses and to make the most of a prime location for distribution across Cumbria and beyond. "The food and drink sector is increasingly important to the local economy and the Distinctly Cumbrian programme has contributed a great deal of practical funding and expert support to businesses in this sector in recent years. The Food Technology Centre will be a tangible expansion of this support in action." David Hunter, Head of Rural Affairs at the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), said: "The start of this project marks our firm commitment to supporting those Cumbrian food and drink producers that want to strengthen and expand.
"Food and drinks businesses are extremely important to the local economy, which will be boosted by the provision of what will be a first class facility. The new Food Technology Centre will give businesses the chance to develop excellent products and, vitally, it will bring with it flexibility as businesses will be able to take residence permanently at the facility, or use it as and when required." The Food Technology Centre is due for completion in the first half of 2008. Small rural businesses in the food and drink sector can contact Pauline Herbert on 01768 891555 or via
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for further information about the project and the latest news on progress. | 
