Times are churning at South Caernarfon Creameries due to renewed investment

Investment seems to be the buzz word of the moment at South Caernarfon Creameries: investment in the Creameries future, investment in machinery and investment in brands.

As Wales leading farmer-owned dairy co-operative, South Caernarfon Creameries has just announced that they have refinanced the business on more competitive terms, securing funding to support the delivery of the companies business plan and allowing this additional investment to be carried out. In 2010 the Creamery went through a strategic review in order for us to focus on the long-term future of the business explains Alan Wyn-Jones, Managing Director at South Caernarfon Creameries. Having worked to the strategy for the past 12 months, it is pleasing that we are on track to deliver all of the key objectives that were identified in the first year.

Investment in the Creamery is well underway with the recent installation of a traditional butter churn; a 250,000 asset that will enable production of a new range of Welsh butter on site. In some ways you could argue that we have bucked the trend and turned against modern production methods. The installation of this new machine however, means that we can make butter as authentically made as possible.

Our unique proposition is the authenticity of our range; in that we produce a range of dairy products made using Welsh milk and that are packed and distributed from our factory in Wales. This is something that our competitors simply cannot claim. Our long term strategy denotes that we are going to invest heavily in our own brands, and this is the first step to both enhancing the brand and our product range.

The lifeblood of our business is obviously our member farmers. We are delighted to report that over the past 12 months we have increased the milk price by 4.1 pence per litre which is more than any other UK processor. We are committed and very much focused upon delivering continued improvement of member benefits.

Despite the tough economic trading conditions, South Caernarfon Creameries has recorded buoyant sales figures; continuing to supply major supermarkets as well as secure major listings and promotions with a variety of products. We also received a record amount of awards last year for the quality of our range. It was great to be recognised at prestigious events such as True Taste of Wales, World Cheese Awards and Nantwich International Cheese Awards. These awards recognise the taste and quality of a product and not influenced by glossy packaging or multi-million pound advertising campaigns.

The focus for 2011 shall be to continue our evolvement from what has been a predominantly commodity dairy business into an added value brand focused business which highlight our unique selling points. There shall be continued challenges along this journey but our key driver is the long term rewards for all of our stakeholders.