Arla, the farmer-owned dairy company, has officially opened a new facility for the storage and maturation of its cheese.

Cheeses from Taw Valley, Llandyrnog and Lockerbie will now go to the purpose built facility in Whitchurch, Shropshire. once matured it is moved to the nearby cutting and packing Arla site in Oswestry before being despatched to retailers.

Previously the cheeses were stored and matured at a number of locations but now the process is managed by a sole supplier.

At the start of 2016, Arla signed a long-term contract with Shropshire-based storage and distribution company, Grocontinental, to build and manage the facilities following the dairy company’s extensive review of its current suppliers.

The new 32,000 pallet chilled store was officially opened by Michiel de Jonge, senior vice president, Arla Global Logistics and Ray Grocott, Chairman of Grocontinental. The facility will feature high density racking together with dedicated cheese grading facilities.

“Arla has committed to grow its UK business by nearly a third by 2020, as part of the company’s global strategy for growth and to position Arla as the champion of British dairy,” said Speaking about the new site, Ian Brown, vice president, Arla Foods UK Logistics said Ian Brown, vice president, Arla Foods UK Logistics. “The decision to consolidate the maturation facilities from three of our creameries into one fantastic facility reflects how we are investing for the future to ensure quality, competitiveness and economies of scale.”