Glenisk resumes yogurt production in Offaly four months after devastating fire

FOUR months after a devastating fire halted production at its factory in Killeigh, Glenisk's organic yogurts are once again on their way to the shop shelves.

The Offaly company vowed to return to the market as soon as possible after the blaze on September 27 last year which abruptly ended their yogurt presence in Ireland and temporarily suspended their ambitions for expansion into Europe.

However this week a new production line in an entirely newly built facility at the Newtown site rolled out two natural organic yogurt varieties with others to follow in the coming weeks.

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The company has named its relaunch 'The bios are back in town' and one of the products manufactured today is Glenisk Organic Bio Wholemilk Natural Yogurt.

Glenisk Organic Greek Style Natural Yogurt is the other which will be on supermarket shelves nationwide this week.

"Two further products will be introduced next week and we’ll continue to roll out our products over the coming weeks," said Glenisk commercial director Emma Walls.  "Kids yogurt will return in March."

Ms Walls said Glenisk is operating from the company's “Plan B” manufacturing facility, built in just four months on a corner of the original manufacturing site.

"This operation will allow us to produce almost all the products originally made, over the coming months.

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"The speed with which we’ve been able to get the new facility up and running is down to the hard work of the staff and the support of local contractors and materials suppliers who have gone above and beyond – working through Christmas and offering solutions at every turn. We are indebted to them all, here in Offaly, and further afield.

"Now that Plan B is up and producing, we turn our attention to the design of 'Plan A', a new carbon neutral manufacturing facility which will set Glenisk up for the future. We expect it will take at least a year for that new facility to be completed."