Defence Online

Plans to expand a dairy preparing to take on a major supermarket contract are set to be approved.From July next year, Tomlinson’s Dairies Ltd in Minera will be processing an extra 100 million litres of milk per year after winning a contract to supply Sainsbury’s stores in Wales as well as some in England.Now Wrexham Council’s planning committee is expected to grant permission on expansion plans drafted to help Tomlinson’s meet the extra demand.The firm hopes to carry out a three-stage expansion, with the first phase being to expand its cold storage area and provide additional office accommodation.Fifty-three new full time milk processing jobs will be created if phases one and two of the expansion get the green light, with a further seven jobs to be created in phase three which concerns the on-site production of milk bottles.According to the planning application, the expansion would see an investment of about £14 million in Minera and Coedpoeth through supporting construction jobs.The dairy currently has sufficient capacity to create the extra milk but cold storage space on the site would be insufficient to meet the increased demand.In May, Sainsbury’s announced the changes to its milk suppliers, including Tomlinson’s, would take place from next year and run until 2020.Minera Community Council backed the application but called for some potential issues to be considered.