Minister of State for Business, Employment and Retail, Damien English, TD, has turned the sod at the Boyne Valley Food Hub, a flagship project of the Boyne Valley Food Innovation District.

The project will transform almost 800 m² of enterprise space at its Navan site into an innovative food hub with nine food grade units available for start-up and scaling food businesses.

It will also deliver a timeshare development kitchen and food R&D lab, sensory testing facilities, a food specific co-working hub and a knowledge lab to create higher levels of connectivity, collaboration and innovation in the food and drink sector.

Speaking at the sod turning, Minister English said: “I am delighted to turn the sod for the new Boyne Valley Food Hub in Navan. The Food Hub is a flagship project of the Boyne Valley Food Innovation District and will facilitate the development of scalable, sustainable and profitable food businesses across the Mid-East and North-East regions.

“When completed, the facility will support local entrepreneurs, new start-ups, and established SME companies to be at the forefront of innovation in the vibrant food sector which is growing in importance for the local economy. The Boyne Valley Food Hub is a great example of how, through collaboration and clustering, we can provide world class facilities to futureproof the stream of talented people and companies operating in the food sector here.

“The project, which secured €1.5m under my Department’s Regional Enterprise Development Fund, is one of the many enterprise initiatives the Government is supporting throughout the country. I expect today’s development will help inspire additional beneficial enterprise development projects to come forward for future funding opportunities for the betterment of County Meath and the Mid-East and North-East regions.”

The Boyne Valley Food Hub is supported by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment through the Regional Development Enterprise Fund (REDF), administered by Enterprise Ireland.

The hub is being developed at the existing Meath Enterprise Centre in Navan and will facilitate the development of scalable, sustainable and profitable food businesses across the Mid-East and North-East Regions.

Gary O’Meara, CEO of Meath Enterprise said: “Today represents the culmination of years of planning and innovation and it is great to see the sod turned on this important project. Our region has a great agri-food tradition and this new Food Hub will ensure that the next generation of food innovators have a state-of-the-art facility to support their ambition. This new Food Hub will support jobs and create food brands for markets at home and abroad.”

Michael Brougham, Regional Director Midlands and Mid East with Enterprise Ireland said: “We are delighted to support this project through the REDF. Supporting innovative projects that draw on the key strengths of regions, such as food, is a key aim of the REDF and the Boyne Valley Food Hub is a great example of this. More than two thirds of the jobs in companies supported by Enterprise Ireland are located outside the Dublin region and investing in great regional projects like this will ensure that balanced regional development and job creation continues to be a hallmark of the Irish economy.”

Reporting: Meath Chronicle