Dawn Farms, one of Europe’s leading suppliers of cooked meats, is investing €25m which will create 150 jobs over the next five years. The investment will enhance the company’s research and development capability at its Naas facility. The investment is supported by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation through Enterprise Ireland.

Dawn Farms was established in 1984 and serves international food service chains and food manufacturers in over 40 markets worldwide. Developing new products to meet changing consumer tastes has been at the heart of the growth of Dawn Farms for over 30 years.

The new roles will be from graduate level, with opportunities for more highly qualified food scientists, meat technologists and those with culinary expertise to join the company.

CEO Larry Murrin said: “Great ingredients make great food and great ingredients come from outstanding food innovation.”

He added that consumers’ tastes are constantly evolving and that the business closely monitors consumer trends. He said that they are seeing more demand for home-style authentic meats, new flavours and new snacking options, as well as on-going interest in health and wellness across the range of cooked meats.

Last month, Dawn Farms signed a new seven-year contract which has an export value of €850m to supply cooked meats to more than 4,000 Subway restaurants in Europe. Last year, it was awarded Irish Food and Drink Exporter of the Year by the Irish Exporters Association. Dawn Farms is majority-owned by the Queally family.