The amount of milk being used in the Cadbury chocolate plant in Rathmore, Co Kerry, increased by more than a third (+34%) last year to 86m litres of milk, thanks to soaring chocolate sales.

The company said it has invested €12m in recent years to expand capacity at its Rathmore plant, allowing it to take more milk from Irish dairy farmers.

One of the standout consumer trends since COVID-19 hit 12 months ago has been an increase in chocolate sales, particularly over recent months.

The Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate bar is the market leader in both Ireland and the UK

According to figures from Kantar, chocolate sales for January this year were up 20% on normal levels at just over €118m. Retail figures from the UK market show chocolate sales have increased by almost 25% in the last year to just under £2.2bn (€2.5bn).

Owned by confectionary giant Mondelez International, the Cadbury chocolate brand is among the largest chocolate brands in the world.

The Cadbury Dairy Milk chocolate bar is the market leader in both Ireland and the UK.

The majority of the chocolate crumb made in the Rathmore plant is used to make all of Cadbury’s eight-square chocolate bars, as well as its Flake, Twirl and Starbar brands

Cadbury’s facility in Rathmore manufactures chocolate crumb, which is the base ingredient in making a range of well-known Cadbury chocolate products.

The facility is supplied with fresh milk from Kerry Group, Boherbue Co-op and Lee Strand.

The majority of the chocolate crumb made in the Rathmore plant is used to make all of Cadbury’s eight-square chocolate bars, as well as its Flake, Twirl and Starbar brands at its facility in Coolock, Co Dublin. The remaining chocolate crumb is exported to the UK, the US and Canada.

Investment

“Since 2017, we have invested €12m into our Rathmore factory so we can increase our production and improve efficiency. It means that with a glass and a half of fresh milk in every bar of Cadbury Dairy Milk, we are sourcing more milk from Irish farmers, which is great news,” Eoin Kellett, managing director of Mondelez Ireland, told the Irish Farmers Journal.