Major expansion completed at Morelli's operation base in Coleraine

Q Newsdesk

Northern Irish ice-cream brand Morelli's has completed a £350,000 expansion at it's operations base in Coleraine.

It marks the third and final phase of a major three-year investment programme totalling £700,000, with support from Ulster Bank.

The investment has allowed the company to treble it's production capacity.                                                

The money has gone towards expanding its production and storage facilities, adding an additional 3,300 sq. ft. to the now 10,000 sq. ft. North Coast factory, and modernising its head offices.

It follows upgrades to manufacturing equipment, the development of a large-capacity freezer store, and the refurbishment of its flagship parlour in Portrush. 

The project was also supported with a capital grant from Invest NI.

Bosses are now looking towards increasing exports to the Republic of Ireland, and exploring new markets in Great Britain.        

Arnaldo Morelli, who heads up the family-owned business, explains how the expansion is supporting the brand to increase production capacity.

“Following an extensive three-year investment programme, our newly expanded Coleraine facility is now fully operational. We were operating near to full capacity, producing 700,000 litres annually. The investment has enabled us to almost treble production capacity to 2 million litres per year.”

The company are now looking to expand into new export markets.

“As well as our own family stores, we supply supermarkets and hundreds of independent retailers across Northern Ireland. 

This investment will enable us to increase exports to ROI and explore new markets in GB, safe in the knowledge that we have the capacity to fulfil growing consumer demand.”

Over the summer months, Northern Ireland experienced near-record temperatures resulting in a major boost to business"

He said:

“We’re operating in an industry on the crest of a wave at the minute. Ice cream sales surged over the summer as we basked in sunshine. Mintel reports that in 2017, the value of the retail ice cream market on the island of Ireland was worth €248m and that it’s projected to hit €296m by 2022.”

(Arnaldo Morelli, Managing Director at Morelli’s and Rhonda McClelland, Business Development Manager at Ulster Bank)

Rhonda McClelland, Business Development Manager at Ulster Bank, said:

“The Morelli brand is steeped in tradition and a shining example of Northern Ireland’s growing list of quality food and drink producers. We’re extremely proud to support the Morelli family as they expand their business and explore export opportunities to new markets.”

The Morelli family has been making ice cream since 1911. They operate a number of family-owned retail outlets across Northern Ireland and several franchised units.

In 2018, the business collected seven Great Taste Gold Star awards and double Gold at the annual Ice Cream Alliance Awards, the Oscars of the ice cream industry.