Mars Food bakes £23m investment for UK Uncle Ben’s rice factory
Mars Food UK has cooked up a £23m investment it will plough into its Uncle Ben's rice factory in King's Lynn.
The funds will be put towards a new production line and completed in early 2017. Nearly 300 are already employed at the site and the expansion will create a further 28 full-time roles.
Michael Ryan, regional president at Mars Food for Western Europe and Russia, said: "We have been manufacturing from this site for over 50 years and continue our commitment to investing and growing the site which manufactures some of the UK's favourite family brands – Uncle Ben's and Dolmio."
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In 2015, the UK arm of the global food giant invested £6m into upgrading its office facilities at the same Norfolk-based site, which are being opened today.
Environment secretary and MP for South West Norfolk Elizabeth Truss said: "This significant investment by Mars is a real vote of confidence in Britain as a place to do business, creating jobs locally and helping drive economic growth for the nation."
In April, Mars became one of the first global companies to say many of its products should only be eaten "occasionally" due to high fat, sugar and salt contents, including those in the Uncle Ben's and Dolmio lines.