Annyalla to open Wrexham hatchery

An Irish poultry firm is planning to open its first UK plant in Wrexham, producing 600,000 chicks a week.

Annyalla Chicks, based in County Monaghan, said it planned to take on 20 staff when it opens at the former Delta Foods site by the end of the year.

The firm said it hoped to increase its workforce to about 50 as business expands in the next two to three years.

The Irish based company exports chicks to UK poultry farmers supplying fully-grown birds to the meat industry.

Nearly a third of the chicks produced at the family-owned company’s hatchery are exported to the UK. The firm plans to move on to Wrexham’s main industrial estate.

John Mawer, who runs the business with his father and other family members, says: “We’re already operating at full capacity and this new hatchery will enable us to meet the growing demand. We’ve spent about 18 months looking for a suitable site in the UK.

“As a former food factory, this building really suits our needs as well as being a good location close to many of our customers.” He said initially the hatchery would be supplying farmers with up to 600,000 day-old chicks a week at the hatchery, but this could increase to one-and-a-half million within a few years.

He said he hoped the development would encourage farmers working close to the hatchery to become involved in supplying eggs to the plant, but this would require “considerable investment”.