Ice cream factory on the cards for Carnforth would bring new jobs to town

Ikon Hardware want to deliver a warehouse building on the four-acre site off Oakwood Way.

English Lakes Ice Cream would occupy the site with an ice cream and sorbet production factory, to increase production and further expand their business, according to a planning statement submitted to the city council.

The 23,000 sq ft building would feature automated machinery and conveyor belt systems, ageing tanks, pasteurising tanks, milk tanks, and room for more homogenisers.

Alongside the production areas, there would be a 500-pallet cold store provided for the storage of ice cream products produced on-site as well as ‘off-site’ freezer storage for other manufacturers and distributors.

A 350-pallet dry goods warehouse, chilled goods store, and 3,000 sq ft of office space are also proposed.

Access would also be created onto the site via Maple Way.

English Lakes Ice Cream Ltd is a manufacturer and distributer of ice creams and sorbets, currently operating from a base in Kendal. However, recent growth means the company’s existing premises are no longer suitable to meet the needs of the business and are preventing the acceptance of further business to the detriment of the business itself, the supporting supply chains, local retailer/distributers and thus the wider local economy.

The existing premises has no further space for expansion of the production facilities, which is preventing the investment in more new machinery and technologies and the creation of new skilled and semi-skilled jobs.

The site in Carnforth would meet the specific needs and operational model of the business as it seeks to continue its growth.

The development would add considerable production capacity and generate considerable efficiencies within the business operations, permitting continued investment and the creation of additional skilled and semi-skilled employment opportunities.

The business currently employs 16 full-time equivalent staff and this development would result in the addition of six further full-time equivalent staff within the first five years.

The employment opportunities that would be created include production workers/supervisors, further warehouse staff with forklift training, food technical managers, in house machinery engineers, area regional sales managers and an administration manager and assistant.