A LEADING Powys soft drinks company opened its new and expanded multi-million-pound facility today (April 27).

To mark the opening of Radnor Hills’ new site, Welsh rural affairs minister Lesley Griffiths visited the Knighton site.

Around £10 million has been spent on the exciting new development at the company’s Heartsease Farm headquarters.

“I’m very pleased to officially open the new offices for Radnor Hills today,” said the minister.

“The company embodies our vision for food and drink, in its commitment to continued innovation, embedding environmental sustainability within the operation of the business, and the value it places on staff.

“I’d like to congratulate the team on this latest development and wish them the very best for the future.”

County Times: Rural affairs minister Lesley Griffiths with William Watkins of Radnor Hills Rural affairs minister Lesley Griffiths with William Watkins of Radnor Hills (Image: None)

The investment has been used to build new production facilities and a quality assurance laboratory as well as to create a new £2.5 million state-of-the-art office complex for staff and a conference facility from an old agricultural building on the site.

Upgrades have been made to a number of lines in the factory including a new £750,000 labeller and conveyer system. A £4.5m glass line investment has been completed in three phases, which includes the ability to produce cardboard cluster packs for retailers.

Another £1.5m has been invested in an additional filler for a PET line and an additional £750,000 has been spent on a new steam system.

During her visit, Ms Griffiths met with Radnor Hills managing director William Watkins and was given a tour of the new facilities as well as product samples to try, including their award-winning Heartsease Farm brand. She also met some of Radnor’s 50-plus food manufacturing apprentices.

County Times: Radnor Hills

Radnor founder Mr Watkins said: “These are exciting times for Radnor Hills and we’re delighted to have the support of the Welsh Government and to welcome Lesley Griffiths here today.

“We are committed to ongoing investment to ensure that our facilities are world class. With the opening of our new office complex, we are also investing in our brilliant team of people.

“During the last two years, over a hundred new jobs have been created and further job opportunities and apprenticeships are available throughout 2023, aligned with our expansion plans.

“We are also committed to environmental sustainability. Radnor Hills is a zero to landfill site and our environmental management system and site have been certified to ISO 14001 standards.

“We’ve recently received planning permission for a £1.8 million solar farm to power our manufacturing site.

“This will produce two megawatts of power which is 21 per cent of the company’s energy requirement and will support our pledge to the planet to become more sustainable and to protect the environment around us.”

County Times: Visiting the production line Visiting the production line (Image: None)

Radnor Hills’ diverse portfolio of drinks are all made using the exceptionally pure Welsh spring water sourced from the family farm’s land, just minutes from the production line for maximum freshness.

Independent and family owned, Radnor Hills was established in 1990 and has a turnover of £58 million (up from £41 million in 2021), producing over 400 million drinks every year.

Its brands include Radnor Water, Radnor Splash, Heartsease Farm, Radnor Fizz and Radnor Fruits.

It is the only drinks manufacturer in the UK to produce drinks on site in all four packaging formats – glass, can, PET plastic and Tetra Pak. Customers include Sainsbury’s, Asda and Morrisons, as well as the NHS and schools across the country.

The company will this summer launch its first television campaign after teaming up with Alton Towers, the UK’s biggest theme park, on a two for one ticket promotion through purchases of Radnor Splash.

To find out more about the company, visit www.radnorhills.co.uk.