Dublin's Blanchardstown has been given a jobs boost with the creation of more than 50 new posts.
Taoiseach Enda Kenny unveiled a new production line in The Jelly Bean Factory’s confectionery manufacturing facility in west Dublin, where 25 people will work.
A new range of gourmet Belgian chocolate coated jelly beans, which has taken two years to develop, will be made on site and exported worldwide for the Christmas market.
Elsewhere, Boots Ireland will open its new 1,100 sq ft store in The Blanchardstown Centre next Wednesday, where 30 new full and part-time staff will be based.
Mr Kenny said The Jelly Bean Factory was one of Ireland’s success stories, exporting 97 per cent of its product to over 55 countries.
“Ireland’s economic recovery is being led by exporting Irish companies just like the Jelly Bean Factory,” he said, opening the state-of-the-art production line at the IDA campus.
“With Irish food and drink exports at an all-time high, I am delighted to see indigenous companies continuing to increase their global footprint.”
The firm, founded by father and son Peter and Richard Cullen, already employs 55 people and has an annual turnover of €11 million.
Their natural gourmet jelly beans use natural flavours and added fruit juice in the fruit flavours, contain no artificial colours and are GMO free, gluten free, fat free, Kosher and Halal compliant.
Richard Cullen revealed it took two years to research and develop the new range coated with Belgian chocolate.
“It takes 10 days to produce this new bean, ensuring a perfect polish, smooth texture and rich taste experience from the very centre of our beans right through the smooth chocolate coating,” he said.
“We currently produce more than 12 million jelly beans a day and with this new product, we hope to increase that number by a few million more beans a day.”
Meanwhile, Debbie Smith, managing director of Boots Ireland, said the new Blanchardstown store would be the biggest opened in Ireland or the UK this year.
The store will replace two smaller ones in the centre and bring the Boots Blanchardstown workforce to 100.
“It is a direct response to the strong customer demand for Boots in Ireland and the latest step in our efforts to provide Irish customers with excellent health and beauty products and pharmacy services,” she said.