Business
Project HELIX reaches £491m milestone in support of food and drink industry
![](https://pembrokeshire-herald.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Food-Innovation-Wales.jpg)
A WELSH GOVERNMENT backed project that offers Welsh food and drink companies technical and commercial support has delivered over £491m impact to the sector since its launch in 2016.
Project HELIX is delivered by the three food centres across Wales that make up Food Innovation Wales. The project offers a range of funded support in response to the needs of the sector, including help with process operations, new product development and food safety certification.
Since July 2023, Project HELIX has been funded solely by Welsh Government and has delivered the following benefits to the Welsh food and drink industry:
- £119 million financial impact
- 101 jobs created and a further 3208 safeguarded
- 193 businesses supported with 60 businesses supported for the first time
- 384 training days delivered for 276 participants
- 52 new businesses assisted
- 87 new markets accessed, and
- 214 new food and drink products developed
One company to have benefited from Project HELIX support is Carmarthenshire-based Do Goodly Dips, a vegan and gluten-free dip manufacturer who was supported to develop a new meal pot range.
Richard Abbey, Founder, Do Goodly Foods, said: “Food Innovation Wales provided invaluable support for us right the way through the development process and enabled us to make some great tasting products whilst also ensuring we meet our Do Goodly health credentials criteria. This new range has also opened doors to several new customers whom we wish to work with.’’
![](https://pembrokeshire-herald.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/Food-Innovation-Wales-Project-Helix-1024x683.jpg)
Meanwhile, Anglesey-based Charcuterie Môn, was supported to diversify their family farming business to produce a range of charcuterie.
Mark Parry, Owner, Charcuterie Môn, said:“Working with Food Innovation Wales under Project HELIX has given us the confidence to develop our business, knowing we comply with the relevant legislation and food safety standards. Without this support, we would not have had the confidence to begin producing charcuterie with consistent and safe results.”
Finally, Pontypool-based gluten-free bakery Juvela, was helped to develop a model that could streamline their recipe development process and reduce waste.
Speaking about the benefits of Project HELIX support, Nathan Hodges, New Product Development Manager at Juvela, said: “Through sharing their knowledge and expertise, we now have a system that not only saves us time but also reduces wasted raw materials, something that is critical in food production and new product development.”
Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, said:
“Food plays a key role in supporting our economy and it is wonderful to see the impact Project HELIX is having on food and drink businesses in Wales.
“I am pleased to share that we will shortly be launching our Agri-Food Technology Challenge Fund to encourage agricultural and food businesses across Wales to develop technology-based solutions to challenges that affect their businesses.
“This fund will provide a total of £500,000 worth of support for projects, and I look forward to seeing how they benefit and innovate the sector.”
Commenting on the impact of Project HELIX, Professor David Lloyd on behalf of Food Innovation Wales, said: “Project HELIX continues to offer invaluable support to the Welsh food and drink sector. Over the past year, there has been a particular focus on new product development targeted at growth markets and the evaluation of waste and processes to improve efficiency.
“With ongoing funding from the Welsh Government, Food Innovation Wales will continue to support the Welsh food and drink industry in addressing challenges and capitalising on opportunities.”
To find out more about the range of funded support available through Project HELIX, visit:
https://foodinnovation.wales/
Business
West Wales airport most people have never flown from under new management
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A NEW group has taken over the operation of Swansea Airport after what were described as high-level talks with the site’s owner, Swansea Council. Swansea Airport Stakeholders Alliance is running the airport on a temporary basis after the previous leaseholder agreed to relinquish its lease.
The airport will continue to operate, and the council said it would soon start a process to find a long-term tenant. Council leader Rob Stewart said: “We’re delighted to have the alliance in place as a temporary new leaseholder. They’ve started running the airport and its members are eager to make a success of it.”
Council joint deputy leader David Hopkins said: “We’ll start to look for a long-term solution through a competitive tender process. The alliance will have the opportunity, with others, to bid in that process. There’ll be opportunities for future investment in Swansea Airport.”
The council said a range of issues with the previous tenant had arisen over recent years, resulting in the existing lease being brought to an end. It did not envisage any additional cost to the taxpayer and said the airport would remain open.
Bob Oliver, chairman of the alliance, said: “Today marks the culmination of three years of intensive work by the alliance. I pay tribute to the skill and professionalism of alliance members, of our stakeholders and of the council, who have put their faith in us to secure a brighter future for the airport.
“Our first task is to take stock of what we have inherited and then begin to bring the airport back to life – to make it a welcoming place to visit, to start delivering social, environmental and economic benefits to the council and the people of Swansea and to make it a facility we can all be proud of.”
Business
Local builder named as top finalist in Screwfix Tradesperson Awards 2024
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SOLVA builder Chris James is constructing his way to the top after being shortlisted for the final ten of the 2024 Screwfix Top Tradesperson Award.
The 37-year-old, who has been in the construction industry for the past 15 years, will now go head-to-to-head with nine other finalists from across the UK and Ireland after beating off fierce competition from over 1,000 applicants.
Chris’s company, Kingsmere Carpentry and Construction, is also committed to raising funds after securing over £50,000 for the children’s charity ‘Farms for City Children’. The charity enables children from disadvantaged communities to find out about working on farms in the countryside.
Chris is also committed to working sustainably bu using waste responsibly by using excess wood to fuel fires. He also plans to invest in a new fleet of electric or hybrid vehicles for use in his company.
In addition to gaining the coveted title, the, the winner will take home a trade bundle of tech, tools and training worth £20,000.
The finals take place at Screwfix LIVE on Friday, September 27 where a panel of industry experts will put Chris and the other finalists through their paces before selecting this year’s overall champion.
Business
Nearly 100 new homes ‘for local people’ approved in Tenby
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A CONTROVERSIAL Tenby housing scheme with nearly 100 “local houses for local people” which will be visible from the island of Caldey has been approved by national park planners
In 2018, Pembrokeshire County Council, which already owned the 15-acre Brynhir site on the edge of Tenby, ‘bought’ the land for £4million using its Housing Revenue Account.
Campaigners fought a two-year battle against the use of the land for housing, calling for protection for ‘Tenby’s last green space’ and fearing it would become a ‘concrete jungle’.
The county council was granted outline planning permission by the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park Authority for the development of 144 properties – including up to 102 affordable units – in 2020.
It is now proposed that only 125 houses will be built, 93 of them affordable, and, of the 32 Open market dwellings, 16 are shared ownership properties.
Amendments also included the removal of a Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA), one of two Local Equipped Area for Play Spaces (LEAPS) instead providing a multi-use space for ball games.
The reserved matters application, backed in principle by Tenby Town Council, was recommended for conditional approval at the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park development management committee meeting of September 4, despite being contrary to the provisions of the Development Plan.
Tenby Civic Society has raise numerous concerns to the scheme and 20 objections were also received from members of the public, raising concerns including loss of green space, traffic issues, privacy, design, visual impacts and the scale of the development, sewage capacity, the site being no longer allocated for housing, potential antisocial behaviour within the play area, and a limitation on second homes/holiday lets being required.
At the September meeting, concerns about the proposal were raised by Jane Merrony of 1,100-member Tenby Green Space Preservation Society, who said it was inappropriate in its proposed location and “a visual intrusion which will be seen from Caldey Island”.
She told members the scheme would place “extreme pressure” on existing waste water infrastructure and questioned the viability of the development, with fears it could be sold off to a private developer.
The application was passed by park planners after approval was moved by Cllr Di Clements, who expressed her difficulty in weighing the balance between green spaces and housing needs.
Speaking after the meeting, local county councillor, and committee member, Cllr Sam Skyrme-Blackhall said building work was expected to start next year, adding: “These will be let on a local letting policy – they will be local houses for local people. They can’t be sold, they will always be council housing.”
She added: “I believe that this is a hugely important decision for Tenby. We need housing for local people and I am delighted that 93 properties will be council housing. This is good news for our Schools and good news for Tenby. Properties will be let on a strict local letting policy, which means Tenby and the immediate surrounding area only.
“I would like to congratulate the teams from Pembrokeshire County Council on getting to this stage but I also say loudly and clearly that the real hard work starts now and we have to do all that we can to ensure that these properties are built as soon as possible. We have a housing crisis now and need these properties built and let to local people.
“I know that not everyone will be happy. There are people who opposed the scheme for quite legitimate reasons but in the end, for me the balance of the argument was in favour of the scheme and the housing it will provide.”
Fellow Tenby councillor Michael Williams welcomed the scheme but raised concerns about foul water drainage.
“The initial proposal was to run foul water in a North Westerly direction with a new pipeline and despite reassurances from Dwr Cymru I still have major concerns about the capacity of the existing system to deal with such a large development. There are also in my opinion unaddressed concerns regarding storm water runoff and inadequate landscaping on the southern boundary.”
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