The European Commission is set to invest €20-30m to reduce plastic waste in the dairy industry as part of a collaboration with Glanbia Ireland.
European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan will tomorrow announce details of AgriChemWay, a new bio-refinery at Lisheen Mine near the Tipperary-Kilkenny border.
The former lead and zinc mine will be turned into a processing plant to convert waste into bio-based products such as biodegradable plastics, creating an estimated 350 jobs.
The technology for the bio-refinery was developed by Glanbia, the Irish dairy multinational, based on research funded by Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland.
Its aim will to be provide greater resource efficiency, with less food waste, more products and greater integration of food and non-food material production.
Lisheen Mine closed in early 2016 and has since been fully rehabilitated and designated as a green energy hub as part of efforts to deliver alternative industry to the site.
An additional 100 jobs will be created through ancillary services and support businesses to the mid-Tipperary region, and employment will also be created during the construction of the new facility.
Partners in the project include: UCD, Trinity College; Commercial Mushroom Producers Cooperative; Tipperary Co Council; Teagasc; Pole Greenwin, Belgium; Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium and EW Biotech GmbH, Germany.