Minister to open €3.8 food hub in County Roscommon 

A €3.8 million project in Castlerea, which will be officially opened by Minister Heather Humphreys tomorrow, Thursday, is “a dream come true” for the committee behind the project and the people of the town.

The seven units at the An Chistin Food Hub, five 1,000 square foot units and two 2,000 square foot units, have been developed in the hopes of bringing more employment to the area, expanding on food tourism while also offering business opportunities to those in the food industry.

Funding for the project was secured through Minister Humphreys’ Department of Rural and Community Development, Roscommon County Council and Enterprise Castlerea.

One company has already secured one of the units, Solas Desserts.

According to Enterprise Castlerea Chairperson Benny O’Connell this is a great opportunity for food business start-ups or those looking to expand their operations as the Food Hub offers a space without having to go through planning or building premises from the ground up.

Benny explained that the original idea emerged a few years ago when a section of the very popular Enterprise Hub at The Demesne became vacant.

“Some space in The Hub became available and we decided to forego short-term rental income in the interests of developing something for the town,” Benny says.

Due to his own background in the food industry, Benny had identified that there was a shortage of trained catering staff, including chefs, throughout the country.

Chefs were being required “everywhere, in filling stations, in healthcare facilities, and so on…there was a shortage, so we saw an opportunity.” It was then that Enterprise Castlerea began to explore the idea of basing a food hub in their existing hub.

The first part of the project, An Chistin, a fully functional training facility, now offers a number of courses for training people in preparation for their entry into the catering business, with many students already passing through its doors to go onto successful careers.

Beeny also explained that the committee took inspiration from Food Hub in Drumshanbo, County Leitrim which now houses, among others, the well-known Shed Distillery and acknowledged the assistance they have received from the people over this project.

Following the opening by Minister Humphreys at 12 noon on May 23rd, the people of the town will get a chance to see the facilities for themselves with the units being opened for public viewing from 6 p.m..

Later that evening Chef Kevin Dundon will be on hand to give a free cookery demonstration, doors open at 7 p.m. with the demonstration taking place at 8 p.m..

It is expected that many people will be in attendance for the celebrity chef, television personality and author, who is well known for featuring on television series such as Guerrilla Gourmet and Heat. He is the author of the book, Full on Irish: Contemporary Creative Cooking and his recipes have been featured in publications such as the Sunday Tribune and Weekend magazine in the Irish Independent. He has also cooked for The Queen and both an Irish and a US president.

Interestingly Kevin Dundon was in attendance when The Hub was originally opened in 2009.

During her visit to County Roscommon, Minister Humphreys will also officially open Monksland Innovation Hub and turn the sod at Monksland Central Park in South Roscommon.

Similar to the Castlerea Food Hub, these two projects received funding under the Rural Regeneration and Development Fund (RRDF).