The Abergavenny Fine Food Company, one of the UK’s leading independent food manufacturers, is to ramp up production of its well-known goat’s cheese range to satisfy demand following £1.2m in funding from Santander Corporate & Commercial.

The firm is the largest UK producer of soft goat’s cheese and is looking to expand its production by 120 per cent and increase the size of its current dairy facilities in Abergavenny, to cater for a rise in demand.

Established in 1987 as a small farming enterprise by husband and wife team Anthony and Pam Craske, Abergavenny Fine Foods has steadily grown and diversified into a producer of high-quality food products.

The business is now run by their daughter, Mel Bowman, and son, Bryson Craske, as managing director and commercial director respectively.

Annual turnover has grown significantly to £17.16m as of March 31, 2014. The firm now counts retailers such as Sainsbury’s, Waitrose and Tesco among its clients and has recently started to export to Australia. It is also making inroads into Taiwan and South Korea.

The funding from Santander Corporate & Commercial will support the expansion of Abergavenny Fine Foods’ diary facility in Abergavenny and will also help the firm develop further business relationships with UK goat farmers, with the aim of processing more than four million litres of milk per year.

Kate Innes, finance director, The Abergavenny Fine Food Company, said: “It is clear that there is a growing appetite for goat’s cheese products both in the UK and overseas, and I’m delighted that the firm has positioned itself strongly to meet this demand. We have plans in place to expand further, not just in the UK but also internationally, and the support from Santander has been instrumental with the investments we are making in manufacturing.”

Myrddyn Hughes, relationship director, Santander Corporate & Commercial, said: “The Abergavenny Fine Food Company is an exceptional company that has developed strong business relationships in the farming community. We are delighted to be supporting the business as it looks to expand further.”