By Cormac McQuinn
The man behind Tayto crisps in the Republic has admitted ploughing €2m (£1.7m) into a factory in war-torn Libya was a “mistake”.
But the company still hopes to revive its operations near Tripoli after the building survived months of Nato bombing and the civil war that led to the fall of Muammar Gaddafi.
The Tayto operation was forced to hastily withdraw from Libya and ship equipment back to Ireland when civil unrest spilled over into violence last year.
Raymond Coyle, chief executive of Co Meath’s Largo Foods, said the original plan was to use the factory to avoid a 20% charge on importing crisps into Libya — it sends thousands of packets of snacks to the country each month.
But the founder of the Ashbourne-based business now says he is “nearly ashamed” of the amount of money spent on the stalled project.
The 80,000 sq ft factory, built in 2008, was a joint venture between Mr Coyle and Libyan businessman Dr Salah el-Ghraim, who had lived in Ireland and worked as a Halal meat wholesaler for 15 years.
For almost three years it churned out Tayto products and Mr Coyle said it became profitable in its last four months, up to the start of the upheaval in February.
Asked how much he had contributed to the project, Mr Coyle said: “I’d nearly be ashamed to tell you.”
But he added: “It’s over two million I put into it.”
He added: “It was a mistake in hindsight … of course if I knew what was going to happen I wouldn’t have done it.”
The abandonment, for the time being, of the Libyan operation was revealed in the company’s 2010 accounts.
It also contained a brief note stating: “The equipment acquired was returned to Largo post year end and before the turmoil in Libya began.”
The records show that the company was owed €631,596 (£527,037) in relation to the project last year and add that “the promoters have confirmed their intention to repay outstanding amounts”.
Source: Belfast Telegraph
No to junk foods and no to any foreign food industry in Libya. Libyans can make thei r own foods and establish thei rown restaurants. We do not need foreign companies to flip hamburgers or bake pizza for us. We even strive to manufacture our own cars, equipment and more.
The European countries and the U.S. allow transfer of technology and hi-Tech industry to the Zionist entity, India and other non-Muslim nations but only allow transfer of junk food and restaurant industry (chips, candy bars, McDonalds, Burger King, Pizza Hut, etc.) to Muslim countries!. No American hi-Tech companies or research facilities have been allowed to go into Egypt, for example, however, we find most Silicon Valley hi-Tech companies are established in Israel including Intel, National Semiconductor and others.
Did it ever occurr to you why the main reason high tech and scientific research facilities are in Israel and other advanced countries instead of Egypt?
Answer: The number of high quality of skilled labor. Israel has the highest number of scientists per capita in the world. Show me an Arab country that has it’s institutional framework in place to take on High Tech ventures?
I do agree with you regarding your stand against Junk food ventures. They are a public health hazard. Obesity rates and all associated concomitant diseases-metabolic disorders, may end up being costly to the well being of consumers, not to mention the costly outlays on the public healthcare system .
The slow food movement in Italy, along with many mayors of cities are restricting the number of Global fast food enterprising from flourishing.
In the grand scheme of things, Libyan culinary traditions have to improve qualitatively in terms of both depth and breath. This sector of social interaction could learn to develop innovative ways to expand the national menu. Culinary professions have a significant impact in engaging locals to become actively involved in providing economic opportunities for their own countrymen and women, in jobs all along the supply chain, from food production at the farm level, to dishes happily supplied to retaurant goers, with a good tip left to servers who work hard to serve and provide for their families.!
High Tech is OK IMO, Junk Food definitely is not OK…shame on the so called civillised
nations where people are tricked into feeding themselves into illness. When I come to Libya I want tasty food and I want to be sure whatever I eat has not caused environmental havoc before it landed on my plate…