One of the Irish Republic's best-known food plants, Galtee Meats in Mitchelstown, County Cork, is to close with the loss of 70 jobs.
The plant, owned by the Dairygold Co-op, has supplied pork products including ham, sausages and bacon rashers to multiples in Ireland and the UK for 40 years.
A statement blamed the closure on the continuing growth of low-margin, own-label products and warned: "The consumer foods business in Ireland is operating in an increasingly competitive market with a constantly rising cost base."
Galtee will continue to supply its customers by licensing production to other manufacturers.
The business used to process 20% of Ireland's pig kill and employed 400 people at its height, according to former food minister Ned O'Keeffe.
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