TWENTY new jobs will be created following a multi-million-pound pancake investment at a firm in Wrexham.

Village Bakery has invested £2 million in one of the world’s biggest pancake production lines in a move that will create 20 new jobs.

The specialist kit was imported from America by the Jones Village Bakery and is up and running just in time for Shrove Tuesday on February 21.

It will enable the Wrexham-based family firm to ramp up production to 75 million pancakes a year to cater for the growing demand for them.

It has the flexibility to make a range of different pancakes, from a small Scotch pancake to a large American buttermilk pancake measuring seven inches across.

According to managing director Robin Jones, the creativity and innovation of their new product development team has helped drive the growing appetite for pancakes in the UK and across Europe.

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He said: “The reason we have bought this new production line is quite simply that our pancakes are literally selling like hot cakes

“The equipment was delivered just before Christmas and was installed in record time by my brother Christien, the project director, and his team, so it’s all systems go for Shrove Tuesday when demand will go through the roof.

“Like everything else we do, we insist on the highest quality and we have developed some amazing flavours, everything from Sicilian lemon to chocolate and butterscotch.

“We’ve even done a Percy Pig pancake and we also do high protein and high fibre pancakes."

Operations director Simon Thorpe is delighted with the new production line.

He said: “This is an incredible piece of kit. It is to my knowledge one of the largest pancake plants in the world so we can make an awful lot of pancakes.

“The secret of making a great pancake is having a good griddle, a brilliant recipe and having the best quality ingredients – and just not accepting any compromise.

“The pancake market has taken off and we’ve seen a lot of growth off the back of producing some really good quality pancakes and it’s going from strength to strength."

The new production line has been installed at the firm’s new 140,000 sq ft bakery on Wrexham Industrial Estate which opened in 2021.

It was a moment to savour for bakery manager Ashley Dawson who joined the Village Bakery from university, starting on the production line and working his way up the ranks.

He said: “Investing in this fantastic production line is great news, not just for the Village Bakery but also for the local economy in Wrexham because when we’re at full production we’ll need an extra 20 people.

“As a local lad, that makes me incredibly proud,” he added.