Carr’s Flour has announced plans to build a new £17m flour mill at the port of Kirkcaldy – after the success of moving a wheat distribution area to the location.

Revealing its interim management statement this morning for the 52 weeks to 1 September 2012, the company said the new ‘state-of-the-art’ mill would be completed by September 2013 and be “at the forefront of mill design, innovation and technology”.

British Baker revealed last year how the company intended to cut over 250,000 truck miles and 4,000 lorry journeys from its wheat distribution operation by shipping grain for its Hutchison’s mill to the newly restored port at Kirkcaldy.

However, despite the good news about the new mill, Carr’s Milling Industries, the parent company of Carr’s Flour, said its flour business continued to be “depressed”.

It blamed drought conditions in the US and also referred to ‘sub-optimal’ conditions in Eastern Europe and Russia. The weather conditions mean the price of wheat has increased by around 15% since March.

Commenting on the company-wide performance it added: “The financial performance for the period was ahead of last year, with results for the year to date also being ahead of budget. Taking into account the normally lower seasonal trading level for the final quarter, the board is confident that strong earnings growth will be achieved for the full year.”

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