The move aims at increasing sales of its Cathedral City brand, it was announced on Thursday.

Dairy Crest said it was making the investment following "continued strong growth" in consumer demand for its Cathedral City and Davidstow brands.

It said sales of Cathedral City rose 18% over the last year against a declining market for mature cheddar, which saw sales volumes fall 2%.

Dairy Crest has 174 staff at Davidstow

Dairy Crest said it aimed to increase the number of people buying Cathedral City, and believed there was "considerable scope for future growth" of the brand.

The group is to spend two years expanding capacity and upgrading facilities at its creamery at Davidstow in Cornwall, which employs 174 staff, and aims to increase production by two thirds over the next decade.

The increased cheddar sales helped boost group turnover for the year to 31 March, rising to £1.37bn against £1.31bn.

Dairy Crest also makes Clover spread, Country Life butter, and the Yoplait and Frijj ranges, as well as producing milk.