Radwinter Wild Game

More than £30m is to be invested in projects in the East of England in the Rural Development Programme's (RDP) first year, it has been announced.

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The East of England Development Agency helps allocate funds with Natural England and the Forestry Commission.

It includes the scheme Woodfuel East - a project to establish a supply chain for locally-produced wood fuel from woodland across the East of England.

It also helped Woburn Country Foods create a modern meat handling unit.

This project, in Bedfordshire, aims to help at least 16 local livestock enterprises to increase the range of quality produce they supply to regional and London markets.

'Improve productivity'

Another project with the firm Camgrain in Linton, Cambridgeshire, aims to help fund a new processing centre for locally grown cereals.

An East of England Development Agency (EEDA) spokesman said: "The centre will improve productivity and guarantee farm-to-shelf traceability which will increase the value of cereals grown in the region."

EEDA has also helped Radwinter Wild Game, near Saffron Walden, Essex, fund a game processing unit to help turn wild game into ready-to-cook portions.

Cindy Winn, rural development manager at EEDA, said: "In its first year the programme has been terrifically successful.

"EEDA will have supported more than 700 rural businesses and committed funds through these RDP projects to create or safeguard over 500 jobs and benefit the natural environment.

"This is something we aim to build on over the next few years."

EEDA is responsible for economic regeneration in Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk.

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