Rural Affairs Minister Alun Michael was at county firm Kingspan Insulation last Thursday to officially open the new £10m production line.

Mr Michael said: "Companies like Kingspan are immensely important to the rural economy as the balance of rural employment shifts increasingly to manufacturing."

The opening of the new line will make Kingspan's site at Shobdon Airfield Industrial Estate, near Pembridge, the largest high performance insulation manufacturing site in the world.

Managing director Peter Wilson said: "Opening this line is a sign of Kingspan's commitment to continuing growth and increasing employment in Herefordshire - we are maximising production and committing to the future."