Is a multi-million agri-business centre still in the cards for Torridge?

A project to develop the Holsworthy agri-business centre with £7.3million of government funding is still firmly on the table, it has been claimed, despite fears that it might be scrapped.

Torridge District Council discussed the issue in the confidential section of its meeting on Monday night (September 22) due to matters being of a financial or commercial nature.

The centre would be situated next to the thriving livestock market on New Market Road and is set to focus on agricultural innovation, retail and professional spaces, but it is understood there are issues over developing the land and money may be reallocated to another project instead.

READ NEXT: Torridge to benefit from major investment and regeneration boost

A dozen schemes across Torridge were earmarked for a share of the £20.7m of government cash confirmed earlier this year for the Torridge Community Regeneration Partnership

The Mayor of Holsworthy, Councillor Jon Hutchings, who spoke during the public contribution section of Monday’s meeting, urged councillors not to turn their back on the Holsworthy agri-business centre.

He said: “The impact of this investment, not just for Holsworthy but for the entire area, cannot be underestimated.

“New investment, new business, new jobs and a whole load of new money brought into the area. We need all of this desperately

“I urge you on behalf of the residents of Holsworthy and surrounding area to back this once in a generation project for Holsworthy.”

Torridge District Councillor for Holsworthy, Lydon Piper, said he remained positive that the project would progress.

Cllr Piper said: “The project is not dead, it’s essential for the region and I am confident we can make this work.

“I am more confident after Monday’s meeting and the political will is there to get it done.”

He said the agri-business centre had been on the cards for a long time but it had been stalled for more than 10 years.

The land was in the local development plan for employment and was surplus to what the livestock market, leased from the council by Kivells auctioneers, needed.

Holsworthy Livestock Market relocated to the site in 2014 and is one of the newest livestock market in the South West and one of the most modern in England.

It is a leading auction centre and attracts farmers from as far afield as Penzance and Somerset.

READ NEXT: North Devon farmers rally in Holsworthy

Cllr Piper said it was a huge draw, but around the market there was nothing else and there needed to be related spaces to maximise the potential for the town and area.

Following the confirmation of cash from the government in March, Mark Bromell, a director at Kivells auctioneers, said the investment was great news for the farming economy and a one-stop hub for farmers was badly needed in the area.

In 2019 Torridge District Council was taken to court by the auctioneers after they claimed that they lost money because of an ineffective animal effluent treatment system at the market site. The court ruled in favour of Kivells and it cost the council almost £1.3m.