Nearly 70 jobs are to be lost at a county Monaghan dairy.

The redundancies at the LacPatrick site come after the company merged with Lakeland Dairies in April of this year.

The company said the Monaghan site, which was owned by LacPatrick, had seen “little or no investment in processing capabilities” before the merger and was dealing with significant losses.

It said that following a review process, the board has signed off on a plan to make 68 of the 130 at the site redundant, while others will be redeployed.

Sinn Féin MEP Matt Carthy, who lives in Monaghan, said it is a big disappointment.

“This is huge blow for County Monaghan; it is a huge blow for the 68 staff affected at LacPatrick Dairies,” he said.

“It is a huge blow to their families and it is a huge blow to the local economy.

“I have to say it is incredibly disappointing for those of us who would have cautiously welcomed the merger between LacPatrick and Lakeland Dairies.

In a statement, Lakeland Dairies CEO Michael Hanley said the redundancies were “necessary to ensure we operate our business in the most efficient manner.”

“It is regrettably the case that a number of redundancies will be required in Monaghan and we will enter into consultation to discuss the roles that will be affected,” he said.

“We will also be providing details of any redeployment opportunities available in other parts of the Lakeland Group.”