LacPatrick Dairies (NI) Ltd has pleaded guilty and been fined £2,500 at Coleraine Magistrates Court for polluting a waterway.

The charge was the result of a 2017 inspection carried out by Water Quality Inspectors working on behalf of the Northern Ireland Environment Agency.

A strong odour of silage effluent was detected

The inspectors visited LacPatrick Anaerobic Digester on Creamery Road, Coleraine, where they “discovered a flow of green-coloured liquid, a strong odour of silage effluent was detected”.

“The inspectors and representatives observed digestate actively discharging to a storm-water gully.

"During further examinations, grey-coloured liquid was observed flowing across the yard and discharging to a storm-water gully,” a statement from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland said.

Samples taken from the scene confirmed that the discharges contained poisonous, noxious or polluting matter that was harmful to fish life in the waterway.

A spokesperson for LacPatrick said that the company accepted the ruling of the court and added: "It is essential to note that this was an entirely isolated and unintended occurrence and that the company, as acknowledged by the Court, has carried out significant remedial works to address the matter."

Lakeland merger

The merger between Lakeland Dairies Co-operative Society Limited and LacPatrick Co-operative Society Limited was formally completed in April this year.

Lakeland Dairies is now the second-largest dairy processor on the island of Ireland, with a cross-border milk pool of 1.8bn litres produced by 3,200 farms from a catchment area covering 16 counties.

The co-operative will have a combined annual turnover in excess of €1bn.