A 70-million dollar investment to secure the West Coast as a global dairy leader

Westland Milk Products is set to build a new lactoferrin plant at its Hokitika facility.

Lactoferrin is a minor protein in milk, which is growing international demand because of its reported health benefits.

Chief executive Richard Wyeth says it underpins the long term investment the company has made on the West Coast.

He says it's going to inject a lot of capital into the region and create a number of jobs during the construction stage.