A major employer in a growing Somerset town will be able to expand following the unanimous backing of local councillors.

MWI Animal Health, a veterinary supply company, has been based on the Torbay Road industrial estate on the western edge of Castle Cary since 1981.

The company applied in February to partially demolish its existing buildings and replace them with a new storage facility, along with an improved lorry loading area and an overflow car park with 104 spaces.

Somerset Council’s planning committee south (which handles major applications in the former South Somerset area) unanimously gave the plans its backing when it met in Yeovil on August 27, meaning that work could get under way before the end of the year.

Centaur Services’ base lies on the northern side of Torbay Road, opposite the Delaware Veterinary Group’s offices and a stone’s throw from the Crown Pet Foods factory (which produces Royal Canin branded pet food).

The industrial estate is sandwiched between the railway line to the west (which carries trains between Castle Cary and Yeovil Pen Mill) and the town centre to the east, with numerous sites to the north-east either being developed in recent years or being earmarked for future housing growth.

Under the proposals, three existing buildings within the northern part of the development site would be demolished and replaced with a 16-metre-high “hi-bay storage facility building”, which will have solar panels installed on its roof.

The company has argued that “the current space configuration is not fit-for-purpose” and the changes are necessary for the business to remain in its current location.

Further to the north, the existing car parking area will be extended and upgraded to provide more than 100 spaces, with a one-way system being in place within the car park.

An additional five full-time jobs are expected to be created in the short-term as a result of these redevelopment proposals, adding to the 90 full-time and five part-time employees.

Councillor Henry Hobhouse (whose Castle Cary division includes the site) said: “The pet food factory has a 36-metre-high tower. To try and say that what is happening here is going to be oversized, when we have already got a major oversized unit within 100 metres is very difficult to come to terms with.

“On economic grounds, we should pass this application.”

Councillor Kevin Messenger (who represents the same division) added: “We had at one point a risk of this moving to Stoke-on-Trent, which would have decimated the employment in Castle Cary.

“This is the second largest employer in our area after The Newt. It’s very much part of Castle Cary, and I think the people of Castle Cary would be very disappointed if we didn’t support this application.”

The committee voted unanimously to approve the plans after around half an hour’s debate.