A PIONEERING meat-processing unit for North Yorkshire is on the verge of opening.

Craven Cattle Mart's new £300,000 unit at Skipton Auction Mart is soon to become fully-operational once the final stamp of approval from the Food Standards Agency has been received.

The initiative heralds a new era in meat production and marketing across the entire county. It will concentrate on all-Yorkshire meat.

Updated: 10:05 Tuesday, May 27, 2003