PepsiCo plans to invest £8m ($10.1m) in its Pipers Crisps manufacturing site in the UK to meet growing demand.

The funding will boost production at the potato snack factory by “nearly 80% to satisfy demand both in the UK and in the brand’s growing export market,” the US snacks giant.

The facility, located in Brigg, Lincolnshire will replace existing fryers and install new packaging equipment.

PepsiCo will also use the funds on facilities for the factory’s 100 employees, including improvements to workspaces and changing rooms.

The Cheetos brand owner said Pipers Crisps has “cemented its leadership in the UK’s premium, ‘away from home’ crisps market, with growing demand across hospitality locations”.

According to PepsiCo, the brand is now accounting for a third of all sales in the segment “amid rapidly increasing customer demand”. The company did not disclose the source of the data.

Mirjam Fogarty, head of operations at Pipers, said: “From small independent pubs, cafes and farm shops, to working with some of the UK’s biggest wholesalers and hospitality operators, the funding will help us bring our delicious crisps to more people, wherever they are, and expand our brand internationally.”

Pipers Crisps has been manufacturing at the factory in Brigg since 2004. PepsiCo, which acquired the business in 2019, said Pipers has more than doubled its sales since the deal.

Pipers products are sold outside the UK, with exports to countries including France, Italy and Scandinavia.