TRADE minister Richard Caborn was due to visit Bolton curry kings Patak Spices today as part of his whistlestop tour of the North-west.

The firm's owners Kirit and Meena Pathak live in Bolton and showed the minister around their new factory in Leigh.

The minister was visiting them to learn about their success as one of the region's biggest exporters with markets in more than 40 countries overseas.

Mr Caborn was in the North-west to launch the Objective 2 2000-2006 funding at Wigan Investment Centre.

It consists of more than £500 million European funding and £650 million private and public investment for business in the area.

Mr Caborn was also due to officially open Shuttleworth Mead business park, in Padiham, near Burnley and meet North-west tourist chiefs.

Tomorrow John Edmonds, general secretary of the GMB union, will visit the Greater Manchester Waste Ltd's visitor centre at Bolton's Raikes Lane industrial estate.

The centre will be opened later this year and will give people a glance at the firm's waste management technologies.

Managing Director Stephen Jenkinson said he welcomed the opportunity to discuss the firm's industrial relations programme.

Many of its 530 employees are members of the GMB union.