Drinks company C&C, the maker of Bulmers Cider, is planning to cut 140 jobs at its Clonmel plant in Co Tipperary.
A further ten jobs will go in Dublin.
The cuts are part of a reorganisation and cost reduction programme announced by the company today.
Last month, C&C announced a 33% fall in first half profits, with the inclement summer weather and increased competition cited as reasons for a drop in cider sales.
The Clonmel plant has a workforce of 460.
SIPTU, which represents around half of the C&C workforce in Clonmel, has said it is shocked at the scale of today's losses.
The union said it anticipated an announcement regarding job cuts but did not expect so many workers would be affected.
Elsewhere, 50 people are to lose their jobs at the Kerry Group-owned Denny meat plant in Tralee in Co Kerry.
The jobs losses will take effect at the end of January and follow on from 40 redundancies announced there earlier this year.
In a statement this evening, Kerry Group blamed the job losses on the decline of the traditional bacon sector and the shift to convenience foods.
The plant will operate as a bacon curing facility only from next February and will employ just 30 people.
