Norfolk firm upgrades to meet £30M sales target
The development, supported by cash from working capital rather than grants or loans, includes upgrading purée-making facilities and installing a dedicated high care area and new chiller space for fresh fruit.
The purée upgrade involves establishing an aseptic filling line, which could be used to produce babyfood products, among other things, said Place UK operations director Andy Shepherdson.
Products for smoothie makers, foodservice suppliers, jam processors and ice cream manufacturers could also be made using the purée facilities, he said.
Referring to the extra fresh fruit storage capacity, Shepherdson, who has previously worked for Heinz, said: "We have days when there's a lot of heat and we need to hire in more frozen storage. We have now expanded storage to 84 pallets half again what we currently have."
The developments coincide with a deal between Place UK and Del Monte worth hundreds of thousands of pounds, which will significantly grow sales. The contract involves filling and designing packaging for three kinds of four-pack frozen fruit snack pots: strawberry, blueberry and two varieties of melon for the UK and parts of Europe.
"We had to develop packaging that wouldn't shatter when frozen," said Shepherdson. "I had done similar things at Heinz. You put the product in a lunchbox and by lunchtime it's defrosted."
Summing up the changes, he said: "Now production is split into one third high care, one third low care and we have the purée line and a packaging line in the middle."
Place UK value sales for the past full year stood at £12.3M, up from £9.5M in 20082009, he said. The business had boosted its range of pasta and salad products for retailers such as Marks & Spencer. "We want to turn over £30M within five years. We are hoping to be at £15M by the end of next year," said Shepherdson.
