Host and Master Chef star Gregg Wallace will tour the manufacturer’s factory in Herefordshire – which produces 350m litres of cider a year and is reportedly the largest of its kind in the world – before heading to the Ledbury mill to sort apples.
Co-star Cherry Healey will explore how the factory is creating new orchards of a sweet apple variety called Scrumptious through grafting. She will also explain the recycling of the factory’s CO2 waste in the manufacture of fire extinguishers.
History of cider making
A spokesman for Bulmers told Food Manufacture: “We’re incredibly excited to share the story of cider making, the skill and passion that goes into it, alongside a backdrop of the beautiful Herefordshire orchards, with a national audience.
“From seeing how our farmers harvest the hundreds of millions of tonnes of apples in a very short 12 week window, to the passion of our colleagues as they explain to Gregg the role they play in making Bulmers, and the sustainability measures we have in place at our sites.”
Inside the Factory featuring Bulmers Cider will air on BBC 2 on Sunday, 27 December.
The Inside the Factory series has featured a number of food and drink manufacturers since it began airing in May 2015. The series’ first episode featured the Kingsmill site in West Bromwich. It has since showcased production facilities such as McVitie’s factory in Carlisle, Birds Eye’s plant in Lowestoft and Heck’s operations in Bedale.
Being on the show
Molson Coors marketing and consumer excellence director Jim Shearer said appearing on the show was “a special experience” for the company.
“We have such an incredible heritage in Burton and our team at the brewery have, quite rightly, an enormous amount of pride in what they do,” he said. “Being a part of this show allowed us to put them and their expertise in the spotlight.
“I think what surprised the show’s production team most was the intricacy of the brewing process against the sheer scale of what we do.
Channel 5 also took time to highlight the exploits of food manufacturers though its own show British Made with John Prescott, with the likes of Soreen and Lee & Perrins appearing on the programme.