Pictured above: (l-r) Emma Swinscoe, from The Food and Drink
Forum, David Walklate, from Food Processing Faraday, and Martin
McQuaide, operations director at AB Produce
Support from The Food and Drink iNet is helping Derbyshire
company AB Produce Ltd to save hundreds of pounds every week
….by cutting down on waste.
The firm, which prepares potatoes and other vegetables for
retail, wholesale, processing and food service, wanted to make
efficiency savings by reducing the amount of vegetables it lost
during washing and preparation.
The iNet provided £3,160 worth of Innovation, Advice and
Guidance support which allowed the company to call in experts from
The Food and Drink Forum and Food Processing Faraday. They mapped
the firm's processes, devised more efficient ways of operating, and
now AB Produce has cut the amount of wastage by about 50%.
"It's probably saving us several hundred pounds a week, so it's
significant," explained Martin McQuaide, operations director at AB
Produce, based at Measham, near Ashby-de-la-Zouch.
Now the company is hoping for further support from the Food and
Drink iNet to improve yield efficiency. It plans to look at ways of
reducing the amount of skin taken off potatoes during peeling, to
boost its yields.
"The Food and Drink iNet support has been very useful," said
Martin. "Obviously we have made efficiency savings but it's also
enabled a forum for our own workers to come up with ideas
themselves."
AB Produce, which employs about 170 people at its 70,000 sq ft
purpose-built factory on Westminster Industrial Estate, prepares
and packs vegetables in a range of different packaging formats, and
supplies to customers nationwide.
It received £3,160 worth of Innovation, Advice and
Guidance support from the iNet, which it matched with its own
investment.
"I am very pleased to hear that the Food and Drink iNet support
has enabled AB Produce to achieve waste efficiencies in its
production processes, saving the firm money," said Paul Sheppard,
Food and Drink iNet advisor for Derbyshire. "This illustrates the
benefit that companies can gain by tapping into the expertise
that's available when it comes to operating processes."
The iNet helps food and drink firms engage expertise from
academia, research institutions and specialist business advice for
innovation projects to develop new ideas, new products, new
processes and to help companies grow. 50% of the equivalent
cash value of the support must be contributed by the company.
Funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and the
European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Food and Drink iNet
co-ordinates innovation support for businesses, universities and
individuals working in the food and drink sector in the East
Midlands. One of four regional iNets, it has developed an effective
network to link academic and private sector expertise and knowledge
with local food and drink business innovation needs.
The Food and Drink iNet also aims to build on the tradition of
innovation in the food and drink industry in the region by helping
to create opportunities to develop knowledge and skills, and to
help research, develop and implement new products, markets,
services and processes. It is managed by a consortium, led by the
Food & Drink Forum and including Food Processing Faraday,
Nottingham Trent University, the University of Lincoln, and the
University of Nottingham. It is based at Southglade Food Park,
Nottingham, with advisors covering the East Midlands region.