East Anglian vegetable producer Frederick Hiam has invested £2.5 mln in machinery, which will replace 20 seasonal workers. Frederick Hiam has upgraded its factory in Brandon with a new trimming line. This will process around 15-20% of the UK's parsnips when it begins production later this month.
It will boost the factory's output and efficiency, radically improving its trimming accuracy, reducing wastage and retail rejections while saving 20% on energy and 30% on water. However, the key motivation is labor savings: the equipment will save an estimated £500,000 a year on manual labor costs and replace seasonal agency workers who are becoming increasingly scarce and costly to recruit.
Source: edp24.co.uk