A new bulk packing line has brought increased flexibility to frozen fruit and vegetable specialist Ardo UK.
The facility at the company’s factory and cold store in Charing, near Ashford, is able to handle up to 400 cases an hour, packing 10kg or 15kg boxes for industrial customers.
“We have an ongoing investment programme to ensure we operate as efficiently as possible and are able to meet the needs of our customers,” said Ardo UK Operations Director Jim Everest.
“This new bulk packing line complements the work we do for our retail customers and is able to handle any of our frozen fruit and vegetable ranges, whether single products such as British peas or vegetable and fruit mixes.
“It makes for a more efficient use of space in the factory and will help us provide a broader offering to ready-meal manufacturers and other industrial customers.
“The new facility also contributes to our environmental performance as it means product can be brought direct to us for packing rather than via a third party, thus reducing road miles.”
A £15m investment saw Ardo UK consolidate its operations onto a single site at Charing in 2009 with the opening of a new state-of-the art food processing plant. The company’s success in reducing waste and energy consumption saw it win the Business Commitment to the Environment Category in the 2012 Kent Excellence in Business Awards.