Branston Announced the Opening of a New Mashed Potato Production Facility

Leading UK supermarkets will be supplied by Branston's newly announced mashed potato production facility.

The mashed potato factory, a new endeavor for the company that presently handles 350,000 tonnes of potatoes for fresh and prepared products, will increase Branston's capacity and improve its long-term sustainability.

Wayne Mansfield, the manager of mash production, will be in charge when it launches in the spring of 2024.

“We’ve seen demand for prepared potatoes growing over the years and mash was one product that we weren’t able to produce in-house. It needs highly specialized equipment to produce the quality and consistency as well as the right potatoes. With our potato expertise and access to the best varieties it was a natural decision for Branston to invest in a mash facility,” the manager of mash production, Wayne Mansfield, declared.

He added that the company’s management gave the go-ahead last October, and after much planning and investigation into sourcing the best possible kit, construction began in March this year.

“We’re aiming for commissioning in December, ready for technical validation of the product range early in 2024. The build is well underway, and we’re installing state-of-the-art equipment to ensure the process is as efficient as possible, transforming fresh potatoes into chilled mash in under two hours. I’ve been in the food industry for 25 years and leading this project for Branston is a fantastic opportunity, to see it from build right through to production. We’ve carefully sourced machinery for the latest innovations available creating a highly automated yet flexible process, all of which supports full crop utilization and efficiency,” Mansfield mentioned.

The plant will have two primary lines that will produce 14 distinct items, from topped jacket potatoes to specialty root vegetable combinations and regular ready-to-eat mash. The facility, which uses a 2 km spiral chiller and steam peeling and frying, is anticipated to produce 23m mashed potato packets in its first year of operation.

“This new facility has been in our plans for some time and now we’re just a matter of months away from starting to produce samples – it is fantastic to see it approach fruition. Previously, we sent peeled potatoes away to a third-party facility to be mashed, however, to improve efficiency and sustainability, it made sense to develop a solution in-house where we know we can get the best out of every potato and use the right varieties for the right products. This will not only improve the consumer product but also make the supply chain more sustainable. We are also very excited to be bringing 90 incremental new job opportunities to Branston and the surrounding Lincoln area. These roles will be specialized due to the technical nature of the production line and will include engineers, machine technicians, line operatives, section managers, and a host of other positions,” Jim Windle, Group Managing Director of Branston, concluded.

For more information about the roles available, visit www.branston.com/careers or attend the Monster Mash recruitment event at the Branston site on Tuesday 31st October between 1 pm and 7 pm.