P.E.I. Potato Packaging Company Gets Funds for Upgrades
A P.E.I. potato packaging company has received Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) funding that will help it invest into upgrades, which will make the company more efficient and contribute to its plans for long-term, sustainable growth.
The upgrades at Thompson Potato Company Inc. in Victoria include an optical sorting machine and a new ventilated storage area.
To help cover the costs, ACOA provided the business with a USD350k repayable contribution.
The business was started in 2007 by brothers Wayne and Jamie Thompson. Jamie and his father John run the family farm that contributes potatoes to the business. Thompson Potato Company also bought potatoes from 10 other P.E.I. farms this year, said Wayne Thompson.
Thompson explained the Celox optical sorter purchased from Newtec in Denmark was installed about a month ago. “For us, it’s a phenomenal tool,” said Thompson. The machine uses high definition digital cameras that capture images of potatoes as they pass through. The user can input settings that sort potatoes based on preferences such as size, shape and quality. Potatoes are then directed down a specific line based on those settings. For example, potatoes can be identified and sorted based on a larger size for a restaurant customer that wants the product for baked potatoes.
Potatoes from the facility are sold and marketed by Garden Isle Farms. Wayne Thompson is also the general manager at Garden Isle Farms.
The ACOA funding announcement was made by Malpeque MP Wayne Easter. On Monday, he visited the facility to learn more about the operations and how the funding is going to be used.
“The industry is constantly changing and constantly in flux. Quality is always number one in the industry. And, this equipment allows you to size and sort into different lines. So, you get the optimum value out of the product and you get the optimum quality for whatever market you may be shipping to,” he said, according to theguardian.pe.ca.
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