Earlier this year, Kelly Turkeys announced a £500k investment into its entire business, as it looks to expand and launch a wide range of value-added products.
Part of this will go into new machinery at its site in Essex, with the producer looking to gain efficiencies in its Krafted By Kelly production runs – a range which has seen an increase in demand from retailers. This is despite tough market conditions for turkey, with owner Paul Kelly explaining the impact of cheaper imported butterfly cuts on the domestic market at a company conference earlier this year.
“We’ve invested in excess of £100k into a Multi-Vac thermoformer, which when installed will pack our Krafted by Kelly products for cooking,” explained Toby Kelly, the company’s head of sales and new product development.
“It will also be heavily used at Christmas for giblets, breast joints and butterfly cuts. With the ability to change the packing templates and gas flush, it gives great flexibility for both cooked and fresh product throughout the year.”
Kelly Turkeys has also taken NPD into consideration and the upgrade to its processing plant will provide the family-run company with the flexibility to add additional templates. This means it will be able to pack new products in its development pipeline too, such as turkey bacon, and turkey salami.
“We anticipate it will double packing output at Christmas and halve the time required to pack what we’re currently packing at Christmas,” added Kelly.
The overall investment covers all aspects of the company, from its Danbury hatchery to the Claydons processing plant where new management systems and refrigeration and processing equipment have been installed.
Kelly Turkeys has also added new vehicles to its transport fleet, increased accommodation provided for seasonal workers at Danbury and six new posts added to the regular work force.
