Phase one of Poultry business’s expansion plan is complete

The first phase of Soanes Poultry’s £1.6million poultry factory extension project has been completed with the installation of a new chiller.

Work began on the £400,000 project in September 2018 and will increase chill capacity at the Middleton on the Wolds factory by 25%.

Soanes Poultry’s Managing Director, Nigel Upson said: “In addition to the infrastructure projects completed in 2017/18, the extension project will enable us to increase whole bird processing and expand our portioning capacity in response to customer needs and the completion of the chiller is an important step. It is a state of the art chiller with high efficiency cooler controls and a robust leak detection system that protects the environment.

“It’s a significant investment that marks a new and exciting chapter in our history and goes hand in hand with work that is underway to upgrade our farms to develop further our high animal welfare standards.”

A family owned business Soanes Poultry has been rearing and preparing chicken since 1947 and currently employs 120 people, selling its chicken to butchers and independent retailers in Yorkshire and to wholesalers nationwide. 

The factory extension project is part funded by the European Agriculture Fund for Rural Development with a £610,000 grant secured by Westley Consulting.

Work will start on phase 2 of the project in January, 2020. Once completed, it will create 15 additional jobs in the sales and marketing, processing and distribution departments.

For more information on Soanes Poultry, visit their website www.soanespoultry.co.uk