First vegetable packing factory

Press, Issue 32535, 19 February 1971, Page 10

First vegetable packing factory

Plans are being drawn for a $200,000 vegetable packing factory, the first of its kind in New Zealand and Australia on a five-acre site in Factory Road, Belfast.

A director of Radley Brothers, Ltd, Mr R. A. Radley, who is helping to organise the establishment of the factory, said yesterday that it was hoped that work on the first stage, involving the erection of an 8000 sq. ft building, would begin soon to allow the plant to be in use this winter.

Discussions were being held with local vegetable growers on the formation of a joint company to be known as Fresh Vegetable Packers, Ltd, he said. Growers had shown a very strong interest in the proposition. “We hope that the factory will bring local growers and merchants together on an equitable basis rather than put them in competition with each other,” said Mr Radley.

Initially the factory would pack and wash potatoes, onions, and carrots and also pack onions for both consumers and wholesalers-

After the completion of the first stage the production rate was estimated at more than 100 tons of potatoes a day.

As each of the six stages was built it was hoped that other vegetables, including green vegetables would be processed and other side-line activities established. A substantial proportion of the goods packed would be distributed throughout New Zealand.

Mr Radley said that one of the major benefits from factory processing was higher quality vegetables. Processing and packing, based on methods used in plants in the United States and Britain, had already been tested by Radley Brothers in a pilot plant in the firm’s former premises in

Christchurch. This plant had now, however, reached capacity and would have to be moved to allow the watertreatment system and the volume of produce handled to be improved. The machinery for the first stage of the factory was expected to cost about $BO,OOO. Most of the machinery had been designed overseas, but nearly all of it would be built in New Zealand.

Mr Radley said that an important aspect of the factory was the proposed filtration scheme. All the water used in washing the vegetables would be recirculated and filtered several times before it was finally filtered and disposed of. By that time ft would be almost as pure as the fresh water drawn from the supply, he said.