Vegetable supplier Greyfriars is planning to create Europe's most advanced mushroom facility.
It has submitted plans to Harrogate Borough Council for a £4.5m, 7,000 sq m mushroom farm at its site in Wath, North Yorkshire.
The development would ensure it was well placed to meet an anticipated upsurge in demand for UK-grown mushrooms, said chairman John Smith. "The forthcoming business cycle will see Irish production slip off, while the Dutch are finding competition in the UK tough," he said. Labour cost 50% more in Ireland than in the UK, said Smith.
As half of mushroom producers' costs were labour, UK growers were currently in a strong commercial position as they could offer more competitive pricing, he added.
The new site would offer retail customers improved flexibility, said Smith. Currently, if customers needed to top orders up at short notice, retailers might be dependent on imports. However, with increased British-grown volumes, the company would be able to meet demand more quickly.
Using the latest energy-efficient features such as heat exchange pumps and thermal energy, the site would be one of the most advanced of its kind in Europe and would reduce food miles, said Smith.
Only 25% of UK demand for mushrooms is currently met by UK production. The rest is imported, mostly from Ireland, the Netherlands and Poland.
Greyfriars expects the farm, which will produce 68 tonnes of mushrooms a week, to be operational by the new year. It supplies mushrooms to Morrisons, Netto and Booths.
It has submitted plans to Harrogate Borough Council for a £4.5m, 7,000 sq m mushroom farm at its site in Wath, North Yorkshire.
The development would ensure it was well placed to meet an anticipated upsurge in demand for UK-grown mushrooms, said chairman John Smith. "The forthcoming business cycle will see Irish production slip off, while the Dutch are finding competition in the UK tough," he said. Labour cost 50% more in Ireland than in the UK, said Smith.
As half of mushroom producers' costs were labour, UK growers were currently in a strong commercial position as they could offer more competitive pricing, he added.
The new site would offer retail customers improved flexibility, said Smith. Currently, if customers needed to top orders up at short notice, retailers might be dependent on imports. However, with increased British-grown volumes, the company would be able to meet demand more quickly.
Using the latest energy-efficient features such as heat exchange pumps and thermal energy, the site would be one of the most advanced of its kind in Europe and would reduce food miles, said Smith.
Only 25% of UK demand for mushrooms is currently met by UK production. The rest is imported, mostly from Ireland, the Netherlands and Poland.
Greyfriars expects the farm, which will produce 68 tonnes of mushrooms a week, to be operational by the new year. It supplies mushrooms to Morrisons, Netto and Booths.
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