Thermoformed packaging solution increases efficiency for retail packs

From small rural beginnings in 1988, Castell Howell Foods is a leading independent foodservice wholesaler, servicing Wales, its Border Counties, and the South West of England with a range of products.

As an extension of their rural roots, in 2006 Castell Howell began investing in the manufacture of their own range of products including meat, pies, cakes and sandwich fillings to meet the ever-growing demand of the UK’s food industry and to reflect the evolving trends of the sector, which is now under the Farm Fresh Foods brand.

Farm Fresh Meats is one of the largest processors of cured and cooked pork products in Wales. At its BRC accredited manufacturing site in Cross Hands, Carmarthenshire, they produce a range of products, including sliced bacon, cooked sliced meats and joints and gammon joints and steaks, using unique recipes and traditional techniques.

Previously, the business had invested in an R 145 thermoforming packaging machine from MULTIVAC, which had two die sets to allow them to pack gammon steaks, bacon, misshapes, slipper joints and gammon shanks of differing sizes.

Although the existing thermoformer gave the business the flexibility to produce different pack sizes, Castell Howell was keen to increase the efficiency of their manufacturing processes across all areas, and investing in a new machine that did not require die set changes would help reduce downtime.

Castell Howell had also begun to see a change in the industries it supplied into. Pre-pandemic, the majority of the business’ trade was to the hospitality industry, however during the first lockdown they began supplying into the UK’s retailers to help keep up with consumer demand. The business started supplying retail packs of bacon and quickly saw a rapid increase in demand, which highlighted the need for a new solution to pack the new retail products.

The bacon was of a similar size to the gammon steaks the business were already producing, which meant investing in a new machine would serve a purpose for both products, as well as eliminating the need to change different die sets on the R 145.

As an existing customer of MULTIVAC UK, Castell Howell knew it could rely on MULTIVAC to supply a new packaging solution that would not only increase efficiency but also fit their requirements for a small footprint, as factory space was limited.

It was also paramount that the machine could produce the correct size pack to avoid surplus packaging, and that the new pack was see-through, to enable consumers to see the product as Castell Howell know that consumers are more likely to buy with their eyes.

Jonny Walters, General Manager at Castell Howell Foods contacted his local Regional Sales Manager for the South West and explained their requirements.

“I contacted Craig Mahoney, explained what we were looking for and how we didn’t have much room to play with. Craig provided us with a price for an R 085 thermoforming packaging machine, which was custom built to our requirements.”

MULTIVAC’s R 085 thermoforming packaging machine is an entry-level machine that offers an extended configuration level for standard applications.

In addition to its small footprint, it can run both rigid and flexible films and operates solely with electricity without a compressed air or cooling water connection, which allows it to be used in various areas of production and has low running costs.

Successfully installed at the end of 2020, the recently installed machine has since allowed Castell Howell and the Farm Fresh brand to increase the efficiency of its manufacturing process and has opened up new business opportunities.

Jonny explains “The new machine has had a massive impact on efficiencies in the low-risk part of our business. On top of that, it has given us the confidence to seek more retail trade without negatively impacting production or our ability to continue fulfilling orders for our regular hospitality trade.”

MULTIVAC worked closely with Castell Howell to ensure the smooth installation of the new machine with no disruption caused to production on site.

Castell Howell can also benefit from the comprehensive and sophisticated support provided by MULTIVAC UK’s Technical Service department to ensure the maximum availability and efficiency of the recently installed thermoformer. The independent foodservice wholesaler has access to the support of over 55+Field Service Technicians, as well as a Technical Help Desk.