An entrepreneurial scheme to make use of “2nd grade” eggs rejected for supermarket sale has been given a £20,000 boost.
Kings Farm Foods at Eye has scooped a grant from the Eastern Agri-Tech Growth Initiative to develop and manufacture a range of egg-based drinks and convenience products from the eggs as a means of tackling food waste.
Traditionally, poultry farmers have not been able to sell second grade eggs due to minute changes in size, appearance and weight - despite their quality being unaffected.
Farmers currently lose considerable amounts of money from the production of these eggs, but Kings Farm Foods aims to support local farmers by giving farmers a better price for their produce.
Matthew Havers, founder of Kings Farm Foods, said he was “thrilled” to get started on the project. “The fund will enable us to really try something new and take a risk and challenge conceptions of egg and the way we eat them. Eggs are an ancient food source, often overlooked and one that is still the most nutritionally complete. We hope to launch a range of products that can bring the benefits of egg to consumers in exciting and new ways,” he said.
As well as tackling food waste in the local area, the firm will create a product that is locally sourced and manufactured in Suffolk, with Red Tractor and Lion Code status.
At the moment, the UK’s egg processing industry is behind that of Europe, but Ings Farm Foods’ egg-based drinks and mixes are set to bring a new UK product to market, using egg as the main ingredient.
Mark Reeve, chairman of the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership (LEP) and the Eastern Agri-Tech Growth Initiative Programme Board, said: “Kings Farm Foods’ project solves the growing issue of food waste by offering local poultry farmers a fairer price for produce that cannot be sold to supermarkets, and would normally go to waste.
“Food wastage is an issue that the LEP is keen to help reduce.”
Chris Starkie, managing director of New Anglia LEP said by making using eggs that would otherwise go to waste, the Suffolk business was helping farmers make the most of the produce while catering for an industry worth billions of pounds to the economy.
The Eastern Agri-Tech Growth Initiative is run by the Greater Cambridge Greater Peterborough Enterprise Partnership (LEP) with support from New Anglia LEP, Norfolk County Council, Cambridgeshire County Council, and the local authorities covering this area.
Grants are available to organisations looking to invest in specialist equipment, new market and supply chain development, ways to improve productivity and efficiency, and the application and commercialisation of Research and Development.
To find out how the Eastern Agri-Tech Growth Initiative could help to grow your business, visit www.agritechgrants.co.uk or call the LEP on 01480 277180.
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