How the times have changed from when Great Grimsby was a major fishing port, and the filleting of the fish was done outside on the North Wall in all the elements. The packaging of the fish has also moved-on as well…
We’ve seen fish boxes evolve from when merchants packed their catch into wooden boxes, and secured the lids with nails, and then it moved onto single-use expanded polystyrene boxes for when the chilled supply chain was unpredictable, and now a shift back to returnable plastic boxes has started to happen apace.
PPS East now in its 25th year, was originally named TFA Box Company. It has grown from the early days of cleaning fish boxes outside by hand, to the present day of supplying returnable packaging to all food manufacturing businesses from a BRC accredited wash facility.
In the beginning TFA Box Company was just an idea of Icelandic fish selling agency, Fylkir. At the time it was known that fish box hire prices had doubled in price, so the directors of Fylkir put their ‘cod-heads’ together and decided to buy their own box supply to use for Icelandic fish landings on the Grimsby auction. This idea was initially only for Icelandic fish, but as time went by, more and more Non-Icelandic fish selling agents began to use their box services.
Now having their ‘fish-fingers’ in a new type of pie, the co-owners Peter Davey and Ron Woods began to realise this could be a good business partnership, and by 1998 Ron had sold his shares to Quayside Distribution a local fish haulier. They then moved the wash process onto the Grimsby fish auction, where new machinery was bought for the cleaning of the boxes. TFA was then turning over £200,000 per annum, and ‘haddock’ bright future.
In 2002, Quayside’s then co-owner, Steve Moore, sold his shares within the transport company, and part of that deal was the acquisition of the 50% shareholding of TFA Box Company. At this time there were four other fish box rental businesses in the Humber region, but TFA progressed quickly eventually gaining 98% of the available market, and reached a turnover of £1.5 million.
Having taken over most of the fish box rental work in the area, TFA out-grew their facility and moved premises to the Old Pontoon – where trawlers then landed their catch. This is where the business stayed until 2009.
Being solely a fish box business, and having already taken the majority of the work on the Humber banks, TFA needed to look at other opportunities. This is when alternative investment was offered by PPS, a company who already had a wash and rental business in the Midlands of the UK, but predominately supplied crates for meat and other food types.
The two companies had many things in common, but both brought areas of expertise, therefore a natural progression occurred in combining the two. Peter Davey and Steve Moore are still actively involved with the business today and together with PPS’s new dynamic team instigated the opening of a new wash site away from the dock area, which would continue to service the fish industry and Grimsby fish market with all types of plastic containers, but to also reach out to other food manufacturing businesses in Lincolnshire to supply and clean returnable transit equipment helping to reduce packaging waste.
The past 25 years have seen an industry change and evolve, and PPS is making sure that they are always well ‘plaiced’ to move with the times!
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
Wednesday, 7 March 2012
PPS EAST MOVES INTO RETURNABLE PACKAGING FOR ALL FOOD PRODUCTION BUSINESSES
PPS is a returnable packaging rental company that works with businesses to reduce their single trip packaging. They have two box and crate washing sites, one in the Midlands and another in Lincolnshire, and have worked with food manufacturing companies for over 10 years. Many companies are now looking in-depth at reducing their costs, waste and carbon footprint, and with PPS’s experience in crate pooling, whole supply chains can be converted to reusable options.
The Lincolnshire site PPS East, based in Grimsby; which previously only supplied and washed returnable boxes for the seafood industry, has recently undergone investment for a new unit to provide similar services, such as equipment rental and wash management to the non-fish sector; targeting meat, poultry and fresh produce.
This roll out to the whole of the food industry opens the doors for the Lincolnshire region, meaning businesses will now have a BRC accredited state-of-the-art industrial wash facility which has the ability to clean their plastic containers, tubs, boxes, and pallets.
Speaking on behalf of PPS, Kate Williamson reports, “There is a growing trend from many UK & European food processors to seriously investigate alternatives to single trip packaging. Retailers are now looking at waste in their whole supply chain, and the best option from both a cost and an environmental perspective is to change to a returnable packaging solution. As part of this initiative we are also providing our returnable equipment to the bulk food suppliers to ensure that the cost saving and environmental impact comes into play at the very start of the supply chain. Our experience over the years is that on more than 90% of the projects on which we work, the returnable packaging option is a more cost effective solution than existing single trip packaging.”
PPS East have always provided a strong partnership to the fish processing sector in the Humber region; and this high level of service to all existing fish customers will continue, plus an introduction of new services to all other food manufacturing companies.
The Lincolnshire site PPS East, based in Grimsby; which previously only supplied and washed returnable boxes for the seafood industry, has recently undergone investment for a new unit to provide similar services, such as equipment rental and wash management to the non-fish sector; targeting meat, poultry and fresh produce.
This roll out to the whole of the food industry opens the doors for the Lincolnshire region, meaning businesses will now have a BRC accredited state-of-the-art industrial wash facility which has the ability to clean their plastic containers, tubs, boxes, and pallets.
Speaking on behalf of PPS, Kate Williamson reports, “There is a growing trend from many UK & European food processors to seriously investigate alternatives to single trip packaging. Retailers are now looking at waste in their whole supply chain, and the best option from both a cost and an environmental perspective is to change to a returnable packaging solution. As part of this initiative we are also providing our returnable equipment to the bulk food suppliers to ensure that the cost saving and environmental impact comes into play at the very start of the supply chain. Our experience over the years is that on more than 90% of the projects on which we work, the returnable packaging option is a more cost effective solution than existing single trip packaging.”
PPS East have always provided a strong partnership to the fish processing sector in the Humber region; and this high level of service to all existing fish customers will continue, plus an introduction of new services to all other food manufacturing companies.
Returnable Transit Packaging for the Food Industry
Businesses in the food industry are becoming all too aware of the importance of packaging and transport and how this needs to be done in the best and most hygienic way. Food packaging is important not just to meet the industry standards but also to ensure that the food and produce tastes as good when it is eaten as it was when it was packed and transported.
Much business should now be considering and understanding the need for and importance of returnable transit packaging replacing the conventional single use cardboard box style packaging in food production.
PPS have dedicated staff to help any business looking to use returnable plastic transit equipment and are developing their range of returnable transit packaging throughout the UK.
They have identified a recently developing and growing market for their products in Scotland and are making great strides to seek out opportunities to expand their business north of the border. So much so that Iain McArthur from PPS is relocating to Scotland to promote PPS Service options to business throughout Scotland.
The costs savings and environmental benefits of using PPS returnable transit equipment is making many businesses sit up and take notice of the alternatives to traditional packaging and are now working with PPS on making further uses of their returnable transit equipment and washing services.
Much business should now be considering and understanding the need for and importance of returnable transit packaging replacing the conventional single use cardboard box style packaging in food production.
PPS have dedicated staff to help any business looking to use returnable plastic transit equipment and are developing their range of returnable transit packaging throughout the UK.
They have identified a recently developing and growing market for their products in Scotland and are making great strides to seek out opportunities to expand their business north of the border. So much so that Iain McArthur from PPS is relocating to Scotland to promote PPS Service options to business throughout Scotland.
The costs savings and environmental benefits of using PPS returnable transit equipment is making many businesses sit up and take notice of the alternatives to traditional packaging and are now working with PPS on making further uses of their returnable transit equipment and washing services.
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