ULMA has an impressive background in the arena for the packaging

Jersey Royal, the only potato that carries the EU Protected Designation of Origin mark of authenticity, and the Jersey Royal Company grows 25,000 tonnes of potatoes annually for the UK retail market. Last year it launched Jersey Jackets into the Co-op and following this success needed premier packaging after agreeing a deal with Waitrose, but its original equipment supplier was unable to meet the deadline during the peak of the season’s crop.

Despite the short timescale, within 24 hours of being contacted by Jersey Royal a Florida Flowrapper was shipped from stock at ULMA’s facility in Worksop to Portsmouth Docks for loading to the island. The machine was operational and packing jacket potatoes at Jersey Royal’s integrated agricultural site in Trinity the following day.

The quick turnaround and delivery of the equipment by ULMA was a godsend for Jersey Royal, according to the grower’s Technical Director Michael Renouard, as there would have been serious implications for its target dates without the Florida Flowrapper.

He said: “We knew we were in a bit of trouble but fortunately knew of ULMA so got in touch with them to see if they could help us out. They pulled out all the stops and the service we received in our hour of need was fantastic. They had the machine in stock and within 48 hours it had been delivered, was operational and packing potatoes.     

“I can’t fault ULMA at all. From initially supplying us with the machine at such short notice to the logistics of getting it down to Portsmouth Docks for our courier to ship it across here, coupled with the service our engineer received to get the equipment up and running, was just excellent. They covered all the bases required. I would recommend them to anybody.”  

Whilst not running the machine at its full capacity yet, Mr Renouard is confident that the Florida Flowrapper will also help future proof the company against the significant increase in demand expected from developing new markets for its delicious Jersey Jackets. 

The Florida E flowrapper is a robust and highly flexible entry level machine which benefits from a three motor system for complete control over the various drive axis. Additional benefits include fast operation - dependent on product, it can produce up to 150 packs per minute - less operator involvement, greater programming flexibility, significantly reduced maintenance, and on screen fault diagnosis.

In addition to single equipment pieces, ULMA can also stream together stand-alone packaging machinery with the automation side of the business to provide customers with one single point of technical and sales contact. This means that its customers can now be offered one of the largest packaging solution choices available anywhere in the UK. 

ULMA has a long and impressive background in the fresh produce arena for the packaging of a cross-section of products including all types of vegetables, tomatoes, mangos, avocados, oranges, lemons and even kiwis.