The potato processing plant in Delmas, Mpumalanga, has recently completed a total revamp of its raw material receiving system at a cost of circa R40 million, after increasing its production rates to 15.5 tons per hour with a significant upgrade in 2008.
McCain’s processing facility has been upgraded to meet the expansion of the product range manufactured in Delmas, following an analysis of the potato offload, receiving and storage requirements for existing and future needs.
The primary considerations for the upgrade included meeting the stringent standards of the Gold Standard Accreditation that the plant was awarded by global food safety regulator AIB International in 2009; as well as reducing breakage, spillage, and bruising; eliminating the mixing of cultivars and grades; improving the efficient removal of soil, and eliminating stones in sweet potatoes.
“While the processing plant is running highly efficiently, we identified improvement opportunities in the potato receiving system that were limiting our production facilities,” explained Rob Stevens Managing Director of McCain South Africa.
