News

Nov 05, 2024

Farmlay makes £2 million investment in egg-sorting tech - Business Insider

We have more newsletters We have more newsletters Farmlay has hatched a plan to almost double productivity for 2025 with a £2.4m investment in a new egg grader. The computer vision technology will be

We have more newsletters

We have more newsletters

Farmlay has hatched a plan to almost double productivity for 2025 with a £2.4m investment in a new egg grader.

The computer vision technology will be introduced by Scotland’s second biggest egg producer in January.

Managing director Iain Chapman confirmed that the new system is being shipped over from the Sanovo Technology Group factory in the Netherlands.

“Our current egg grader is giving us 500 cases an hour and this second one will give us 400, so almost double our output,” he explained. “We were at a crossover as to whether - with demand for eggs at such a high - to simply run our existing grader longer hours.

“However, doing that wouldn’t have been a long-term solution and could have been risky with no back up machine if there was a problem.

“We have been keenly watching the research and development going on and the Sanovo machine we are getting has been proven to be amazingly efficient, using AI to analyse high-resolution images of the eggs.”

Chapman's grandparents started to rear poultry in 1946, going on to market their own eggs in the 1970s. The business - which supplies Aldi, Lidl, Morrisons and Spar - is still based at the family’s Cockmuir Farm, near Strichen in Aberdeenshire, but has expanded from the original 130 to 2,500 acres.

The investment includes building alterations and will actually generate around 10 new jobs, dealing with the increased number of eggs.

Computer vision grading systems utilise algorithms and deep learning techniques to analyse images of eggs, differentiating between normal ones and those with cracks. They can also detect variations in colour, texture and shape - all the time absorbing new data to become ever-more proficient.

“No retailer wants to see a repeat of the egg shortages and that - together with the increased consumption figures - has given them the confidence to show more long-term support; this really is a golden age for egg production,“ said Chapman.

“Numbers enquiring about coming on board as contract producers are at a high, with eggs being seen by many as a new venture or wonderful way of enabling a younger generation to come home to a family farm.”

Farmlay works with around one million hens, producing more than five million eggs every week.

The Chapman family - and its 70-strong team - have 450,000 laying hens themselves and 26 contract producers who account for the other half of the production.

Don't miss the latest headlines with our twice-daily newsletter - sign up here for free.