FDBusiness.com

Seasonal catches are the busiest time of the year for seafood processors so it’s imperative that packaging machinery left idle for long periods of time can be restored to action quickly and reliably, with the minimum of fuss, to help meet demand during these peak periods. ULMA Packaging Ltd is helping leading seafood processor Denholm Seafoods improve efficiency and increase its future capacity by supplying two TFS 600 Thermoformers for intermittent packing of whole round Mackerel and Herring at the firm’s modern quayside facility in Peterhead.

Denholm Seafoods, which supplies global markets with both fresh and frozen fish landed by modern vessels who are partners of Denholm Seafoods, required packaging equipment that could help speed the delivery of these seasonal fish from processing to despatch.

Close collaboration with its packaging partner, coupled with ULMA’s equipment expertise for bulk packing, has been essential in getting the 20kg cartons of Mackerel and Herring processed quickly during the intense pressure of the production season, according to Denholm Seafoods’ Managing Director, Robert Duthie.

He says: “One of our competitors recommended ULMA and they’ve not let us down. We don’t run a normal operation each and every day. We work in peaks and troughs throughout the year and required a packaging supplier that could adapt to seasonal production. The Thermoformers are performing excellently, working well getting our products to market with minimum delay.

“We know we are not working the machines to their full capability but we can increase capacity if we need to. The co-operation we have had from ULMA has been excellent. I have been impressed with how quickly they respond to our needs. It’s more than likely that we will increase capacity in the next two or three years and we know that ULMA can help us achieve that goal.”

ULMA’s TFS Thermoformers are the most hygienic on the market thanks to an innovative design, which provides easy access for deep cleaning to help food manufacturers meet and even surpass the most exacting regulatory standards demanded by today’s seafood industry.

In addition to standard thermoformers, which are especially suitable for fish, ready meals, fresh meat, processed meat, poultry, cheese and pates, ULMA also offer a range of equipment combined with Darfresh skin film, which uses roll stock material to create a vacuum skin consumer pack that fits around the product like a second skin to extend shelf life.

One of the country’s leading suppliers of packaging machinery and complete automated lines, ULMA can supply thermoforming solutions tailor-made to suit customers’ requirements with its range which starts from the TFS 200 up to TFS 700 skin, with the TFS 500 and TFS 600 as intermediate models.

Packaging solutions offered by ULMA include vacuum bags to extend shelf life, packs with modified atmosphere (MAP), skin packs designed to follow the shape of the food and the option to display the pack vertically, shrink pack for different-shaped products and packs formed to match the contour of the item’s shape.