Whitchurch firm chosen for ‘eggcellent’ expansion for food supplier

Based in Whitchurch, Earthworks has been called upon to build a new cold store for the expanding family-run business, which supplies large food manufacturers, bakeries, hotel chains and catering suppliers.

Earthworks has already built a new steel-framed factory for Malpas-based D Wise, which is growing its business in response to demand for products such as scrambled eggs.

The nation's appetite for eggs appears to be growing. About 240 million more eggs were sold across the UK in 2018, compared with the previous year – an annual increase of four per cent. The rise has been aided by consumers looking for healthier options and the rise of flexitarianism, or casual vegetarianism.

Mark Wise, director of D Wise, said: “Egg products provide a high-quality source of protein, so their nutritional value has led to them being a popular choice for the food-to-go market and breakfast menus. Our scrambled egg production has increased significantly over the last couple of years.

“Our company has grown steadily over the last few years. Our core business is pasteurised liquid egg, and we diversified into cooked scrambled egg about 10 years ago.

“We first contacted Earthworks about building a new driveway and car park. The managing director, Martin Downes, and his team were excellent. They’re a local firm, so Martin came to our site and answered any queries we had.

“We were very happy with the project, and so consulted them when it came to planning and building further projects. Last year they built a new processing area to increase our capacity for producing scrambled egg, and they’ll soon be building our new cold store."

Martin Downes, managing director of Earthworks, added: “It’s fantastic to see D Wise growing and we’re delighted to be involved in their expansion.

“We’ve developed a strong relationship with the company and our team looks forward to completing our latest project for the firm to the high standard Mark expects, but with minimal disruption.”