Yorkshire food firm makes low-emission shift

Yorkshire egg producer Chippindale Foods expects to complete its shift to low emission heavy goods vehicles in February with the delivery of the final vehicle in its upgrade programme.

It has just taken delivery of its third eco vehicle, fitted with the Euro 6 engine, and will have replaced all its trucks with the new designs by the end of February.

Transport manager Sean Sanderson said the new fleet of Mercedes vehicles had been designed to cope with the demands of farm collections while maximising fuel efficiency and load capacity.

“We have opted for the largest possible load capacity we can have in a rigid vehicle,” said Sean.

“The trucks need to handle narrow agricultural tracks to collect fresh eggs for grading and packing before delivering them on to our customers.”

“We have also integrated aerodynamic slipstream bodies into the design for lower fuel use and a special type of retractable tail lift which can lift the weight of the plastic pallets safely without damaging the fragile egg cargo.”

The move is part of a five year plan to integrate sustainability into every area of the business. Last year it invested £230,000 in solar energy last year. And in 2013 it invested in a £6m low carbon free range egg grading and packing facility on the outskirts of Harrogate.