Nearly one week on from the fantastic launch party for the new £5 Million pound expansion at Kirkcudbrights Castle MacLellan Pate Factory last Friday , production has gone into full swing smoothly .With the factory being closed from normal production on Friday the 20th of February so the Castle Mclellan team and staff could proudly show their wonderful new facility to the press and VIP guests , then on Saturday getting a full deep clean right through the factory space , so that the Skilled staff could all get back onto the factory floor on Sunday to get production of the UK’s Number one branded Pate going again ! I was very kindly invited along to the launch for DGWGO , and was blown away buy just how much work , skill , pride and the complicated processes that go into creating Pate at Castle MacLellan .
On arrival I was greeted and welcomed into the brand new reception area at the state of the art facility at Dee walk in Kirkcudbright , The Castle MAc Lellan Brand originally Started in the town 33 years ago , but has now grown into a national brand supplying stores such as Marks and Spencers , Tesco , Sainsburys, Waitrose and more . Myself and a team of Press from the BBC , Galloway News and D&G Life Magazine were Given a tour around the factory space by Gary King one of the staff , who filled us in on the whole process , starting from the devilry of the raw materials , which include many locally produced ingredients , right through to the production lines , ovens, freezers and then Packaging areas and marketing . It was a very informative and interesting 45 minute tour .
After the tour I was given the chance to Interview ‘Paul Leweny’ who is the Managing Director of Kavli UK the parent Company of Castle MacLellan who bought it back in 1997 , Paul told DGWGO How proud he was of the team at Castle MacLellan , and with such a highly skilled and experienced team of 92 permanent staff that expands up to a work force of 130 in the run up to Christmas , it was only common sense to invest in the factory for the future .
Paul also told me how Castle MacLellan prides itself in its work with the local community , with Schools and charity , Including a recent donation of £20,000 to the Castle Douglas outdoor resource centre .
Paul Said He was very proud of all the team at the Kirkcudbright factory , and how because of their Skills , Castle MacLellan is the place that company’s come to , if they want to produce something special or unusual with pate . The Staff at the factory have many years experience and specialty Pate products are something they take huge pride in creating .
After the interviews it was time for the official opening ceremony , at which all the staff and guests gathered , we watched Erick Volden , CEO of Kavli and Finn Jebson Chairman Of Kavli pull back the curtails on the ceremonial Plaque , and heard them say a few words !
Erik Volden said: “This expansion was central to expanding our Scottish operation and I’d like to congratulate the team involved in the project on the first-rate facilities which will ensure that we have the capacity to meet ever-increasing demand for our products.”
The new factory – which is based on the site of existing premises, themselves spanning 2500 sq meters – has nearly doubled in size with an increase of 2000 sq meters. The new facility promises an estimated 50% increase in production capacity, which will see over 1000 tonnes of pâté produced there each year.
In addition to expanding the size of the facility, Castle MacLellan has made significant investments into new technology and class-leading equipment. High specification equipment including new steam cookers, vacuum packers and conveyer systems have been a key part of the upgrade and will improve the efficiency of the production process. Several production lines have also been installed to create efficient product flows, faster throughput and updated sterilisation procedures, all of which are essential in food production.
Local construction firms and developers from the Dumfries & Galloway region were involved in the expansion project, which took 10 months to complete.
Elaine McConnell, General Manager at Castle MacLellan Food Limited said: “It’s a really exciting time for the team in Kirkcudbright. Castle MacLellan began here so it’s great that the factory has remained in Dumfries, providing the area with employment opportunities and stability for the local economy.
“The new state of the art facility will help us to deliver on our continued vision of producing the highest quality artisan products using the finest Scottish ingredients using the latest in food manufacturing technology – improving efficiency, output and reducing our environmental impact.”
The factory employs eighty full-time workers and a further eighty during the peak Christmas period. A proportion of the profits from the sale of Castle MacLellan pates are distributed to good causes in the UK and abroad.
After The Official ceremony Staff and guests chatted , and enjoyed a couple of drinks and got to taste an array of wonderful canapes created with Castle MacLellan Pate , by the in house team while the official photos were taken outside the wonderful new building !
A Few interesting facts
About the brand
• The Castle MacLellan brand has been around for more than 30 years
• It began as a delicatessen in Kirkcudbright in 1982, and has grown into a pate brand that is sold across the UK
• The pates are produced with ingredients from local suppliers including Galloway Lodge Preserves, Rannoch Smokery, Orkney Crab, John Mellis Honey and Graham’s Dairies
• Castle MacLellan is the UK’s number one branded pate and is the driving force behind the growth in Branded Pate (+9.4%)
• In the last year, Castle MacLellan’s share has grown from 20.3% to 29.9%. Retail sales are up 53.4% to a Gross Sales Value of £11.8M (SOURCE: 52we data to 4th Jan 2015 Kantar World Panel)
• Castle MacLellan produced 147 different pates in 2014, 60 of these just at Christmas.
The new factory
• The investment in the factory has seen it increase in size by 2,000 square metres. It is now 4,500 square metres.
• The investment made in the expansion cost £5m
• 1,250 tonnes of pate will be produced at the new facility each year
• Production capacity will increase 50%
• There are 92 full time staff employed at the facility
• The expansion works took 10 months to complete
Products produced
Castle MacLellan branded:
• Chicken Liver Pâté with Scottish heather honey
• Oven Roasted Mushroom Pâté with garlic and thyme
• Rannoch Smoked Duck Pâté with Bramley apple jelly
• Luxury Orkney Crab Terrine with lemon juice and Galloway mustard
• Scottish Smoked Salmon Pâté with lemon juice and horseradish
Plus a variety of high quality white label pates for the UK’s leading supermarkets.
Improvements and innovations
• Several production lines installed – efficient product flows, faster throughput, hygienic designs
• New high and low-care production and packing areas added to the South side of the existing factory
• Increased freezer and dry-goods storage capacity
• A new goods-in/decant/defrost area serving the expanded factory with improved segregation of raw materials
• Reconfigured equipment layouts within existing production areas of the factory have improved product and people flow
• Resurfaced factory yard so it is suitable for heavy vehicles and to create a dedicated area for waste handling and pallet storage
• A Dissolved Airflow Flotation plant to reduce environmental impact
Parent company Kavli
• Castle MacLellan was bought by Kavli in 1997
• Kavli is based in Norway and also owns the Primula and St. Helen’s Farm food brands
• Kavli is committed to philanthropic causes via its Kavli Trust initiative
• Castle MacLellan is owned by the Kavli Trust, which supports good causes both in the UK and abroad.
• The Kavli Trust owns the Kavli Group, which provides the funds for its humanitarian work
• Part of the profits from the Kavli group is reinvested in strengthening and developing the group’s operations, while the remainder is donated to good causes in research, culture and humanitarian work
• Alongside its international commitments, The Kavli Trust also allocates funds for each Kavli site to donate to charity projects that benefit the local community and which are nominated by local colleagues.
• Grants from the Kavli Trust has risen substantially in recent years as the Kavli Group has expanded we currently donate around £5 million a year to good causes
