Egyptian success has Yorkshire exporter feeling full of beans

The grain, seed and fertiliser company said the rise means its Yorkshire site now accounts for 20 per cent of the UK’s export of fava beans to Egypt.

Egyptians consume 600,000 tonnes of fava beans a year, making it a key export market for Nidera.

Nidera, which grows the beans at its Barmby Moor site, near Pocklington, said Yorkshire beans are better quality than any other area of the UK because the cooler temperatures lead to less insect damage.

Yorkshire beans also tend to be paler and softer, making them popular with Egyptian consumers who consume them on a daily basis.

Fava beans, also known as spring beans, are a popular breakfast meal in Egypt and are often boiled and then shallow fried in oil with garlic and herbs and served with pitta bread.

From its Barmby Moor site, Nidera cleans and processes the Yorkshire beans and then exports them to Egypt.

To meet the increased demand from Egypt, Nidera has invested over £100,000 into its Barmby Moor site.

The investment has focused on the purchasing and instalment of cleaning and processing equipment to facilitate efficient handling of the beans through the plant.

Nidera’s managing director Simon Wallace said: “We have invested over £100,000 into equipment at the Barmby Moor site to ensure that we can supply this growing market.

“Populations are set to continue to grow in the Middle East and North Africa. Farmers in the UK have a great opportunity to produce beans for a market that requires a regular supply of good quality beans.”

In a bid to boost its Yorkshire exports, Nidera recently appointed Francis Pickering to the newly created role of farm trader .

Mr Pickering will focus on building relationships with Yorkshire-based farmers at a time when Nidera is exploring further opportunities for expansion in the region.

Mr Wallace said: “Francis joins Nidera as we seek to capitalise on growth opportunities in Yorkshire and the surrounding area, hire talented individuals and grow our strong trading team.

“His industry knowledge coupled with his successful trading experience makes him a natural choice. I am confident that he will be a great success in this new role and a strong asset for our company.”

Mr Pickering previously worked at Farmway as a farm trader and before that he held a similar role at J Dawson and Son.

Mr Pickering said: “I look forward to playing a key role in developing the business in Yorkshire, alongside Nidera’s well-established UK trading team.”

Nidera reported record profits for the year ending to 2011 against the background of a volatile cereals market.

The company announced pre-tax profits of £3.1m in the year to September 30 on a turnover of £312m.

Nidera said substantial increases in commodity prices, further expansion into the UK grain market and a growing seed and fertiliser business drove turnover to this record figure.

Mr Wallace said: “A strong financial performance combined with record positive growth in all aspects of the business ensured 2010-11 was a year of great achievement for Nidera UK.

“Our grain operations continue to drive the business, but the significant strides forward in our seed and fertiliser operations contributed to this substantial result.

“Despite the challenging environment we continue to invest in our core operations to ensure that we continue to deliver strong, long term working relationships with farmers and supply chain customers.”

Nidera is one of the leading grain, seed and fertiliser merchants in the UK handling record volumes of seed and fertiliser, and is part of a global trading business employing over 3,800 people in over 20 countries.

“We’re looking forward to another strong year and further growth and we will continue to support, develop and maintain effective and sustainable relationships with our grain, seed and fertiliser customers,” said Mr Wallace.

Nidera’s exports to Egypt come at a time when many UK supermarkets are importing Egyptian green beans.

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