The McCain factory near Scarborough in North Yorkshire will star on BBC’s Inside the Factory tonight (January 13) – ever wanted to know how your favourite chips are made?
The special episode of the documentary series, now in its 10th season will reveal how the factory in Eastfield cuts, fries and freezes 80 million chips a day.
In the latest instalment of Inside the Factory, host Paddy McGuinness will follow the production of the food brand's bestseller, the straight cut frozen Home Chips – from peeling to battering.
What is Inside the Factory - McCain’s episode about?
Paddy first meets operations manager Mike Hartnett as a lorry full of 28 tonnes of special variety Daisy potatoes (perfect for making chips – around 1.7 million in fact) arrives out on the delivery yard - this is just one of up to 70 lorry loads delivered per day.
The BBC episode synopsis continues: “After passing a series of rigorous tests to check they have the correct starch content, the potatoes snake their way through the enormous factory on a series of conveyor belts.”
It adds: “Paddy follows Mike and the spuds through a series of washers that remove stones and soil.
“Then it’s on to the peeler, where Paddy leaves Mike behind and meets production director Ashley Bowsley.
“To Paddy’s amazement, Ashley tells him that they use an advanced steam-peeling method which ‘explodes’ the skin off the potato, minimising waste.”
How the Food Hygiene Rating System Works
The one-off McCain factory episode then moves on to the next hi-tech production step when it comes to making straight cut frozen Home Chips.
“Instead of parboiling the potatoes to soften them, as you might do at home, they travel through a pulsed electric field machine,” the BBC continues.
“Paddy learns that it sends electric pulses into the water that the spuds travel through, which softens them ready for cutting into chips.
“And it doesn’t end there, as the spuds travel through a cutting machine at 60 miles per hour, flying through a series of blades which transform them into chips.
“The result is spectacular, as Paddy sees 1.7 million chips cascade down a chip waterfall every hour. Just 67 minutes into the production process, he gets his hands on a chip.”
Viewers can then see the freshly cut chips travel along huge conveyor belts from one hi-tech machine to another, and “Paddy and Ashley are hot on their heels”.
Inside the Factory then reveals the next process – battering, where every chip is coated in a light batter to create extra crispness after you’ve cooked them in the oven at home.
The BBC explains: “Then, the chips are sent through a fryer, followed by a freezer and on to the vast packing hall, where Paddy’s co-presenter Cherry Healey is waiting for him.
“She’s done a bit of genning up on the equipment and talks Paddy through the complicated process of weighing out the chips and putting them into one-kilogram bags.
“Finally, the packed frozen chips snake their way towards the distribution area, where Ashley is waiting for Paddy and explains how an automated system loads 26 pallets onto the back of a waiting lorry.
“After just two hours, 1.7 million chips head out of the factory to be enjoyed with everything from sausages and beans to pies and pasties.”
Recommended Reading
-
'Breathtaking' North Yorkshire winter walk by the coast with cosy pub among best
-
Secrets of how the Romans ran a mass‑production factory on the River Wear explained
How to watch Inside the Factory – McCain’s in North Yorkshire
The special episode filmed inside the McCain’s factory follows on from the likes of the Walkers factory in Lincoln, in series nine.
Inside the Factory: Oven Chips airs on BBC One and iPlayer tonight from 8pm until 9pm.
Will you be watching? Let us know in the comments.
Share