Chefs Academy Visit Working Farm

On 22nd April F.W. Mansfield & Son welcomed a group of local catering students from Canterbury Academy School to see a working farm, storage and packing facility in action first-hand. The idea behind the visit was to aid the students understanding of local Kentish produce and everything it takes to get the fruit from orchard to shop shelf.

On a slightly brisk April day the group was shown around apple and plum orchards as well as the newest reservoir at our Nickle Farm site where they learnt about the life cycles of the trees as well as modern farming practices. The group then learnt about the cold storage of the fruit including the science behind post-harvest storage regimes. Finally a quick tour of the packhouse facilities took place where the grading and packing of the fruit was the focus.