A look at British Sugar’s Wissington factory as it celebrates 100 years in West Norfolk
A factory which plays a significant role in the area has reached a milestone anniversary of serving the community for a century.
The Wissington sugar beet factory, which opened its doors in 1925, will celebrate its 100th anniversary with a whole line-up of events planned throughout the year.
Activities and events have been planned with residents and growers, as well as current and former employees.
Sarah Lewis, PR manager at British Sugar, said: “It is an incredible achievement to have reached 100 years as a site.
“It is a testament to all those who have worked either on the site, or who have grown sugar beet in the local area, that we are still here and thriving today.”
We take a deep dive into the history of this well-known factory…
ABOUT THE FACTORY
Towards the end of 1925, British Sugar opened the doors of its factory at Wissington with around 500-550 workers. Back then, the beet was delivered by rail and barge – there was no road access – and the factory processed 600 tonnes per day.
The former Lynn sugar factory at the modern day Palm Papers site was closed in 1994, and all beet destined for this site was diverted to Wissington - while staff at both were brought together.
More than 90 years later, the site has grown to be the largest and the most cost-effective sugar processing site in Europe with a team of around 250.
Originally slicing 600 tonnes of sugar beet a day, the team can now do more than that in a single hour. The team slice around 20,000 tons of sugar beet ever day.
Wissington is the largest of British Sugar’s four factories – others are Bury St Edmunds, Cantley and Newark. It processes around three million tonnes of sugar beet into over 400,000 tonnes of sugar and up to 75million litres of ethanol.
At the advanced manufacturing plant, sugar beet is produced by more than 1,000 growers, illustrating the crucial part it plays in the local rural economy.
The growers who supply the factory come from a range of counties, including Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire. However, the average distance between farm and factory is only 28 miles.
ROLE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY
Community engagement is a strong focus for the site today, through charitable donations or fundraising, or non-monetary support such as volunteering, sharing expertise and knowledge.
The business’ catchphrase is: “We are very passionate about being a good neighbour.”
Elliott Fisher, general manager at Wissington, says: “We feel we have an absolute moral duty to help, support, and be present in the community. This is where our employees live.”
As part of its 100th year celebrations, the company has a busy time ahead – it will be increasing its community interventions.
With being a big advocate of the Purfleet Trust in Lynn, a team from Wissington will be racing again in the Hunstanton Soap Box Derby in a miniature sugar beet tanker, designed and built by its apprentices.
Around 25 employees at the site will also be getting stuck in by helping ‘Forward’ in Lynn – a charity which supports people with a range of mental disabilities.
They will be spending a couple of days refurbishing the charity’s courtyard and recreational area.
There is also a possibility of renovating a “large allotment” that the Purfleet Trust has secured – they are currently in talks about this.
Mr Fisher mentioned that retirees and those who used to work for British Sugar will be welcomed back for a tour of the site, have lunch, and celebrate 100 years of their hard work. Souvenirs will be given to staff.
Wissington will also be sponsoring Festival Too again, and will be holding a pop-up stall on the first Sunday for a chance for the community to see what they get up to and find out more about its centenary year.
‘WE RELY HEAVILY ON A VERY ROBUST APPRENTICESHIP SCHEME’
At Wissington, a large apprenticeship scheme is in place which provides a development pathway year after year.
It has around 250 members of staff on-site, including permanent employees, contractors and seasonal workers.
There are currently 13 apprentices - with more than 80% of former learners still with the business ten years on.
A lot of senior members of staff started as an apprentice and have grown within the business.
Mr Fisher, who is a former apprentice himself, said: “We are unique in what we do. We rely heavily on a very robust apprenticeship scheme, and we are expanding those skills to cover more skills.
“We put a lot of time and effort into that as it is a model that just works for us. It is a people-focused business which likes to see people grow and develop.”
There are nine people in the senior team at Wissington, and six of then are former British Sugar apprentices.
Ms Lewis said: “It’s on the doorstep in the community with a huge range of roles that people can do at the site.
“There is a varied spectrum as a local employer in the area and to try and inspire the next generation through and make them aware of the options they have.”
Mr Fisher started as a multi-skilled apprentice in September 1994 at 16 years old and has been a part of the team since, taking on a range of roles between the Wissington and Cantley sites.
These included technical and senior roles, shift manager, and head of peoples development, before starting as general manager at Wissington last January.
He says that since he started, the site has almost doubled in size and that there has been a significant investment in its sustainable products.
A WORKING DAY ON THE SITE
No matter the role a employee has, a working day at Wissington is a “fast-moving operation.”
Mr Fisher said making sugar is like a “giant chemistry set” and requires a very specific mind set.
To be able to produce the high volume of products, a wide range of different roles, skills and expertise are needed.
Throughout a shift, staff definitely get in their steps as they walk across the extremely large site.
The factory operates 24/7, every single day of the year. There is always a part of the plant that is running.
