EC Drummond launched Tillington Top Fruit Ltd in 2017 after taking over 800 acres of land that had previously been managed by the Cooperative Society. The orchards are spread over three sites in North Herefordshire – Tillington, Marden and Ledbury.
“As a progressive and innovative business, we are always looking for improvements in what we do and how we do it. We have made extensive changes since taking on the business, modernising growing systems to the modern “post and wire” system and replacing tired orchards with newer more commercial varieties, such as Jazz and Gala.”
“In 2021 we invested in three Revo Piuma 4WD Hill picking platforms to improve efficiency and reduce the amount of labour required for harvesting. We have been very impressed with the build quality and gentle handling of the fruit. We have also improved our picking rates per person, significantly reducing our staff levels.”
“We had a 20% increase in productivity as well as improved fruit handling and grade-out in our first season. Based on this excellent return on investment we have purchased two more machines for the 2022 harvest.”
– Ben Drummond
