Page 3 - Tyrrells Chips
P. 3
ORIGINS
In early 2000 William Chase had been forced to abandon his potato
business when his chipping crop was rejected by McCain ( but soon found
that kettle Chips wanted to buy them). This, along with the continuing
pressure from large supermarkets, led by Tesco, who had begun
sourcing produce from overseas to push down their costs, forced his
decision to change. Chase loved farming but his traumatic experiences,
especially those associated with the large supermarkets, which
squeezed product margins and spawned red-tape and meetings,
persuaded him to look for other avenues of activity which freed him from
the drudgery of a ‘captured supplier’.
He had been farming potatoes for 20 years, mostly supplying these
supermarkets as a commodity, which he said:
“left me feeling detached - without any feedback from the
end customer.”
With a strong desire to remain in farming he sought a solution to his
problem both, practical and psychological and hit upon the idea to turn
his potatoes into chips.
His solution capitalised on his core knowledge of the potato, the farming
industry and his innate belief that he could produce a better crisp, soon
to become chip, than that which was on offer in the market at the time.
He had taken two years to do his research, travelling to the US and
Canada with members of his farm staff to see the best processes and to
source machinery, then came endless days of frying, trying to perfect the
best chip. He wanted to produce: “an artisan delicacy” not mere chips.
His vision was simple –
“Dig, peel, slice, fry, package, and sell them without
meetings, middle management or multi-millionaire
costermongers.”
By the summer 2000, "Tyrrells" was born and became as he said:
