Coffee roaster injects £1m into its operations as it marks 30 years of business
Private label coffee roaster, Lincoln & York, has made a £1m investment in a high-speed manufacturing line at its roastery as it seeks to double its business in the next two years.
The Brigg-based company is now one of the UK’s largest independent roasteries, roasting over 9,000 tons of coffee every year and supplying over 150 customers across 32 markets, including major high street coffee chains and retailers.
Continued improvements in equipment, facilities and the team has facilitated Lincoln & York’s growth and the £1m investment in a new high speed manufacturing line will now help the roastery towards its goal of doubling its business in volume terms by 2026.
It follows over £4m in investment by the firm over the last 10 years, including a new 600kg roaster, the biggest in the UK, in 2014 as well as a high-speed retail packing line and new warehouse and storage facilities.
The business has also recently invested in its new state-of-the-art coffee lab and innovation space, where its create their blends and quality check all the coffee that comes through the business.
Ian Bryson, managing director, said: “Over the last 30 years we have invested over £20m in the business to ensure we have the capability and capacity to scale, grow and adapt with our customers’ businesses, while delivering consistent quality across our roasting, blending and packing.
“When the UK coffee market exploded in the 1990s, we were ready to meet a rapidly increasing demand and today, as the number of coffee shops continues to grow, investing in our roastery remains a key priority.
“However, our investment goes beyond equipment, and extends to our employees and their futures too.
“We now have 90 employees at Lincoln & York and we’re proud to have three of the UK’s 135 coffee Q Graders, the coffee equivalent of a sommelier, on the Lincoln & York team.”
The roastery gained its Carbon Neutral Roastery status in 2023 and Lincoln & York continues to support World Coffee Research, who are on track to launch 100 new arabica varieties by 2030.
The aim is that these plants are more climate resilient, helping to maintain the supply of quality coffee for future generations.
Also, in collaboration with Omwani Coffee Company and Migoti Coffee, Lincoln & York is funding construction of a community reservoir to provide clean drinking water to hundreds of families in the coffee-farming community of Kinama, in Burundi.
