AN East Yorkshire poultry business has announced plans to add two new farms to its operations following on from a 20 per cent increase in sales year on year.

Middleton-on-the-Wolds based family business T.Soanes and Sons is building a farm at Wetwang and a dedicated contractor is building a site for Soanes just to the north of Hull to cope with growing demand for its poultry products.

Talking about the rationale behind the investment, T.Soanes general manager Nigel Upson said: "We are committed to supplying our customers all the chicken they want.

"The new farms will give us additional capacity and will help to consolidate our position us as Yorkshire's premier poultry supplier."

In the last two years, T.Soanes and Son has invested more than £200,000 in factory improvements and quality standards, with a further £60,000 scheduled during 2015.

The business secured £2.5 million worth of new and additional business following the Red Tractor and BRC accreditations that were secured last year.

Bosses say part of their success is down to their “loyal and flexible” workforce of nearly 100 employees.

T.Soanes and Son is a family owned business which has been rearing and preparing poultry for more than 65 years.

It rears more than five million birds per year on its Yorkshire Wolds farms and sells its chicken to butchers and independent retailers in Yorkshire and to wholesalers nationwide. It also supplies a range of game in season to wholesale and retail customers.