Box In A Box Fish Packing Plant for Ben's Fish
This state-of-the-art fish packing facility is housed in a listed barn on Mersea Island, which has been repaired and preserved as part of a local, sustainable business.
Essex has a thriving community of small fishing businesses, and Ben's Fish supplies their locally caught fish to companies who are looking for a sustainable product to feed the ethical consumer. Many of their customers are well-established London restaurants.
Business owner Ben Woodcraft employed Inkpen Downie to design a conversion of the barn which would allow him to expand his fish packing operation whilst meeting the planning requirements for re-use of an historic building. The solution is a ‘box-in-a-box', where the packing is carried out in a self-contained hygienic structure independent of the barn within which it sits, concealed and protected from the elements.