IN just 53 minutes potatoes from a field in Herefordshire were turned into a bag of popular crisps and for sale on the shelves.

Tyrrells, the premium hand-cooked crisp makers near Leominster, pride themselves on maintaining their local provenance and wanted to see how quickly they could go from field to shop.

The Tyrrells team assembled early this morning in a field within walking distance from Tyrrells Court Farm, where their popular crisps are made.

A few crates of Taurus potatoes were harvested and then transported to the manufacturing area where they began the process that takes them from unwashed, fresh potatoes to a bag of Lightly Sea Salted Crisps, their most popular flavour.

They managed to deliver the crate of fresh potatoes from the field to the site in under five minutes. It then took around 38 minutes to slice and fry them into crisps and add a sprinkling of sea salt.

They were bagged and packed into cases.

A case was delivered to Pembridge business Ye Olde Steppes, where Tyrrells crisps are already a popular seller.

Sarah Lawson, Tyrrells marketing manager said: “ We achieved this same feat back in 2011, and it took us around 45 minutes. However, since then we have introduced new steps into our manufacturing process to improve the quality and consistency of our crisps and so this has added a little more time. We think going from potatoes in the ground, to delivering a finished pack into store in around 53 minutes is something to be immensely proud of. Although the Tyrrells brand has grown significant over the years, we are dedicated to maintaining our provenance and authenticity."

They still source all of their potatoes locally.