Jobs are set to be lost as a potato company moves its packing operations from Kent to Cambridgeshire and Scotland.

Produce Investments, owner of the St Nicholas-at-Wade based Kent Potato Company, says its staff have entered a 45-day consultation.

In a statement, the company said: "We have begun a 45-day consultation period with employees at the Kent Potato Company regarding the potential closure of its site based at St Nicholas-at-Wade.

"Following a recent review of potato packing operations, the company is proposing to transfer all packing and associated operations from its site in Kent to sites in Cambridgeshire and Scotland.

"Regrettably, this would mean the closure of The Kent Potato Company site with associated redundancies.

"The consultation period concludes on November 23 and further information will follow in due course.

Only last month, the company was celebrating the fact discount shopping giant Lidl had doubled its order of Amber spuds from six tonnes a week in April to 11 tonnes a week in August.