Frigoscandia Distribution, a US-owned warehousing company, and Pinguin, a Belgian vegetable processor, have joined forces to buy the assets and run the plant. The finer points of the deal are yet to be struck, but this is the news growers have been waiting for, and comes just in time for the eight-week pea harvest which starts on Monday.

Fearing cumulative losses of up to £6m, the East Anglian growers were facing up to selling the crop – which makes up 15 per cent of the UK pea supply – at a vastly reduced price for animal feed.

Paul Pegg, Frigoscandia's md said: 'This gives us the opportunity to take a substantial amount of the harvest – not necessarily 100 per cent, but a very substantial part of it.' Grower Tony Worth said: 'I'm absolutely delighted. The important thing was that someone bought the plant to run it.' However, with Asda and Sainsbury's having already looked for alternative suppliers to fill their shortfall, some of the crop may still be wasted.

The one remaining obstacle for the plant is the effluent water licence required to process the peas. Anglia Water is reluctant to issue a new licence because of £22,000 debts accrued by Albert Fisher. The receivers are in talks to resolve the issue in time for the pea harvest.

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