Auctioneer: increased price gap between new and used food processing equipment

In the wake of the economic crisis, a second hand food processing machine bought at auction is now selling for an average of a quarter of what it would cost new, according to a food equipment auctioneer.

Mark Flynn, director of Pro Auction, said that before the crisis a bidding frenzy could lead to the sale of a second hand machine for more than the same machine would cost brand new.

Such feverish bidding is no longer a feature of the market as buyers and sellers take on a much more cautious approach. Flynn said buyers are now only interested in machines that they need and they stick to a set budget, avoiding getting embroiled in bidding wars.

This means that machinery sold at auction is now going for around a quarter of the new price. For example, Flynn said an 8 year-old multipack machine that costs £220,000 new, recently sold for £60,000 while a steam injected cooker for the bakery industry made in the late 1990s went for £8,000 and would cost £60,000 new.

The auctioneer said the price gap between new and second hand machinery is one of the reasons for an upsurge in demand in recent months.