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Cold storage and game handling equipment are essential assets for sporting estates, game dealers and shoot operators involved in the processing, storage and onward supply of game. From maintaining food safety standards to preserving quality and value, reliable temperature-controlled handling is critical once game is taken from the field.
Game handling often takes place in short, intense periods aligned to the shooting season. Equipment must perform consistently under pressure, often in rural or temporary facilities, and comply with hygiene and regulatory requirements. The cost of installing or upgrading cold storage and handling infrastructure can be significant, particularly when investment is required ahead of peak season.
Gable Business Finance specialises in arranging finance for cold storage and game handling equipment, ensuring funding reflects seasonal income, compliance requirements and long-term operational needs.
Proper chilling and storage of game is essential to protect food safety, product quality and commercial value. Failure at any stage can lead to waste, reputational damage or regulatory issues.
Cold storage and handling equipment supports:
Rapid chilling of shot game
Safe hanging and maturation
Temperature-controlled storage prior to processing
Compliance with food hygiene regulations
Quality preservation for onward sale
Efficient handling during peak shoot days
For estates supplying dealers, restaurants or direct-to-consumer channels, robust cold chain management is critical.
Game businesses typically invest in specialist equipment designed specifically for rural and seasonal use.
Walk-in game chillers and modular cold rooms provide controlled environments for hanging and storing carcasses. These systems are often bespoke-installed to suit estate facilities and throughput requirements.
Mobile chillers and refrigerated trailers are commonly used during peak shoot days or across estates with multiple shoot locations. They provide flexibility and rapid deployment without permanent infrastructure.
Overhead rail systems, hooks and hanging frames are used to handle game safely and efficiently, reducing manual handling and improving hygiene.
Handling equipment may include tables, conveyors, weighing systems and preparation areas designed to support efficient processing while maintaining food safety standards.
Each of these assets represents a specialist investment that must operate reliably during limited but critical periods.
Cold storage and handling equipment is often purchased to meet regulatory standards, expand capacity or improve efficiency. However, income from shooting is highly seasonal, and capital expenditure often occurs ahead of revenue.
Specialist finance allows game businesses to:
Spread costs over the working life of the equipment
Preserve cash during off-season periods
Invest in compliant, professional-grade infrastructure
Align repayments with shooting income
Gable Business Finance understands the pressures of seasonal operations and structures finance accordingly.
Hire Purchase is commonly used where estates want long-term ownership of cold storage and handling assets.
It allows immediate access to essential equipment while spreading the cost over an agreed term. Repayments can be structured around seasonal income patterns, ensuring affordability during quieter months.
Key benefits of hire purchase include:
Ownership of the equipment at the end of the term
Fixed or variable repayment options
Interest payments typically tax deductible
Potential capital allowances on qualifying assets
VAT often reclaimable upfront on the full purchase price
Hire purchase is well suited to permanent installations such as cold rooms and fixed handling systems.
Finance leasing provides flexibility where storage capacity may change year to year or where mobile equipment is preferred.
Under a finance lease, the business pays rentals for the use of the equipment. Rentals can be structured to match cash flow and are often aligned with depreciation. VAT is payable on the rentals rather than the full purchase cost, easing initial cash-flow pressure.
Finance leases are commonly used for:
Mobile chillers and refrigerated trailers
Supplementary cold storage during peak periods
Equipment expected to be upgraded or replaced
This approach allows businesses to scale capacity without tying up capital.
Many estates already own cold storage or handling equipment outright. Asset refinance allows capital to be released against these assets while they continue to be used as normal.
Released funds can be used to:
Upgrade storage capacity
Improve handling facilities
Support seasonal working capital
Invest in other estate priorities
Asset refinance improves liquidity without disrupting operations.
Where cold storage investment forms part of a wider processing or compliance upgrade, unsecured term loans can provide additional funding.
These loans typically range from £10,000 to £500,000, with repayment terms of 3 to 6 years, and can be used to fund:
Game larder refurbishments
Integrated processing facilities
Hygiene and compliance improvements
Installation and associated project costs
Unsecured loans can be combined with asset finance for a joined-up funding solution.
Game handling equipment is often used intensively over a short period but must be funded year-round. Careful structuring of repayments is essential.
Gable Business Finance structures finance to reflect:
Shooting season income peaks
Off-season preparation and maintenance
Compliance and inspection cycles
This ensures funding supports operations rather than constraining them.
Gable Business Finance specialises in rural and land-based business finance. We understand the regulatory, operational and seasonal pressures faced by game businesses when handling and storing game.
By working with lenders experienced in specialist asset finance, we arrange funding solutions that reflect the realities of countryside operations rather than generic food-processing assumptions.
Cold storage and game handling equipment are essential investments in food safety, quality and commercial success. The right finance structure allows you to invest confidently while preserving cash flow.
Speak to Gable Business Finance today to discuss finance for cold storage and game handling equipment tailored specifically for sporting estates, game businesses and rural operations. Our specialist approach ensures funding works alongside seasonal income and compliance requirements.