BALLINGRY organisation Peel Tech, Ltd, collected a prestigious gong at the Perthshire Chamber of Commerce Star Awards.

Peel Tech makes the highly sophisticated filtration system which transforms starch and potato peelings into clean usable water and collected the Excellence in Innovation Award at the Star Awards, sponsored by Binn Group.

Operating since 2015 from the Ivan Wood and Sons' base at Navity Farm, in Ballingry, and at Hatchbank, in Kinross, Peel Tech strives to ensure their business remains environmentally responsible and are successfully encouraging other companies to follow suit with their patented potato peel and starch filtration system - the concept of which is being further developed in conjunction with Abertay University to separate fish scales and oils from water.

Following a campaign from the National Federation of Fish Fryers to promote the sustainable sourcing of fish, the improved waste management offered by Peel Tech could see Fish and Chips become a sustainable fast food.

Peel Tech has won a number of awards over the past three years and the organisation's Malcolm Wood, who developed the system from an idea, was delighted with the way that the system is being recognised as a key element in the battle to purify effluent from chip shops and similar operations.

Mr Wood said: "This is a brilliant follow up to our success at the VIBES Awards a couple of months ago.

"We have been working hard at improving the way that the system works and we are hoping to clinch a couple of important contracts in the coming weeks."

Our photograph by Graeme Hart, of Perthshire Picture Agency, shows Liz Jackson of Fairways, who sponsor the Excellence in Innovation Award, and Malcolm Wood of Peel Tech.