Tues 18th Nov, Park Plaza Westminster Bridge, London

Meadow Vale Foods launches two new Japanese style Chicken products to meet increased demand

Posted on by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

Meadow Vale Foods launches two new Japanese style Chicken products to meet increased demand

Japanese food has quickly risen to be the most popular Asian cuisine in the UK with the number of Japanese eateries rising by 67%. Meadow Vale Foods new product development team saw this growing food trend and developed two exciting new offering caterers fantastic tasting, convenient products for their busy kitchens.

Karaage Chicken Bites – Chicken breast fillet pieces marinated in soy sauce, ginger and garlic, coated in a Japanese style crunchy coating and Katsu Chicken Fillet – Chicken breast fillets in a crunchy panko breadcrumb using traditional proving and baking and authentic Japanese flavour profiles.

Fully cooked, hand cut and using only whole muscle chicken breast fillets, both products are individually quick frozen eliminating food waste.  Take what you need and cook straight from frozen in the fryer, oven or merry chef all giving the same great tasting results and with no fear of handling raw poultry they are perfect for the modern day kitchen.

In the current environment, with the demand for home delivery and click & collect growing, food outlets reopening and revisiting their menus, Meadow Vale Foods Development Chef, Chris Moyes has put together a selection of menu ideas demonstrating the versatility of the products. Meadow Vale Foods are also offering the opportunity to try these new lines out in your own kitchen.  Go to meadowvalefoods.co.uk for more information

BCMPA offer assistance regarding shelf life extension of frozen food

Posted on by Harry

As part of our discussions regarding the significant amount of frozen food which, as a consequence of the pandemic, will require shelf life extension, BFFF have been talking to colleagues at the British Contract Manufacturers and Packers Association (BCMPA).

For those of you who may be facing difficulties in following the normal route of relabelling, the BCMPA have several members who may be able to assist in carrying out this work.

To find out more please visit https://bcmpa.org.uk/ then follow the instructions below to navigate your way to a list of the relevant BCMPA members:

  1. Once on the BCMPA homepage click on the first tab entitled ‘SEARCH MEMBERS’
  2. In the ‘Quick Search’ section expand the ‘Choose a Sector’ list and tick ‘Food’
  3. In the ‘Refine Search’ section expand the ‘Contract Packing’ list and tick ‘Labelling/Barcoding’
  4. Finally, expand the ‘Contract Manufacturing’ list and tick ‘Chilled/Frozen’

You will then be able to find out more information on each BCMPA member in your refined list including details of how to contact them directly.

Should you wish to reach out to BCMPA directly then you can do this by using the online enquiry form here or alternatively if you require further assistance then please email EmmaVerkaik@bcmpa.org.uk . They will be more than happy to help you to identify your best options.

CEO of National Security Firm Celebrates 20 years

Posted on by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

CEO of National Security Firm Celebrates 20 years

 

This week, the CEO of one of the UK’s leading security companies, GMS Group, is celebrating 20 years with GMS; 15 of which have been at the business’s helm.

 

Neil Male who once played professionally for Torquay United FC, first joined GMS in 2000 after a serious back injury forced him into retirement from football. Since being made a shareholder in 2005, Male has been instrumental in the growth and expansion of GMS Group, which now employs 500 people throughout the UK and turns over in excess of £14 million a year.

 

Established as a security manned guarding business in 1998, the GMS Group has grown and evolved to incorporate additional, complimentary services and is now solely owned by the Male family.

 

Reflecting on where it all began, Neil Male CEO at the GMS Group said, “In August 2005, Emma and I re-mortgaged our house and signed a personal guarantee for £250k to invest into the business (GMS). My business partner at the time John Goldsmith showed faith and instilled a self-belief in my ability, I initially thought, ‘what’s the worst that can happen?’ I looked at Jack, my son, who at the time was 12 months old, I knew what I had to do. Failure wasn’t an option, I had to make this opportunity work.”

 

Male continued, “My passion for GMS is as strong now as it was when we re-mortgaged our house; I am driven by good health, happiness and financial stability for my family and the team. I have built an incredible team to assist me to run GMS Group on a day to day and in return this has let me put some of my skills and time into other organisations.”

 

“I was recently appointed in December 2019 a board member of Kaleidoscope Plus Group, an emotional wellbeing charity who promote positive mental health as well as accepting an interim role with Kidderminster Harriers FC as CEO in October 2019, taking me back to my football routes. I never thought in a million years I would do anything outside of GMS Group, but it is testament to my co Directors that I can juggle these roles.”

 

The Group is set to turnover £15 million this year despite the current economic climate and is anticipating continued growth following the news last week that GMS Group is now working in partnership with leading facilities management firm, Arcus FM.

Speaking about the group’s expected growth and its new partnership, Male continued, “Manned Guarding will always be at the heart of what we do, but to sustain growth it’s important that we work to provide customers with a wider range of innovative services and add real value.”

“We have become established in the automotive, food and beverage, logistics and manufacturing sectors and will continue to focus on these areas. Our next goal is to achieve a £25m turnover by 2023.”

As GMS Group’s reputation has grown, so has Male’s. In recent years he’s been recognised as one of Grant Thornton’s Faces of a Vibrant Economy in 2018, shortlisted by the Institute of Directors for their Award for Innovation in 2018 and scooped the gong for Transformational Leader in the West Midlands Leadership Awards in 2019.

GMS Group have been leading the market in innovation, service and delivery since 1998 supporting clients such as Jaguar Land Rover, CEMEX UK, Kerry Foods, Aston Martin and AF Blakemore.

NewCold grows again as demand for cold storage outstrips supply

Posted on by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

NewCold grows again as demand for cold storage outstrips supply

 

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In response to continued demand from the food manufacturing sector the automated cold storage specialist, NewCold, is opening a new deepfreeze facility in Corby this October and expects to see the first pallets arriving only one year later.

 

Based on the energy-saving  sustainable formula which underpins the success of the group’s existing sites worldwide, the Corby  facility sits on a 23-acre plot which, says Country Director Jon Miles, is a prime location in the logistics ‘golden triangle’, with proximity to frozen distribution centres of large retail and food service customers and will enable NewCold to help their customers reduce food miles and cut costs.

 

“Since opening our first UK site in Wakefield 5 years ago, we have seen an increase in demand for our warehouse and transport services of over 150%” he explains, “and although the Wakefield plant is the largest of its kind in the country, handling 4,000,000 pallets annually and storing 143,000 at any given time, demand has outstripped supply.”

 

Therefore, the decision came easily for the company to establish another facility further south in the UK, which would enhance NewCold’s offer to customers for whom Wakefield may not have added value, geographically. Now, says Jon, the Corby site is ideally located to support UK frozen food manufacturers and importers looking to create supply chain value.

 

“Furthermore,” he says “with a focus on sustainability at both the Wakefield and Corby sites, our unique cold store design – which uses around 50% less energy than conventional stores – coupled with our ability to reduce food miles by using high-volume trailers, will greatly reduce CO2 emissions and energy use.”

 

The Corby operation will enable NewCold to offer their services to customers for whom Wakefield may not have been geographically well-situated or who had run out of space.

 

NewCold are already speaking to high volume potential customers, to add to an impressive list of Wakefield customers, including McCain, Aunt Bessie, Birds Eye, Froneri, Finsbury, and Grupo Bimbo –  all of whom  benefit from NewCold’s sustainable transport and storage solutions, including automatic handling equipment to reduce loading times, while retaining product integrity.

 

“The decision to build a second facility” adds Jon Miles, “has been driven by an increasing wide-scale demand for storage and handling, while the number of deep-frozen storage facilities has reduced. This has seen cold stores at capacity during certain times over the last 2 years and the trend appears to be continuing, so we feel this is the right time to invest.”

 

With headquarters in the Netherlands, NewCold is regarded as a leader in developing and operating highly automated cold stores and energy efficient handling systems. At present, the company has around 750 employees worldwide and operates eight locations on three continents.

INFUSE by Cargill™ addresses rapidly evolving consumer demands

Posted on by gail_colley@cargill.com

INFUSE by Cargill™ addresses rapidly evolving consumer demands with customized ingredient blends in Europe

INFUSE by Cargill™ for European customers brings together the company’s extensive ingredient acumen to rapidly create tailor-made ingredient blends. Our expertise gives food and beverage manufacturers an edge in making products that address a complex set of consumer demands, such as sugar and calorie reduction, label-friendly, plant-based and other “free-from” formulation challenges. INFUSE by Cargill mirrors the Functional Systems’ portfolio of ingredients and blending technologies available to customers in North America and Asia Pacific regions.

“Consumers desire healthier products made with less sugar and fewer calories, while still expecting a great taste, mouthfeel and memorable eating and drinking experience,” says Denise Mc Carthy, who leads the product line. “Those are high expectations and require a different approach to ingredient formulation. INFUSE by Cargill, which sits at the crux of reformulation and innovation, represents the way Cargill helps our customers succeed.”

Customers in Europe have been using Cargill’s functional systems for more than 40 years to achieve custom texturizing ingredient blends. INFUSE by Cargill expands on that work, adding sweetness and other specialty ingredients such as proteins and fibers, to address a broader array of customer formulation challenges.

“No two blends are ever the same,” Mc Carthy emphasizes. “We always start by understanding each customer’s requirements, then use our technical expertise to land on the right combination and ratio of ingredients.”

Small- and medium-sized food producers in Europe reap the biggest rewards from INFUSE by Cargill. These companies often have more limited R&D, regulatory, legal and technical support resources. By partnering with the INFUSE by Cargill team, they can leverage Cargill’s resources, including kitchen and prototyping facilities, along with the company’s legal, regulatory, marketing, formulation and technical expertise in bakery, confectionery, dairy and beverage applications.

For Hannah Keenan, business development manager for INFUSE by Cargill, it all boils down to speed. “We understand how ingredients work together and how to create optimal solutions,” she says. “With more than 300 ingredients in our toolbox, we can quickly develop, deliver and optimize prototypes, dramatically shortening bench development time.”

Three pillars serve as the foundation for Cargill’s customer focus in Europe: an unwavering attention to providing on-trend solutions, a commitment to speed to market, and access to deep technical expertise to create ingredient blends tailored to meet each customer’s unique needs.

“Given today’s complex formulation challenges, the days of solving problems with a single ingredient are gone,” Mc Carthy says. “However, with INFUSE by Cargill, we can offer customers the ease of a single solution – to help speed up their development and launch innovative products faster to market.”

Growth drives new sales appointment at Dalziel Ingredients

Posted on by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

Growth drives new sales appointment at Dalziel Ingredients

John Camus, Technical Sales Account Manager

Continued growth has seen Dalziel Ingredients further expand its sales team with the appointment of John Camus as Technical Sales Account Manager.

His move is a nod to Dalziel’s expanding customer base and commitment to customer service as the UK specialist in bespoke seasoning blends, cures, functional ingredients and ambient sauces.

John takes up his new sales role after an NPD background as ingredient technologist at Dalziel’s Felling, Gateshead new product development centre.

He brings five years of knowledge and experience of the ingredients used in Dalziel’s blends, the processes used both within its own blending facilities and at various manufacturing sites around the UK.

Previously, John worked as a butcher at WM Morrison Supermarkets plc whilst studying a degree in food science at Northumbria University.

He said: “Our customers’ projects can have tight deadlines, so having an NPD background and insight of the science behind the products we develop gives me a heads up on customer requirements.

“It helps to get samples right first time, so our customers can get their projects signed off within often demanding timescales.

“Introducing new products and working with customers to problem solve is something I can’t wait to do.”

Richard Wilson, Dalziel Ingredients’ sales director, added: “As we work across more and more sectors within the food industry, our aim is to ensure we continue to offer the unrivalled customer service, account management, technical and NPD support that our success and growth is built on.”

Equally, Dalziel Ingredients is committed to investing in and developing its own people, explained Mr Wilson.

“It gives employees a real drive and determination when they can see their hard work can be rewarded by progression.

“For a Technical Sales Account Manager to already know the business, the sites, the people, manufacturing processes, NPD systems, technical systems, capabilities and customer base, it allows them to get straight into the account management side of the job for the benefit of Dalziel and our customers.”

Dalziel Ingredients advises food manufacturers across the UK on flavour trends, market analysis, factory processes, recipe formulations and product quality enhancements (increasing yields, salt reductions, improved texture and fat reduction).

All Dalziel Ingredients’ products – seasonings, complete mixes, rubs, glazes, functional blends, flavoured batters, flavoured crumbs, snack seasonings, cures and brines – can be developed as gluten free at Dalziel’s purpose built, BRC accredited dry blending site.  Existing products can reformulated as gluten free.

For more information, contact Dalziel Ingredients on 0191 469 3078, email: info@dalzielingredients.co.uk or visit www.dalzielingredients.co.uk

 

Calling for more support for the food industry’s ‘squeezed middle’

Posted on by Harry

Since lockdown measures were introduced in March, much has been reported about the devastating impact on the Hospitality and Foodservice sectors. As such, businesses operating in these areas have been offered a range of governmental support. The agricultural industry has also been offered financial help.

While the government’s swift action in support of these sectors is of course welcomed, and will prove invaluable in maintaining viable businesses, there has been a distinct lack of focus on what could be referred to as the ‘squeezed middle’.

More than 95 per cent of businesses which manufacture and supply food, or services, for the Hospitality and Foodservice sectors fall into the small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) category.

Just like our restaurants, hotels, cafes and bars, these businesses have lost their customers and are struggling to stay afloat, but are doing so without the same levels of financial aid.

Many businesses also face the prospect of being unable to recover payment for stock supplied prior to lockdown. Some report that 50 per cent of their customer base have either delayed payment or not paid outstanding invoices.

While it can be argued that the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) or Bounce Back Loan Schemes (BBLS) are in place to offer support, in practice these funds are proving ineffective and difficult to get at.

Recent survey results indicate that fewer than half of food and drink manufacturers have applied for such help, mainly to avoid incurring further debt and additional interest payments beyond year one.

Worse still, of those that did apply, fewer than 50 per cent actually received funds.

In response, BFFF CEO Richard Harrow, with the support of Paul Rooke of the British Coffee Association, has lead on a policy paper produced by the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) which highlights the issue of the ‘squeezed middle’. The paper sets out a range of practical steps that need to be taken to ensure these businesses are able to play their role in a post-virus recovery.

Our recommendations:

  • Businesses supplying into the hospitality and food service market should continue to receive furlough support through the government at a rate of 80 per cent of salary contribution until those markets return to commercially viable levels.
  • Government should formalise the deferment of PAYE and NI payments until end September 2020 for businesses supplying into the hospitality and food service market, basing the final removal of that deferment on those businesses returning to a commercially viable level of operation.
  • Until the end of September 2020, HMRC should ensure that all VAT repayments are made to businesses supplying into the hospitality and food service market as they fall due, rather than being used to offset against PAYE & NI payments.
  • Government should extend the 12-month Local Authority Business Rates exemption to businesses supplying into the hospitality and food service market, using the existing legislative exemption for hardship.
  • Government should expand on how its guarantee will operate, specifically what the 1 April date relates to (e.g. order date, invoice date, payment due date) and how it will continue to work with the trade credit insurance industry to ensure cover continues to be provided by all.
  • Government should place a requirement on the trade credit insurance industry to develop best practice rules of operation which include greater transparency and formal notification of the reason(s) for refusal or withdrawal of cover.
  • Insurers should be required to reinstate reduced or withdrawn cover back dated to 1 March 2020, except where there are clear and identifiable reasons as to why this would no longer be appropriate.
  • Government should now focus on ensuring all trade credit insurers have adjusted the basis on which they provide cover to reflect the particular challenges the pandemic is placing on the ‘Squeezed Middle’, – particularly their willingness to pay vs their short-term ability to pay as a result of Government-imposed operational restrictions.
  • Government should provide more targeted support for businesses that does not incur additional business debt e.g. a relaxation of current rules for Apprenticeship Levy funds to allow businesses to maintain existing employment.
  • Government should put in place ongoing capital and tax break allowances to maintain the workforce. These could be pro-rated depending on how many staff a company is able to keep employed.
  • A moratorium should be provided to allow monies due to local or central Government to remain in businesses to aid cash flow, until the hospitality industry fully reopens.
  • Governments should create schemes for small, medium and micro businesses that provide initial cashflow injections to businesses requiring support to secure orders for materials and/or build stock in readiness for the recovery of customer demand.

For those businesses who are predominantly supplying into the wider hospitality and foodservice, government urgently needs to ensure they are supported using similar mechanisms to those in place for other badly affected parts of the economy.

Without this support, the foodservice and hospitality cannot hope for a meaningful recovery post-coronavirus.

Farm Frites publishes annual sustainability report

Posted on by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

ENERGY CONSUMPTION, CARBON EMISSIONS AND WATER CONSUMPTION ON DOWNWARD TREND IN FARM FRITES’ LATEST SUSTAINABILITY REPORT

Farm Frites has published its annual sustainability report, covering the global production locations in the Netherlands, Belgium, Poland and Egypt and its sales organisations across the world.

Now in its fourth year, the Farm Frites Sustainability report tracks the company’s ambitious efforts to be recognised as an industry trailblazer by 2030.

This year’s figures reveal that the manufacturer’s KPIs are on track with a 4.6% reduction of natural gas and electricity consumption, 5% less carbon emissions per tonne of product and a reduction of water consumption by 8.7%.

CFO of the company, Mr. Muilenburg comments: “Sustainability at Farm Frites has always been on our radar as we live from the land. This means we need to take good care of it and the environment. We always understood the need to take responsibility for the impact that our business operations have on our surroundings. We are continuously researching, investing and partnering to become more sustainable.”

A new packaging strategy with ongoing goals was set in 2019 and a focus on sustainable farming through traceable and FSA certified potatoes was revealed. Farm Frites also signed the Science-Based Targets Commitment letter, which will align its carbon reduction plans to do what is necessary to combat climate change.

Farm Frites’ ambitions for the coming decade focus on the further reduction of energy consumption by 10% per tonne, increased share of renewable energy to 30% and reduction of carbon emissions per tonne product by 50%.

Mr. Muilenburg continues: “Each year the impact of climate change becomes more apparent. By 2030, Farm Frites wants to be recognised as the accelerator of sustainability in the potato chain, from farm to fork, by collaborations with farmers, customers and other stakeholders. We need to stay focused on the future, be ahead with developments and drive change where we can. This is a call on all of us, especially in these challenging times.”

View the full report online at sustainabilityreport2019.farmfrites.com

Contact us on  01452 415845, visit www.farmfrites.com or email supportuk@farmfrites.com