Page 232 — British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF)

BRITISH FROZEN FOOD FEDERATION (BFFF) VISITS NATIONAL CENTRE FOR FOOD MANUFACTURING (NCFM)

Posted on March 30, 2023 by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

Denise Rion and Rupert Ashby from the British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF) recently visited NCFM. The visit included a tour of the site and a look at developing advanced technologies for use in the food supply chain including robotics. They also met Professor Val Braybrooks, Professor Mark Swainson and Professor Janet Bellamy from NCFM, David May from the Lincoln Institute of AgriFood Technology (LIAT), Simon Dwyer of the Seafood Grimsby and Humber Alliance (SGHA) and Martin Collison of the UK Food Valley team at Greater Lincolnshire LEP. Discussions centred on the continued growth of the frozen and cold chains in the food sector and how the growth can be sustained. This includes the potential to work collaboratively on applied R&D, deliver industry updating and skills courses and work to promote the case for the cold chain with government.

The UK Food Valley team stressed that they expect to see substantial growth in the cold chain, logistics and frozen foods sector and that for this reason it is one of three food sector growth priorities in Greater Lincolnshire. With major investments from Magnavale at Easton to build on its site in Scunthorpe, HSH Cold Stores and Lineage both in Grimsby and Americold in Spalding, as well as many smaller developments by food and farming businesses, Greater Lincolnshire is seeing a lot of investment in the cool chain. It is very keen to see this continue and to work with the BFFF and its members to support continued growth.

To connect with the UK Food Valley please visit: UK Food Valley | Greater Lincolnshire LEP

Menopause – Raising Awareness in the Workplace

Posted on March 29, 2023March 29, 2023 by Sarah Collison

It’s important to remember that the menopause is normal and that support should be available to help you at work.

Menopausal women are the fastest-growing demographic in the workforce, so it’s important now more than ever to be able to speak openly about menopause at work.

Menopause can affect a woman’s working life. Sometimes menopausal symptoms or working conditions can impact your ability to concentrate or carry out your role to the best of your ability.

In a survey of 1,000 adults in the UK, the British Menopause Society found that 45% of women felt that menopausal symptoms had a negative impact on their work and 47% who needed to take a day off work due to menopause symptoms say they wouldn’t tell their employer the real reason.

Many women have said that they often find managing their menopause symptoms in the workplace very challenging. Coping with symptoms in the workplace can be hard, especially as many women find it difficult to talk about menopause at work.

Menopause has become an important issue for employers of all sizes, with unions and employment organisations calling for more support for women adversely affected by menopause symptoms. Although the issues around menopause, the lack of research and impact on daily life had begun to appear in the mainstream media previously, it was Davina McCall’s Channel 4 documentary in 2022 “Sex, Mind and the Menopause”, which created a shift in the way the subject was treated in the UK. The resulting open conversation in society instigated action by the government, employers and others.

While the menopause is becoming more talked about in the workplace, we still have some way to go – with the CIPD reporting that 59% of women experiencing menopausal symptoms said it had a negative impact on them at work.

What’s more, nearly a third of women surveyed said they had taken sick leave due to their symptoms, but only a quarter of them felt able to disclose the real reason for their absence. Unions and employment organisations are calling for more support for women adversely affected by menopause symptoms.

Barbour have created a guide for businesses to refer to outlining Legal requirements, Policies, Culture and Training. Barbour Menopause and the workplace Guide

The Government have also released a Policy Paper with more useful information; Menopause and the Workplace: How to enable fulfilling working lives: government response – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

THE NIGHT FOR THE FROZEN FOOD INDUSTRY TO ATTEND

Posted on March 29, 2023April 12, 2023 by Neesha Ramsingh-Cleary

Every year frozen buyers, brands, manufacturers and producers come together in June, for the annual Gala Dinner Dance. Hundreds of frozen products enter the British Frozen Food Awards from both retail and foodservice sectors, all wanting to take home the unique accolade of Frozen Food Product of the Year.

The night for inspiration
Guests will have the opportunity to network with 500+ industry professionals, taste delicious food and drink, experience the live announcements from the highly regarded British Frozen Food Awards and enjoy live entertainment.

The night for innovation
The event offers an exciting opportunity to see the latest NPD from the frozen food industry with Buyers and NPD teams regularly attending the Gala Dinner Dance to discover the products winning the prestigious awards.

The night for a double celebration
The British Frozen Food Federation is in its 75^th year and so are celebrating in style with red carpet, glitz and glamour. For the second year running the BFFF Gala Dinner Dance will be held at the historic, Grade II listed Brewery on Chiswel Street.

This is a BFFF member-only event and tickets are available to purchase online.*

If you are not a member and interested in attending the Gala Dinner Dance please get in touch with the British Frozen Food Federation.

*Make sure you are logged into your full BFFF member website login to purchase the tickets.

SAMWORTH BROTHERS EYES DRAMATIC FUEL SAVINGS WITH THERMO KING ADVANCER A400 UNITS FROM MARSHALL FLEET SOLUTIONS

Posted on March 29, 2023 by

Samworth Brothers, a major UK food producer behind iconic brands such as Ginsters pasties and Soreen malt loaf, is taking steps towards reducing the fuel usage of its refrigerated trailer fleet by upwards of 33% per unit by introducing ultra-efficient Thermo King Advancer A400 refrigeration systems supplied by Marshall Fleet Solutions.

As a company with a strong commitment to its environmental responsibilities, Samworth Brothers made fuel efficiency a key priority when planning its latest fleet upgrade. The first order of Advancer A400 units has been delivered following an extensive process of consultations, trials and reviews of various options over the course of several months. The units have been installed by Marshall Fleet Solutions onto single temperature trailers supplied by Gray & Adams.

With a fleet comprising roughly 270 trailers that travel the length and breadth of the country, Samworth Brothers’ supply chain business provides temperature-controlled distribution services to companies both internally to group companies and to external food manufacturers, retailers and other distributors. Given the scale and intensive nature of this operation, improvements in fuel efficiency will unlock meaningful opportunities for reduction in the company’s overall environmental footprint.

To that end, Marshall Fleet Solutions provided Samworth Brothers with several opportunities to test the efficiency of the Thermo King Advancer A400: in addition to a live fuel-saving demonstration which demonstrated upwards of 33% fuel saving per trailer per year, Samworth Brothers conducted its own very successful two-week trial with a demo trailer

“We appreciated the chance to trial the Thermo King Advancer A400 ourselves, and were extremely impressed with its performance,” said Samworth Brothers Supply Chain General Manager Alistair Leckie. “As we work towards our Net Zero committments, the level of efficiency achieved by the A400 will make a very meaningful difference for us. Likewise, in a period of prolonged increases in fuel prices and overall running costs, a 33% fuel saving is truly transformative.”

Marshall Fleet Solutions National Sales Manager Maria D’Andrea commented: “From welcoming the Samworth team to our new flagship depot in Tamworth to trialling the A400 demo trailer over an extended period, creating this new and exciting partnership has been a highly rewarding process from start to finish.

“We are delighted to be able to provide one of the UK’s leading food producers with the latest ultra-efficient refrigeration systems, and we are also proud of our ability to maintain all of these new units with 24/7/365 support from our nationwide service network.”

To learn more about Marshall Fleet Solutions’ comprehensive range of industry-leading truck and trailer product solutions specifically designed for the UK transport temperature control industry, click here.

BIRDS EYE’S GREEN CUISINE BRAND PARTNERS WITH TEAM GB AHEAD OF PARIS 2024 OLYMPIC GAMES

Posted on March 29, 2023 by Pete.Johnson@birdseye.co.uk

Birds Eye Green Cuisine is proud to become an Official Partner of Team GB ahead of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, supporting the team for a second time, as it continues its mission to make plant-based foods accessible to all.

Following the success of their previous partnership in 2020, the collaboration will see Green Cuisine help to educate the nation on the health and nutritional benefits of plant-based food as well as supporting Team GB’s drive for environmental sustainability. As part of this collaboration, the brand will work alongside Team GB athletes to raise awareness of how including plant-based products in your diet can help the health of both ourselves and the planet.

The partnership will also build upon Birds Eye Green Cuisine’s ‘Welcome to the Plant Age’ campaign, which saw the brand empower kids to challenge people to think again about how accessible flexitarian diets can be. Spearheading the partnership will be a new education programme for children, which will also educate parents and teachers on how easy, tasty and nutritious it can be to incorporate plant-based options into everyday meals. Green Cuisine will be directing its attention at primary schools around the country through Team GB and Paralympics GB’s youth engagement programme ‘Get Set’, after a Birds Eye Green Paper Report showed that over a third (34%) of children have asked an adult if they could eat a meal that doesn’t include any meat[1].

Originally created as the official education programme for London 2012, ‘Get Set’ now offers a broad programme of free, cross-curricular resources and activities for schools and community groups across the nation. Team GB and Green Cuisine have now joined forces to launch ‘Get Set to Go Green’, a new always-on activation programme designed to empower children aged 7-11 to explore sustainability and advocate green, healthy habits, particularly as 92% of the children from Green Cuisine’s report agreed that it’s everyone’s responsibility to look after the planet. ‘Get Set to Go Green’ aims to reach over 25,000 primary school teachers during 2023 and 2024, providing them with 18 downloadable ideas, including videos full of ‘Get Curious’ activities and ‘Go Green’ challenges to support them with lesson content.

Victoria Westwood, UK & IRE Marketing Cluster Lead at Green Cuisine, said “We are proud to be an Official Partner of Team GB again – continuing our mission to make plant-based foods accessible to all. Team GB athletes perform to the highest standards possible, and we want consumers to recognise, through this partnership, how the nutritional value of plant-based foods can help them perform to their highest standards in their day-to-day lives as well. This partnership offers us a golden opportunity to highlight the benefits of a flexitarian lifestyle for the good of ourselves and the planet, and allows us to go one step further and deliver a united sustainability strategy.”

“Green Cuisine is now in its fourth year and worth £17.3m. With plant-based consumption set to explode to five times its current size over the next 15 years[2], we are committed to helping consumers and retail partners recognise the benefits of the category and educate them on its relevance and the role it has to play in the health of both the planet and ourselves.”

Tim Ellerton, Commercial Director at Team GB, says “We are incredibly proud to continue working with Green Cuisine as we head towards Paris 2024. Environmental sustainability is a huge focus for us at Team GB, so working with Green Cuisine to bring to life our work in sustainability is a great step forward. We look forward to working together to showcase the environmental benefits of opting for plant-based foods, as well as empowering children to build green, healthy habits.”

Green Cuisine has successfully drawn increasing numbers of shoppers to the growing category, with 8.6% of the total UK population having bought our products in the last year[3]. As the UK’s top-selling frozen food company[4], Birds Eye is excited to be investing behind the brand and has firmly established Green Cuisine as a top choice in the plant-based sector.

[1] Birds Eye Green Cuisine Green Paper, based on a report of 1,000 children aged 6-12 and their parents

[2] Consumption of plant-based food projections in millions of tons

[3] Kantar Worldpanel 22nd Jan 2023

[4] Nielsen, total coverage, total defined frozen, value sales, MAT L52wks w/e 13.08.22

Driving For Better Business – Find Your Gaps

Posted on March 29, 2023November 7, 2025 by Sarah Collison

Driving for Better Business is a free programme with online tools and resources to help you demonstrate leadership in the management and reduction of work-related road risk.

The Driving for Better Business Gap Analysis tool is now part of the all-new Driving for Better Business Portal.

The free Driving for Better Business Portal and personalised Dashboard allow you to track your progress through the 7 Steps to Better Driver Management and get recommendations to help you improve road risk in your organisation. It allows you, and other colleagues if required, to access all the online tools and to share resources with your drivers.

As a fleet and transport professional you can access your free Gap Analysis here. FIND YOUR GAPS (You can start your Gap Analysis now and to save and return to it at a later date if you need to).

You’ll receive regular reminders, and your data remains safe until you are ready to download your completed assessment and move on to the next stage of the 7 steps to better driver management

If you employ drivers, you can now access our free training & support resources for your drivers. Get started for free here: Van Driver Toolkit

A few reasons to become a member of BFFF

To find out more about becoming a member call 01400 283 095 or email the team

Join BFFF

Member profile on BFFF website

Free BFFF Member List

Free listing in the annual Member Directory

Access to latest industry news and information

Weekly newsletter, press and media opportunities

Press and media opportunities

Marketing, sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities

Networking via opportunities at BFFF events

Free market data provided by Circana and World Panel

Access to industry specialists

Expert guidance from Technical and Health & Safety teams

Access to Primary Authority schemes and assured advice

H&S Audit Service/Advice

Free access to HR and legal guidance and advice line

Training and Education

Member Benefits

Exclusive Partnership deals on key products and services:

BFFF energy deals and rates
Vypr member deals and introduction
Defib Plus deals
Company Shop – membership
Mentor – MHE training health check

Exclusive access to networking opportunities and events:

Meet the Buyer events (retail & foodservice)
Annual Business Conference with networking dinner
Specialist H&S and Technical Conferences
Special interest groups (packaging, frozen food temperatures)
Annual Lunch
Awards Night

Become a member

Sponsorship Packages

We offer a range of sponsorship opportunities to BFFF members across our events throughout the year, with flexible packages that can be tailored to suit your business objectives.

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what our members say...

Helen Atkinson

Wakefield Council

“What an amazing piece of work and indicative of how BFFF respond to the concerns of their members and make an impact on the whole industry sector.”

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Paul Duncalf

Sysco

“You guys really ‘Do The Right Thing’ for the good of the industry”

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Co-CEO Dries Talpe

Darta

“The BFFF awards night is becoming an “appointment not to miss” on our calendar and we again enjoyed it immensely together with lots of well-known people from our industry. The…

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Lewis Kain

Kantar Worldpanel

“The Business Conference was an excellent day that was very well organised and allowed so many likeminded individuals in the room to learn so much more around the Frozen industry….

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Gail Hodson - Technical Director

Lakeside Food Group Ltd

“This Not For EU labelling situation alarmed us and quickly became a major worry to our business. These are times when you really rely on some support and from previous…

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Domenic Granelli - Financial Controller

Meadow Vale Foods Limited

“We had a few questions with respect to the new EPR waste packaging legislative changes. I know some of my colleagues have been assisted by BFFF in the past so…

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Dave Griffiths, General Manager

Newberry International Produce Ltd

“I am writing to express my heartfelt gratitude for the outstanding event you organised. I have only worked in this sector for the past nineteen months coming from twenty-five years…

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Liam, Commerical Director

Place UK Ltd

“The BFFF 2024 Conference was compelling and thought provoking, with a many relevant and interesting topics covered at great pace and some depth by excellent speakers – will certainly attend…

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Peter Bambury

Roswel Spedition GMBH

“Thank you and the team for rushing around so brilliantly before, during and after the conference. It was pleasure to be part of the conference.”

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Alexandre Alves De Mattos

Seara

“The event was great, in my opinion. Not only it was very well organised, but the venue and the catering were excellent too. Furthermore, the content of the presentations was…

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