Chris Mack 2008 Fresca Group

Chris Mack, Fresca Group

UK-based Mack Multiples is on course to establish itself as a leading supplier of fresh berries, according to executive chairman Chris Mack, who told Eurofruit Magazine the company’s berry business could be worth £50m (€62.6m) “in the medium-term” as demand for the fruit, and particularly for locally produced product, continues to grow.

Last week, Mack’s parent company Fresca Group acquired a 40 per cent stake in Wallings Nursery, one of the UK’s largest growers of glasshouse strawberries, which supplies early and late-season English strawberries to UK multiple retailers.

“We regard the berry business as a substantial and dynamic category and one in which we want to be involved,' said Mr Mack. While the majority shareholding in Wallings remains with its management team, Mack Multiples is now responsible for marketing its production.