Unveiled to the trade in February 2008, the £6 million, 90,000sqft Liverpool Produce Terminal (LPT) created something of a stir across the fresh produce industry. Operated by Go-Associates and built by Mersey Docks and ICA, the project, which was originally due for completion in September, heralded a new way of supplying fruit and vegetables to the north of the country, in a bid to reduce the amount of trucks loaded with Spanish produce travelling the length and breadth of the UK.
One year later and the state-of-the-art terminal is now ready to go - but it would be fair to say there have been some fairly hefty teething problems to work around over the last 12 months, not least the delay in construction.
LPT’s general manager Eamonn Lynch and operations director Andy Rickard admit that they have struggled to fight international misconceptions about Liverpool and its geographical location, but it seems that the message is finally getting through to the global produce community. “The view of the shipping community about Liverpool’s location is that it is off the beaten track,” says Rickard. “People have a mindset that we are difficult to get to, but we have worked out the mileages and the steaming times and there are significant cost savings per pallet for customers wishing to deliver products to the north of the UK. The feedback we’re getting is that exporters would like an alternative in the UK to Felixstowe and Tilbury, so there is definitely a desire there to find cost savings.
“We do not have the congestion issues of other UK ports, and we have a much higher threshold for wind speed than some of them.”
The Liverpool facility has been built to handle breakbulk shipments, although there is a location for containers as well. “Containers are cheaper, but only if everything goes right,” says Rickard. “If anything goes wrong, shipping with containers can become more expensive than breakbulk.”
Last year, LPT largely targeted the Spanish export community, extolling the benefits of lower costs along the end-to-end supply chain, as well as the green benefits that shipping directly to the north of England would bring. “Regardless of all the sustainability rhetoric out there at the moment, cost is all that matters,” says Rickard. “The green benefits are there, but growers and exporters are looking at cost.”
But the terminal, which was originally due for completion in September to coincide with the start of the Spanish season, was simply not ready in time.
“The biggest problem was the steel contractor responsible for the framework and cladding of the building,” says Rickard. “That company delayed the build and, by the time we were ready to go in the run-up to Christmas, it was the wrong time of year to try to fill a vessel out of Spain. The timing was out the window - the focus for the supermarkets switches to 100 per cent availability at Christmas, as they want to keep customers loyal.”
Although Rickard and Lynch could see the delay coming, it was nonetheless a “huge disappointment” when everything fell through. “We had it all planned in terms of staff and the timing was awful,” says Rickard. “We did a lot of work with the terminal operator and we were pushing hard with the shipping lines, but it was too late to get the volumes in as the industry was too wrapped up with Christmas.”
The other factor affecting the opening of the terminal was the low volume coming out of Spain which, as has been well documented, is experiencing a difficult season. Many companies switched to sourcing from across the rest of the Mediterranean, says Rickard, and that combined with the fact that the building was not ready made it impossible to begin when originally planned.
But the disappointment does not mean that the LPT team has given up - quite the contrary. “Christmas was strange this year as there was a lot of time off,” says Rickard. “We took the chance to do a lot of work, sending out 4,000 email shots around the world - we wanted to get our information out there and let people know we exist.
“Now it is about linking countries of origin to Liverpool and breaking down the mindsets about where we are. We have worked out straightforward numbers on mileages and steaming time, and it is breaking down nicely. Spain still remains a target market but this season has gone, so we are looking at next season. We have put it on a bit of a back burner.
“But now we have taken the message about who we are and what we offer out to the rest of the world. We have a lot of meetings lined up at Fruit Logistica in Berlin, and a lot of people who want to come and visit the terminal on their way to or from the show.”
What Liverpool boasts is the best motorway infrastructure of any port in the UK, says Rickard. “All the other ports only have one good motorway link, but we have several. There is no other port in the UK with this infrastructure,” he says. “We are therefore closer to 30 million consumers than any of the ports in the South. It means that a lorry driver can go anywhere from here to Scotland in just one tacograph shift. We can take a lot of traffic off the road that drives up from the South to the North with produce.” There is also a population of 6m within a 30-mile radius of Liverpool, plus proximity to Ireland, which has another 6m consumers, adds Rickard.
One of LPT’s main goals is also to bring jobs to Liverpool and help the haulage industry in the UK. The terminal’s construction signals the return of fresh produce to the port after 35 years, following an unofficial strike at the port in 1969 that resulted in 8m bananas being dumped in the Irish Sea - an event that truly shook the produce industry’s confidence in the hub. But that conception has been turned on its head. “The support and enthusiasm for the project has been fantastic locally,” says Rickard. “The dock is the lifeblood of this city and having produce here is inevitable.”
Rickard and Lynch are also hearing a lot of encouraging noises from the trade, and certainly the level of interest in the port remains high. The LPT team is targeting suppliers, growers and brokers, and trying to assess who is responsible for actually shipping the goods in each individual circumstance. “From a Spanish point of view, there are a lot of different people involved, but the rest of the global produce industry uses freight forwarders,” says Rickard. “So just before Christmas we were targeting freight forwarders, logistics companies and ship owners, etc, on top of our list of growers, exporters, importers and end customers. The bottom line is that everyone needs to know you exist.”
The building is now ready to go. With phase one complete, phase two will be converting an existing quayside building into an adjacent packhouse, and phase three will be a further extension to the original building. The facility will employ 150 full-time staff, plus a further 120 on vessel discharge day - and that is not counting additional employees when the packhouse is complete. “Packhouses again have been historically based on the east coast and in the South East,” says Rickard. “So the idea is we could do some packing here rather than having to take produce down South to pack it before bringing it back up North. We will be in a position to do additional services, such as labelling and tray filling, even before the packhouse is ready.”
LPT’s design is based around the capability to discharge 200 pallets an hour, meaning it will take one day to discharge a 4,000-pallet vessel and 12 hours for a 2,000-pallet ship. “The throughput has been devised so we can handle up to 15,000 pallets a week,” explains Lynch.
The facilities at LPT are second to none, allowing swift discharge and despatch and eliminating room for error thanks to state-of-the-art scanners and handheld data terminals. The building houses four temperature-controlled chambers, each able to house 1,250 pallets. “We are immensely proud of this,” says Lynch. “Our systems make the operators’ lives so much easier and mean that stock loss, which is a problem at some other ports, will not be a problem here. We are itching to get going.”
Rickard adds: “We have the ability to build extra despatch bays if necessary and to build a flow rack and double our throughput if we need to. We have also designed the building so that we can extend it - the steelwork is already in place.”
When the post-Panamax river container terminal being constructed at Liverpool is completed in 2011, further new avenues will also be opened up for LPT. “It means that we will be situated in the middle of the container traffic coming into the port,” says Rickard.
The Fresh Produce Consortium (FPC) took a delegation of its members to tour the new facility in November, a well-attended visit from which the LPT team drew some excellent feedback. The visitors consisted of importers, logistics firms and other port operators. “Having the support of the FPC is very important,” says Rickard. “There are a lot of players in the industry and it is useful to have organisations such as the FPC channelling those lines of communication.”
Lynch adds: “The facility changes people’s mindsets when they see it. This has been a busy time and there have been a lot of visits, but support for LPT is still here, despite the delays.
“The produce industry is all about care and providing a quality solution. Our facility will be known for getting it right and high visibility through the excellent technology we have in place. Everyone wants to know that you are going to look after their goods.”
Staff have been trained to a high degree, and Rickard says that matching the fast-paced demands of the perishable industry is paramount. “We have got to make sure that what we offer is right,” he says. “This is, after all, a warehouse, with anything between 150 and 300 trucks all turning up in one go. We have got to handle that efficiently and look after people’s goods. If you get that right, then customers will come back.”
IN IT FOR THE LONG HAUL
Although the number of traders at Liverpool’s fruit and vegetable wholesale market has declined over the years, the remaining businesses are standing their ground and are prepared to tackle the credit crunch head on. Laura Gould paid them a visit.
French firm Geraud Markets has run Liverpool’s fruit and vegetable wholesale market since 2003, following an agreement signed with Liverpool City Council. While the number of traders working on the site has dwindled since its grand opening in 1969 and two of the site’s four blocks now stand more or less empty, there remains a dedicated group of companies in the market who are confident they can overcome what is bound to be a tough trading year.
Steve Webster is regional manager for Total Produce in the North and the North West, dealing with Manchester, Birmingham, Stoke, Wigan and Wolverhampton wholesale markets, as well as being general manager of Total Produce Liverpool.
Total Produce handles around a third of the produce coming in to the 20-acre Edge Lane site, accounting for £20 million of the market’s £60m turnover. The firm also holds a third of the occupied space in the market. “At the start of 2007, Redbridge merged with Total Produce and all of that firm’s staff are now employed by Total Produce,” says Webster. “Our acquisitions on Liverpool market have taken place over a number of years, but buying Redbridge was a big leap. We incorporated Woodsco before that and bought some vegetable and salad specialists five to six years ago. It has been a constant build-up of business here - as various companies have closed we have had a tendency to be first in the door to take on key staff and salesmen, and that has been successful. We have also been pro-active in acquisitions.”
Total Produce now has 70 staff at Liverpool market, and Webster describes the business as “well-run and very successful”.
“Over the last 20 years, companies have gone out of business in Liverpool because of the demise of the general wholesale sector in the UK and the rise of the supermarkets,” he says.
“But this market is constantly evolving and one of the key reasons for Total Produce’s success is that its core staff are from a younger generation, so we have found it easier to adapt to changes in the wholesale trade.
“There is quite an issue within the industry - porters used to be young so they would eventually become salesmen, but today it is increasingly difficult for a porter to become a salesman. We do have an ageing staff, but by and large it is built around a core of younger people. We have a settled staff and that is really good for the business.
“One of the things with the wholesale business is that it is relatively well-paid because of the unsocial hours, etc. So if they are capable and hardworking, a lot of guys in the market can make a very good career for themselves. We have a lot of long-term employees and that has been key to building a successful business, so they get rewarded properly.”
Martin Halliwell, manager at JV White, explains how his company has been based at the market since it opened and he has been manager for 20 years, taking the reins from his father before him. The firm handles a wide range of fruits and vegetables and also operates its own import department for six months of the year, bringing in salads and tomatoes from the Canary Islands. Customers include independent retailers and catering services.
Many years ago, JV White was a Birmingham-based business, but when Liverpool became the main port for Canary Islands produce, the firm opened a branch at Edge Lane - which is when Halliwell’s father got involved. However, imports from the Canary Islands are now delivered to Southampton - more than 200 miles from Liverpool. But logistically, it is not a problem getting the produce up North from Southampton, says Halliwell. “The set-up there is very good and the cool chain transfer is fine,” he explains.
The growth of the multiples over the last 10-15 years has put paid to a lot of businesses on Liverpool market, says Halliwell, but those that are left are “going strong”, along with the independent retail customers who are still in business.
“Everybody has been preparing for a tough 12 months but nobody knows what will happen,” he says. “So far, sales have been very consistent and seasonal as usual.”
The main advantage of being a wholesaler at Liverpool is the market’s huge catchment area, says Halliwell. “We have customers all the way from North Wales to Cumbria, as well as in Manchester and Stoke,” he explains.
JV White has 30 employees, and the firm will be “sitting tight” at the moment. “My attitude to fresh produce is that people will always eat and we have got to do a big push on healthy eating,” says Halliwell. “I think we have stabilised at the moment.”
Since Geraud Markets took over the site, there has been substantial talk of relocating to a new site or redeveloping on the existing location - but the talks are still going on and not much evidence of a resolution has appeared. “Everyone would like a new market,” admits Halliwell. “But the main thing is we all feel there is a future in wholesale. We have a good catchment area here and we would like a new modern unit on this site. We feel it is worth investing in. There is overall a nice atmosphere on this market. We are all in competition, but it is a healthy competition and everyone gets on.”
The market does need investment, admits Webster, but talks have been ongoing for 10 years now. “Geoff Wells as president of the tenants’ association communicates very well for us. From a financial perspective, we will have to redevelop here rather than move to another site. This is a good enough location and there are certain covenants on this land that mean it can only be used for a certain purpose - it cannot be used for housing so doesn’t have a massive land value. The council has also intimated to us that it would make space available for redevelopment.”
Gerry Kearney, manager of flower wholesaler Charles White, says his firm is more than 100 years old. It used to sell fruit and flowers, but seven years ago transferred its focus entirely to flowers. “We were a fruit business selling flowers but then we switched to become a flower business selling fruit,” he says. “I bought the business six years ago, but have been at the firm for 32 years.”
The company sources a wide range of plants and flowers from Dutch and UK growers, and counts florists, secondary wholesalers and good fruit and vegetable shops among its clients.
A decade ago there were 13 flower traders in the market - today, there are just three, Kearney explains. But despite flowers being talked about as one of the first purchases to go from consumers’ shopping lists as the credit crunch bites, he reports that Christmas was encouraging. “The sales rush came a bit late, just two or three days before Christmas, but we did sell a lot of made-up bouquets and our customers were pleased,” he says. “The mild weather also helped sales.
“It won’t be easy in the next year as people are definitely more price-conscious, but we have three big targets coming up - Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day and Easter.”
Gary Almond Produce Merchants Ltd started life 27 years ago. Managing director Gary Almond explains how his father was a salad grower who used to sell on a stand outside the market. The firm now handles vegetables, salads and potatoes, as well as recently introducing exotic fruits, and also runs a catering branch called Almond Catering Supplies. Gary Almond supplies independent retailers, secondary wholesalers and caterers.
“We have very good links to the rest of the country and the atmosphere here is good, but the site does need to be modernised with new units,” admits Almond. “We have seen businesses closing and fewer buyers are coming to the market now, but business has transferred to deliveries and phone orders. The clients are still there, but they are not coming to the market as much.”
There is not a “feel-good” factor on the market, admits Webster, although business is pretty steady. “We have a good business, but it is increasingly not hugely busy on the floor.”
There is not an enormous catering business in Liverpool, continues Webster, compared to bigger cities such as Birmingham and Manchester. “But the European Capital of Culture 2008 title did bring in investment and development to the city - there were new buildings going up when Liverpool was awarded the title. There were a lot of tourists through the city last year so inevitably there were some benefits to the wholesalers,” he says.
“However, all the rules have changed now because of the recession, and it is impacting from a number of directions. First, credit insurers are being very hard on who they will insure; and second, customers operating on overdrafts are having these decreased or withdrawn. From a certain perspective, because we are selling food we are insulated a bit from the recession, but the first two issues will definitely affect the way we are trading.
“All we have heard for 20 years is how bad the wholesale sector is - so it is difficult to know when it will be really bad. Total Produce is on the back of five or six record years. If we, as a body of wholesale market people, have an excuse to complain we will take it. But it is true that of late, the market does seem to be at a particularly low ebb.
“Another key factor affecting wholesale is the weakness of sterling, which is having an enormous impact on all imports now. We are paying more for products coming in so our prices are higher, and it means our independent retail customer base is faced with higher cost prices. It helps independent retailers if they have the impression of being cheap, but they are paying prices for produce that make it difficult for them to compete. Added to that, the supermarkets are under pressure to grow and are continually discounting. So it is a whole bad news situation at the moment.”
But Webster insists that the businesses left trading in Liverpool’s wholesale market are “very professional”, and have already survived 20 years of contraction and come through the other side. “Total Produce is trying to make its business as strong and successful as possible,” he says. “You have to be very switched on and you just have to grasp the opportunities available. We are on a steady climb here in terms of turnover and profitability and it is important that we keep expanding the business here in Liverpool.
“We will be doing things to move this branch forward and to keep the momentum going, and that may mean more acquisitions and mergers in the future.”
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Family business Hurst Brothers is owned by Ian and Robert Hurst and was started by their grandfather and his three brothers.
“We mainly do vegetables and get fruit in for our deliveries,” says Ian. “We send produce to North Wales and have three wagons going to Lincolnshire bringing back produce. There are 16 vehicles in the fleet overall.”
NORTH WEST ENJOYS FRESH PRODUCE STATUS
Merseyside makes up a key hub for the fresh produce industry, well positioned both to receive imports from overseas and to grow its own lines. Jackie Annett caught up with some businesses based in the area to find out more about what is happening there.
PRESCOTT’S PUSHES LOCAL FORWARD
Merseyside is an important market for Prescott Farm Produce. FPJ spoke to Ronnie Prescott, the third generation of Prescott’s to run the family farm in Ormskirk.
What fresh produce is Merseyside famous for?
The region and the surrounding counties of Lancashire and Cheshire are known for growing carrots and potatoes. The region’s soil is fantastic, which gives these vegetables a better chance of being blemish-free. Because the land can also be sandy and we have good access to irrigation, it means that broccoli, cauliflower and carrots often come into season two or three weeks earlier than other counties, giving us a head-start over the rest of the country.
Tell me about Prescott Farm Produce and the work you do in the Merseyside area?
We are a family-run business based in Ormskirk, Lancashire, where we have a farm and a wholesale business. My grandfather started the business, and my two brothers run the farm side of the business, so it is a real family affair. We also have a wholesale business at Edge Lane Market in Liverpool, where we sell good-quality cabbage, potatoes and carrots - most green vegetables, in fact. We sell the whole range of vegetables and 50 per cent of what we sell is grown on our own farm. But we also import vegetables from other UK counties and foreign countries when they are not in season here. We import cauliflower from France and Cornwall, as well as broccoli and salads from Spain. In fact, we bring in vegetables from wherever we need to if they are not in season in this country.
What fresh produce do you supply to the Merseyside area?
We supply the region with all the vegetables grown on our farm and the ones we import. Our business started out as a farm that grew local produce, but we later expanded to cover imports of fruit and vegetables that are not available all year round in this country. So if we need to, we import vegetables from abroad. But it is important to support the local community by providing local whenever possible.
How important is Merseyside as a market?
It is extremely important to us. It accounts for half of our sales, which equates to £1.5 million every year. Our catchment area starts in mid-Wales and extends to Cornwall, but 50 per cent of our custom comes from Merseyside, or within a 20-mile radius of the market in Edge Lane.
Who are your customers?
We sell our vegetables to small shops, restaurants and secondary wholesalers. Our main business is focused on local produce and we try to support the local community wherever we can.
What are the main issues affecting the fresh produce supply chain?
The euro is having a massive impact on our business at the moment. Not only is there a shortage of imported vegetables, but these are also very expensive when they are available. It is a shame that in times like these we cannot just focus on the local side of our business. But we can’t do this, as we need to supply other produce that is not in season in the UK.
Has the economic climate affected business?
It is starting to affect us. In the last two weeks, our restaurant orders have fallen slightly. People are eating out less. But it is hard to say, as January is typically a very quiet month for us, so things will probably pick up.
WEST LANCS GOES EXOTIC
Smithy Mushrooms is situated in the heart of West Lancashire, where it supplies exotic mushrooms to Merseyside and beyond. Here, director John Dorrian talks about the firm.
Tell me about Smithy Mushrooms.
Smithy Mushrooms was established in 1989. I started working for the company 18 years ago and I now have a team of 32 people who are dedicated members of staff, helping me develop the business. It covers three acres of land and has 26 growing rooms. We have a working ethos that celebrates teamwork. And because of the popularity of mushrooms, we have developed our growing techniques to be able to supply fresh exotic mushrooms year round.
What different types of mushrooms do you grow?
We grow a wide range of exotic mushrooms, including Shiitake, Grey, Yellow and Pink Oyster mushrooms, King Oyster, Black Poplar and Pholiota Nameko. We supply all varieties of wild mushrooms when in season. All wild mushrooms are available out of season in dried form. We currently grow three to four tonnes of Shiitake and five to six tonnes of Oyster mushrooms each week.
What are your best sellers?
Our best sellers are our Shiitake mushrooms grown in the UK and available countrywide in Tesco stores and locally in Booths supermarkets. We also supply ready meal companies, wholesale markets, restaurants, hotels, farmers’ markets and local food shows. Over the last year, we have invested £300,000 in new growing rooms to keep up with the increasing demand for UK-grown Shiitake mushrooms. While our competitors have opted for the easy option by importing Shiitake from China, Smithy Mushrooms caters for the demand for British products.
How much is the UK mushroom market worth?
It is a multi-million pound business. Our last market analysis showed that we have a fair share of the market, but it is difficult to put into percentage terms. Other companies are reluctant to give out their figures, but at Smithy Mushrooms we do not dwell too much on the competition. Our turnover exceeds £2.5 million. The buying experience from Smithy has to be outrageously good; satisfactory to us just doesn’t cut it.
Is Merseyside and the surrounding area well known for its mushrooms?
Merseyside and Lancashire are famous for home-grown produce, with farms producing vegetables, as well as mushrooms. The more famous vegetable is local asparagus, which as a dish goes particularly well sautéed with Porcini mushrooms - add some garlic, and you have an epicurean delight on our doorstep.
Do you market your offer as local?
Yes, we do market some of our mushrooms as local because it is important for the consumer to know where the produce comes from.
We sell to the whole of the UK and have several clients buying from abroad. We are in a central location close to all major motorway networks. This allows us to deliver mushrooms anywhere in the country.
Do you import mushrooms from other countries?
We try to offer our customers the chance to buy mushrooms from all over the world. Any variety of mushrooms that cannot be cultivated at home, we source from around the world.
Your online sales site is very impressive. When did you set this up and how has it helped business?
The website went live in 2006 because we wanted to offer the public a home delivery service for all wild and exotic mushrooms. Thanks to celebrity chefs using a wide variety of what we call wild and exotic mushrooms, these types are becoming more popular. Consumers are not just sticking with conventional white mushrooms; they are being more adventurous and trying new textures and flavours.
What issues are affecting mushroom supply at the moment?
Delivery is costing more because fuel prices have rocketed. The actual cost of growing mushrooms has increased with the credit crunch, but we are trying to contain the extra costs by putting out top-quality products to encourage continual custom.
How important is Merseyside as a market?
Merseyside is our home market and we love to do business with local people. It keeps the job fun. Once you start selling from websites, you can easily lose the personal touch, but we are aware that the popularity of our mushrooms means that we are doing business remotely.
MERSEYSIDE STRIKES A CHORD FOR FRESH DIRECT
Fresh Direct consists of a number of regional hubs throughout the UK, which provide its customers with local, seasonal produce. FPJ spoke to Boyd Park about the company’s presence in the North West.
When Fresh Direct and Parkfresh realised they were both finalists in the Bank of Scotland 2007 Entrepreneur Challenge, the two directors began to talk. And in April 2008 - just a month before each business scooped the Re:fresh National and Regional Foodservice Suppliers of the Year awards respectively - these talks resulted in Parkfresh director Boyd Park selling his business to Fresh Direct in a bid to expand the company.
“The Bank of Scotland’s challenge is a major national competition and it was only by coincidence that we realised we were both in the fresh fruit and veg industry,” says Park. “Parkfresh was a finalist in the North West division, while Fresh Direct held the same position for the South. I had gone as far as I could go in the North, supplying schools, restaurants and hotels. I was looking for a new challenge.”
The next step was to open other depots in England. Selling to Fresh Direct - a big player - seemed like the perfect solution.
Today, the national company with a regional focus is expanding quickly. With bases in Skelmersdale, Bicester, Oxford and Cambridge, the company is able to ensure that Merseyside restaurants, hotels and schools are supplied with carrots and potatoes from down the road.
Not only does this help regional sourcing gain momentum, it also keeps costs low by running up fewer food miles. And since April, the firm has opened new sites in Glasgow, Evesham, Dubai and Paris - and is looking for several more sites in the UK.
“By having so many sites, we are able to promote and sell local produce to all regions - not just Merseyside,” says Park, who is now a business development manager at Fresh Direct. “It is important that local chefs put local produce on the menus, and consumers are realising the importance of buying local and supporting the local economy.”
The company prides itself on its belief that local is best; it will even spend a penny or two more on local produce, because it believes that it is vital to support local farmers and economies. “The whole ethos of Fresh Direct is to supply local produce to the local businesses in that area,” says Park. “We are a national company, but we are different to most in the fact that we work on a local level. And we actually practise what we preach.”
Fresh Direct supplies a wide range of fruit, vegetables, salad, herbs and mushrooms throughout the UK. Merseyside and the surrounding counties of Lancashire and Cheshire have a strong farming community and are renowned for their asparagus, carrots and potatoes.
“Formby asparagus is the best in the country,” says Park. “We buy everything we can from local farms. But we cannot do this with bananas and lemons, for example, as they are not grown in the UK.”
Merseyside’s soil is perfect for growing asparagus and in the surrounding areas of Lancashire there are lots of greenhouses where salads, tomatoes, lettuce and cucumber are harvested. In the summer, Lancashire is also known for its soft fruits, strawberries in particular. The county enjoys mild weather as it is sheltered by the Pennines.
“People are becoming more aware of the importance of buying local produce and supporting the local economy,” says Park. “Given the choice, people prefer to eat food that is sourced from within just a few miles. Because it is fresher, it tastes better. But it is also environment-friendly, as it results in fewer food miles. We may sometimes have to spend a little more to support our local farms, but sourcing locally helps to keep costs down because we don’t have to travel as far.”
Fresh Direct supplies most of the major pub, hotel and restaurant chains. But with an annual turnover exceeding £100 million, is the company worried about the current recession?
“The credit crunch has not really affected us,” says Park. “Our customers are buying a little less compared to this time last year, but they are still coming to us because of the service we offer.”
The company buys local where it can, but it has to import from other countries when the produce is not in season in the UK. At this time of year in particular, Fresh Direct is importing a lot of produce from all over the world. “The euro is making everything more expensive,” says Park. “Every single item is costing more and this is making life difficult. But that said, the high price of fuel has actually helped us, as buying local helps to keep fuel costs down.”
The company has recently opened a Dubai site after realising that a lot of English chefs are moving there for work and their demand for fresh produce was not being met. To meet these requirements, Fresh Direct now exports fruit and veg to Dubai on a daily basis.
Park is very excited about the future, especially because of the new fruit terminal that is set to open at the Port of Liverpool. This will allow Fresh Direct to import directly into Liverpool, instead of importing produce into the South and arranging for it to be driven up.
“This is great news for us,” Park says. “We will be able to import fruit directly into Liverpool. We are extremely optimistic about the future and will continue to focus on providing quality local produce to the UK and beyond.”
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