Lanarkshire food manufacturer Border Biscuits has scooped a national food manufacturing award.
Border was named as the UK’s best biscuit producer in the Food Manufacturing Excellence Awards 2012 (FMEA) – the Oscars of the food and drink manufacturing sector.
The firm won the prestigious award, Cakes and Biscuits Company of the Year, at a glittering gala dinner at London’s Park Lane Hilton on November 5.
Its achievements were recognised in front of hundreds of industry guests last night as Border Biscuits Jim Burt received the awards trophy. He was joined on stage by the awards presenter TV celebrity chef Simon Rimmer who hosts Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch.
Big company values
The award judges − led by Paul Wilkinson, who chairs the food and drink sector skills council Improve − praised Border Biscuits as a small business with big company values. It has demonstrated extreme flexibility in responding to changing market needs.
“For a relatively small company, it is doing some quite groundbreaking developments projects. They are doing a lot of things, which small companies don’t usually,” they said.
The company is proud of its high quality and business success, which is“predicated on a strong community ethos”, noted the judges.
Not afraid to change products when sales failed to meet expectations, Border demonstrated its adaptability in the face of market need. “The results speak for themselves with a redesign in packaging in case increasing sales by a whopping 73%,” said the judges.
11 manufacturing categories
Prizes were awarded across 11 manufacturing categories, from best ambient and general groceries to best seafood supplier.
Rick Pendrous, Editor of Food Manufacture, said: “The Food Manufacturing Excellence Awards recognise and reward the UK’s very best food and drink manufacturing companies, of which Border Biscuits is clearly one. We congratulate the firm on achieving the very highest standards in a very challenging market.”
The winner fought off stiff competition from short-listed firms: Rich Products and American Muffin Co to win the prestigious award.
Meanwhile Birds Eye brand owner Iglo Foods Group scooped top honoursin the FMEAs.
Border Biscuits – on a plate
• Formed in 1984 to make a small range of hand baked biscuits
• Now employs 120 people, who produce 40t of biscuits a week
• Turnover £9.5M
