Rochdale wholesaler receives £500,000 in government funding
Forrest Fresh Foods Ltd, based at Scotts Industrial Park in the town centre is one of the UK’s leading food and drink distribution specialists, supplying 5,000 lines of Britain’s best-loved food, drink and confectionery
A wholesaler, which supplies brands such as Cadbury, Robinsons Juice and Walkers, has received half a million pounds in government-backed funding.
Forrest Fresh Foods Ltd, based at Scotts Industrial Park in the town centre is one of the UK’s leading food and drink distribution specialists, supplying 5,000 lines of Britain’s best-loved food, drink, confectionery and household products to retail and leisure outlets.
Now the company has secured a £500,000 cash injection from Barclays to finance its global growth, backed by UK Export Finance (UKEF).
UKEF is the UK’s export credit agency and a government department which provides finance and insurance to help exporters win, fulfil and get paid for export contracts.
Alongside the latest funding and previous UK government support at the start of the pandemic, the company has increased its sales by 70% to overcome Covid supply chain disruption and continue selling its British produce to the world.
Chris Craven, managing director of Forrest Fresh Foods Ltd, said: “Demand for our products has never been so high – and we’ve seen international interest in some of the UK’s most renowned brands rise over the last few years.
“The UKEF support has been a breath of fresh air in what has been a difficult 12 months to navigate, enabling us to sustain our buying power and continue to price products competitively for our customers.”
The UKEF’s General Export Facility (GEF) was first available to UK businesses in March 2021 to support exporters through the pandemic.
When the pandemic and global lockdowns started to hit supply chains, Forrest Fresh Foods encountered delays which threatened its business.
To bolster operations and ease cash flow, it was successful in securing a GEF of £500,000 in funding from Barclays with an 80% guarantee from UKEF.
The support has allowed the business to pursue and fulfil more ambitious exporting contracts, with Europe, the Middle East and South-East Asia set to be target markets in 2022 and beyond.
The business is also planning to increase its headcount by 27% in 2022.
Mike Freer MP, Minister for Exports, said: “There’s a world of opportunity for UK exporters, and global demand for Britain’s best-loved food and drink brands continues to grow at an impressive pace.
“UKEF is committed to helping UK business such as Forrest Fresh Foods to seize this demand, as we aim to reach £1 trillion in exports annually.”
