Our people
What’s at stake?
With a footprint in every region in the UK, food and drink is the UK’s largest manufacturing sector, contributing £37 billion in Gross Value Added to the economy annually and employing almost half a million people (Food & Drink Federation). As a result, it offers a wide range of opportunities to build a fulfilling career but is often overlooked by young talented individuals.
Developing home-grown talent, increasing the attractiveness of the industry to prospective employees and improving workforce skills are therefore key priorities for us. Having an openness to diversity in all its forms allows us to access the widest pool of talent available and creating an inclusive environment will enable them to excel.
In addition, the cost-of-living crisis is felt across our communities with food insecurity on the rise, as shown by the latest Food Foundation’s Food Insecurity Index. As a food manufacturer, we have a responsibility to support and nourish the lives of our colleagues, our consumers and our communities.
48%
of our general management colleagues are female
154
graduates have joined our business since 2015
4 million
equivalent meals donated from April 2020 to March 2024 to FareShare and other food insecurity charities
Nourishing the lives of our colleagues and communities
Our ambitions, targets and progress over the last year
A diverse, healthy and inclusive culture
Our 2030 targets | In-year progress |
Gender balance for senior management | 48% of general management roles and 40% of senior management roles are held by females |
Diversity KPIs to reflect regional demographics | Published our annual D&I report internally equipping leaders with data for their areas |
All sites achieve platinum level Health and Wellbeing accreditation | Changed provider to British Safety Council and completed gap analysis. |
A leading developer of people
Our 2030 targets | In-year progress |
Provide skills programmes and work opportunities for the young and excluded groups | Introduced Sector-based Work Academy Programmes (‘SWAP’) at two of our manufacturing sites Supported 95 apprenticeships across 50 SMEs since 2020 through levy gifting |
75% of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths) vacancies filled by internal candidates | Expanded T-levels programme to Finance. 67 of our apprentices are in a STEM role. 44% of our STEM vacancies were filled internally |
| 80% of colleagues feel they have they opportunity to develop and grow | 94% of factory-based colleagues have had a 121 Thrive conversation which helps to facilitate opportunities to develop and grow. |
A caring community partner
Our 2030 targets | In-year progress |
Provide the equivalent of 1 million meals per year to those in food poverty | Third year of partnership with FareShare. The equivalent of 1,135,482 meals donated to FareShare and other food insecurity charities. |
Be a force for good in our communities by volunteering at least 1,000 colleague days each year | 783 days volunteered by our colleagues to charities and good causes |
IN OUR COMMUNITIES
Our FareShare partnership
Our 5 year agreement with FareShare, covering multiple ways of working together, is at the forefront of much of the work we do on our People pillar.
Encouraging diversity
We are working towards bringing gender balance to senior leadership roles and are addressing this through our Women in Leadership Programme, the continuation of our successful sponsorship programme for diverse talent, and utilising our mentoring, reverse mentoring, and coaching programmes.
Employee Resource Groups
We have four colleague-led Employee Resource Groups – Multiculture, Gender, Health & Disability and LGBTQIA+. They identify what positive changes can be made by removing barriers and driving inclusion for the group they represent.
Wellbeing support
To support colleagues with their mental and physical wellbeing, we have been carrying out wide-ranging health assessments. This year we have changed provider to British Safety Council and have completed a gap analysis
Early careers
Our long-running apprentice and graduate programmes provide fantastic career development opportunities while helping attract new talent and developing skills for existing colleagues. They also play a critical role in addressing a skills gap in our industry, in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) roles. We were also the first food and drink manufacturer to host engineering T-Level students.
Tackling food insecurity
As a food manufacturer, we help tackle the issues of food insecurity and reducing food waste at our sites as part of our partnership with FareShare. During 2024/25 we provided the equivalent of 1,135,482 meals to them and other food insecurity charities.
Giving back to our communities
Volunteering allows our colleagues to be a force for good in our communities by giving time and expertise to initiatives linked to the issues of food poverty, employability and the environment. A partnership with Neighbourly is helping towards our 2030 target of providing 1,000 volunteering days annually. In 2024/25 colleagues volunteered 783 days.
