REINFORCED COMMITMENT
It’s an exciting time at Silbury Marketing Ltd, having become part of the Kagome Group six months ago. One of the world’s largest global tomato and vegetable processors, it was the latest development for the company in the UK, reinforcing its commitment to the European food and ingredients industry.
“It is still early days, and our main focus at the moment is the upcoming European tomato harvest,” said Silbury marketing manager, Hannah Miller. “That said, we are very excited for the future as part of the Kagome Group and believe the partnership will create opportunities in both products and innovation.
“Silbury and Kagome share the same corporate ethos around quality, environmental responsibility and safeguarding the future supply. That alignment was extremely important to us and gives us a strong platform for long-term growth.”
That growth is certainly focused around value and quality – two buzzwords for consumers. It means operators are under pressure to deliver products that are affordable and authentic, which Silbury is confident of delivering on.
“We are also seeing continued demand for premium style dishes, particularly within pizza and pasta, where the quality of core ingredients really matters.
“At Silbury, we adapt by staying focused on consistency and reliability, offering a range that works across different menu and price points. We are also seeing increased interest in provenance, sustainability and cleaner-label products, which aligns well with our long-standing sourcing philosophy.”
MAIN PRIORITIES
But what’s impossible to avoid is the current geopolitical situation, affecting all elements of supply and demand.
“What helps is that Silbury has multiple approved origins across most key product lines, which helps provide flexibility and resilience but we cannot escape rising fuel and logistics costs when everything is imported.
“The UK does not have the climate or infrastructure to support a large-scale tomato industry, so we remain reliant on imports. Fortunately, the increases we have seen recently are relatively small compared with the extreme volatility of four or five years ago. However, ultimately some of that pressure does have to be shared across the supply chain.”
Despite the current roadblocks, Silbury refuses to cut corners on products, standards or service.
“There will always be lower-cost options in the market but Silbury is proud of its long history and reputation as a reliable partner to our customer base.
“For us, consistency and trust are everything. Customers need confidence in the quality of the products they are buying and the service supporting them, and that is where we continue to differentiate ourselves.”
There is also continued progress around sustainability – and more specifically, decarbonising supply chains.
“We know this is something our customers are passionate about and many of them have set ambitious targets to reduce environmental impact. We’re making this ambition a reality and planting has commenced for our next generation, low‑carbon tomato products, at our facilities in Portugal. The initiative specifically targets the on-farm processes in the tomato value chain – focused on delivering real, measurable reductions in Forest, Land & Agricultural (FLAG) emissions,” concluded Miller.