New fresh food hub to sprout in North East with £3m investment programme

A North East entrepreneur has announced plans to create a new fresh food market facility as part of a £3m investment programme.

John Holland, CEO of J.R. Holland Group, is aiming to transform the former MAN lorry depot in Team Valley into a “one stop hub” for fresh produce in the region.

The new facility is set to replace the existing North East Wholesale Fruit and Vegetable Market on Team Valley, which Holland says has “suffered from a lack of investment”.

The facility is due to open its doors in early 2021, providing a covered fresh produce hub of more than 25,000 sq ft.

Simon Haggie of Knight Frank acquired the property on behalf of John Holland and the building works will be project managed by Ian Tew, also of Knight Frank.

John Holland commented: “My dream is to create a one stop, fresh produce hub of the future. I want to bring the fresh produce community together under one roof where they can be inspired, where they can network and do business together.

“The fresh produce hub will be a tidy, clean and inspirational one stop marketplace that will shorten supply chains, reduce food miles and ultimately drive forward our industry into a new era of growth.

“The specialist knowledge and customer and supplier relationships we have developed through 40 years in the sector are fundamental to the core of our business, and I want to build upon this to create a new go-to place for everybody’s fresh produce needs.”

Ian Tew, partner at Knight Frank, Newcastle, said: “We are really excited to get to work on extending the property to create temperature-controlled zones, an improved area for deliveries and a covered customer collection point.”