Member Article

Further expansion for vegetable supply group with acquisition of MyFresh

Tuber Group, based near Hull, is continuing to scale with the acquisition of fresh produce processor MyFresh for an undisclosed sum.

MyFresh, based Bedfordshire, has been part of the William Jackson Food Group since 2006 and is one of the UK’s leading processors and suppliers of freshly prepared vegetables to the B2B and food service sector. Its range includes peeled and chopped potatoes, onions, carrots and sweet potatoes plus pureed products. It has a 150-strong team based at its BRC Grade AA awarded vegetable processing facility in Chicksands which includes an anaerobic digestion plant on site, generating electricity from vegetable waste.

Based in Hessle, Tuber Produce was founded in 2017 by Steven Humphrey to supply potatoes to food processors and packers in the UK. It procures a wide range of fresh and frozen produce for food processors and food service businesses worldwide. Last November Tuber Group acquired plant-based convenience foods manufacturer Saxon Foods in Scunthorpe, adding a range of allergen free frozen products to its portfolio.

“This latest acquisition marks another exciting milestone in the development of Tuber Group as we continue to expand the range of food products we offer and optimise our global procurement capabilities,” comments managing director. “The addition of a well-established vegetable processor like MyFresh is a great fit for us given Tuber Group’s established position on the global vegetable trading stage, alongside our added-value potato manufacturing site, serving both retail and food service. It will give Tuber Group a great opportunity to grow the offering to MyFresh’s current customer base and drive sales in the B2B and food service sectors.”

He continues: “Our intention is to invest heavily in the MyFresh site, installing cooking and freezing capabilities, alongside a high-care operation in order to become the UK’s biggest ‘one stop shop’, supplying freshly prepared, cooked and frozen, and ready to eat vegetables, along with pureed products, to B2B, food service and retail clients.

“There’s a fantastic team at MyFresh and we’re looking forward to working with them as we take this great business on the next step of its journey. By building on MyFresh’s many years of knowledge and expertise of the fresh prep sector, we will drive it into new areas, such as ready to eat products, direct to retail, and aim to add significant value to the food sector as a whole through our innovative ideas.”

James Watson, CEO of William Jackson Food Group, said: “This sale represents a great opportunity for MyFresh to join a like-minded business with expertise in fresh produce and plans to invest and expand into new markets. We’ve known some of our MyFresh colleagues for 16 years so it’s hard to say farewell, but I have no doubt that this opportunity is what MyFresh needs to thrive.”

The advisers to Tuber Group included Mike Stocks of Smailes Goldie Accountants in Hull; Byron Swarbrick of James Legal Solicitors in Hull; and Phil Trueman of Reach Commercial Finance in Leeds.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Kilmurray .