FDBusiness.com

Hilton Food Group, the specialist retail meat packing business supplying major international food retailers in Europe and Australia, has signed a long term supply agreement with Tesco Central Europe to produce fresh food. This development supports Hilton’s strategy of providing key retail partners globally with a diversified food offer.

The five year agreement will involve building a state-of-the-art factory in Poland, to produce items such as sandwiches, pizza, ready meals and soups. This requires an investment of about €6 million in plant and equipment, as well as the construction of the factory itself for which Hilton is planning a sale and leaseback. It is expected that production will begin in the first quarter of 2019.

Hilton and Tesco have also agreed to sign a further five year long term supply agreement for Hilton to continue servicing Tesco’s Central European stores with pre-packed meat.

Robert Watson OBE, chief executive of Hilton Food Group, comments: “We have a long and successful history of working with Tesco, one of the world’s biggest retailers. This agreement represents an opportunity to enter a growing food segment of the market. We look forward to seeing the positive effect our tried and tested business model will have on this relationship, which will be supported by our flexible and versatile approach to meeting local requirements. We continue to look for further opportunities for geographic expansion.”

Matt Simister, chief executive of Tesco Central Europe, says: “I’m delighted that we are extending our deep Group-wide partnership with Hilton to bring new manufacturing investment and capability to Poland. Our collective experience and expertise will bring new, innovative and high quality fresh and convenient products to our customers in Central Europe.”