Food manufacturing bosses praise ‘government understanding’

In this exclusive video, speaking after the event, hosted and sponsored by law firm Stephenson Harwood at its London offices, Wilkinson said: “The delegates felt that the government had switched onto to issues surrounding the industry including genetic modifcation, food security and the way the markets work.”​

Wilkinson – who will take over as the chairman of Thorntons’ board of directors on February 1 – also picked out a drive to improve consumer labelling and the growing trend towards foreign ownership of UK food and drink manufacturing businesses as the other two key themes.

Organic market​

Meanwhile, forum delegates discussed the view that the UK organic market was suffering from “weak marketing”​​ and the harsh economic climate.

The event was also sponsored by business improvement specialist Applied Acumen and recruitment expert Goldteam.

Watch out for more news  – in text articles and videos – from the Business Leaders’ Forum next week.