Commenting in the company’s first-quarter financial statement on Tuesday (December 15), Singh said: “The measures we introduced to reduce campylobacter in poultry, in conjunction with our customers, have been recognised not only by industry awards and through positive feedback from media and key commentators, but also by the Food Standards Agency [FSA] which pointed to ‘significant’ progress in its recent quarterly review.”
Singh highlighted the manufacturer’s £10M campylobacter reduction programme launched in November 2014 and predicted further advances in campylobacter control next year. “With the further use of new factory interventions rolling out early in 2016, we are hopeful of an even greater reduction of campylobacter, reducing its presence below the industry target,” he said.
‘£150M investment in poultry’
“We are driving forward with our £150M investment in the poultry business, which will revolutionise the supply chain and position us well for growth in the future.”
The FSA’s latest campylobacter data report, published in November 2015, recorded a fall the highest rates of campylobacter – a trend confirmed by 2 Sisters’ own data analysis, said the firm.
2 Sisters Food Group won the Judges’ star performer trophy in the industry’s Oscars – the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards (FMEAs) – last month for its pioneering work on the prevention of campylobacter.
Targeting campylobacter
“With the further use of new factory interventions rolling out early in 2016, we are hopeful of an even greater reduction of campylobacter, reducing its presence below the industry target.”
- Ranjit Singh
Chair of the independent juding panel Paul Wilkinson said: “2 Sisters had shown real leadership in prioritising campylobacter in the fresh poultry sector – both in its investment, spending about £10M in the past year alone – and in its imaginative problemsolving approach.”
Another judge added: “The firm has brought tremendous energy to this challenge. It really stands out and deserves industrywide recognition.”
The 2 Sisters boss also won the British Poultry Council/ForFarmers award at the annual Egg and Poultry Industry Conference in November for his contribution to the poultry sector.
‘Huge proportion of UK poultry’
Conference chairman Paul Kelly said: “Ranjit’s efforts have meant that a huge portion of UK poultry production is British owned, and he has been rightly praised by politicians, retailers, and the food and farming community.”
Earlier this week Boparan Holdings, 2 Sisters’ parent company, revealed like-for-like sales in its protein division fell by 2% to £538.6M for the 13 weeks ended October 31 2015. Divisional operating profit was £8.6M compared with £15.5M in the same period of last year.
Singh said innovation was playing a key role in the business and would impact financial performance next year. “We have continued to cement our strong position with leading customers by offering them new products such as wings, which utilises more of the chicken, as well as securing major business wins in poultry and in red meat with new customers,” he said.
“The benefits of this new business will start to show in future quarters.”
Meanwhile, register your interest in next year's Food Manufacture Excellence Awards here.