Hilltop Honey secures £10m to fuel international expansion

The Santander funding package includes stock finance, FX facilities, invoice finance, and the refinancing of a term loan, providing Hilltop Honey will the working capital to accelerate global expansion, hold more stock and drive recruitment.

Established in 2011, Hilltop Honey is the second largest honey producer in the UK and the fourth latest in Europe (by volume). Last year it achieved £33m in sales, claiming a 10% market share, and is forecasted to reach £50m by 2025.

Looking to continue expanding its international foothold, Santander has introduced the honey company to several stockists in North America, including Walmart Marketplace and Amazon US via Infinity Blue.

Hilltop Honey has also invested in a Santander Navigator subscription – a digital platform that supports UK companies overcome international trade-related obstacles and understand the key areas of ‘doing business’ in a new market.

The platform will connect the producer with third parties, such as legal, accounting or marketing services, and support with streamlining international shipping.

Commenting on the funding package, Hilltop’s founder, Scott Davies, said: “The team at Santander has demonstrated an excellent understanding of our business, creatively supporting Hilltop with their US offering, namely with Walmart and Amazon Marketplace. As we look to the future, we are very happy to have a banking partner who can fully support our strategic objectives.”​

This news also follows Hilltop’s rebrand which graced supermarkets in June 2024​​, that featured a new-look and bottles made from 100% RPET plastics and jars made from 60% recycled glass.

Keep an eye out in December when Food Manufacture will be releasing its exclusive behind the scenes video of the Newton factory in Wales, which boasts a processing capacity of more than 30,000 tonnes a year.

In other news, a new study is investigating ways of detecting honey fraud without even opening the jar.​​