Flava People bolsters NPD team with fresh appointments

The seasonings and sauces manufacturer has appointed Sophie Fellows as a flavour developer and Lauren Madden as NPD manager, stating that the pair’s expertise will be “key in driving forward exciting innovation and creativity”.​

Fellows brings with her nearly 10 years of experience in the food industry working across both savoury and sweet manufacturing.

After earning a food and nutrition degree from Sheffield Hallam University and completing a placement year at Dairy Crest, Fellows spent four years at the Flava People as a developer. After leaving in 2019, she worked at the Authentic Food Company as a process technologist, focused on ready meal development.

In her new role, Fellows said that she is eager to use her passion and experience to bring innovation to the world of savoury and sweet manufacturing, while also bringing some ready meal and process experience to understand the customer’s needs and opportunities.

Madden is also returning to the business, having worked for the Flava People as a maternity cover technologist before progressing to the role of senior technologist and extending her stay for four years.

Now with nine years of experience in the sector, Madden most recently worked as senior NPD manager at Dunbia.

Commenting on her decision to return, Madden said she is incredibly excited to have the opportunity to head up the NPD team. She added that she is ready to share the team's passion for food with consumers by making it available for them to try at home.

Managing director comments

Meanwhile, Flava People managing director Scott Dixon explained that as a family-run business, the team is always willing to “innovate and push the boundaries”.​

“As our brand has expanded, so have our ambitions and accomplishments, making it essential to grow our NPD team,”​ Dixon added.

“This expansion is not just to keep pace with the exciting innovation and progress we're experiencing, but also to welcome back two incredibly talented individuals whose expertise will elevate our NPD efforts to the next level.”​

The Flava People has recently collaborated with brands like Guinness, Baileys and Mob Kitchen, and hopes to expand this part of the business moving forward.

Dixon continued: “Both Sophie and Lauren bring extensive experience, having worked on some truly remarkable projects in the time since they have worked elsewhere.​

“We’re thrilled to have them rejoin us, especially at a time when our recent product collaborations with the likes of Mob and Pinch of Nom have just made a significant impact in the sauce and seasoning industry. We can’t wait to see the unbelievable products they'll create with us once again.”​

In other news, Kellogg’s owner Kellanova has announced plans to invest £75m into its cereal production facility in Wrexham.​​