Food Recruitment News: January 2010 Archives

Despite encouraging news that an official and powerful new watchdog was being set up to help settle disputes between farmers and supermarkets, the Government have now announced that the appointment of an ombudsman will be on hold until after the general election. This has come as frustrating news to many, leading to accusations that labour ministers are 'dithering' over the issue.

The need to establish an official ombudsman was highlighted by the Competition Commission back in 2008, and it was expected that there would be an appointment by now, yet the Government have only offered a further consolation on the role and powers of the watchdog when appointed. The ombudsman will have the power to:

• Hear producer complaints over allegations of abuse from supermarkets and other retailers
• Establish and enforce a code of practise between producers and retailers, and between disputing parties
• To prevent retailers from passing excessive, sudden costs down to suppliers

These basic responsibilities are expected to be in place, but the consultation could see changes and new responsibilities added during the planned consultation, which will see everyone including MP's, farmers, supermarket bosses and union representatives weighing in with their opinions. One thing is for certain however, the eventual appointment of an ombudsman will make working relations easier for those in both production and retail food jobs.

After a long battle over planning applications, the supermarket chain Sainsbury's has defeated rivals Tesco in their bid to open a new superstore in Kelso, Scotland. Despite the fact that Tesco had a deal in place with the Scottish Borders Council in 2008, a recent council meeting has determined that the Sainsbury's should be accepted as the preferred bidder.

The decision came in the wake of a recent remarketing exercise by Scottish Borders Council, and most of those speaking on the issue are glad that the long-running situation has finally reached a resolution. However, Sainsbury's will have to wait a little longer, as official approval is yet to be granted from Scottish government officials.
If approved, the new store will be located at Pinnaclehill in Kelso, and is expected to boost employment in the area, as well as providing residents with a much-needed supermarket and a petrol filling station.

In a show of early confidence from store bosses, representatives from Sainsbury's have said that the new store will create approximately 300 new food jobs, and will reward Kelso residents for their loyal support of the plans with a brand new, long-awaited supermarket.

As part of a nationwide expansion plan, supermarket giants Morrisons have opened a number of new stores throughout the UK, with many more in the pipeline. These new stores, located in Streatham, Halifax, West Denton, Westbury and Willenhall to name but a few, are set to create hundreds of new food jobs, and a number of these have already gone to those who were previously unemployed. There are a large range of food jobs available at these new stores, including everything from checkout operatives and bakery assistants to well-paid management positions.

Morrisons, who are already a leading graduate employer, are placing considerable emphasis on training, qualifications and career progression for new and existing employees. They are currently training all of their staff for a nationally-recognised retail qualification, and are promoting themselves as an employer who can develop their workers so that can they go from "the shop floor to the top floor". In fact, Morrisons HR department are proudly telling applicants that approximately 30% of their top-level executives started their careers working on the shop floor.

In the food industry, everyone has to start somewhere, and by offering employees the chance to progress up the career ladder using skills and qualifications, Morrisons are proving themselves to be one of the best companies to work for.

The Asda supermarket chain has recently confirmed that they have received planning permission to build a new store in Dundee. Costing approximately £24 million to complete, the new store is expected to create around 480 new food jobs for the area, a big boost to Scotland's employment market.

The new Asda store is being developed in partnership with Scottish property company Macdonald Estates, and is set to be located on the site of an old NCR factory in Wester Gourdie. Asda are thrilled with the council's decision to approve planning permission, believing that the new store will provide the west of Dundee with a much-needed service, which will complement Asda's two existing stores in Dundee.

Due to the fact that the new store will encompass a cafe, petrol station in addition to a large shopping area, Asda bosses are looking forward to promoting all of the employment opportunities which will be open to those looking for food jobs.

The opening of new stores from large companies such as Asda, as well as other expansions, comes as good news for Scottish food job hunters, especially in the wake of new figures revealing that 200,000 people in Scotland are currently unemployed.

There is exciting news for food job hunters in Norfolk this week, as plans are revealed for a brand new, multi-million pound 'food hub'. It is set to be built on a site between Easton and Honingham Thorpe near Norwich, and is expected to not only create hundreds of new food jobs, but also to add further value to the burgeoning food and drink industry in the region.

It is approximated that the food and drink sector contributes nearly £2.5 billion to the East of England, as well as boosting the employment market with the addition of over 90,000 food jobs. Due to these figures, a council led partnership headed by developer Ian Alston, who first saw the potential for a new food hub in Norfolk back in 2006, have sensed an opportunity to grow the industry even further.

The 'Norfolk food hub' is an exciting new project, aiming to promote and support locally produced farmers and products, instead of importing so much produce in from abroad. The hub, if plans go ahead, will contain the following:

• Livestock market
• Distribution centre to supply local and regional markets and supermarkets
• Market
• Shop
• Norfolk themed restaurant
• Premises for vets, agricultural machinery dealers and supply companies
• Plant centre

Although the new centre will almost certainly boost the food and drink sector in Norfolk, as well as creating more than 1,500 new food jobs, there has still been some opposition from local residents. However, this has mainly been because of the proposed site, which many believe would spoil the natural landscape, as well as being on a busy road entirely unsuitable for local shoppers. A planning application has been submitted, but will only be granted after all aspects of managing the site have been considered by South Norfolk District Council.

More than 18,000 people are employed in Northern Ireland's £3,000million food industry, and the sector is set to increase even further. For this reason the government in Northern Ireland is encouraging more of the region's young people to undertake specialist training course in order to go into food jobs and help the industry grow even further.

Such innovative courses are offered by the Loughry campus at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise. The government has been supporting such specialist foundation and honours degree-level course over the last few years, believing them to be perfectly tailored to the present and future requirements of employers in the food industry.

The government in Northern Ireland has invested over £1 million in facilities at the Loughry campus recently, who can proudly report that all of their graduates have a reputation for sound knowledge of all food processes as well as excellent practical ability.

As Northern Ireland exports a large volume of food to England each year, this is good news for all UK food industries, and especially for those aiming for food jobs. Such skilled and highly-trained graduates in food and drink production, manufacturing and technology will hopefully ensure that the food industry continues to move forward in years to come.

Good news for people in Britain who have got food jobs, and good news for people looking for food jobs. For the first time in a decade a politician has been talking about the need for Britain to produce more food.

Environment secretary Hilary Benn has announced a strategy called 'Food 2030', a 20-year plan which will support food production in this country, and this suggests that there will be a lot more food jobs on the horizon.

After a Christmas which, encouragingly, saw sales of the best British reared ham and turkey up by around 10%, the politician's plan to further encourage the public to buy British, and to put more emphasis on locally produced food, should ensure that people who want work in food jobs in Britain will have the best possible chance.

As the government move to support productive farming, there should be more jobs in agriculture, which will in turn lead to more jobs in processing and packing. All those jobs that were being done overseas, when it was in Britain's interests to import a lot of their food, will return to these shores and ensure a healthy future for food jobs in Britain.

Waitrose, one of the leading luxury supermarkets in UK today, has recently revealed plans to build a new store in Exeter, a move which is expected to create nearly 200 new food jobs for the area. The multi-million pound project will involve redeveloping the former maternity ward building on Heavitree Road, which has been vacant for over a year, and turning it into a new 24,000 square foot Waitrose store.

Further planning will go ahead following a consultation with members of the public, which will involve an exhibition of Waitrose's plans. Exeter's response to the project has so far been fairly positive, with many believing that the upmarket food store will not only provide Exeter with an added attraction, but that it will also persuade other big chains such as John Lewis to consider the town as a suitable location for a new store.

Furthermore, Exeter's Chamber of Commerce is also welcoming the amount of construction and food jobs the project would create in the area, and is pleased that the unused site will be used for employment purposes.

Waitrose will submit a planning application by February 2010, and hope to complete and open the store by the end of 2011.

Major food retailer Tesco has recently revealed plans to open a new store on Park Road in Faringdon, a venture that is expected to create over one hundred food jobs for the area. The company has reported impressive sales figures over the Christmas period, and is continuing with its expansion ready for the challenges that 2010 is expected to present.

Planning for the new multi-million pound store is well underway, and planning permission will be submitted to Vale of White Horse District Council as soon as the current consultation is completed. This consultation involves an exhibition of potential designs for the store, and members of the public are being invited to give their opinions and suggestions, and pose questions to Tesco representatives.

Researchers at Tesco have planned the store after identifying what they call 'a real need for increased food shopping choice' in Faringdon. Their figures demonstrate that approximately 80% of local people do their food shopping outside of their town. Tesco is hoping that the new store, with its 15,000 square foot floorspace containing both food and non-food items, will encourage people to stay in Faringdon, doing their main food shop at Tesco, and buying other items from town centre shops.

Tesco is aiming to complete the project by summer 2011.