“Since the start of the pandemic I have personally been advocating the power of positivity and its effect on daily life, work and family. We may be in Lockdown 3 but for me nothing has changed regarding my own positivity and the positivity within the Penmann business.
Yes, we can count ourselves as fortunate as we are a growing team and expanding business. Not every business supplying the food industry can claim that. However, we’ve spent 45 years building Penmann based on our unrivalled and constantly evolving expertise in food cooling and conditioning systems designed to support and benefit you in your market places. As a result, the UK’s leading brands know they can trust us for this expertise and the way in which we conduct ourselves in business. This is having a more than positive effect on our trading position.
OPTIMISM & OPPORTUNITY
As a business we are very optimistic about the UK food and drinks industry as proved by its resilience through this crisis/pandemic. Brexit, now finally done, presents a massive opportunity for UK producers. As a nation we currently import around 30% of all our food and there is a chance now to be more reliant on home producers.
As people have tried new foods and recipes during lockdown the trend towards plant-based food and veganism has continued. As a supplier to one of the leading producers of non-meat products we see this as a significant ongoing trend and opportunity.
Food Manufacture magazine quotes the emergence of smaller brands and marketeers as additional opportunities as people look for diversity in their food and the balance of in-home eating has swung to around 90% versus hospitality at this point in time.
NEW CONTRACTS & PRODUCTS
We could not have wished for such a good start to 2021 with major Blue Chip companies placing orders pre-Christmas. Some are new customers and some are new sites within our existing portfolio.
Also excited to be further developing our partnership with Clauger and their rapid cooling cell for palletised products.
TEAMWORK, EXPANSION & GROWTH
Our plans to expand head count and capability are ongoing and we are currently recruiting at senior level for a business development engineer.
The current team is now so used to working from home proving we have a successful formula in this regard and continuing to provide a seamless service and support to customers.
GREEN THROUGHOUT
We shared the basic principles of our Environmental Policy early in 2020 as we seek to be judged by the stance that we take and the policies we publish. This year we are looking to develop further our Green Team policies and processes, working with Coral Mountain to engage with our customers and work within their own environmental guidelines.
Food Manufacture magazine has highlighted the ongoing objective of us all collaborating to minimise the impact on the environment on any of our activities, sustainability through recycling of packaging and transport efficiencies, to mention just a few viewpoints.
SHARING OUR GOOD FORTUNE
This is the aspect of what we do at Penmann that almost gives me the greatest satisfaction and sense of achievement.
Penmann has in place a robust CSR policy and I intend to talk more about our responsibility to others and the power of teamwork as we move through the year.
We will continue sharing our success with those less fortunate through our ongoing donations to charities based on a percentage of our sales. Sadly, our staff volunteering policies have been curtailed by the pandemic but hopefully will be back up and running sometime this year.
It’s good to reflect and also to look forward. Thanks for reading and if anybody wishes to comment or call me in respect of this article please do. In the meantime I will continue my Mountain Biking activities that help me to stay positive, stay healthy and stay fit”.
John Kirwin, Sales and Marketing Director
