Sustainable supply chain solutions
ABF
From its inception in November 1935 as Food Investments Limited and its rapid change to Allied Bakeries Limited five weeks later, the ABF business has grown dramatically as a broad-based food manufacturing organisation, becoming Associated British Foods Limited in February 1960. It finally changed to Associated British Foods plc in May 1982 to comply with legal requirements.
Growth has been predominantly through acquisition and has resulted in a global group operating in 44 countries, employing 97,000 employees.
Key Facts
- ABF is at the heart of the UK agricultural industry and is its biggest customer, buying more primary products from British farmers than any other group.
- ABF has leading market positions in sugar, seed enhancement, grain and animal feeds production
- ABF's sugar processing business, British Sugar, is Europe's most efficient sugar producer. It buys the entire UK sugar beet crop and supplies half the UK's requirement for sugar.
- Its sales to retail outlets amount to four million bags of sugar a week making Silver Spoon a leading UK food brand.
- ABF's joint venture arable business, Frontier, is a leading supplier of cereal inputs and marketer of farm-sourced grain.
- The Ingredients business is a key growth area for ABF in the UK and North America. The group applies technical skills in producing functional ingredients from natural products
- ABF is a major manufacturer of both branded and private label grocery products. Some of the best known household brands include Twinings, Ovaltine, Mazola, Ryvita, Silver Spoon, Tip Top and Kingsmill.