Unitas Wholesale has announced the appointment of Mark Aylwin as non-executive chairman.
Aylwin has worked in the food and drinks industry for over 35 years, most recently as the chief operating officer of Carrefour Business in the MENA region.
He has also held a number of senior roles in the wholesale sector, including managing director of Matthew Clark, Booker Direct and Musgrave Retail Partners as well as chief executive of Blueheath PLC and chief operating officer of Safeway PLC.
“Mark is a great appointment for Unitas Wholesale and is a hugely positive move forward demonstrating the strong intentions of the group,” commented John Kinney, managing director.
“Mark brings a wealth of experience to the role that will be incredibly useful as we drive the organisation into its next phase of development and both myself and the board look forward to welcoming Mark when he begins his tenure in April.”
Earlier this year as part of a review of the group’s strategy moving forward, the board has decided to bring in a non-member chair.
Aylwin commented: “I am really looking forward to joining Unitas Wholesale to support John and the board in the next phase of its journey. While there are a number of significant challenges in the out of home market, I am excited to be joining the group at a time when I believe we can make a real difference to our Unitas Wholesale members and their customers.”
Simon Hannah, current chair of the group and managing director of Filshill Wholesale, Scotland, will stand down from his position following a brief handover period with Aylwin, however, he will remain on the board.
Hannah said: “While I have been extremely proud to be the Chairman of Unitas Wholesale, I am delighted that Mark has agreed to join us as our new Chair. Moving to a non-member Chair will bring new insights and strategic direction, and together with John Kinney puts Unitas in a strong position to move forward with the next stage in the development of the Group for the benefit of our members, our customers and supplier partners.”
UK claimants announced Wednesday legal action against US pharmaceutical and cosmetics giant Johnson & Johnson, alleging that women diagnosed with cancers were exposed to asbestos in the company's talcum powder.
J&J risks UK court action for the first time over the allegations, having faced a series of similar lawsuits in North America.
KP Law, the firm representing about 2,000 claimants, said "women who have been diagnosed with life-changing and life-limiting cancers were exposed to asbestos contained within the company’s talcum powder".
In response Erik Haas, J&J's worldwide vice president of litigation, said "Johnson & Johnson takes the issue of talc safety incredibly seriously and always has".
Haas added that J&J's own analysis found an absence of asbestos contamination in its products and said "independent science makes clear that talc is not associated with the risk of ovarian cancer nor mesothelioma".
J&J has until the end of the year to respond to a letter sent on behalf of KP Law's clients, following which documents will be filed in the High Court.
The law firm is representing predominantly women regarding the case, and says it has been contacted by thousands more, adding that some have died of their cancers.
Lawyers claim that the US-based corporation knew "as early as the 1970s that asbestos in its talc products was dangerous but failed to warn consumers and carried on producing and selling the products in the UK until as recently as 2022".
J&J said that Kenvue, its former consumer-health division that it separated out in 2023, is responsible for "any alleged talc liability that arises outside the US or Canada".
"Decades of testing by experts... demonstrates that the product is safe, does not contain asbestos, and does not cause cancer,” Kenvue said in a statement.
However, in September, J&J increased its offer to settle talc claims relating to ovarian cancer in the US to around $8 billion (£6.32bn) to be paid over 25 years.
Earlier this year, the company agreed to pay $700 million to settle allegations it misled customers about the safety of its talcum-based powder products in North America.
The company did not admit wrongdoing in its settlement but withdrew the product from the North American market in 2020.
The World Health Organisation's cancer agency in July classified talc as "probably carcinogenic" for humans.
A summary of studies published in 2020 covering 250,000 women in the US did not find a statistical link between the use of talc on the genitals and the risk of ovarian cancer.
Glebe Farm Foods has announced that its site has been awarded AA+ grade following the recent unannounced audit against the BRCGS V9 standard.
The BRCGS Global Food Safety Standard is a globally recognised certification program designed to ensure the safety, quality, legality and authenticity of food products. This was the first unannounced audit for the site and included all the production facilities; de-hulling, flaking and flour, oat drink manufacturing and Tetrapak filling, and new to the scope was the manufacturing and packing of Granola.
The audit covered not only the Global Food Safety Standard but also the BRCGS Gluten Free Programme. The recognition comes following a consistent dedication to excellence and the meticulous efforts of Glebe's technical team and supportive operatives, led by Glebe’s Head of Technical, Serena Woolland, who joined the manufacturer in November 2023, bringing with her a wealth of expertise.
As well as awarding Glebe Farm Foods Grade AA+, it also commended the company for its progress, British farming, investments and innovation, and the unwavering commitment demonstrated by its staff.
"The result is a testament to the hard work of our exceptional production staff and the technical team, keeping both site and systems in impeccable order," said Philip Rayner, Founder and Managing Director of Glebe Farm Foods. " At Glebe Farm Foods, we strive to deliver nothing but the highest standard – whether that’s in taste or product experience, sustainable practices, or food safety. We’re delighted with this status – but we were always confident we’d achieve it!”
InPost, the leading provider of parcel locker solutions, has announced the next phase in its rapid expansion with the opening of new Locker Shops in key urban areas. Following the success of its first Locker Shop in Camden, InPost is accelerating its Locker Shop opening programme and targeting hyper urban areas where there is huge demand for its lockers to provide greater access to its parcel locker network.
Kicking off with new locations in London, including Liverpool Street and London Bridge in 2024, as well as Manchester and further London locations from 2025 as part of a strategic rollout.
InPost is leading the locker revolution as more and more people choose out-of-home delivery options. With over 8,400 locker locations across the country and demand continuing to grow the InPost Locker Shops offer a quick, easy and convenient delivery solution for consumers in busy urban areas.
InPost’s Camden Locker Shop pilot, which launched in April 2024, was a hit with London locals and proved the value of dedicated stores with a large number of locker compartments. Based on this encouraging response, InPost is now bringing the concept to even more areas. The new shops will feature InPost’s eye-catching branding with localised design elements to further engage with local consumers.
“The results of our Camden trial showed us that consumers love our InPost Locker Shops," said Neil Kuschel, CEO, InPost UK. "We know that locker lovers are seeking convenience - that’s the number one reason they’re choosing out-of-home delivery[ii] - and what’s more convenient than having a store in your neighbourhood? We are committed to making parcel collection and returns as simple as possible for our customers. By expanding our network of Locker Shop locations to more urban areas, even more consumers will now be able to pop in and pick up or drop off their parcels with ease, taking us one step closer to our goal of ensuring every consumer has access to an InPost Locker.”
Current locations:
5 Pratt St., London NW1 0AE
11 Wentworth Street, London, E1 7TB
Unit 4, Larch Court, Glass Boutique, Bermondsey Street, SE1 3GB
Full details of further InPost Locker Shop locations will soon be announced.
Britvic, the soft drinks manufacturer set to be acquired by Carlsberg, has posted robust annual results after investment in marketing and product innovation helped it maintain demand for its brands.
Over the year to Sept 30, the company’s pre-tax profits climbed 10.5 per cent to £173.2 million despite a £21.3m hit related to the proposed Carlsberg deal. Britvic stated that its growth was driven by both volume and price-mix, with strong demand for brands such as Pepsi, Tango, Lipton, MiWadi and Ballygowan.
The group noted that scaling up new brands such as Plenish, Jimmy’s, Aqua Libra, and London Essence helped it build its presence in fast-growing categories. Meanwhile, it increased advertising and promotional (A&P) spend by 30.9 per cent to “support long-term brand growth”.
Volumes grew 3.1 per cent, driven by both organic growth and the acquisitions of the Extra Power and Jimmy’s brands.
Chief Executive Simon Litherland said, “We have delivered another excellent financial performance this year, with strong growth across our markets and portfolio of market-leading brands. We have also continued to ensure the business is fit for the future, adding more capacity, investing in our people, and significantly increasing investment in marketing and innovation.
“I am confident that the prospects for our brands and people are extremely positive, and I look forward to them going from strength to strength,” concluded Litherland.
Subject to approval by the regulatory authorities, the £3.3bn acquisition of Britvic by Carlsberg is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025.
The Metropolitan Police has identified two new suspects in its investigation into possible criminal offences as part of the Post Office Horizon scandal. This takes the total number of individuals to four as the force also revealed it believes more suspects will be identified as the inquiry progresses.
Scotland Yard said members of the investigation team met with Sir Alan Bates, the leading Post Office campaigner, and fellow victims to update them on the development.
A Met spokesman said: “On Sunday Nov 17, members of the investigating team met with Sir Alan Bates and a number of affected sub-postmasters to provide an update on our progress and next steps, following an invitation to do so.
“Our investigation team, comprising of officers from forces across the UK, is now in place and we will be sharing further details in due course. The team is preparing to contact other affected sub-postmasters soon. While four suspects have been formally identified at this stage, this number will grow as the investigation progresses.”
However, Sir Mark Rowley, the Met Commissioner, has warned it could be years before anyone faces charges because of the “tens of millions of documents” that must be worked through.
Speaking previously on the matter, he said, “I think at the core of this you’ve potentially got fraud, in terms of false documents, if it’s for financial purposes.
“Clearly, we have to prove beyond all reasonable doubt, so really it’s 99.9 per cent, that individuals knowingly corrupted something. So that’s going way beyond incompetence, you have to prove deliberate malice, and that has to be done very thoroughly with an exhaustive investigation.
“So it won’t be quick. But the police service across the country are alive to this and we will do everything we can do to bring people to justice if criminal offences can be proven.”
More than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongfully prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 as a result of the Horizon scandal, in which the faulty computer software incorrectly recorded shortfalls on their accounts. Of these, hundreds of people are still awaiting compensation despite the previous government announcing that those who had convictions quashed were eligible for payouts of £600,000.
Oral evidence at the Post Office inquiry concluded this month.