Celebrating the achievements of Welsh food and drink manufacturing businesses

The talents of Wales’s food and drink processing and manufacturing businesses were recognised last night (Thursday 19 January) at the Lantra Cymru Awards 2022 at the Metropole Hotel, Llandrindod Wells.

The Lantra Cymru Wales awards recognise the initiatives, skills and enthusiasm of individuals pursuing careers within the environmental, land-based and food manufacturing sectors.

For the second consecutive year the Food Skills Cymru programme held awards to acknowledge businesses in the food and drink manufacturing and processing industry that have undertaken training over the last three years, investing in their employees and upskilling their staff  with a defined  range of training courses.

The awards comprised of three categories Large Businesses, SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) Businesses and Micro Businesses.

The award in the Large Business category went to Pilgrim’s UK Lamb Ltd in Llanidloes.

Commenting on achieving this award Vicki Jones, HR Manager at Pilgrim’s UK Lamb said,

“For the last couple of years Food Skills Cymru has been a big part of our training process and because of their support we’ve been able to train double the amount of people that we would’ve normally through our budget.

“We invest in training to make sure that we have the best team, who have the best knowledge, which then in turn helps to produce the best quality products for our customers.”

Winner of the SME Business category was Brecon Carreg Ltd in Llandeilo. Operations Director, Andrew Wiliams said,

“It’s a great honour for us here at Brecon Carreg to win this award. It is a great vote of confidence in the training and development that we are undertaking for our staff. Not only for their continued professional development but also for the sustainability and growth of the business.”

And winning the Micro Business category was Cardiff Distillery. General Manager, David Spoor, said,

“Winning this award is a fantastic achievement for the business. It’s a big surprise and something we hadn’t expected. It’s great for us because it’s nice to be recognised for what we’re doing in terms of training and upskilling our staff.

“With the help of Food Skills Cymru I also did a training course with Brew School and got a qualification in distilling, and a much broader and wider understanding of the processes behind making gin.”

Other nominees in the Food Skills Cymru categories included Peter’s Food Service Ltd, Mona Dairy and Wild Horse Brewing.

The Food Skills Cymru programme is delivered by Lantra and supports businesses of all sizes within the Welsh food and drink processing and manufacturing industry to ensure employees have the right skills and training for their business and the wider industry as a whole.

Commenting on the achievements of all winners and runners-up, Sarah Lewis, Project Manager for Food Skills Cymru said,

“I would like to congratulate all the businesses that were nominated for the Food Skills Cymru categories in the Lantra Cymru Awards. These awards highlight the exceptional achievements and contributions of these businesses who work within Wales’s food manufacturing, land-based and environmental industries as well as the many rewarding careers available in the industry.”

Lesley Griffiths, Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd, said:

“A huge congratulations to each individual and business recognised in this year’s Lantra Cymru Wales Awards. They all make a valuable contribution to  agriculture, the environment, land-based and food manufacturing sectors here in Wales.

“The Food Skills Cymru programme plays a vital role in the food and drink processing and manufacturing industry by ensuring employees have the correct skills to thrive in an ever-changing industry.”

For more information about the Food Skills Cymru programme visit https://www.foodskills.cymru/.