Marketplace
On 26 May we recalled Clover spread because we discovered that the product had developed an unpleasant taste before the end of its shelf life. Although there were no health implications, we took the decision to withdraw the product as soon as we heard that a number of people felt unwell. As soon as the product recall was announced we closed the Crudgington factory where Clover is made which was then subjected to rigorous cleaning and testing before being cleared to re-open on 9 June. Clover was back on shelves by 11 June. Our handling of the product recall received positive feedback from the Food Standards Authority and consumers. We believe the recall of Clover to have been handled in a positive and speedy manner because of the crisis management arrangements that we previously had in place.
We continue to drive standards of good hygienic practice at our sites with a target of all sites being accredited to the Quality Management System ISO 9001. Our dairies at Chadwell Heath and Fenstanton achieved accreditation during the year, leaving only our newly acquired site at Foston to achieve this level.
We continue to have dialogue with the Food Standards Agency regarding their targets for nutritional dietary improvement. In particular, we have agreed certain salt reductions in our cheese portfolio which are achievable without adverse impact on product quality. During the course of the year we have also completed the removal programme of trans fatty acids from our range of spreads containing vegetable fats.
We have supported both the IGD and Dairy UK proposals for declaring Guideline Daily Amounts (GDAs) on packs as the most sensible means of providing consumers with meaningful information on nutritional status.
We have a short supply chain, enabling close relationships with the 1600 British dairy farmers who supply us directly, as well as supplying dairy co-operatives. The Dairy Crest Assurance Scheme ensures the delivery of top quality milk, produced to high standards of food safety, animal welfare and protection of the environment. Dairy Crest provides a subsidised support package, through the independent White Gold Service, to enable direct supplying farmers to maintain Farm Assurance standards with the minimum of disruption and cost.
