Feeding the nation... from Grimsby!

GRIMSBY, quite simply, is Europe's Food Town.
And our speciality is seafood.
We hould be proud that a rich heritage which includes a world-class fishing fleet, has left a legacy that puts Grimsby at the forefront of one of the quickest growing sectors in the food industry.
Chilled products are the major stars of seafood, and we have 80 per cent of the market within the town.
To celebrate this, and the marvellous advances to be expected from Humber Seafood Institute and other major investments in the town, Grimsby & Scunthorpe Media Group has published Europe's Food Town, a 24-page guide to all that is good about the food industry.
Free with tomorrow's newspaper and online in eBook form from Wednesday, it is a must for anyone wanting to push what the town has to offer.
We're proud of the town and proud of the role we play, and we hope this will fill you with pride too.
In coming months we hope to celebrate the successful strides of other major industries too. And to make this happen we need the support from the comopanies within the chemical, pharmaceutical, pretro-chemical, ports and logistics industries.
Together let's shout about our achievements and let everyone know how great Great Grimsby is.

Grimsby - It's Young's at heart

THE Telegraph reports today on how Young's Seafood has swooped for The Seafood Company, a Sussex-based firm with major shellfish operations in the chilled sector. Here's my take...

THIS major swoop by Wynne Griffiths and his team at Young’s is yet another demonstration of the strength Grimsby now has in the food sector.
With turnover predicted to hit £540-million next month, the seafood giant really is a company to be proud of.
And the pride it injects in Grimsby with its advertising campaign – set to hit our televisions again this autumn – reverberates around the whole process industry.
While frozen food is an international business, chilled food – and, for Grimsby, particularly seafood – is a strong, growing and thriving market that needs to be near its customers.
And with 40-million consumers within a four-hour drive and major consignments arriving at Immingham, Europe’s Food Town is here to stay.
Once a world-class fishing port, it is now a world-class seafood processor.
Ever since fridge-freezers became a regular feature in domestic kitchens, Grimsby has played a pivotal role in filling them.
By the dawn of the Sixties, the frozen food market had increased by more than 500 per cent and you could find such $in almost two thirds of the UK’s households.
The supermarket culture and dawn of the microwave era enhanced the appeal of such food as we headed into the Eighties.
Now with pressures on our time, and more awareness of our diets, "quality", "freshness" and "healthy eating" are watchwords that seafood ticks every time.
The geographical importance of our great town was quickly realised in the post-war boom, and put into words well by the $chairman of Bird’s Eye, JR Parratt.
Opening the Ladysmith Road plant back in 1956, he observed: "It strikes me that this site, with the Lincolnshire agricultural plain to the west and a major fishing port on its doorstep, is as well situated as any quick freezing factory could be."
Bird’s Eye may have gone, but a raft of hi-tech, high-value businesses have taken on that very philosophy – boosted by the expertise in maintenance and logistics that comes as part of such a strong cluster.
Now the local authority’s economic development team uses the same simple analysis in their literature as they seek to bring more companies here.
Simply put, here on the South Bank we have easy access to major domestic, European and international markets via Britain’s largest port.
Grimsby is also on the verge of one of the UK’s primary agricultural areas, with field to factory transport taking no more than 90 minutes.
Quality, range and access to produce has been a significant factor in encouraging companies to locate here.
To celebrate this, and the major strides being taken through investment and innovation, don’t miss a special $24-page supplement on Europe’s Food Town, free with your Telegraph on Tuesday.

July's Business.... out tomorrow

FIND out which Grimsby company is well on the way towards a major turnaround in this month’s Business, out tomorrow.
A European acquisition is the latest move for the historical firm which is back on the up, reporting some staggering growth in profits.
We also discover the secret of small businesses as they look to collectively tackle the supermarket giants and the high street multiples.
In profile is a man who has been a driving force behind his business, earning himself major recognition.
There are the sector focuses on chemicals, food, ports and logistics, and a special look back at the hugely successful Northern Lincolnshire Business Awards.
A bumper 10 pages of commercial property completes the edition, with Yorkshire Forward underlining the success of Europarc as more work on the flagship business park is completed. We also address the important issue of land registry.
Don't miss your copy tomorrow, and then online in eBook form from Wednesday.

Eyes UP for new development

MERIDIAN Point's latest development has been revealed in all its glory this week, and I for one am impressed.
While I've never played any game with two fat ladies before, I know the demand for bingo is huge.
We've seen the front page headlines in the Grimsby Telegraph about the major wins, and I often hear about the excellent social atmosphere generated by the game, enjoyed by those who play it - those who perhaps do not have so many other outlets for socialising.
Not only that, the location means it is perfect for serving the thousands of tourists who come to Cleethorpes for the summer months, and the semi-residents who spend a good deal of time here in static caravans and chalets.
The reaction to the excellent looking facility has been somewhat negative, with cries of 'not the right area' - but surely on a site with fast food restaurants and a cinema already doing well it is the perfect spot.
With outline planning permission granted some time ago, it will be a welcome addition to an area of the resort that is now fulfilling its potential, gradually providing a united seafront from North Promenade to Humber Mouth Yacht Club.
Personally I hope it takes off, especially if it allows for development close to the station, for that is one part of Cleethorpes that needs some tlc.
And two little ducks will be much more at home by the Boating Lake.

Terror hits the terminals

AS terror reared its head north of the border, Business Editor David Laister was attending former Grimsby Telegraph reporter Chris Millar's wedding. Here he gives an insight into the aftermath.

YOU leave wondering if you have packed everything, a feeling of slight apprehension - founded by strong winds and a small plane, with an after thought of just how badly creased your shirt will be when you get your suit bag back.
There was not even a consideration that I would return to be confonted by armed police in stab vests.
After a terrorist attack on a Scottish airport, to find myself using one little more than 24 hours later brought the full impact of a switch to 'critical state of alert' home.
I had travelled from Humberside Airport to Aberdeen to attend the wedding of a great friend and fellow journalist on Saturday.
Blisfully unaware of what had happened in west London - the home of my pal - until I saw the local newspaper's billboards on Aberdeen's main shopping street on Friday lunchtime, I felt the anger that we were again under seige, but never imagined what was to come.
It was while the food was being served at the reception that the news filtered through about the horror attack at Glasgow. With such a strong contingent from the capital the events outside Tiger Tiger in Haymarket had been a topic of some discussion, but it was London. While not expected, it is almost taken as the most likely and obvious place for such devastation to be attempted in the current times.
But now Scotland too? A sign that England has tightened up so well to make such moves too likely to fail or be found out? A hidden message that just because Blair has gone, Brown too will have to steer through such testing times? Who knows.
And so it unravelled. A colleague of the bridegroom who works for London's Evening Standard was on our table, and as he dashed to make calls to facilitate the coverage for the capital's biggest newspaper, the reality of it all sank in.
Scores of guests had flown to the wedding, many hit by delays getting up on the Friday due to the weather, now we all had the threat - or at least the stringent precautions - to deal with on the way home.
To be heading for such a happy occasion had been a pleasure on Friday. A gentle drive to Humberside, coffee with family who dropped us off and then the one hour trip up the picturesque east coast with Eastern Airways.
Such a small plane meant picking luggage up was instant, and within 45 minutes of touching down we had the hire car at the hotel.
But the way back was a different story. A major police presence on the first roundabout into Aberdeen Airport doing spot checks at the extra-early time of 6.30am. Then as we waited in a queue to get into the airport, officers signalled to wind down the window. Private cars were not allowed near the terminal, yet we were in one borrowed from a hire compant there. Waved through, but scrutinised, we passed hastily prepared bollards, pallets of breeze blocks and massive bags of sand more suited to patio laying than a holiday environment - all there to stop vehicles having any chance of making it to touching distance of the buildings.
Passing the armed officers on foot after leaving the car, the queues inside were huge. Advice to get to the airport extra early had been heeded, and the masses of people was evident.
How much was down to that, or the fact that fog that had swept in the with morning rush hour, causing delays across the departure board, was difficult to tell, but the searches going on were definitely a result.
All men to take shoes off, the one passenger not body searched in a party was in the minority.
Through we went to Eastern's lounge and all was not over. As the Aberdeen Press and Journal arrived, we were able to study the detailed reports of Saturday's drama, and Scotland's response. And even back at Humberside the effect was huge.
Refused the opportunity to leave the arrival area until my baggage was with me - despite nature calling loudly - was followed by the arrival of police officers to check the identity of all those on board. I wondered whether the authorities knew who they were after, and a flight from Scotland would therefore be of more interest - especially after news of arrests made on a north west motorway.
Outside more heavily armed police, in fact more police than there were passengers as the Kirmington base's timetable meant no flights were imminent. Also, where we had been dropped right outside the terminal 72 hours earleier - within a barrier and time controlled zone - the only cars were those with blue flashing lights.
Home safe, and never doubted, what this does all show is the devastating impact of terrorism. No-one has been killed, though I can underline the average Scottish taxi driver's attitude to the burning bomber was 'leave him be', yet it has caused upheaval and uncertainty on a national scale.
Gordon Brown says we will not yield. That we won't, but it might just mean that life and liberty as we knew it, is somewhat more guarded now.