Unigate
Encyclopedia
Uniq plc is a British
food manufacturer. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange
and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index
.
with Cow & Gate Limited forming Unigate. Its range included Cow & Gate baby foods (now part of Royal Numico
), Farmer’s Wife cream, St Ivel
cheese spreads and more recently, Utterly Butterly
. It also had an extensive milk home delivery network
.
Cow & Gate Limited was earlier known as the West Surrey Central Dairy Company Ltd.
Until June 1996, Unigate owned the Black-Eyed Pea chain of restaurants in the USA. In July 1996, it bought Kraft Foods
' spreads division in the UK, including Vitalite
.
By the late 1990s, the decline in doorstep deliveries and fierce price pressure from supermarkets led to mounting losses and in 2000 the milk and cheese division was sold to Dairy Crest
. The company changed its name to Uniq in July 2000. In 2001, it demerged Wincanton
, its logistics subsidiary, by way of an initial public offering
.
It sold its yoghurt business in 2002 to raise money to concentrate on the convenience foods market.
In March 2009 Uniq reached an agreement for the sale of its UK chilled fish business, Pinneys of Scotland, to The Seafood Company Ltd. (part of the Foodvest Group).
On 12 July 2011, Greencore
announced it intended to buy Uniq.
The company has sites in Spalding
(Smedleys Salads prepared salads), Northampton
, Evercreech
(former St Ivel site), Minsterley
in Shropshire
(former site of Northern Foods
until May 2004) and Paignton
(produces all of Cadbury's chilled desserts such as chocolate mousses). The Northampton site produces most of Marks & Spencers'and Morrisons
' prepared sandwiches.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
food manufacturer. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange
London Stock Exchange
The London Stock Exchange is a stock exchange located in the City of London within the United Kingdom. , the Exchange had a market capitalisation of US$3.7495 trillion, making it the fourth-largest stock exchange in the world by this measurement...
and was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index
FTSE 100 Index
The FTSE 100 Index, also called FTSE 100, FTSE, or, informally, the footsie , is a share index of the 100 most highly capitalised UK companies listed on the London Stock Exchange....
.
History
The Company was formed in 1959 by the merger of United DairiesUnited Dairies
This article is about the former dairy products manufacturing and distribution company. For the United Dairies record label, see Steven Stapleton...
with Cow & Gate Limited forming Unigate. Its range included Cow & Gate baby foods (now part of Royal Numico
Numico
Numico , is a specialist baby food and clinical nutrition subsidiary of Groupe Danone. Products range from infant formula to specialised nutrition for babies with specific needs and for breastfeeding mothers. It also produces and markets special clinical nutrition, diet products and...
), Farmer’s Wife cream, St Ivel
St Ivel
St Ivel is a brand of dairy products in the United Kingdom. It began as a subsidiary under the ownership of the Unigate dairy company with most production sites in the south west of England and some in Wales...
cheese spreads and more recently, Utterly Butterly
Utterly Butterly
St. Ivel Utterly Butterly is a British brand of dairy spreads, created by Unigate and sold in 2000 to Dairy Crest as part of the milk and cheese division....
. It also had an extensive milk home delivery network
Milkman
A milkman is a person, traditionally male, who delivers milk in milk bottles or cartons. Milk deliveries frequently occur in the morning and it is not uncommon for milkmen to deliver products other than milk such as eggs, cream, cheese, butter, yogurt or soft drinks...
.
Cow & Gate Limited was earlier known as the West Surrey Central Dairy Company Ltd.
Until June 1996, Unigate owned the Black-Eyed Pea chain of restaurants in the USA. In July 1996, it bought Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
' spreads division in the UK, including Vitalite
Vitalite
Vitalite is a sunflower oil-based margarine, produced by Dairy Crest in Kirkby in Merseyside.It began in 1983, being made by Kraft General Foods. In 1996, it was bought by St Ivel, who were then bought by Dairy Crest in November 2002...
.
By the late 1990s, the decline in doorstep deliveries and fierce price pressure from supermarkets led to mounting losses and in 2000 the milk and cheese division was sold to Dairy Crest
Dairy Crest
Dairy Crest Group plc is a major dairy products company in the United Kingdom. Its brands include Cathedral City Cheddar cheese, Utterly Butterly, Vitalite, Clover, St Ivel and Frijj. The company delivers milk to around 1.1 million households via their milkmen...
. The company changed its name to Uniq in July 2000. In 2001, it demerged Wincanton
Wincanton PLC
Wincanton plc is a British provider of logistics with its origins in milk haulage. The company provides transport and logistics services including specialist automated high bay, high capacity warehouses, and supply chain management for businesses. Wincanton's specialist markets include water,...
, its logistics subsidiary, by way of an initial public offering
Initial public offering
An initial public offering or stock market launch, is the first sale of stock by a private company to the public. It can be used by either small or large companies to raise expansion capital and become publicly traded enterprises...
.
It sold its yoghurt business in 2002 to raise money to concentrate on the convenience foods market.
In March 2009 Uniq reached an agreement for the sale of its UK chilled fish business, Pinneys of Scotland, to The Seafood Company Ltd. (part of the Foodvest Group).
On 12 July 2011, Greencore
Greencore
Greencore Group plc is a food company in Ireland.It was established by the Irish Government in 1991 to take over Irish Sugar, the nationalised sugar production company. 55% of the group was listed on the Irish Stock Exchange that year, over the years additional placements have led to almost 100%...
announced it intended to buy Uniq.
Operations
Spalding, Lincolnshire
Spalding is a market town with a population of 30,000 on the River Welland in the South Holland district of Lincolnshire, England. Little London is a hamlet directly south of Spalding on the B1172 road....
(Smedleys Salads prepared salads), Northampton
Northampton
Northampton is a large market town and local government district in the East Midlands region of England. Situated about north-west of London and around south-east of Birmingham, Northampton lies on the River Nene and is the county town of Northamptonshire. The demonym of Northampton is...
, Evercreech
Evercreech
Evercreech is a village and civil parish south east of Shepton Mallet, and north east of Castle Cary, in the Mendip district of Somerset, England...
(former St Ivel site), Minsterley
Minsterley
Minsterley is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. It is home to a large dairy operated by Uniq foods.The dairy currently employs nearly 500 people...
in Shropshire
Shropshire
Shropshire is a county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. It borders Wales to the west...
(former site of Northern Foods
Northern Foods
Northern Foods Ltd is a British food manufacturer headquartered in Leeds, England. It was formerly listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE SmallCap Index. The company was scheduled to merge with Greencore Group in 2011 to form Essenta Foods, the group being...
until May 2004) and Paignton
Paignton
Paignton is a coastal town in Devon in England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the unitary authority of Torbay which was created in 1998. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the English Riviera. Paignton's population in the United Kingdom Census of 2001 was 48,251. It has...
(produces all of Cadbury's chilled desserts such as chocolate mousses). The Northampton site produces most of Marks & Spencers'and Morrisons
Morrisons
Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc is the fourth largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, headquartered in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. The company is usually referred to and is branded as Morrisons formerly Morrison's, and it is part of the FTSE 100 Index of companies...
' prepared sandwiches.