Harlech Foodservice snaps up major public contracts across Wales

Welsh wholesaler Harlech Foodservice has landed two major public contracts worth over £2m, including a first-ever education deal in South Wales.

The wholesaler will deliver a £1.5m contract to provide schools in Gwynedd, North Wales, with a range of fresh and ambient products including local meats.

The second contract, worth £700,000, is to supply schools and care homes in Rhondda Cynon Taf in South Wales and will last 12 months.

Harlech, which has its headquarters in Criccieth and a base in Chester, recently added a new Carmarthen depot to its portfolio and acquired rival business Celtic Foodservice.

The new opening and acquisition are part of a wider £6m growth plan for the Welsh wholesaler, which has created 150 new jobs on the back of the latest depot opening.

“The renewal of the Gwynedd contract and our first major public sector deal in South Wales with Rhondda Cynon Taf Council enables us to demonstrate the range of products we can supply and the excellent service we provide,” said Harlech sales director Mark Lawton.

Menna Trenholme, head of procurement for Gwynedd Council, said: “It’s very important to us as a council and to the parents to have a local firm supplying our schools with local produce wherever possible, and it’s very important for the local economy as well.”

The company’s £6m expansion plan will enable it to create over 100 more jobs at its headquarters and 50 elsewhere on its Welsh estate.