‘South Holland is best place for fresh produce-based businesses’

South Holland is the best place for a fresh produce business, according to Spalding and District Area Chamber of Commerce.

That is perhaps not a surprising viewpoint from a body representing our local businesses, but the chamber has undertaken research to prove its claim.

Spalding and District Area Chamber of Commerce president Phil Scarlett

Its president, Phil Scarlett, has compared South Holland – which he has dubbed the Kitchen of England – with Kent, the traditional Garden of England and a county with close links to major entry points into the UK for freight.
He says the bigger picture needs to be considered and when the full supply chain is taken into account, South Holland comes out on top.

Mr Scarlett said: “The inbound delivery costs to Kent are cheaper but that is where the savings end.”
His analysis says:

• add-on costs are kept to a minimum with all associated produce companies, suppliers, packaging, agency staff, tray wash and transport within close proximity
• land, housing and building costs are cheaper in South Holland, reducing depreciation on capital investment
• at £469, South Holland’s gross weekly pay is ten per cent less than the national average
• this district’s flexible workforce is a strong asset
• all the major temperature controlled haulage companies are based in and around South Holland, creating competition and providing experience of operation
• distribution pallet rates for South Holland are the cheapest in the UK, with the difference to Kent being on average £5.25 per pallet cheaper
• delivery to the north and Scotland is easier and cheaper from South Holland than Kent and the M25, A20 and M20 motorways provide unpredictability

Furthermore, Mr Scarlett says the presence of the National Centre for Food Manufacturing at Holbeach and the prospect of thousands more homes and a relief road for Spalding add further weight to the argument that South Holland should be the destination of choice for produce-based businesses.

“It is one of the most important challenges today for all supermarkets to develop the best and least cost supply chain to market,” he said. “Identifying the wrong solution would lose the supermarket their competitive position. Choosing the right option would secure future supply growth with robust supply chain costs.”

The chamber has been banging the drum for improvements to the area’s infrastructure and was integral to the staging of the first Lincolnshire Transport Forum, held last month in Spalding.