The company has invested £2m at its Bicester site, including new equipment and infrastructure as it scales up to meet the demand. Fresh Kitchen has increased the size of its manufacturing facility by 20% to allow more space for additional ovens and blast chillers.
James Chilton, manufacturing manager at Fresh Kitchen, said: “Historically, Fresh Kitchen manufactured products for foodservice operators looking to elevate their menu with premium quality ingredients and finished dishes that were either difficult, or time consuming, for caterers to make in-house.
“However, with many operators struggling to attract skilled kitchen staff, we are now seeing demand for a much wider range of products, including many that would previously have been made in-house. We are able to provide caterers with high quality finished products of great consistency, and an escape from the headache of trying to find and retain staff capable of making these products in-house.”
With access to the UK’s widest range of fresh produce at Fresh Direct, and thousands of other ingredients available from sister companies within Sysco GB, Fresh Kitchen is ‘ideally placed’ to help a wide range of foodservice operators create bespoke dishes that save them time and effort and mitigate the challenges of the current labour market.
The products receiving the highest demand include bolognese sauce, beef bourguignon, and pickles made with ingredients such as cucumber, red onion, and fennel. Fresh Kitchen has also added to its team with two new developments chefs and one product development executive.