Award-winning food ingredient company EDME has a new managing director. Mark Hodson was previously chief operating officer at Addo Food Group which produces chilled savoury products for Wall’s, Bowyers and Pork Farms.
His extensive experience in the food industry includes strategic and operational roles with RF Brookes (suppliers to Marks & Spencer and Pizza Hut), Geest (now Bakkavor) and Unilever.
He joins EDME at an exciting time.
“The company has been using locally sourced raw materials to produce natural, wholesome ingredients for 135 years,” he says, “but it feels as though it’s just coming of age. Perhaps that’s because now, more than ever, consumers are crying out for nutritious, clean-label foods that taste good.”
The Essex-based company produces wholegrain flours, flakes and kibbles; sprouted grains and seed mixes for the food industry. EDME is most famous for its malted ingredients, and was the first company in Britain to produce gluten-free flours at less than 5 parts per million.
“Our ingredients are perfectly placed for food manufacturers looking to add value to their products. They add nutritional value as well as enhancing flavour and texture,” says Mark. “You need only a small proportion of our finely milled flours to enrich the natural colours and appeal particularly of baked products. Included in relatively small quantities, our flakes, kibbles, sprouted grains and seeds can ensure that foods send out strong visual cues to shoppers. They help products to shout from the shelves that they are ‘natural, healthy, and premium’.”
“We can do more by working together with our customers – and by involving the whole supply chain,” he says. “Our Group has over 250 farmers with long-term supply relationships working with us on quality grains, environmental schemes and sustained supply. Such initiatives ensure that we remain at the forefront of ingredient innovation – and our customers at the forefront of product innovation.
David Thompson, EDME’s chief executive, welcomes Mark to the firm:
“Mark has significant experience in business transformation. This puts him in the ideal position to consolidate the good work done by the team, and to expand the company’s horizons through closer working relationships with – and support to – customers.”
