Peter's Food Service is a
Bedwas
Bedwas is a town situated two miles north-east of Caerphilly, south Wales, situated in the Caerphilly county borough, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire.
Bedwas neighbours Trethomas, Graig-y-Rhacca and Machen, and forms a council ...
,
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
based baker and supplier of pies, pasties, slices, sausage rolls and factored products into retail, food service, catering and hospitality outlets across the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. Today it is one of the largest employers in Wales, and one of the largest cold meat distributors in the United Kingdom.
History
Sir Stanley and Peter Thomas were brothers born above a bakery run by their father in
Merthyr Tydfil
Merthyr Tydfil (; cy, Merthyr Tudful ) is the main town in Merthyr Tydfil County Borough, Wales, administered by Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. It is about north of Cardiff. Often called just Merthyr, it is said to be named after Tydf ...
. They joined the family business, but after it was sold Sir Stanley decided to start his own venture.
In 1971 Sir Stanley bought a factory unit on the Pant Glas Industrial Estate
Bedwas
Bedwas is a town situated two miles north-east of Caerphilly, south Wales, situated in the Caerphilly county borough, within the historic boundaries of Monmouthshire.
Bedwas neighbours Trethomas, Graig-y-Rhacca and Machen, and forms a council ...
in
Mid Glamorgan
, Government= Mid Glamorgan County Council
, Status= Non-metropolitan county (1974–1996) Preserved county (1996–)
, Start= 1974
, End= 1996
, Arms= ''Coat of arms of Mid ...
. A few years later was joined by his brother and sister, selling pies to local fish and chip shops under the name Peter's Savoury Products. In 1976, the business moved to a new factory at Bedwas House Industrial Estate, to enable distribution down the
M4 motorway
The M4, originally the London-South Wales Motorway, is a motorway in the United Kingdom running from west London to southwest Wales. The English section to the Severn Bridge was constructed between 1961 and 1971; the Welsh element was largely ...
and eventually into
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
.
In 1988, the business was sold to
Grand Metropolitan
Grand Metropolitan plc was a leisure, manufacturing and property conglomerate headquartered in England. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange and was a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index until it merged with Guinness plc to form ...
for in excess of £95m.
Peters Savoury Products purchased Harry Thomas & Sons (Newport butchers chain, and factory) in the mid 1980s and Henry Telfers van sales business in August 1989.
After Grand Metropolitan merged with
Guinness
Guinness () is an Irish dry stout that originated in the brewery of Arthur Guinness at St. James's Gate, Dublin, Ireland, in 1759. It is one of the most successful alcohol brands worldwide, brewed in almost 50 countries, and available in ove ...
to form
Diageo
Diageo plc () is a Multinational corporation, multinational alcoholic beverage company, with its headquarters in London, England. It operates from 132 sites around the world. It was the world's largest distiller before being overtaken by Kweich ...
, the food businesses were demerged. Peter's Food Services became an independent listed company.
However, after acquiring the UK assets of
Irish
Irish may refer to:
Common meanings
* Someone or something of, from, or related to:
** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe
***Éire, Irish language name for the isle
** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...
foods producer
Glanbia
Glanbia plc ( ) is an Irish global nutrition group with operations in 32 countries. It has leading market positions in sports nutrition, cheese, dairy ingredients, speciality non-dairy ingredients and vitamin and mineral premixes. Glanbia produc ...
in 2002, by 2004 the company was in severe trouble, and sold its catering business to
Brake Brothers
Brakes (previously known as ‘Brake Bros Ltd’) is a food and distribution company supplying food, drink and other products mainly to the catering industry in the UK through more than 20 distribution centres. It provides delivered wholesale ...
.
In 2007, Peter's launched their Seriously Tasty range, and products through brand partnerships with
Quorn
Quorn is a brand of meat substitute products, or the company that makes them. Quorn originated in the UK and is sold primarily in Europe, but is available in 14 countries. The brand is owned by parent company Monde Nissin.
Quorn is sold as bo ...
,
Heinz
The H. J. Heinz Company is an American food processing company headquartered at One PPG Place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The company was founded by Henry J. Heinz in 1869. Heinz manufactures thousands of food products in plants on six conti ...
,
Sharwoods and
Bisto
Bisto is a popular and well-known brand of gravy and other food products in the United Kingdom and Ireland, currently owned by Premier Foods.
History
The first Bisto product, in 1908, was a meat-flavoured gravy powder which rapidly became a best ...
. They also expanded production, securing “own label” contracts with major supermarkets including
Sainsbury’s
J Sainsbury plc, trading as Sainsbury's, is the second largest chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom, with a 14.6% share of UK supermarket sales.
Founded in 1869 by John James Sainsbury with a shop in Drury Lane, London, the company w ...
,
Lidl
Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG (; ) is a German international discount retailer chain that operates over 11,000 stores across Europe and the United States. Headquartered in Neckarsulm, Baden-Württemberg, the company belongs to the Schwarz Group, whi ...
and
Coop
Coop, COOP, Co-op, or ''variation'', most often refers to:
* A chicken coop or other enclosure
* Cooperative or co-operative ("co-op"), an association of persons who cooperate for their mutual social, economic, and cultural benefit
** Housing ...
.
Today
The company today retains manufacturing assets in Bedwas, its van sales network as well as 10 regional depots (located at Bedwas, Swansea, Bristol, Birmingham, Warrington, Durham, Ossett, High Wycombe, Sidcup and Brighton and employ circa 900 staff.
Peter's Pies celebrated 40 years in business with a special "Cardiff pie", which contained beef cuts, onion and gravy encased in shortcrust pastry.
References
External links
*
{{British pies
Caerphilly
Food and drink companies established in 1971
Food and drink companies of Wales
Meat companies of the United Kingdom
British pie brands