Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd.

What Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd. does

Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd. is a UK-based industrial food ingredients supplier founded in 1968 and headquartered in Sleaford, Lincolnshire. It is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd, a diversified Indian conglomerate, which provides access to a global certified-organic spice processing plant and worldwide sourcing relationships across Africa, the Middle East, India, China, and Europe. The company serves the UK food manufacturing and foodservice sectors with ambient food ingredients — herbs, spices, seasonings, dehydrated and canned products, and dried blended products — organised around two sub-brands: Chef William (herbs, spices, seasonings, tempura batter mix, panko breadcrumbs, dessert mixes) and Our Earth (free-from, vegan-friendly, allergen-free, low-salt foodservice range launched in 2019).

The company's underlying capability centres on food ingredient processing, blending, and manufacturing at its Sleaford facility, supported by an additional 8-hectare adjacent site and a £750,000 state-of-the-art Innovation Centre providing recipe development and custom blending services. Operations are credentialed by BRC AA+ Unannounced food safety certification (retained for three consecutive years through 2024), BRC AA grade (seven successive years prior), SMETA 4-pillar ethical trade audit, and FISMA compliance, covering traded goods activity, blending, and packing of dried food ingredients for both gluten-free and gluten-containing products. Day-to-day operations are led by Managing Director James Arnold.

Revenue is generated primarily through B2B product sales of food ingredients to UK food manufacturers and foodservice operators, supplemented by custom blending and recipe-development services delivered through the Innovation Centre. The company runs an enterprise field-sales motion via dedicated Key Account Managers, supported by Customer Support, Technical Support, Innovation, Quality Assurance, and Transport teams, with UK distribution executed through the company's owned delivery fleet. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is negotiated directly through the sales team.

Name

Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd.

Legal name

Sleaford Quality Foods Limited

Website

https://sleafordqf.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1968

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd. supplies ambient food ingredients (herbs, spices, seasonings) and custom blending to UK food manufacturers and foodservice operators. Founded in 1968, it is a Jain Irrigation Systems subsidiary operating the Chef William and Our Earth sub-brands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Ingredients

NAICS

Dried and Dehydrated Food Manufacturing (311423)

SIC

Miscellaneous Food Preparations & Kindred Products (2090)

akta.pro primary industry

Dried & Dehydrated Foods Manufacturing (AFAKACAK)

Keywords

• Food ingredients
• Ambient ingredients
• Herbs and spices
• Foodservice solutions
• Custom blending services

Headquarters

HQ city

Sleaford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Food Ingredients Sales: Supply of ambient food ingredients, dehydrated and canned products, and dried blended products to UK food manufacturers and foodservice operators. Revenue generated through product sales across multiple categories including herbs, spices, seasonings, and specialty ingredients.
2. Custom Blending & Innovation Services: On-site blending and innovation solutions providing recipe development services for customers, supporting product development and customization.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Sleaford Quality Foods supplies ambient food ingredients — including herbs, spices, seasonings, dehydrated and canned products, and dried blended products — to UK food manufacturers and foodservice operators. It operates on-site blending and Innovation Centre capabilities, delivering custom recipe development and ingredient solutions under the Chef William and Our Earth branded ranges.

Product overview

Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd is a UK-based supplier of food ingredients and foodservice solutions, operating as a subsidiary of Jain Irrigation Systems Ltd in India. The company offers a unified portfolio of ambient food ingredients including herbs, spices, seasonings, dehydrated and canned products, and dried blended products. Their product portfolio is organized around two main sub-brands: Chef William (consumer-facing herbs and spices in pot formats, including tempura batter mix, panko breadcrumbs, and desserts) and Our Earth (free-from, vegan-friendly, allergen-free, and low-salt foodservice range). They also provide an Innovation Centre service for recipe development and blending solutions, serving both the manufacturing and foodservice sectors.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Chef William: Brand offering herbs, spices, seasonings, tempura batter mix, and related food ingredients for foodservice and manufacturing sectors.
• Our Earth

Products and services

• Food Ingredients (ambient herbs, spices, seasonings, dehydrated and canned products, dried blended products) Ambient food ingredients including herbs, spices, seasonings, dehydrated and canned products, and dried blended products supplied to UK food manufacturers and foodservice operators for use in their own product formulations and menus.
• Chef William (herbs, spices and seasonings brand) Branded herbs, spices, and seasonings range (Chef William) including pot-format products such as Yellow Mustard Seeds, Lime Leaves, Smoked Paprika, Tempura Batter Mix, Panko Breadcrumbs, and Sage & Onion Stuffing, sold to foodservice operators and food manufacturers.
• Our Earth (free-from foodservice range) Free-from, vegan-friendly, allergen-free and low salt foodservice product range with traceability back to source, targeted at UK hotels, restaurants, caterers, and other foodservice operators.
• Foodservice Solutions Comprehensive foodservice ingredient solutions combining the Our Earth free-from range and Chef William branded herbs, spices, and seasonings, supplied to UK foodservice operators including hotels, restaurants, and caterers.
• Innovation Centre (recipe development and custom blending) State-of-the-art £750,000 Innovation Centre providing on-site blending and recipe development services for customers, supporting new flavour development and reformulation of existing recipes for food manufacturers and foodservice operators.
• Chef William Tempura Batter Mix Crisp, light batter coating mix sold under the Chef William brand for coating seafood, chicken, and vegetables, targeted at foodservice operators and food manufacturers.
• Panko Breadcrumbs Versatile Japanese-style panko breadcrumb product sold under the Chef William brand for foodservice and manufacturing customers.
• Chef William Delights (sweet mousse dessert range) Light and fluffy sweet mousse dessert range under the Chef William brand, available in Strawberry and other flavours, sold to foodservice and manufacturing customers.
• Vegetarian Jelly Crystal Range Reformulated vegetarian jelly crystal product range sold to foodservice and manufacturing customers as part of the Chef William branded portfolio.

Quantifiable outcome

• BRC AA+ Unannounced certification retained for third consecutive year
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• The Natasha Allergy Research FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 June 2024Sleaford Quality Foods entered into a three-year strategic partnership with the UK's food allergy charity to support its goal to Make Allergy History. The partnership helps fund important work to raise awareness of food allergies and carry out new scientific research. The issue is particularly meaningful as the family of one colleague has directly experienced allergic reactions.
• Jain Irrigation Systems LtdcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJain Irrigation Systems Ltd is the parent company of Sleaford Quality Foods, located in India. The global Jain group has related companies throughout the world. Sleaford leverages the parent company's certified organic spice processing plant and benefits from the global group's expertise in food sourcing and supply chain.
• Sedex (Supplier Ethical Data Exchange)coreTechnology or IntegrationSleaford requires suppliers to be or become members of Sedex as part of their supplier approval and review process. Suppliers may undergo full SMETA (Sedex Members Ethical Trade Audit) audit. Where suppliers are not registered members, Sleaford requires completion of an Ethical Trade Questionnaire.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• McCormick & Company: Global leader in spices, seasonings, and flavor solutions with a broad B2B portfolio across foodservice and food manufacturing. Highly comparable to Sleaford Quality Foods on product category (spices, seasonings, herb/specialty ingredients) and customer overlap (UK foodservice and manufacturers), though at vastly greater scale.
• Symrise: German global manufacturer of flavors, seasonings, and functional ingredients for food, beverage, and foodservice customers. Directly comparable to Sleaford on custom blending, spice/seasoning categories, and foodservice-and-manufacturer dual-channel GTM.
• Treatt plc: UK-listed manufacturer of innovative ingredient solutions for flavors and fragrances, including dehydrated juices, herbs, and spice extracts. UK-based specialty ingredient manufacturer with overlapping product, customer, and innovation profile to Sleaford Quality Foods.
• Caldic: Dutch-headquartered B2B distributor and formulator of food ingredients and specialty solutions (seasonings, blends, sauces) across Europe. Comparable to Sleaford on ingredient distribution, blending services, and multi-category food manufacturer customer base.

Broad incumbents

• Kerry Group: Ireland-headquartered multinational supplying taste and nutrition ingredients (seasonings, sauces, dried blends) to food and beverage manufacturers globally. Comparable business model to Sleaford Quality Foods (B2B ingredient supply with co-development services) and significant UK presence.
• Givaudan: Swiss global leader in flavors, fragrances, and natural ingredients serving food and beverage manufacturers. Comparable on taste/seasoning ingredient manufacturing and custom blend development for foodservice and industrial customers.
• International Flavors & Fragrances (IFF): Global ingredient major with broad food ingredient, taste, and functional ingredient portfolio. Highly comparable to Sleaford on the food ingredient manufacturer model serving both manufacturers and foodservice operators.
• Tate & Lyle: UK-headquartered global food and beverage ingredient supplier with emphasis on texturants, sweeteners, and specialty ingredients. Comparable on B2B ingredient manufacturing for the UK food industry and on innovation-driven custom solutions.
• ABF (Associated British Foods) Ingredients: Diversified UK food group with a substantial ingredients division supplying yeast, extracts, and specialty ingredients to food manufacturers globally. Comparable on UK-based food ingredient manufacturing, sustainable sourcing credentials, and breadth across ambient and specialty categories.

Regional players

• Premier Foods: Major UK-branded food manufacturer (Batchelors, Oxo, Bisto spices/seasonings). Overlap with Sleaford on spice/seasoning category and UK foodservice customer base, though Premier operates as a branded packaged-goods manufacturer rather than a B2B ingredient supplier.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Sleaford_QFoods
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sleaford-quality-foods
• Instagraminstagram.com/sleaford_qf
• Facebookfacebook.com/SleafordQF

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Sleaford Quality Foods Ltd.