Associated British Foods plc (ABF) is a British multinational food processing and retailing company headquartered in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, England. Its ingredients division is the world's second-largest producer of both sugar and

baker's yeast Baker's yeast is the common name for the strains of yeast commonly used in baking bread and other bakery products, serving as a leavening agent which causes the bread to rise (expand and become lighter and softer) by converting the fermentable ...

and a major producer of other ingredients including

emulsifiers An emulsion is a mixture of two or more liquids that are normally immiscible (unmixable or unblendable) owing to liquid-liquid phase separation. Emulsions are part of a more general class of two-phase systems of matter called colloids. Although ...

enzymes An enzyme () is a protein that acts as a biological catalyst by accelerating chemical reactions. The molecules upon which enzymes may act are called substrates, and the enzyme converts the substrates into different molecules known as pro ...

and

lactose Lactose is a disaccharide composed of galactose and glucose and has the molecular formula C12H22O11. Lactose makes up around 2–8% of milk (by mass). The name comes from (Genitive case, gen. ), the Latin word for milk, plus the suffix ''-o ...

. Its grocery division is a major manufacturer of both branded and private label grocery products and includes the brands Mazola,

Ovaltine Ovaltine, also known by its original name Ovomaltine, is a brand of milk flavouring product made with malt extract, sugar (except in Switzerland), and whey. Some flavours also have cocoa. Ovaltine, a registered trademark of Associated British ...

, Ryvita, Jordans, Kingsmill and

Twinings Twinings () is a British marketeer of tea and other beverages, including coffee, hot chocolate, and malt drinks, based in Andover, Hampshire. The brand is owned by Associated British Foods. It holds the world's oldest continually used company ...

. Its retail division,

Primark Primark Limited (; trading as Penneys in Ireland) is an Irish multinational fashion retailer with headquarters in Dublin, Ireland, with outlets across Europe and in the United States. The original ''Penneys'' brand is not used outside of Irel ...

, has some 384 stores across several countries, predominantly Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Spain, and the UK. ACH Food Companies is an American subsidiary. Associated British Foods is listed on the

London Stock Exchange The London Stock Exchange (LSE) is a stock exchange based in London, England. the total market value of all companies trading on the LSE stood at US$3.42 trillion. Its current premises are situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cath ...

and is a constituent of the

FTSE 100 Index The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index, also called the FTSE 100 Index, FTSE 100, FTSE, or, informally, the "Footsie" , is the United Kingdom's best-known stock market index of the 100 most highly capitalised blue chips listed on ...

History

20th century

The company was founded by Canadian

W. Garfield Weston Willard Garfield Weston (26 February 189822 October 1978) was a Canadian businessman and philanthropist who was a member of the prominent Weston family. He led George Weston Limited and its various subsidiaries and associated companies, includi ...

in 1935, initially as Food Investments Limited, with the name changing to Allied Bakeries Limited a month later. Between 1935 and 1956, ten national and regional bakery companies were acquired by Allied, including Barrett and Pomeroy, and London and Provincial Bakeries. The largest acquisition at this time was in 1955 when Allied bought the British operations of the

Aerated Bread Company The Aerated Bread Company Ltd (A.B.C.) was a British company founded and headquartered in London. Although it is often remembered as running a large chain of tea rooms in Britain and other parts of the world, it was originally established in 1 ...

, founded in 1862. This acquisition included both the bakery business and the chain of cafeterias, the A.B.C. Tearooms. Allied paid $8.1 million for A.B.C. At that time, Allied had a large share of the UK baked goods market. Allied's market share prior to acquiring A.B.C. was 10% of all UK bread production and the sale of 20 million biscuits per day. Allied's sales the year prior were $154 million with profits of $12.6 million in current dollars.Barnum of Bread
" ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

''. Monday, 14 February 1955. ''(Retrieved 2009-05-13.)'' With the acquisition of A.B.C., Allied almost doubled its share of the UK's bread market by the end of the decade.Oddy, Derek J. and Derek S. Miller. ''The Making of the Modern British Diet''. Croom Helm. 1976, p. 27 In December 1954 they purchased from Howardsgate Trust the single

Fine Fare Fine Fare was a chain of supermarkets which operated in the United Kingdom from 1951 until 1988. During the 1960s the company was the largest operator of supermarkets in Europe. Their Yellow Pack budget private label, own-label range, introduce ...

Supermarket in

Welwyn Garden City Welwyn Garden City ( ) is a town in Hertfordshire, England, north of London. It was the second Garden city movement, garden city in England (founded 1920) and one of the first New towns in the United Kingdom, new towns (designated 1948). It is ...

, the Welwyn Store grocery branches and the bakery businesses owned by the Trust. Allied, under its new name, adopted in 1960, of Associated British Foods, continued to run A.B.C. as a separate brand after its takeover, with a major A.B.C. bakery in

Camden Town Camden Town () is an area in the London Borough of Camden, around north-northwest of Charing Cross. Historically in Middlesex, it is identified in the London Plan as one of 34 major centres in Greater London. Laid out as a residential distri ...

, London. This closed in 1982 and the A.B.C. name was retired. Following the death of the founder in 1978, control of the company was passed on to his son Garry, while the North American operations fell to his son

Galen Aelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus (; September 129 – AD), often Anglicization, anglicized as Galen () or Galen of Pergamon, was a Ancient Rome, Roman and Greeks, Greek physician, surgeon, and Philosophy, philosopher. Considered to be one o ...

. The company sold Fine Fare in 1986 to the Dee Corporation, and in 1991, went on to acquire

British Sugar British Sugar plc is a subsidiary of Associated British Foods and the sole British producer of sugar from sugar beet, as well as medicinal cannabis. History Early history The company was formed as the British Sugar Corporation in 1936, wh ...

. In 1997, ABF sold its retail operations in Ireland (including Northern Ireland) to

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

. These businesses were:

Quinnsworth Quinnsworth was a supermarket chain that operated in Ireland from 1966 to 2001. During its time in operation, it grew to be one of Ireland's leading retailers, with approximately one quarter of the grocery market in the Republic of Ireland, an ...

and Crazy Prices in the Republic of Ireland and Stewarts Supermarket Limited and Crazy Prices in Northern Ireland. This sale also included the Stewarts Winebarrel off-licence chain, Lifestyle Sports & Leisure Ltd (a retail sports and leisure business), Kingsway Fresh Foods (a meat processing facility) and Daily Wrap Produce (a fruit and vegetable packaging plant). In May 1994, Greggs acquired the Bakers Oven chain from the company. Argo starch

21st century

In 2000, the company sold its interests in Burton's Biscuits. In 2002, it acquired the Mazola corn oil, Argo and Kingsford's cornstarch, Karo and Golden Griddle syrups, and Henri's dressing brands, along with several Canadian brands, from

Unilever Unilever PLC () is a British multinational consumer packaged goods company headquartered in London, England. It was founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie with British soap maker Lever B ...

; in 2004, it acquired the Tone's spice business and Fleischman yeast business from Burns Philp; and in 2007, it purchased Patak's Indian food business. On 26 March 2011, Associated British Foods, and its parent company Wittington Investments, were targeted over

tax avoidance Tax avoidance is the legal usage of the tax regime in a single territory to one's own advantage to reduce the amount of tax that is payable. A tax shelter is one type of tax avoidance, and tax havens are jurisdictions that facilitate reduced taxe ...

UK Uncut UK Uncut was a network of United Kingdom-based Protest, protest groups established in October 2010 to protest against cuts to public services and tax avoidance in the UK. Various sources have described the group as Left-wing politics, left-win ...

during anti-cuts protests.UK Uncut Occupy Tax Dodgers Fortnum and Mason
. 26 March 2011. The tax avoidance scheme involved moving capital between ABF/Primark and the affiliated

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

entity ABF European Holdings & Co SNC by means of interest-free loans, avoiding tax of about £9.7 million per year. The protest took the form of a mass

sit-in A sit-in or sit-down is a form of direct action that involves one or more people occupying an area for a protest, often to promote political, social, or economic change. The protestors gather conspicuously in a space or building, refusing to mo ...

Fortnum & Mason Fortnum & Mason plc (colloquially often shortened to just Fortnum's) is an Luxury goods, upmarket department store in London, England. The main store is located at 181 Piccadilly in the St James's area of London, where it was established in 1707 ...

. In 2013, the firm denied "illegal and immoral" tax evasion after it was accused by an international charity of moving its profits outside

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

to reduce its tax bill. ActionAid said Zambia Sugar, a unit of AB Foods, had made profits of $123 million since 2007, but had paid "virtually no corporate tax" in Zambia. In October 2013, the company denied being involved in unscrupulous uses of land, in an article containing reports of forced evictions by other companies. In November 2024, George Weston, chief executive of ABF claimed that the recent UK Budget may lead it to invest more outside the UK over fears the High Street will bear the "weight of tax rises".

Operations

Brands

Allinson Allinson is a brand of bread and flour manufactured by Associated British Foods. History Dr Thomas Allinson was born in the Hulme district of Manchester in 1858. He trained as a medical doctor in Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of ...

* Argo

Corn Starch Cornflour, cornstarch, maize starch, or corn starch (American English) is the starch derived from corn (maize) grain. The starch is obtained from the endosperm of the seed, kernel. Corn starch is a common food ingredient, often used to thick ...

* Aladino

Peanut Butter Peanut butter is a food Paste (food), paste or Spread (food), spread made from Grinding (abrasive cutting), ground, dry roasting, dry-roasted peanuts. It commonly contains additional ingredients that modify the taste or texture, such as salt, ...

* Burgen * Blue Dragon * Capullo * Dorset Cereals * Dromedary cake mixes * Elephant Atta * Fleischmann's Yeast * High5 * Jordans cereals * Lucky Boat Noodles * Karo

corn syrup Corn syrup is a food syrup that is made from the starch of corn/maize and contains varying amounts of sugars: glucose, maltose and higher oligosaccharides, depending on the grade. Corn syrup is used in foods to soften Mouthfeel, texture, add vol ...

* Kingsford's Corn Starch (North America) * Kingsmill bread * Mazola

corn oil Corn oil (North American) or maize oil (British) is oil extracted from the germ of corn (maize). Its main use is in cooking, where its high smoke point makes refined corn oil a valuable frying oil. It is also a key ingredient in some margarin ...

(except in the United States, where

Nestlé Nestlé S.A. ( ) is a Swiss multinational food and drink processing conglomerate corporation headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland. It has been the largest publicly held food company in the world, measured by revenue and other metrics, since 20 ...

owns the brand) * Patak's * Pride * Ryvita * Silver Spoon * Sunblest * Thai Lotus Pastes * Tolly Boy Rice *

Subsidiaries

* AB Agri Ltd * AB Enzymes - an ABFI Company * AB Sugar * AB Mauri, bakery ingredients * Abitec Corporation - an ABFI Company * Abitec Ltd * ACH Food Companies (AC HUMKO from 1995 to 2000), an American subsidiary of Associated British Foods, previously part of Kraft Foods from 1952 to 1995. * ACH Food México * Allied Bakeries - a division of ABF Grain Products Ltd * Allied Mills *

* Frontier Agriculture (50% joint venture with

Cargill Cargill, Incorporated is an American multinational food corporation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, Minnetonka, Minnesota, and incorporated in Wilmington, Delaware. Founded in 1865 by William Wallace Cargill, it is the largest privately held c ...

) * George Weston Foods * G Costa: sauces and specialty foods * Illovo Sugar ** Zambia Sugar * OHLY - an ABFI Company * PGP International, Inc. - an ABFI Company *

– known as Penneys in the Republic of Ireland * SPI Pharma, Inc. - an ABFI Company * Stratas Foods LLC, a 50/50 joint venture between ABF's American subsidiary ACH and fellow American food corporation

Archer Daniels Midland The Archer-Daniels-Midland Company, commonly known as ADM, is an American multinational food processing and commodities trading corporation founded in 1902 and headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. The company operates more than 270 p ...

* Wander AG * Westmill Foods

Board of directors

* Charles Sinclair, chairman. * George G. Weston, chief executive officer. *

John Bason John Bason (born 24 April 1957) is a British businessman. Early life John Bason was born on 24 April 1957 in Knutsford, Cheshire, England. He graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge, where he earned an MA in natural sciences. Career Bason beg ...

, Finance Director. * Peter Smith, Independent non-executive director. * Michael Jay, Baron Jay of Ewelme, Independent non-executive director. * Timothy Clarke, Independent non-executive director. * Javier Ferrán, Independent non-executive director. * Emma Adamo, Independent non-executive director.

Controlling shareholder

54.5% of ABF is owned by Wittington Investments. 79.2% of the share capital of Wittington Investments is owned by the

Garfield Weston Foundation The Garfield Weston Foundation is a grant-giving charity based in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1958 by Canadian businessman W. Garfield Weston (1898–1978), who during his lifetime contributed to numerous humanitarian causes, bo ...

, which is one of the UK's largest grant-making charitable trusts, and the remainder is owned by members of the Weston family. Wittington Investments also owns

and Heal & Son. George G. Weston became chief executive of ABF on 1 April 2005, and Galen Weston, the chief executive of George Weston Ltd., is a non-executive director. Garth Weston is Regional President of AB Mauri.

References

External links

* {{Authority control Food manufacturers based in London Companies listed on the London Stock Exchange Food and drink companies established in 1935 Weston family Multinational food companies Multinational companies headquartered in England British companies established in 1935 1935 establishments in England Fortnum & Mason Companies in the FTSE 100 Index Sugar companies Sugar industry of the United Kingdom