UK food company closes down forever – in business for 22 years | UK | News

A popular UK food company is set to close its doors permanently after filing for voluntary liquidation. Fresha Ltd, based on Sowton Industrial Estate, has been providing meals for more than 20 years, employs around 95 staff and has catering contracts with schools, police, health services and other organizations in Devon.

The company managed the catering services for the G7 world leaders summit held in Cornwall in 2021. Founded by Paul Banks, who is now chief executive, the company has been in decline, with the company’s cost base increasing by 50 percent in the last five years. Mr Banks said he was “incredibly sorry” to close the business. He said the decision was taken in response to increasingly difficult trading conditions and government policies that make it almost impossible to operate.

In a heartfelt statement, she said: “After 22 years, I’ve made the incredibly difficult decision to close the doors of Fresha. “And if I’m honest, it feels incredibly sad and strangely true at the same time.

“The decision to close was not taken lightly. The challenges to our industry in recent years have been brutal and it has become clear that continuing despite every effort will only make things harder for everyone involved.

“So I chose to close the business while I was still able to do it properly, by paying our team, paying our suppliers, and getting the job done with integrity. That was more important to me than anything else.

“My focus right now is to thank and say goodbye to the many incredible people who have been a part of this journey. From now on, I’m going to take some time with my wife and our two sons to slow down, reflect, and enjoy the moments that are often missed when we’ve been building something for so long.”

Fresha started in 2004. Paul was delivering sandwiches and buffets from a van. He continued: “Over the years Fresha has grown into something much bigger than I had originally planned, with an annual turnover exceeding £4 million.” “From our base in Sowton to cafes, food vans and our central kitchen, but more importantly to a team of brilliant, hard-working and loyal people who make it all possible.

“We’ve had some incredible experiences, including feeding NHS patients, supporting the police, fire and ambulance crews, working at Exeter Racecourse, hosting speed awareness courses – which seemed a bit of an irony for someone who once had nine points on his licence. And we catered for the G7. I still look back with great pride on those 10 days in 2021, serving over 32,000 meals to people behind the scenes.”

“But honestly, the part I’m most proud of came from something very simple. In 2015, my oldest son came home from school and told me the food wasn’t good enough and asked if we could do better. That one conversation changed everything. It led us to working with over 50 schools over the next 10 years, serving thousands of children every day. For many of those kids, that meal was the most important meal of their day, and we never lost sight of that responsibility.

“By 2024, Fresha had more than 90 employees and served around 6,000 hot meals a day across Devon. But it’s not the numbers I’ll always remember, it’s the shared belief that the work we do matters. This isn’t just the end of a business. It’s the end of a chapter that I will always be proud of.”