Snack manufacturer Metcalfe’s Food Company has reached fourth place on the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 list, making it the fastest growing private food and drink company in the UK.
Small food and drink firms make a crucial contribution to the £1,000bn driven through local economies by small businesses each year, but it could be far greater if banks loosened their purse strings.
More British food and drink firms could find themselves the targets of overseas takeovers this year, with some analysts predicting mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity surpassing the £4.2bn achieved in the UK last year.