Government backs food and drink initiative
The UK government has announced support for a new partnership between employers and trade bodies to develop food and drink manufacturing skills in England.
The new Industry Skills Partnership will bring together organisations from across the food and drink sector in a drive to boost skills and improve the quality and relevance of training. The partnership will place employers firmly in the driving seat when it comes to developing the workforce of the future and driving growth.
The Industry Skills Partnership will see businesses including Thorntons, Nestlé, Premier Foods, Britvic, 2 Sisters and Arla working in collaboration with trade groups and retailers. The funding follows a successful bid by the industry as part of the government’s Employer Ownership of Skills initiative.
Announcing the government’s support, skills minister Nick Boles says, “Food and drink processing now employs more than 300,000 people in England alone. This new partnership will allow the industry to develop the skills and talent it needs to grow and compete on the global stage. We are committed to putting employers in the driving seat when it comes to skills so they can address the specific challenges facing their businesses.”
Justine Fosh, CEO of the National Skills Academy for Food & Drink, which facilitated the pan-sector bid and will support the Industry Skills Partnership, adds, “We are delighted to be joining forces with government and businesses from across food and drink manufacturing to support growth in the sector through investing in skills.
“We look forward to welcoming active participation from business leaders representing every corner and facet of the industry – companies large and small – in designing and driving forward the future skills agenda on which the future of the industry depends.”
