Success story: Prima Foods
Background
With a workforce of over 40 people, Llanelli-based Prima Foods specialises in the manufacture of suet, dumpling and pastry products. The BRCGS certified company is home to the largest suet factory in the UK and supplies the retail, ready meal and foodservice sectors. Major UK manufacturing customers, include Premier Foods, Greencore, Samworth Group and Kerry Foods.
ZERO2FIVE Food Industry Centre has provided Prima Foods with technical assistance since 2011 and has supported the company with maintaining their BRCGS certification as well as the sensory evaluation of new product ranges.
Support from ZERO2FIVE
As part of the HELIX Programme, ZERO2FIVE has helped with the upskilling of the company’s technical team. ZERO2FIVE has conducted internal audits against the BRCGS standard to identify opportunities for improving Prima Foods’ food safety management systems. As a result, ZERO2FIVE has delivered mentoring on topics including HACCP, traceability and supplier approval and monitoring.
As part of another project, ZERO2FIVE has mentored Prima’s technical team on supplier approval and raw material risk assessment. This included a review of Prima Foods’ supplier approval procedure in line with best practice and how the company can control any hazards associated with the raw materials they use.
Finally, ZERO2FIVE has supported Prima Foods with the validation of a new rotating rack oven that the company recently installed to double capacity. Using calibrated data loggers, ZERO2FIVE independently reviewed the heating profile and temperature distribution across the oven to identify any potential cold spots. This has supported with cooking validations to ensure that products are cooked to a safe temperature and that critical control points in the company’s food safety management plan are met.
Benefits of the support
As a result of the support from ZERO2FIVE, Prima Foods’s technical team have further developed their expertise, and improvements have been made to the company’s food safety management plan.
Prima Foods had their most recent BRCGS audit in September 2025 and successfully maintained their AA grade. This will enable the company to continue to supply major customers who require the standard, and as a result safeguard over 40 jobs.
As part of future work, ZERO2FIVE are looking to support Prima Foods with the development of a bespoke training programme for their onsite team. This is one of the key objectives in the company’s food safety culture plan, which is a fundamental part of the BRCGS standard.
Peter Rice, Managing Director, Prima Foods, said: “The HELIX Programme has given us the confidence to invest in and grow our business, knowing that we’ve got the technical back up of the experts at ZERO2FIVE. The mentoring they offer to our technical team acts as a gateway to expertise and knowledge that we don’t have in house.”
Get in touch with us
If you’d like to find out more about how we can help your business or have any questions about the support we can offer, then please get in touch.
