The British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF) named Karen McQuade as its new president during the trade association’s annual general meeting on November 13. She succeeded Ian Stone, who stepped down after serving in the role since December of 2020.
McQuade brings 25 years of experience in the frozen food sector to the job, having attended her first BFFF event in 1999. In 2007 she founded The UK Foodhall Ltd, which has grown to become a leader in providing healthy, quality-assured British meat, fish and poultry products to the school meal sector.
Driven by a commitment to sourcing locally and supporting British farmers and manufacturers, McQuade has earned national recognition, while receiving 17 business awards and 32 product awards. Today her commercial portfolio includes three additional UK food manufacturing companies that employ approximately 260 people. Serving as a BFFF director for six years, she now takes on the presidency with a passion for representing and promoting the frozen food industry.
She commented: “I have always supported the BFFF for their championing of frozen food and the much needed voice they give to the frozen food category. Today, more than ever, we need the BFFF to speak loudly on our behalf about the sustainable benefits of frozen food, its role in reducing food waste, and the quality it brings without added preservatives. I’m also a strong advocate for the BFFF’s young leaders’ forum. Encouraging the next generation is fundamental to our industry’s future.”
Rupert Ashby, chief executive of the Federation, stated: “I’d like to take this opportunity to welcome Karen to her new role and am delighted that she has been appointed as president. Her entrepreneurial spirit, dedication to British food, and commitment to the frozen sector make her an inspiring leader for our industry.
“I would also like to express my gratitude on behalf of the BFFF to outgoing president Ian Stone. His invaluable service and steady leadership over the past four years have been instrumental in steering the Federation through an exciting and challenging period which included changes following Brexit and the pandemic lockdown. We are grateful for his dedication.”
In September Stone was appointed as chief executive designate of apetito UK, with which he has held various roles since joining the company in 2003, latterly chief commercial officer.
Call for Industry-wide Debate on Frozen Food Temperatures
Meanwhile, at the BFFF’s annual lunch on November 19, McQuade said that there is a compelling environmental case for raising the frozen food storage and distribution standard –which has been unchanged since the frozen food industry was born 100 years ago.
“Our freezers have been set to -18°C for a century. Is now the time to consider turning the temperature up? We can reduce emissions and save energy by moving to a higher temperature, but it’s not a simple switch.
“Raising the temperature for frozen food storage to -15 could reduce energy consumption and cut global emissions by 17.7 million metric tonnes annually, the equivalent of removing 3.8 million cars from the road.”
The BFFF has been involved with research into the question of increasing the standard temperature since 2009, and earlier this year it joined the international coalition The Move to -15°C.
The Federation’s new president said that it’s now time for the industry to engage in a frank discussion about whether the standard is still fit for purpose and what potential changes could be made to improve sustainability.
“The first step is to fill in the gaps in scientific research supporting the temperature shift. Research is already underway. Earlier this year Nomad Foods conducted an 18-month study which found no significant changes in food quality or safety within the categories tested at -15,” she said. “However more research is needed to understand the impact on delicate food categories.”
