Dozens of workers have been left jobless after a Scottish food supplier collapsed into liquidation following 35 years in business. A total of 71 staff have been made redundant after wholesale firm Enterprise Foods Limited went bust.
The East Kilbride-based company, which traded as Localist, had helped Scottish suppliers, producers and farmers get their goods on the shelves of major retailers. But the business fell into financial difficulty after failing to refinance debts of more than £5million. It is understood the company had been struggling with cash-flow problems that had built up over several years. These were linked to bad debts following the failure of numerous customers and were worsened by challenging market conditions hitting both the retail and hospitality sectors. George Lafferty of BTG was appointed provisional liquidator on Wednesday after a petition was lodged by the business.
Thomas McKay, managing partner of BTG in Scotland and Northern Ireland, said staff are being supported following the collapse.
He said: "The directors had made efforts to restructure the debt of the company in order to save the business and rescue the jobs, and the loss of the jobs was sadly inevitable when this was not successful.
"There are many small suppliers to the business that are owed money, and the loss of this route to market will also have a serious knock-on effect to these food producers as well.
"We are working to assess all claims and establish whether there will be any dividend paid to unsecured creditors.
"But it is not likely to be significant, given the level of secured debts in the business.
"Regrettably, the failure of the company has resulted in 71 redundancies.
"We are working closely with those affected to help them access the financial entitlements and support available to them, including assistance from Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) and the Redundancy Payments Service.
"Our priorities now include ensuring these employees receive the guidance and advice they need during this process, and that we maximise the return from the sale of assets to the benefit of creditors."
The collapse marks the end of a long-standing Scottish foodservice business and raises fresh concerns over pressures facing firms across the sector.
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