Liverpool Palm Oil Refinery Expanding Under New Sime Darby Ownership

Earlier in 2015, Sime Darby acquired New Britain Palm Oils for £1.073 billion by Malaysia’s Sime Darby Plantation creating the newly named, New Britain Oils. Sime Darby harvests palm oil from sustainable sources in Papua New Guinea, which is then shipped to its Liverpool site for processing.

Production at New Britain Oils’ Liverpool plant has since increased on the back of increasing demand for its bakery fats as UK food manufacturers work to meet their sustainability goals, and the implementation of new food labeling laws in the EU.

EU laws now require food labels to indicate oil ingredients by name rather than under the broad term, ‘vegetable oil’, and consumers are more aware of the sources of the ingredients in the foods they eat.

“There’s no doubt that demand from retailers and consumers for products containing certified sustainable palm oil has been a major contributor to our business growth. This is no more so than in the bakery sector where we have seen the biggest growth in demand over the past 12 months,” said Adam Thomas, General Manager.

To meet this growing demand, New Britain Oils has been operating its refinery on a 24 hour, seven day a week schedule, and has recently adjusted its packing operations to the same schedule, and added five production technicians to their staff.

“We are very pleased with the way the business has grown and evolved over the last five years and it is particularly pleasing to know this comes on the back of an increased demand for sustainable palm oil,” said Thomas.

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