11 Apr 2016 --- Nestlé has highlighted the “quiet success story” of the UK food and drinks industry amid new national figures which show a sharp drop in British productivity.

Fiona Kendrick, chairman and chief executive of Nestlé UK and Ireland, said: “It is disappointing to see these figures but government and businesses must continue to work together to address Britain’s productivity challenge so that we can compete with our rivals around the world.

“The UK’s food and drink sector has been a quiet success story and has increased productivity by 11 percent in the last five years through investment in both people and new technology.”

“At Nestlé, we put our people at the centre of raising the performance of our business and the technology they use. We recognise that in order for our businesses to prosper, we need to empower our people to identify improvement and drive efficiency.”

“By supporting our employees in developing the skills they need to use new technology, we have been able to make strong productivity gains across the business, while empowering our workforce.”

The comments from Kendrick follows data from the Office for National Statistics, which showed a steep drop in British productivity.

The figures show labour productivity, as measured by output per hour, dropped by 1.2 percent in the fourth quarter of 2015, compared to the previous quarter.

The fall marks the biggest drop in productivity since the financial crisis in 2008.

Source: Food Ingredients First