A recipe to combat Brexit

Datel support food manufacturer to adapt their processes

14th May 2021

Having knowledgeable system support is vital for John Taubman, Head of IT at Symington’s Limited. We asked him about the recent challenges Symington’s has faced due to Brexit and how perfecting their processes brings him joy. 

For 190 years, Symington’s have been creating delicious and healthy store cupboard favourites for the nation such as Chicken Tonight sauces and Naked Noodles. Now with an office in Australia, they are a company with global reach and a turnover of more than £120 million.  

Importing and exporting post Brexit

Although the past 12 months have certainly been different, John said that ambient foods have not suffered badly during the pandemic, in fact having somewhat of a resurgence. Brexit however has been a headache for the team, and has been a major driver for their recent process changes. John explained;

“Brexit has had a huge impact on us. Not just on stuff that we try to export but also the relationships with our suppliers too. We’ve had to jump through some serious hoops - we even had to have a vet come in to check our products because they have some animal protein in them.”  

Making process changes  

These new challenges mean John has had to totally re-evaluate their process for exporting products. Having partnered with Datel for many years in different roles, John knew to contact support in the first instance, adding: “I call on Datel more than other partners. They are always approachable and keen to improve processes rather than a simple fix.”  

During what has been a busy time for Symington’s, John is hugely appreciative; “Datel honestly deserve the thanks, it's really helped us out. The team understands our business and what will help us be more efficient.” Symington’s have recently started to enjoy the benefits of Fusion Excel Connect, one of Datel’s add-on products that has recently been integrated into their Sage 1000 system. John explained, “Fusion Excel Connect has gone down really well here. It’s really helping reduce some of our painful manual data entry.” 

Symington’s is not only a company that appreciates new innovations, but is a master of innovation itself. Their food development team is clearly on the ball when it comes to current food trends, as with the rise in veganism the business has recently launched a fun new vegan range - branded ‘The Blooming Good Food Company.’ The plant based range has been created to be full of flavour and has beautifully illustrated packaging that’s honest about the ingredients on the inside. We can’t wait to sample the range ourselves, and are equally excited to see what Symington’s comes up with next.