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Pilgrim’s Europe has opened a new Pork Centre of Excellence at its Bromborough, UK site, marking a £350,000 investment aimed at accelerating product development and strengthening innovation across its pork division.
The new facility features a modern development kitchen designed to support efficient, high-quality product creation.
It also includes specialist equipment such as an indoor charcoal barbecue for developing and showcasing barbecue ranges, alongside a dry ageing unit aligned with upcoming innovation in the pork category.
A dedicated customer panelling space has been incorporated to enable the business to host tastings, innovation sessions and collaborative workshops with both retail and foodservice partners. The set-up is intended to bring customers closer to the development process, from initial concept through to finished product, helping ensure new launches align with evolving consumer expectations.
The centre will focus on pork and added-value pork products, with particular emphasis on growth segments such as BBQ and ready-to-cook offerings.
Ivan Siqueira, president, Pilgrim’s Europe, said: “The new Pork Centre of Excellence at Bromborough is an important investment in our innovation capabilities and part of our wider ambition to create centres of excellence across our different business units at Pilgrim’s Europe."
Sam Reader, director of product and innovation at Pilgrim’s Europe, added: “By bringing together modern kitchen facilities, specialist equipment and dedicated customer collaboration spaces, we’ve created an environment where ideas can move quickly from concept to reality. It gives our teams the space to explore new flavours, formats and product ideas, while working closely with customers to develop new products and showcase the versatility of pork.”
Pilgrim’s Europe employs more than 17,000 people across over 40 sites in the UK, Ireland, France and the Netherlands. The company produces a range of fresh and prepared foods across poultry, pork, lamb and beef supply chains, supplying both own-label and branded products to retail and foodservice markets.
