RICHMOND MP Rishi Sunak has welcomed a multi-million pound tie-up between a Leeming Bar-based ice cream manufacturer and the international food giant Nestle.
Mr Sunak heard about the joint venture between R&R Ice Cream and the Swiss company Nestle during a recent visit to the Leeming Bar firm’s manufacturing plant.
He said: “This is great news for the company and all the staff who work here. R&R is a great North Yorkshire business success and this move is another stage in an incredible growth story.”
Mr Sunak was shown round the plant, which employs 550 people – rising to more than 600 in the summer – by R&R’s senior management team, including CEO Ibrahim Najafi.
“This joint venture cements R&R’s position as one of the world’s leading ice cream manufacturers is testament to the manufacturing, marketing and distribution skills and expertise of the team here in Leeming Bar,” he said.
R&R Ice Cream – originally Richmond Ice Cream – started out in 1985 as a North Yorkshire-based private label ice cream manufacturer.
A series of mergers and acquisitions saw it grow over the next 30 years until in 2015 it was the third largest ice cream business in the world, employing some 4,000 people with its headquarters at Leeming Bar.
