A near-20-year supply chain partnership between a European pallet pooler and one of the UK’s leading suppliers of onions, shallots and garlic is celebrating a significant growth milestone.
Coventry-based IPP has been supplying sustainable wooden pallets to Lincolnshire-based Moulton Bulb since 2008, a partnership which has doubled in size over the last five years.
IPP now supplies around 120,000 pallets annually to Moulton Bulb, which in turn supplies around 25 per cent of all UK supermarket onion volume for stores including Waitrose, Aldi and the Co-op.
Volumes have increased from around 60,000 pallets per year in 2021, thanks to a combination of growth with new and existing retailers.
Family-run Moulton Bulb has been packing onions for more than 40 years, and the BRC AA+ certified business grows, imports, packs and processes its produce – giving it complete transparency of supply chains from seed to store.
IPP’s role is to ensure Moulton Bulb’s products reach their customers reliably and in perfect condition, on pallets which are repaired, reused and recycled as part of the circular economy.
Demi Crabbe, commercial director at IPP UK&I, said: “Our relationship with Moulton Bulb is built on trust and is much more of a partnership.
“We understand Moulton Bulb’s processes and help keep everything running smoothly in its supply chain by being easy to work with, proactive and providing a consistently high level of service.
“They know that if there's a problem, we can fix it. They know they can pick up the phone to us whenever they need support.”
As part of its ongoing growth, Moulton Bulb is aiming to expand in its key markets and add new retail customers to its roster.
Robert Oldershaw, director at the Spalding-based business, said: “My grandfather originally started the business as a growing operation and we’ve been packing onions since 1979. We believe that to be the best, you should stick to what you know; and we certainly ‘know our onions.’
“We pack around 1,600 to 1,700 tonnes a week for a range of supermarket retailers, so we've grown considerably over the years we've been working with IPP. We also process produce on this site, and we're using IPP pallets for our processed customers too.
“I think it’s the simplicity of the relationship that’s key. Pallets are, in many ways, a commodity product – you simply need them to work. The simpler the process, the better. Our relationship with IPP just flows in the background and works seamlessly.”
For more information on Moulton Bulb, visit www.oldershawgroup.co.uk.
For more information on IPP, visit www.ipp-pooling.com/en or search for IPP Pooling on LinkedIn.