View source for HP Foods

{{Short description|British food company}}
{{Use British English|date=July 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox company
| name = HP Foods
| logo = Hp foods logo.png
| logo_size = 100px
| type = [[Private company limited by shares|Private]]
| genre =
| foundation = 1875 in [[Aston]], Birmingham<ref name="bbc-abroad">{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_midlands/4754351.stm|title='Great British' sauce heads abroad|date=9 May 2006|work=BBC News}}</ref>
| founder = Edwin Samson Moore
| location_city = [[Hayes, Hillingdon|Hayes, London]]
| location_country = United Kingdom
| location =
| locations =
| area_served = Europe
| key_people =
| industry = Food
| products = [[HP Sauce]], [[Daddies]] sauces, [[Lea & Perrins]] Worcestershire sauce
| services =
| revenue =
| operating_income =
| net_income =
| assets =
| equity =
| owner = [[Kraft Heinz|The Kraft Heinz Company]]
| num_employees =
| parent = [[H. J. Heinz Company]]
| divisions = HP Foods, [[Amoy Food]] UK, [[Lea & Perrins]]
| subsid =
| caption =
| homepage = {{url|hpsauce.co.uk}}
| footnotes =
}}
'''HP Foods Limited''', formerly based in [[Birmingham]], England was best known as the producer of [[HP Sauce|HP]], [[Lea & Perrins]], and [[Daddies]] sauce brands.<ref name="heinz-buys">[[BBC News]] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4110006.stm  Heinz buys HP sauce in £470m deal], 20 June 2005. Retrieved on 11 March 2008.</ref>  It was also the UK licensee, from [[Heinz]], of Chinese food and condiment brand [[Amoy Food]].<ref name="heinz-buys" /><ref>[[Amoy Food]] UK website, [http://www.amoy.co.uk/About.html About Amoy], retrieved on 11 March 2008.</ref>
Formerly the '''Midlands Vinegar Company'''<ref name="bbc-abroad" /> and '''Smedley HP Foods Limited''', it was acquired by Imperial Foods, a division of [[Imperial Tobacco|Imperial Group]]. Edward Eastwood and his nephew Edwin Samson Moore established the Midland Vinegar Company at [[Aston]], Birmingham in 1875.<ref name="heinz-buys" />
In 1939, the ''[[Birmingham Gazette]]'' noted that H.P. Sauce Ltd. also produced H.P. Tomato Ketchup, H.P. Salad Cream, H.P. Mayonnaise and the sweet pickle, Pickante. The company's wholly owned subsidiaries included the Midland Vinegar Co., F.G. Garton & Co., Mallors (Worcester Sauce),{{efn|Spelled Mellor's in another source.<ref>{{cite book|year=2012 |title=History of Worcestershire Sauce (1837–2012) |last1=Shurtleff| first1=William| last2=Ayoagi |first2=Akiko|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EUAZo-zCkQ0C&pg=PA45 |isbn=9781928914433 |publisher=SoyInfo Center|access-date=3 December 2023}}</ref>}} Tower Yeast Company, and Lea and Perrins.<ref>{{Cite news |date=18 August 1939 |title=H.P. Sauce |page=10 |work=[[Birmingham Gazette]] |issue=29,740 |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000669/19390818/323/0010 |url-access=subscription |access-date=3 December 2023 |via=British Newspaper Archive}}</ref>
HP Foods Ltd was retained by Imperial's parent company [[Hanson plc]] even after the demerger of the Imperial Group. It was sold to [[Danone|Groupe Danone SA]] in 1988 for £199&nbsp;million.<ref name="heinz-buys" /> It was sold by Danone to [[H. J. Heinz Company|Heinz]] in June 2005 for £470&nbsp;million.<ref name="heinz-buys" /> However, in October of that year the takeover was referred by the UK's [[Office of Fair Trading]] to the [[Competition Commission]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/4379248.stm|title=Watchdogs probe HP sauce takeover|date=26 October 2005|work=BBC News}}</ref> After a review the Competition Commission approved the takeover and Heinz started integrating this new company into the business.
In 2007, the [[Aston]] factory was demolished, and production of HP and Daddies sauce brands was moved to the Netherlands.<ref name="bbc-abroad" /><ref>[[BBC News]] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/5279896.stm Staff told of HP factory closure], 23 August 2006.  Retrieved on 11 March 2008.</ref><ref>[[BBC News]] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/6260668.stm Demolition of HP factory begins], 2 July 2007. Retrieved on 11 March 2008.</ref>  Bottling of Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce was returned to Worcester, having been moved in 2005 to the Aston factory. During this time, the sauce continued to be manufactured but not bottled at the Midlands Road site.
==See also==
*[[Brown sauce]]
*[[Sweet chili sauce]]
*[[Worcestershire sauce]]
*[[Tomato ketchup]]
==Notes==
{{Notelist}}
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
==External links==
* {{official|https://web.archive.org/web/20080308201628/http://www.hpfoods.com/}} (archived, 8 Mar 2008)
{{Heinz}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Food manufacturers of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Food and drink companies based in Birmingham, West Midlands]]
[[Category:Manufacturing companies based in Birmingham, West Midlands]]
[[Category:Heinz brands]]
[[Category:Food and drink companies established in 1875]]
[[Category:British royal warrant holders]]
[[Category:Condiment companies of the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:British companies established in 1875]]