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Food And Drink Payment Practices Report 2023

16 April 2024•By Alastair Campbell, Founder•Reports

UK Food & Drink Sector Lags Behind on Payment Performance

The Numbers

  • Companies analysed: 126
  • Average PaymentCheck Score: 48.3/100
  • UK average: 50.0/100 (Food And Drink is 1.7 points below the average)
  • Top PaymentCheck Score: 91.4/100 (ECOM AGROTRADE LIMITED)
  • Bottom PaymentCheck Score: 7.5/100 (WILLIAM GRANT & SONS BRANDS LIMITED)

What Stands Out

The Food & Drink sector's average PaymentCheck Score of 48.3 puts it below the UK average, suggesting systemic payment issues are dragging down the sector's financial health. A massive chasm separates the best payers from the worst; ECOM AGROTRADE is getting invoices paid promptly, while William Grant & Sons Brands lags far behind.

Best Payers

  1. ECOM AGROTRADE LIMITED - 91.4/100
  2. HERTFORDSHIRE CATERING LIMITED - 91.2/100
  3. MEADOW FOODS LIMITED - 87.66/100
  4. JUSTERINI & BROOKS,LIMITED - 85.7/100
  5. G.R.WRIGHT & SONS LIMITED - 84.7/100

Worst Payers

  1. WILLIAM GRANT & SONS BRANDS LIMITED - 7.5/100
  2. CARNAUDMETALBOX ENGINEERING LIMITED - 16.8/100
  3. GREENCORE PREPARED MEALS LIMITED - 20.7/100
  4. KERRY INGREDIENTS (UK) LIMITED - 21.1/100
  5. COCA-COLA EUROPACIFIC PARTNERS GREAT BRITAIN LIMITED - 22/100

Regional Patterns

London-based firms have an average score of 56.4, which is noticeably higher than the sector average, but even London is only just above the national average of 50.0. It's worth noting that the 'Unknown' region has a high average of 69.9, but this is based on just three companies, meaning the data is not really significant. The South West recorded the lowest average score out of regions with a reasonable number of companies represented, at just 49.4.

For companies struggling with late payments, it's worth knowing that our late payment calculator is available to help you work out what you are owed.

With an average PaymentCheck Score of just 48.3 out of 100, many food and drink firms aren't meeting payment standards, indicating serious financial strain for suppliers across the UK.

Still waiting to be paid?

A reminder from you is easy to ignore. PaymentCheck sends a formal late payment notice on your behalf — from a third party that publicly tracks the payment behaviour of 9,600+ UK companies. Free, and it takes 60 seconds.

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Categories

Loading categories...

Recent Posts

Loading recent posts...

Resources

  • Late Invoice Calculator
  • Company Search
  • Browse by Sector
  • Browse by Region

Share Your Story

Have you experienced late payments? Share your story to help other businesses.

Submit Your Story

PaymentCheck

Our mission is to change the culture of late payments in the UK and help save over 55,000 companies every year which close due to cashflow issues.

Services

  • Payment Check
  • Business Solutions
  • API Access
  • Invoice Calculator
  • Late Payment Help
  • Get Your Score
  • Get Certified
  • For Accountants

Company

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • Search Archive
  • Compare
  • EULA
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions

Awards

  • Methodology
  • 2025 Awards
  • 2024 Awards
  • 2023 Awards
  • 2022 Awards
  • 2021 Awards
  • 2020 Awards

Contact

  • office@paymentcheck.co.uk
  • +44 (0) 7915 608 057
  • Send Your Story

© 2026 Payment Check Ltd

Registered Address: 3rd Floor Suite 207 Regent Street London W1B 3HH

Made by Alastair Campbell