Finnebrogue is founding signatory on landmark Charter to transform gender balance within global food sector
Industry leaders gathered at the House of Lords on 6 March to launch The Food Business Charter with the ambition to reach 40% female representation across the global food value chain by 2035, marking a watershed moment for gender balance in the sector.
The Food Business Charter, developed by Meat Business Women in collaboration with founding signatories from 19 leading businesses across food manufacturing, retail and foodservice supply chain, was launched at an exclusive event hosted by Baroness Minette Batters DL.
The landmark initiative reflects a strategic commitment from senior leaders to address gender imbalance and the attraction and retention of talent into the global food industry.
The initiative follows a Meat Business Women industry roundtable last year that highlighted the urgent need for action, with women representing just 33.5% of the meat industry workforce, down from 36% in 2020.
Laura Ryan, global chair and founder of Meat Business Women, said: “The Food Business Charter is a defining moment in our industry’s journey toward gender equality and a major milestone for our 10th year of Meat Business Women.
“Working with senior leaders who understand the benefits of a gender-balanced workforce, we’ve created not just a vision, but a practical roadmap for change.
“This Charter, backed by major global and European food manufacturers, retailers, and foodservice businesses, demonstrates our industry’s collective determination to remove barriers and create meaningful opportunities for women at all levels,” said Laura.
Finnbrogue has pledged their support to the Charter by becoming a founding signatory, re-affirming their commitment to attracting and retaining talent in the food industry, whilst developing a balanced and inclusive workforce.
The launch event took place in a pivotal week, ahead of International Women’s Day with key industry leaders officially signing the Charter and pledging their commitment to gender balance.
Speaking about their commitment as a founding signatory, Andrew Nethercott, CEO of Finnebrogue, said: “The future of the global food industry depends on our ability to attract, develop, and retain the very best talent.
“That’s why I am proud that Finnebrogue is a founding signatory of the Food Business Charter and commits to a minimum of 40% female representation by 2035.
“At Finnebrogue, we believe that fostering a truly diverse and inclusive workforce isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s fundamental to driving innovation and long-term success.
“We are committed to advancing gender balance, breaking down barriers and investing in leadership development programmes that empower female talent at every stage of their careers.”
The Charter will be accompanied by an Action Planning Toolkit, designed in collaboration with Diversity & Inclusion experts, providing organisations with practical strategies to achieve the Charter’s ambitions.
KLaura Ryan added: “This isn’t about setting targets – it’s about transforming our industry’s future to ensure it remains profitable and sustainable.
“The Charter provides a framework for organisations to implement practical talent attraction and retention strategies, share best practices, and create lasting change. With the support of our industry partners, we’re confident we can achieve sustainable change.”
Founding signatories of the Food Business Charter include, ABP Food Group, Australian Meat Processor Corporation, Australian Meat Group, Avara Foods, Cargill Protein, Cranswick Plc, Dunbia & Dawn Meats, Finnebrogue, Greencore, Hilton Foods Plc, International Procurement and Logistics (IPL), Kepak, Lumachain, Meat & Livestock Australia, Minerva Foods Australia, Myton Food Group & Morrisons, OSI Europe, Sofina Foods, and Thomas Foods.
For more information about Meat Business Women and how to sign The Food Business Charter, visit:
meatbusinesswomen.org/food-business/charter
Meat Business Women
Founded in 2015, Meat Business Women is the United Nation’s recognised global professional network for women working across the meat industry. It was created to improve the sustainability of the meat sector and grow the pipeline of female talent in this male dominated arena.
Meat Business Women released its Gender Representation Report in May 2023, which found that women make up 23% of board-level director roles, 32% of high-level leadership roles, and 32% of middle-manager roles.
Despite this progress, the research shows that only 8% of CEO roles are held by women (up by 3% since 2020) and the number of women in the global workforce has dropped to 33.5% (down from 36%).xa0
Women now make up only 36% of the unskilled workforce, falling from 40%. The Report can be downloadedxa0here.xa0
Meat Business Women has the strategic backing of major meat processors including ABP Food Group, Cranswick Plc, AMG, Alltech, AMPC, Coles, Finnebrogue, Meat & Livestock Australia, Lumachain, Newton, Sofina Europe, , Sealed Air Australia, The Midfield Group, Thomas Foods International, Greencore, Minerva Foods, IPL, Dunbia, , Hilton Foods, OSI, Kepak, , Morrisons, , Cargill, Coveris, Avara, Tesco and McDonalds.
FINNEBROGUE
Finnebrogue is a family-owned business and one of the UK’s most innovative food producers. Its journey can be traced back to 1991, when the late Denis Lynn bought the Finnebrogue Estate in County Down.
It’s the land where they first bred a herd of deer. Where they built a business with a hand-picked team that has now grown into a community of over one thousand loyal people.
Finnebrogue made its name producing premium sausages for leading supermarkets, before launching its revolutionary Naked bacon and ham, made without nitrites in 2017.
It remains the only mass-produced bacon and ham to be made without nitrites, the curing chemicals used in most other bacon and hams that have been linked to colorectal cancer by the World Health Organisation.
In 2020, Finnebrogue opened the doors to a state-of-the-art, purpose-built, plant-based facility, the most advanced of its kind in Europe. From here, it produces numerous own-label meat-free products to leading supermarkets, including Tesco, Aldi and Marks & Spencer.
In 2024, Finnebrogue was awarded the UK’sxa0Employer of the Yearxa0by Grocer Gold and namedxa0Best Place to Workxa0in Northern Ireland by the Irish News Workplace & Employment Awards.
Finnebrogue’s dynamic and award-winning People Strategy is at the heart of the company’s success, offering clear career pathways and development opportunities for every team member.
