George Weston

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George Weston

CEO, ABF

Last ranked: 4

Sugar has been the biggest blight on ABF’s fortunes in recent years, but the malaise has spread. Sales of Kingsmill took a £77m hit last year following Tesco’s delisting, Patak’s and Blue Dragon had a disappointing year and so, too, did Dorset Cereals and Jordans & Ryvita Co, with only Ryvita Thins standing out as a success in the ambient food business.

It’s not all bad news for Weston. At the end of the year, Tesco relisted its core bread lines, as former Twinings boss Jon Jenkins (87) moved across, and Twinings itself continues to grow. Perhaps the greater worry is that sales at ABF cash cow Primark slowed.

The Grocer's Power List 2016 reflects a sector in upheaval