DBC Foodservice has been put up for sale.

The board said it had taken the decision in light of the very challenging trading environment with which it had recently been confronted.

It said that discussions had already begun and that there were “a number of interested parties.”

“We have concluded that a sale of the business provides the best solution for DBC’s employees, customers and suppliers alike. We therefore ask all of them for their continued full support, which will provide the best opportunity for a successful sale and the most mutually beneficial outcome. We will keep all parties informed as the sale process progresses,” said CEO Andrew Ramsden.

DBC reported a £4.95m loss in the year to 25 March 2011 against a profit of £1.26 the previous year. 

DBC was bought by Iceland bosses Malcolm Walker, Andrew Pritchard and Tarsem Dhaliwal in 2009. At the time, Dhaliwal, who resigned as DBC’s chairman last week, said he would look to use Iceland’s £2bn buying power to improve DBC’s pricing and range.