Frozen fish giant, Young's Seafood, has swooped in to buy out Cumbrian Seafoods, just as the company
entered administration.
The administration and the buy-out deal marked a dramatic day for the Seaham-based supplier, which had collapsed under the mounting pressures of rises in the costs of raw materials and a "reduction in activity".
The sale secures around 600 jobs for now, while a formal consultation gets underway. The deal was orchestrated by PwC Newcastle director Sean Hamilton, who said that the sale was very fortunate and enabled business as usual for all of the Cumbrian staff.
He said, "I'm delighted that we have been able to secure a sale of the business, enable the transfer of all employees and preserve the continuity of supply to customers in the run up to Christmas."
In a statement on the matter, Young's chief executive, Leendert den Hollander, said, "This is the beginning of a process and the teams involved will work hard to understand the business and consider in detail how best to take the customer contracts forward.
"Our focus is on customers – on fulfilling their contracts – and consulting with new employees on possible options for the future."
