Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch tours Peterborough coffee producer Masteroast

​Coffee importer Masteroast offered a refreshing stop for the Secretary of State for Business and Trade during a whistle stop visit to Peterborough.

Kemi Badenoch MP was invited to tour the premises of Masteroast at Plantation House, in Newark Road, Fengate, to hear about issues around imports and exports.

During her visit, Ms Badenoch took part in a brief round-table discussion with Andy Fawkes, managing director and Matthew Mills, the company’s group commercial director and son of the owner Les Mills.

They were joined by Peterborough MP Paul Bristow.

Following the discussion, the politicians were then given a tour around Masteroast’s production facilities.

Afterwards, Mr Bristow said: “I brought Kemi Badenoch to Peterborough to visit the city’s great import and export business, Masteroast.

"Peterborough has great companies that are doing great things and I want to show that off to ministers at the top of Government.

"This is why we have had millions of pounds for capital investment projects.

"It was also great to learn that one in 10 cups of coffee consumed in the country are from beans either roast of ground in Peterborough.”

Last year, family-owned Masteroast, which employs about 130 staff, celebrated its 40 anniversary.

It has recently built a £1.5 million logistics facility capable of handling 2,500 pallets as the firm focused on the delivery of its online orders as the Covid-19 pandemic changed the nature of its marketplace.

It produces more than 4,000 tonnes of coffee a year.