Tesco sets up food production facility

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. As reported by the Financial Times, Tesco has become a food manufacturer for the first time as part of its efforts to take on the U.S. market.

The report indicates that the retailer has built a food preparation facility, called the Fresh & Easy kitchen, at its central distribution center in Riverside County, east of Los Angeles.

Tesco’s goal is to sell its prepared meals at its Fresh & Easy neighborhood stores without using a third-party supplier.

“It’s all about getting the supply chain as short as possible,” according to John Burry, Fresh & Easy’s chief commercial officer of centralized planning at the warehouse complex, which ships about 95% of the items sold at the stores.

Tim Mason, head of Tesco’s U.S. operations, said that the facility was built and utilized by the company because their standards "would not have been met" by a third party.