Effective from this month, Fran Ball will oversee end-to-end supply chain activities at Arla Foods UK, managing a team of over 2,800 employees.
With three years of experience as vice president for production at the dairy cooperative and over 20 years in the manufacturing sector, Ball brings substantial expertise to her new role.
This newly established position emphasizes enhancing the supply chain from “farm to fridge” and improving customer delivery by empowering local teams across the organization.
“Leading UK production has been a huge privilege,” Ball remarked.
“Together, we’ve built a fantastic team focused on manufacturing excellence, fostering an inclusive culture, and securing significant investments in our UK sites, such as Taw Valley and Lockerbie. As we create a new end-to-end supply chain team, we will continue to enhance our collaboration and teamwork to deliver for our customers and add value for our consumers.”
Meanwhile, Bas Padberg, managing director for Arla Foods UK, expressed enthusiasm about welcoming Ball into her new role.
“Over the past three years, she has demonstrated outstanding leadership, driving innovation and efficiency across our UK sites,” Padberg stated.
“Her deep manufacturing expertise and commitment to fostering an inclusive culture will be instrumental as we continue to invest in our supply chain and deliver the highest-quality dairy products to our customers and shoppers. I look forward to continuing to work closely with Fran to strengthen our operations and support our ambitious growth plans.”
Arla Foods UK operates multiple sites nationwide, manufacturing products for well-known brands such as Lurpak, Arla Cravendale, and Arla Protein. As part of a global business, Arla is owned by 7,600 farmers in Denmark, Sweden, the UK, Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, and its products are sold in over 100 countries.
