Brakes has signed a new ten year contract, worth more than £50m, with French IT services company Atos Origin. Under the new contract, IT business partner Atos will manage all of Brakes’ IT infrastructure and applications, including servers, service desks and business support systems for HR, finance and the supply chain.

Brakes are reported to be taking a 77% share in Menigo , Sweden ’s leading foodservice wholesaler. Menigo has a staff of 900 and a turnover of approximately £500 m, delivering to 16,000 customers throughout Sweden .

Earlier in the year, Brakes acquired regional chilled wholesaler, Freshfayre. The company, which turns over £23 m a year will benefit from the use of Brakes nationwide network of depots to extend their reach. Freshfayre specialises in chilled and ambient foods, such as sandwich fillings, prepared meats and soft drinks, offering van sales to customers so they can top up on the spot without pre-ordering. It represents a slightly different model and route to market than Brakes traditional business and is seen as a nice addition to the group as a specialist business.

A three year deal working with contract caterers, Host Contract Management has recently been announced. This extends a previous contract to supply frozen food only, the dry and chilled side previously being handled by 3663. The new arrangement includes deliveries to Host’s in house healthcare locations and PGL adventure holiday camps.

Brakes purport to be the first foodservice company to use rail freight to transport fresh produce from Valencia in Spain into the UK . It is claimed that the scheme, operated in conjunction with Eddie Stobart Rail Freight, will benefit the environment with lower CO2 emissions and have a positive commercial impact by speeding up deliveries and increasing product freshness.

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