The Boys From The White Stuff
Tate And Lyle Liverpool
John Wright & Co had a sugar refinery in Liverpool from about 1809. In 1859, Henry Tate, a successful grocer in Liverpool joined them as a partner. Henry Tate realised that a more efficient production on a much larger scale was needed if British sugar refining was to survive European competition. He set up his own refinery in 1862 and expanded this business by moving to Love Lane in 1872. Future expansion was achieved by buying out major competitors, partly to eliminate competition and partly to acquire their sites for extensions. In 1921 Tate’s amalgamated with Lyle’s of Greenock. Production at the Love Lane factory reached a peak of 550,000 tons in 1972 and eventually 300,000 tons per year.
In 1921 Tate’s amalgamated with Lyle’s of Greenock and the need to transport the company's raw materials and finished products, resulted in Tate & Lyle investing in their own in house transport fleet. From those early days Tate & Lyle adopted a navy blue and gold livery which the company still use today. Production at the Love Lane factory in Liverpool reached a peak of 550,000 tons in 1972 and stood at 300,000 tons per year when the factory closed. Despite strong efforts to keep the Tate & Lyle factory in Liverpool open, it closed down in 1981. It was claimed that the reason for closure was a surplus capacity in cane sugar refining caused by the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Community. In July 2010 Tate & Lyle announced a deal to sell its sugar business to American Sugar Refining for £211m in cash. The name will continue to be associated with sugar as the American firm will use the Tate & Lyle brand on the sugar products it sells. At the time of the acquisition American Sugar Refining's co-president Luis Fernandez said: "Tate & Lyle is steeped in 130 years of tradition and consumer loyalty.
In December 2010 the last of Tate & Lyle’s operations in Merseyside disappeared as the sale of its molasses business to W & R Barnett was completed, ending its 150-year association with Liverpool Today Tate & Lyle once famous in the UK for its sugar products, including its Golden Syrup is now set to concentrate on its industrial food ingredients division, which produces items used in processed foods such as soups and sauces.
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