A nation stands still to pay its respects to the late Her Majesty the Queen Elizabeth II

For those of us based within the UK, the past week has been very much focused on marking the life of the late Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, who received a state funeral on Monday, watched by millions around the world.

This week’s short column offers a simple thanks to her for her considerable efforts in supporting industry during her seven decades on the throne – with the food and drink sector as a whole benefitting from her patronage.

This most obviously took the form of the much-cherished Queen’s Awards, which recognised talented across industries, with a number of companies operating within the snacks, confectionery and wider sector gaining these coveted accolades that served as a gold standard for operational excellence.

Throughout her reign, the Queen took a great interest in British industry as a whole, as did her late husband the Duke of Edinburgh, who also offered considerable encouragement to the business sector, and support for young people’s development through the Duke of Edinburgh scheme. So between them, they served as a great source of inspiration for many individuals and companies.

As for the confectionery sector specifically, as we have previously reported, the Queen had a particular fondness for Prestat chocolates – with the business being one of a very limited number of companies holding a Royal Warrant for producing ranges for her household, which is just one further example of how she came to mean an awful lot to so many people she encountered. The fact she was working right until her death two weeks ago at the age of 96, is surely a shining example to us all in terms of having a spirit of determination, interest and enthusiasm to continue with all our endeavours. She will certainly be much missed.

Neill Barston, editor, Confectionery Production

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