Back-to-his-roots food boss to reel in fishing industry opportunities

"Say it loud, we're Europe's Food Town and we're proud."

That's the message from the newly-appointed economic development officer for Food and Innovation at North East Lincolnshire Council - who intends to bring more industry opportunities to Grimsby.

David Robinson has returned to the council hot seat after five years spent working at the University of Hull. During this time he developed a range of knowledge transfer projects across different industrial sectors; experience that he hopes will support activities to develop new initiatives within the food and seafood sectors in North East Lincolnshire.

Mr Robinson, 42, was part of the council team that established Europe's Food Town during the late 1980s and 1990s. Now he returns with a new mandate - to inspire innovation and regeneration within the sector and bring more jobs and opportunities to Great Grimsby and the surrounding area.

He said: "Without a shadow of a doubt, Grimsby is still Europe's Food Town, but the landscape has changed significantly in the past five years in terms of the threats and opportunities and also the capacity and need for innovation.

"I was fortunate enough to build up a lot of trust within the fisheries industry when I first worked for the council, and Grimsby was definitely a major player on the European stage.

"We took the Food Town brand across Europe - and now the opportunity is there to use Grimsby's reputation to attract and establish new investment, new research activity and new logistics facilities to take Food Town into a new and exciting era."

And the man responsible for introducing the "Welcome To Europe's Food Town" signs to Grimsby's borders says there is every reason to be optimistic.

He said: "Up to 70 per cent of the UK's Sea Food processing capacity is in Grimsby. We have major companies such as Youngs, Bakkavor, Kwoks, Headland Foods and Northern Foods and many others - it's a long list.

"The industry and its associated support sector employ up to 15,000 people within North East Lincolnshire and is a base for a vast amount of expertise - that's a huge contribution. This is an international business - and Grimsby is at the centre of it."

Mr Robinson is visibly excited by the HSI, which opened at the end of May. The building is home to the Research Division of the Seafish Industry Authority, and has attracted other high quality tenants from the food science and technology and seafood sectors.

He said: "We need to become further engaged in the food support network. The fact Seafish has moved to Grimsby is a great boon to the region - the HSI should be the beacon for the Seafood Industry and a real focus to take the industry forward.

"It all means that the region has a great infrastructure and expertise, with so much quality food production on its doorstep. As an area we've taken our knocks like anywhere else but we're still a force to be reckoned with."

Having started work with Grimsby Borough Council in 1989, Mr Robinson was responsible for developing the Food Town brand and taking it across the World.

His track record of success, as part of the Economic Regeneration team, includes working with inward investors such as Kwoks, Baxters and Headland Foods. The last of his inward investors before he left the Council, Soya Magic, is now a near neighbour to his Europarc office and is producing another new type of product to Food Town, soya-based products.

During the past five years working at the University of Hull, he has gained a good understanding of how universities can interact with business and deliver significant benefits in new product development, systems development, process efficiency, market analysis and supply chain development.

And these skills will help him in the biggest challenge to the region's food and fisheries sector - the impact of globalisation. He says: "It doesn't matter if it's fish fillets or silicon chips - if you make a commodity someone out there in the world is able to make it cheaper. That's why it's so important to innovate, maximise quality and develop ideas which can help our businesses to develop and prosper.

"We have a great number of entrepreneurs locally who are pioneering in this sector - and we have the buildings and opportunities for them to base their research and innovations locally. We are expanding our horizons and I will certainly be using my academic contacts to the best of my ability to ensure Grimsby is at the very forefront of all these exciting changes."

First up though, are his exciting plans for Food Town. He plans to increase its web presence, promote the brand at specifically targeted events and take the brand back on the road at a series of exhibitions. Inward investment talks are already under way and garnering new opportunities for the region.

He says: "We've got the capacity to master the challenges facing the industry. Personally, I've missed the fish industry and I'm looking forward to immersing myself back in it.

"My wife may not agree though - when I was last here I developed a habit of looking at the packaging on seafood products to see if it had the GY manufacturers' mark on it. Recently she caught me doing the same thing again and gave me a right look!"