Iconic food brand begins new chapter

By Ged Henderson

06 Apr 2023

Alston Dairy

An iconic Lancashire food brand is set to start a new chapter after being acquired by the James Hall group of companies for an undisclosed sum.

Family run yogurt maker Ann Forshaw’s and its associated Alston Dairy was founded in the early 1980s.

James Hall & Co serves a network of independent Spar retailers and company-owned stores across the North of England from its base at Bowland View in Preston.

The acquisition sees the family-owned group expand its portfolio of food manufacturing businesses in the North West to five, adding Forshaw’s to Clayton Park Bakery, Fazila Foods, Graham Eyes Butchers and the Great Northern Sandwich Company.

Operating within the group will mean business as usual for Alston Dairy. Company founder Ann Forshaw and her granddaughter Emma Coupe, who joined in 2017, will remain as directors and will run the company on a day-to-day basis, and all staff will continue in employment.

The family’s Bolton Fold Farm, next door to the dairy, will also remain under ownership of the Forshaw family.

With a mission of producing high quality yogurt from farm to pot within 24 hours, Alston Dairy will continue to purchase milk from the farm to maintain the product’s unique characteristic by using the freshest milk possible.

Dominic Hall, joint managing director of James Hall & Co, which can trace its roots back to 1863, says: “The Ann Forshaw’s brand has an outstanding reputation for producing premium yogurt products.

“We have sold Ann Forshaw’s products in our Spar stores for many years and they have played an important role in our dairy categories, becoming firm customer favourites.

“We continue to strive to source locally as much as we can and acquiring Alston Dairy will allow us to protect that ambition and keep the brand local.

“We are keen to grow the business further and see a huge amount of potential in the Ann Forshaw’s brand.

“We will grow the presence in more Spar stores and continue to develop products in new categories, ensuring that greater numbers of customers can enjoy the products.”

Ann began the business that bears her name in the early 1980s after completing a one-day yogurt making course.

Armed with the knowledge gleaned from the course, she set about making low fat yogurt, sweetened with apple juice, using the skimmed milk which at the time was a waste product on the farm from the cream that they produced.

The business, based on the outskirts of Longridge in the Ribble Valley, has had its share of challenges over the past four decades. However, it has overcome them all through Ann’s determination and her family’s support.

The family had bought Bolton Fold farm when it came up for sale in 1980. The opportunity to own their farmland and house was too good an opportunity to pass up, despite interest rates at 18 per cent.

The yogurt business came out of the need to create extra revenue. In those early days Ann sold 30 dozen pots a week to small local shops. As the business grew, Lancashire based grocery chain EH Booths was one of the first supermarkets to stock Forshaw’s products, followed by James Hall. There were difficult times to be navigated.

At one stage the bank proposed the sale of some of the farmland and 40 of the dairy herd to help solve some of the financial challenges.

However, as a result of her determination the bank gave Ann another six months, declaring after that time that she and her family had “done the impossible”.

The late 1980s also saw a new dairy built to cope with the volume needed to supply Forshaw’s then main customer, a German supermarket chain, only for it to lose the work and 80 per cent of the business to another company on price. More determination and persistence were required.

Ann says: “Across several decades I have poured all of my energy and passion into growing the business and with the support of a wonderful team we have developed the brand and product range in to what it is today.”

Looking at the sale, she says: “I felt that the time was right for me to sell the business and I was keen to ensure that Alston Dairy and the Ann Forshaw’s brand was sold on to a company that has shared values and is similarly family-owned, so I am very pleased to complete the deal with James Hall.

“I am also very excited to remain as a director of the business, together with Emma, to bring to life the new ideas that we have for Ann Forshaw’s products.

“And I am very much looking forward to a future where even more Spar customers can access our fantastic yogurt range.”

The market for those products remains large with Britons spending more than £2bn a year on yogurt products. In 2021, production of yogurt in the UK totalled approximately 463,000 tonnes.

Enjoyed this? Read more from Ged Henderson

Latest news

1

VARS Technology team up with debt resolution specialists to fight fuel theft David Nichol John Garnett Aydan Jones and Laura Tilley

VARS Technology team up with debt resolution specialists to fight fuel theft

12 Sep 2025

2

University of Lancashire unveils Preston campus installation to celebrate name change University of Lancashire new feature

University of Lancashire unveils Preston campus installation to celebrate name change

12 Sep 2025

3

PM+M welcomes ten new apprentices for 2025 intake Lucy Field, Kate Walsh, Ellie Fisher, Zainab Aswat, Reece Jones, Aisha Bibi Patel, Finley Vila, Uzair Zariwala, Richard Prest, and Charlie Harrison

PM+M welcomes ten new apprentices for 2025 intake

11 Sep 2025

4

ROCCIA strengthens commercial division with senior appointment Andrew Grove

ROCCIA strengthens commercial division with senior appointment

11 Sep 2025

5

Final call for investors: Rossendale community solar project must hit target by November Gary McEwan managing director of Interfloor

Final call for investors: Rossendale community solar project must hit target by November

10 Sep 2025

Background image for hub sign up block

LBV Hub

Leverage Lancashire Business View platforms

Post your news
Post your events
Post your offers
Build your network
Improve your SEO
Gain coverage in the magazine
Sign-up
Events
Sub36 Networking - Follow the signs
Sub36 Deaf Village Social1200
Networking
17 Sep 2025

Sub36 Networking - Follow the signs

The Deaf Village, Blackburn, BB2 5EN

10:00 - 12:00

LBV124 September/October Launch Event
MBP Arc Cinema Preston Opening 205
Networking
18 Sep 2025

LBV124 September/October Launch Event

The Arc Cinema, Preston, PR1 2BL

08:30 - 10:30

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Management and Leadership Course

Preston Campus, Preston , PR1 2HE

09:00 - 17:00

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course
UCLanAerialCampus.jpg.jpg
LBV Hub Seminars
21 Feb 2025 - 21 Feb 2026

CMI Level 5 Project Management Course

Preston Campus, Preston, PR1 2HE

08:00 - 17:00

Longridge Soap Box Derby
Screenshot 2025-06-10 090035.png.png
LBV Hub Fundraisers
14 Sep 2025 - 14 Sep 2025

Longridge Soap Box Derby

Berry Lane, Longridge, PR3 3WH

10:00 - 16:30

Preston Tech Connection - The Ultimate Tech Quiz!
Preston Tech Connection Sept 25.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
16 Sep 2025 - 16 Sep 2025

Preston Tech Connection - The Ultimate Tech Quiz!

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

18:00 - 19:00

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire
LBV Hub Networking
17 Sep 2025 - 17 Sep 2025

The Business Network Central & East Lancashire

Stanley House, Blackburn, BB2 7NP

11:30 - 14:15

Cumbria Business Expo 2025
https---cdn.evbuc.com-images-880461633-4862066883-1-original.20241022-110415.jpeg.jpg
LBV Hub Exhibitions
19 Sep 2025 - 19 Sep 2025

Cumbria Business Expo 2025

Carlisle Racecourse, Carlisle, CA2 4TS

09:00 - 15:00

Your Business, Your Region: Making sense of devolution and Local Government Reorganisation
Chorley Council breakfast event new
LBV Hub Networking
23 Sep 2025 - 23 Sep 2025

Your Business, Your Region: Making sense of devolution and Local Government Reorganisation

Worden Hall, Leyland, PR25 3DH

08:00 - 11:00

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: September
Sept Freelancer (1).png.png
LBV Hub Networking
23 Sep 2025 - 23 Sep 2025

Preston Freelancer Meet-Up: September

Society1, Coworking Space, Preston, PR1 3LT

10:00 - 11:30

Speed Networking with BNI
2.png.png
LBV Hub Networking
24 Sep 2025 - 24 Sep 2025

Speed Networking with BNI

Chorley Football Club, Chorley, PR7 3DU

16:00 - 19:00

The Marketing Meetup IRL: Lancashire - September
TMM Lancashire
LBV Hub Networking
25 Sep 2025 - 25 Sep 2025

The Marketing Meetup IRL: Lancashire - September

Chorley, PR7 2SL

18:00 - 20:00

Advertise with us

Reaching 50,000 members, our print, digital and event platforms offer a fantastic way to raise your business profile and help you grow.

Find out more LBV 123 Online Graphic
Subscribe now

Weekly news bulletin