AAK Secures £2M Freeport Backing to Expand Plant-Based Oils Capacity in Hull

The investment covers the first phase of a wider capital programme at the site, which produces plant-based oils for bakeries, confectioners, foodservice operators and supermarkets. The Hull site has operated since 1982, when it was established as Anglia Oils, and today employs around 300 people.

It sits within AAK’s global network of plant-based oils and fats production, with the group headquartered in Malmö, Sweden.

Freeport fund backs feasibility stage

Humber Freeport’s seed capital fund, worth £25 million in total, has already supported several projects across the region.

Freeport chief executive Simon Green said the AAK investment “is the latest success story for a business which has made a significant contribution to the region’s economy for more than four decades.” “We’re delighted to have contributed, through the Freeport seed capital fund, to an investment which will both create new business opportunities in the Humber, and safeguard existing operations,” Green said. © AAK

“AAK supports a food manufacturing sector which is vital to the Humber’s economic prosperity and future. Our seed capital fund is designed to support the feasibility of projects such as this: stimulating growth, driving new innovation and product development, and promoting sustainability.”

“The investment in our Hull site represents one of the single largest in AAK’s recent history” AAK UK finance director Damian Taylor described the programme as one of the company’s largest domestic investments in years. “The investment in our Hull site represents one of the single largest in AAK’s recent history.

It will add significant new strings to our bow and enable us to diversify our plant-based oils range and the markets we supply to,” he said.

Emissions reduction targeted alongside capacity growth

According to reporting from the Yorkshire Post , the expansion is expected to cut Scope 1 and 2 carbon emissions intensity at the site by 39% per tonne produced compared with 2025 levels, alongside generating additional cargo volumes through the Port of Hull.

Taylor added, “We’d like to thank Humber Freeport for its support, through the seed capital fund, and for sharing our vision and ambitions for the Hull site. The funding provided valuable support during the feasibility stage of the project, and has enabled us to move forwards quickly and with confidence.”