Arla adds Walker in foodservice UK

Arla Foods has announced it will bolster its UK leadership team with the appointment of Matthew Walker, who will lead the dairy cooperative’s foodservice division to accelerate its growth ambitions.

As one of Arla’s strategic growth areas, foodservice is one of Arla’s biggest channels outside of retail. With ambitions to accelerate even further, Arla aims to build on its existing portfolio of customers, creating new strategic partnerships from sustainability to innovation. Arla provides a range of milk, butter and cheese to restaurants, coffee shops and quick service restaurants around the country. Through the Arla Pro brand, Arla delivers quality dairy ingredients to chefs and kitchen professionals, partnering to create the very best in food experiences.

Having been in various roles across Arla for the past 14 years, Walker’s appointment is testament to the growth and opportunities within the UK’s biggest dairy company. With extensive experience across commercial, brand, and customer-facing roles, he brings a strong blend of strategic thinking, industry insights, and leadership that will be instrumental in accelerating foodservice ambitions in the UK, the company says.

Bas Padberg, managing director of Arla Foods UK, comments, “Matthew’s appointment is a great step forward for our UK business and we’re excited to welcome him to the team. His deep understanding of Arla, combined with his strong commercial experience and passion for building relationships, will be key as we continue to grow our Foodservice presence, deliver value for our partners and provide quality dairy to the hospitality and catering sector.”

In the first half of 2025, Arla’s UK Foodservice division saw revenue growth with an increase of 15% (€29 million) year on year and strategic branded volume-driven revenue growth increasing by 7.6%, signalling the strength of Arla’s offering and potential for further development in this area.

Walker, who has joined the UK team from January 2026, comments, “Foodservice is one of the most dynamic and fast-moving parts of our industry. We have a lot of exciting innovations and milestones in the near future that will allow us to deliver the best ingredients and dairy products to our customers. Whether this is the new mozzarella investment at our Taw Valley site, or the continued innovations across our well-known brands, I am excited about helping to create the future for British dairy.”

Walker has been with Arla since 2011 and steps into his new role from his current position as head of marketing for Arla Sweden, where over the past four years he has played a pivotal role in strengthening the Arla brand, driving category growth and leading strategic initiatives.