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Tate & Lyle facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Tate & Lyle PLC
Public limited company
Traded as
  • LSE: TATE
  • FTSE 250 component
Industry Food processing
Founded Merger of Henry Tate & Sons (established 1859) and Abram Lyle & Sons (established 1887) in 1921
Headquarters London, England, UK
Key people
  • Gerry Murphy, Chairman
  • Nick Hampton, CEO
Products
Revenue Increase £1.751 billion (2023)
Operating income
 Increase £196 million (2023)
Decrease £190 million (2023)
Number of employees
 3,572 (2023)

Tate & Lyle PLC is a company from Britain that supplies ingredients for food and drinks all over the world. It helps make food taste good, have the right texture, and be nutritious.

The company started by refining sugar. This means they cleaned and processed raw sugar to make it ready for use. Over time, they changed their focus. Now, they turn things like corn and tapioca into special ingredients. Tate & Lyle is listed on the London Stock Exchange, which is where shares of companies are bought and sold.

Company History

How Tate & Lyle Began

Tate & Lyle was formed in 1921. It was created when two rival sugar companies joined together. These companies were Henry Tate & Sons and Abram Lyle & Sons.

Henry Tate started his sugar business in 1859 in Liverpool. He later opened another factory in Silvertown, East London. Henry Tate used his money to help build the Tate Gallery in London. This famous art gallery opened in 1897.

Abram Lyle also had a sugar refinery. He started his business in 1865. His main factory was in Plaistow Wharf, near Henry Tate's factory in London. Even though their factories were close, Henry Tate and Abram Lyle were business rivals. They never met in person.

In 1888, Lyle's Golden Syrup introduced a special logo. It showed a dead lion with bees flying around it. This image comes from an old story in the Bible. The words "out of the strong came forth sweetness" were also part of the logo.

This logo is very old. It holds a Guinness World Record for being the world's oldest unchanged brand packaging. In 2024, the company updated its main logo. However, the original lion and bees logo is still used on Lyle's Golden Syrup tins.

Changing Focus: Beyond Sugar

In the 1970s, Tate & Lyle started to change. Britain joined the European Economic Community. This meant new rules for sugar, which made it harder for Tate & Lyle to import sugar cane.

So, the company decided to make other things. They began to work with different types of ingredients. They started making products from starch, which comes from plants like corn.

In 1976, Tate & Lyle bought a part of a European company called Amylum. This company made products from starch. Later, in 1988, they bought a large part of A. E. Staley, a corn processing business in the United States.

The company also started making new types of materials. For example, in 2004, they partnered with DuPont. Together, they made a plant-based material that can be used instead of nylon.

In 2010, Tate & Lyle sold its sugar refining business. This included the right to use the Tate & Lyle brand name for sugar and Lyle's Golden Syrup. The company decided to focus entirely on its new ingredient businesses.

Recent Developments

In 2018, Nick Hampton became the new CEO of Tate & Lyle. The company has continued to innovate. They developed a way to make a natural sweetener called allulose. This sweetener is special because it doesn't count as sugar on food labels in the US.

In 2021, Tate & Lyle made a big change. They spun off their primary products business into a new company called Primient. Tate & Lyle still owns half of Primient.

In 2022, Tate & Lyle bought a company in China called Quantum Hi-Tech. This company makes special dietary fibers that are good for health. In 2023, Tate & Lyle updated its brand. They got a new logo and look, but Lyle's Golden Syrup kept its classic design.

What Tate & Lyle Makes Now

Corn syrup tank car
A Tate & Lyle tank car carrying corn syrup.

Today, Tate & Lyle focuses on making special ingredients for food and drinks. These ingredients help make products better in many ways.

Here are some of the things they make:

  • Sweeteners: These include products like Splenda (which is sucralose) and allulose. They help make food sweet without using a lot of sugar.
  • Texturants: These ingredients, like starch and gums, help give food the right feel and thickness. Think of how thick a yogurt is or how smooth a sauce feels.
  • Health and Wellness Ingredients: This includes things like dietary fibers. These are good for digestion and overall health.
  • Stabilisers and Functional Systems: These are special mixes of ingredients. They help keep food products stable and make sure they work well, for example, preventing ingredients from separating.

See also

  • Primient, American subsidiary
  • Splenda, sugar substitute
  • Redpath Sugar, former subsidiary

Images for kids

  • 2018 LCY, aerial view of Tate & Lyle, Silvertown (cropped)

    Former Tate & Lyle PLC refinery along the Thames in Silvertown, London.

  • Television House 532080694

    Tate & Lyle head office in Kingsway, London.