A heritage spanning three centuries

The pictures to the right relate to a list of bills left by an Admiral of HM Navy upon his death in 1828. The list contains details of a debt of £10 payable to a Mr. Mash ‘Potatoe Man’. This is the earliest known record of the Mash family, at that time based in Spitalfields Market in London, within the fresh produce industry.

The family continued as a respected Potato merchant until the late 1800’s when ‘Mash & Austin Ltd’ was founded. This new company traded in fresh produce and supplied Hotels and Ship Stores.

Circa 1896, the family acquired 2 farms, consisting mainly of orchards, and began growing all manner of fresh fruits and vegetables and the established company Mash & Austin traded with London markets from their base in Spitalfields. To this day the farms are still owned by the Mash family but have since diversified into different areas of agriculture.

In 1936 the business split amicably, separating the supply of Hotels from that of Ship Stores. The side of the business that specialised in shipping supplies was known as Mash & Murrell. The shipping industry was growing at this time as mass transportation became accessible to more and more people. Mash & Murrell prospered and operated from all of the 3 major ports- Southampton, London and Liverpool. Such was the infrastructure of the company that, at the outbreak of the 2nd world war, the British Government seconded Mash & Murrell to Naval Supply. This ensured that the Navy were suitably stocked with fresh produce. The American Air Force also subjected an 80 acre part of the family farm in Chesham to a compulsory purchase order and subsequently built a runway and temporary base in which to house a fleet of American Bombers. The family were able to purchase these 80 acres back once the war ended.

In 1968 Martin Mash joined the company, learning the trade from his father. Martin is a director of the company to this day.

In 1974, the Mash and Roe families merged, creating ‘Mash Roe Ltd’. This company would become the pioneer of modern day foodservice companies, specialising in large contract supply of all manner of fresh foods including dairy produce and dry stores as well fresh fruit and vegetables.

In 1999 Mash Purveyors Ltd formed as a breakaway top-end specialist supplier of fresh fruit & vegetables. This is the company in its’ current form and we draw on this rich heritage and on the generations of experience and knowledge that went before us. We apply the best aspects of this tradition to our modern day business and this helps us maintain our proud reputation. Indeed we have evolved into more than just ‘Potatoe Men’- we are a premium specialist supplier and, in many ways, we are leaders in our field.