Andy Underwood has been appointed UK managing director of desserts and manufacturer La Compagnie des Desserts (CDD)

He is replacing Richard Watts, who founded Destiny Foods 29 years ago and has continued to lead the business since Destiny was acquired by La Compagnie des Desserts in December 2019.

Underwood (pictured above) was managing director of Macphie for more than four years, and had been the first person outside the Macphie family to hold the role. He left at the end of last year and was replaced by Andy Stapley, who joined the company as chief executive officer.

Before joining Macphie, Underwood held board and senior commercial roles with The Authentic Food Company, Brakes, Schwan’s and Coca-Cola Schweppes.

“We’re delighted to welcome Andy to the business and we’re sure his considerable experience and success in the industry to date will help the UK business continue to develop positively,” said CDD group president Philippe Bonny, who also thanked Watts for his support during the two-year transition.

CDD brings together ice cream, patisserie and bakery manufacturers, including Pole Sud, Le Gourmet Parisien, La Croquanterie Gourmande, Mon Petit Patissier, Mont Blanc, Philippe Urraca, Pain-Petifour and Destiny Foods.

“I’m delighted to be joining the Destiny/CDD UK business and having the opportunity to build on what has been achieved to date,” said Underwood. “We offer a high-quality product and service solution to support our customers in providing appropriate desserts to their consumers.”