Hilton Food, which supplies meat and ready-to-eat meals to supermarkets, said Heffer, its CEO since 2018, will stand down and Murrells will take over the top job from July 3.

Murrells was CEO of Co-op Group, the eponymous operator of Britain's seventh-largest supermarket chain, for five years before he stepped down last year.

The 57-year-old's connection to Hilton Food, it said, dates back almost 30 years, when he was one of its first customers and commercial partners at Tesco.

Hilton Food's management change comes as it reported a 3.3% fall in annual adjusted operating profit to 71.1 million pounds (about $89 million) due to inflationary challenges in its seafood business.

Separately, Co-Op Group on Wednesday maintained its operating profit at 100 million pounds in 2022 despite inflationary pressure. ($1 = 0.7997 pounds)

(Reporting by Hani Kollathodi in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)