Nick Hampton, the head of the modern, low-calorie version of the historic food company, is in charge of a quest to create new ingredients

A plate of Rich Tea biscuits is prominently placed in the centre of the table as Tate & Lyle chief executive Nick Hampton sits down at its swish London headquarters.

His 104-year-old company’s name may be synonymous with the sugar – and Golden Syrup – found on supermarket shelves, but Hampton has had a different part to play in creating one of the nation’s favourite dunkers. Tate & Lyle creates a plethora of ingredients which offer an alternative to that sweet stuff – including extra fibre and sugar replacement in the biscuits.