Contributors: Nick Baines, Patrick McGuigan, Greg Pitcher, Lynda Searby, Stefanos Aktipis
opportunities@gff.co.uk
Sales and publishing director: Sally Coley
Senior sales account manager: Becky Haskett
Dismiss all of that that incoming hazardous material for a moment and remind yourself that this is your business and you do have a hand in its destiny.
By Michael Lane, editor
If you’re reading this then that means a couple of things. Firstly, I hope it suggests that you’re still here – because you’ve had a good, or at least sufficient, Christmas trading period (more on that on page 4).
Secondly, it means you’ll have noticed the rather prominent hard hat on the cover. Forgive the slightly “gallows” humour but this is, of course, a nod to the challenging 2025 that the independent retail sector is expecting. While every year is slightly daunting, the spectre of the new-ish Government’s first Budget is looming especially large (more on that on page 5) over this one. Both incoming employment regulations and general economic gloom mean that there is danger from above.
It’s perfectly reasonable to be metaphorically donning the protective gear, but look at that hard hat again – and try to also see it as a sign of active and positive change. It sounds like I’m adopting tired
political rhetoric, but I genuinely believe that, in this time of crisis, our industry needs to get building.
I’m not suggesting that every single independent retailer out there needs to put on some highvis and take a sledgehammer to their premises. Those with larger plots will certainly be considering diversification (more on that on page 34) to boost their offer and sales. It’s not just about big gestures, though. Those with more constraints should still be thinking about what changes they can make to draw in the punters. Do you need to refresh your approach to staff? Could you conduct a full range review? Is it time to get those tired café menus reprinted?
Constant evolution in business has always been important, especially in retail. Those supermarkets are always at it (did anyone notice that Waitrose is reviving its ‘no purchase necessary’ free coffee?).
The difference with our corner
EDITOR’S CHOICE
Tanwen DawnHiscox, deputy editor
Accounts assistant: Julie Coates
Finance director: Ashley Warden support@gff.co.uk
Managing director: John Farrand
Associate managing director: Christabel Cairns
Partner relations director: Tortie Farrand
Chairman: Bob Farrand
Marketing officer: Jenna Morice
Marketing and operations assistant: Frances Coleman
Sales assistant: Henry Coley
of the market is that you can start making changes quickly and, more importantly, you can do it with personality.
Dismiss all of that incoming hazardous material for a moment and remind yourself that this is your business and you do have a hand in its destiny.
Don’t take it from me, read our Deli of the Month about Iain Hemming’s latest venture (page 48). Seek out the numerous pieces of business advice across the magazine. Browse all of the NPD that is just an email or phone call away.
FFD will be here every month trying to provide as much of the above as possible to support the independent retail community and help it prosper.
2025 is almost certainly going to be difficult for the all the reasons already cited – and possibly other things no one can foresee – but it’s not hopeless.
Let’s get cracking.
Growing up in France, I leaned into the clichés. The first recipe I learned was for vinaigrette, and I still take pride in making a good dressing. Back in Blighty, I’ve learned to value convenience – provided it doesn’t compromise on flavour. Enter All Dressed Up’s Miso & Sesame dressing: it’s fragrant, nutty, tangy, funky, and deeply savoury – a party trick in a bottle. More on page 41
PR & partnerships officer: Claire Fry
Data strategy & insight manager: Lindsay Farrar
Operations manager: Claire Powell
Operations coordinators: Chris Farrand, Sepi Rowshanaei, Chloë Warren-Wood
Operations & events coordinator: Zara Williams
Operations assistant: Jessica Radley
IN BRIEF
Johnny McDowell, the founder of Indie Füde in Belfast was awarded an MBE in the New Year Honours list for services to the food & drink industry and charity in Northern Ireland, acknowledging his efforts to champion local artisan producers and his work with charity Cancer Focus NI.
Waitrose’s free coffee scheme has reverted to its original model, with MyWaitrose cardholders once again allowed to grab a drink without having made a purchase in store.
2024 data from building society Nationwide showed that cash use increased for the third time last year, with nearly 33m withdrawals recorded from its ATMs. For the first time in the space of a month, withdrawals from the Post Office hit £1bn in December.
Independent retail should brace itself for tough trading conditions in 2025
By Greg Pitcher
Retail bodies have highlighted the “toxic mix” of economic factors due to hit in 2025 as a retail analyst warned that business owners “will find their skills tested” this year.
National Insurance contributions, the minimum wage and business rates will increase for many in the sector in April while consumer confidence currently remains constrained.
James Walton, chief economist at retail analysts IGD, said he expected the economic environment to remain “very challenging” in 2025.
But he added: “Food & drink businesses have proven their ability to trade through tough times.
Over Christmas, premium own-brand and branded goods did quite well against a generally gloomy background.”
Walton said this showed certain shoppers
What retailers are facing in 2025
Employer National Insurance contributions will jump from 13.8% to 15% in April, and the earnings threshold at which these kick in will be slashed from £9,100 to £5,000 per employee.
Meanwhile the retail, hospitality and leisure Business Rates Relief Scheme will drop from 75% to 40%, meaning
15% Employer NI contributions from April
were still willing and able to spend on high-quality consumables.
“Small businesses such as farm shops and delis are well positioned to capitalise on this need and are small enough to be flexible,” he added. “But business managers will find their skills tested as they struggle with rising costs and increasing complexity.”
Emma Mosey, chair of the Farm Retail Association, said this year “presents a unique set of challenges for businesses”.
She added: “The impact of the Budget, particularly
the removal of business rates relief for retail and hospitality, and escalating employment costs, will continue to weigh heavily.
“Coupled with the ongoing effects of higher interest rates and lingering supply chain disruptions, this creates a complex economic landscape. Businesses must remain agile and adaptable to navigate these headwinds.”
Andrew Goodacre, chief executive of the British Independent Retailers Association, said 2025 would be “even more challenging” than 2024.
“We already know that
employment costs will rise with the National Living Wage increasing by 6.7%, and business rates for many will increase by 140%,” he said. “At the same time, consumer confidence and footfall are low.
“It is a toxic mix for any business to see costs rising by more than sales and we fear there will be more closures this year.”
The headline Consumer Prices Index measure of inflation dipped marginally to 2.5% in December but the rate of food & drink cost increases remained constant at 2% over 12 months.
Bread, cereals and soft drinks saw a slowing in the rate of price rises while fruit, chocolate, sugar and sweets saw an increase in inflation.
However, the British Retail Consortium said its models suggested annual food cost hikes could rise above 4% in the second half of 2025 as Government policies bite.
Business leaders’ tips for surviving 2025
many companies will see their bill more than double.
All levels of minimum wage will rise in April, with anyone aged 21 or older costing employers at least £12.21 an hour and 18-20-year-olds due £10 an hour.
Packaging suppliers will also become liable for new fees to dispose of their material under incoming extended producer responsibility laws.
Retailers of a certain size will be required to cover the full lifecycle expenses of their packaging waste. Fees will be calculated based on the volume and type of packaging used, with higher charges for nonrecyclable or hard-toprocess materials.
British Independent Retailers Association
chief executive Andrew Goodacre urged fine food firms to start off the challenging year by reviewing their cost base and analysing everything from opening times and staff rotas to energy costs – to find efficiencies.
Once this is done, independents should make a plan to grow sales, he added.
“Consumers are still value-orientated but this is not always to do with price. Bundled product promotions can be very effective at increasing consumer spend and volume of sales.”
Goodacre also suggested businesses
create strong loyalty schemes.
“They are a great way of rewarding customers [for returning] and the added bonus is that they can also provide important customer information, allowing the businesses to per sonalise any communications and improving marketing,” he said.
Farm Retail Association chair Emma Mosey agreed that these schemes could prove vital as retailers should look to strengthen relationships with their customers, along with focusing on in-store experience and communicating with shoppers.
product offering is another opportunity, she added. “Try adding more local suppliers to extend your offer, the more unique and different the better.”
Mosey also suggested that owners involve their staff in trying to come with ideas on all of these fronts.
“Work with your team to come up with savvy new ideas that will help. Ask yourselves – what can you add to your current offering? What can you change or tweak?”
“It is great to involve the team so everyone feels like they are on the same side and we can weather the storm together.”
Despite the gloom, there is still an opportunity for delis and farm shops to succeed
WHAT THEY ARE SAYING ABOUT...
...WHAT 2025 HAS IN STORE
ANTONIO PICCIUTO, BUONGIORNO ITALIA
“2025 will be tough but we will keep ploughing through positively. The last thing clients want to hear is shopkeepers moaning about how rates and taxes have risen – shopping at fine food stores should be a pleasure. Keep it jovial and light. provide good food and service with a smile and we will be ok.”
MARK
KACARY, THE NORFOLK DELI
“What’s happening in this country will come and go, it’s up to us as a business to navigate it as best we can, to stay nimble, creative and innovative and to find alternate revenue streams to make up for any that might be closed.”
FRANKIE DYER, BARBAKAN DELICATESSEN
“With the planned changes to the budget in April and no sign of footfall increasing, it is looking like a super difficult year ahead. I hope the Government will come to its senses and make the necessary changes needed for independent businesses to survive. We remain a strong business but our profits are dwindling year-on-year, which is frustrating when we could be using these to invest further in the business.”
Fine food retailers have reflected on a largely positive Christmas trading period as online offerings and gift hampers boosted takings at the end of another difficult year.
Deli and farm shop owners told FFD they had enjoyed a strong December despite the economic headwinds that characterised 2024.
Mark Kacary, managing director at The Norfolk Deli, said the Hunstanton business had “one of our stronger Christmases”.
But he explained that this had “little to do with footfall” and “more to do with the efforts we have made in developing our website and generating corporate hamper gift orders”.
Kacary added that the strong end to 2024 had been important for the deli.
“The business was
sufficient to ensure that we could just about pay all our bills for the end of the year.”
Antonio Picciuto, proprietor at Buongiorno Italia, said the Hertfordshire establishment enjoyed “very good” Christmas trading in spite of somewhat subdued footfall.
“Trade felt very patchy in places and there didn’t seem to be the consistent hustle and bustle of previous years,” he said. “But saying all of that, I
was very pleased. Nearly all Christmas stock sold.”
Panettone and charcuterie were the biggest contributors to takings, added Picciuto.
Rob Copley, director at Farmer Copleys, said the West Yorkshire business had seen a rise in takings this Christmas.
“Trade was good, we were 15% up on last year,” he said. “Prices were up 10% but people were still buying.”
Despite a “surprising” dip in sales of whole turkeys, the farm shop sold
M&S gains market share while Booths reports record sales at Christmas
Two major premium food chains reported strong Christmas sales for 2024.
Marks and Spencer (M&S) revealed food sales of £2.6 billion in the 13 weeks to 28th December last year, representing an 8.9% hike from the same period a year earlier.
Chief executive Stuart Machin said: “This was another good Christmas for M&S, building on a strong performance in the prior year.
“In food, our focus on quality, innovation and trusted value translated into strong sales and market-share growth.”
The retailer launched 500 lines in the period but core categories also performed well.
“More customers ticked off their whole shopping list at M&S,” said Machin. However, he added: “There were a few growing pains as we delivered our biggest ever volumes, particularly in smaller stores, reaffirming the opportunity to accelerate transformation of the food supply chain and go even faster on store renewal and rotation.”
Meanwhile northern food & drink specialist Booths increased likefor-like sales by 9.3% in the three weeks to 4th January.
The grocer, which has 26 stores, also reported record takings for
a high volume of turkey meat and beef.
“I think it comes down to convenience,” said Copley. “People are happy to put turkey meat on the table now, which is easier to handle than a full bird.
“We also had a lot more online orders, a shift towards click & collect.”
The festive period showed the importance people put on good food and drink, even during hard economic times, said Copley.
“There didn’t seem to be a cost-of-living crisis. People might not be going on holiday but wanted to have a good Christmas.”
However, Barbakan Delicatessen owner Frankie Dyer said sales were “stagnant” over Christmas “for the first time in many years”.
Increased costs meant the Manchester business made lower profits than during last year’s festive period, she added.
Christmas week and its biggest ever day of trade on 23rd December.
Managing director Nigel Murray said: “Booths really does love Christmas, and this is reflected in our strong performance again this year. Customers trust us to provide the best quality and store experiences and we are delighted to deliver.”
Booths saw like-forlike sales at its butchers’ counters grow by 16% in December, compared to a year earlier, with both fruit and vegetables posting double-digit growth.
Sales of Christmas cheese were up by almost a third while pigs in blankets were up 14%.
Fortnum & Mason mulls loyalty scheme
In a bid to broaden its scope as a gifting and occasions destination throughout the year, as well as at Christmas, For tnum & Mason is set to introduce a loyalty scheme.
With plans to launch before the end of the summer, the retailer is still deciding on the details but wants it to be more of a “club” than a discount and member prices offer like that offered by supermarkets.
To make it feel more elevated and exclusive, its members will benefit from perks like priority access to events and services.
Retailers pulled out all the stops to make up for “subdued” footfall
Partridges closes Chelsea store, promising “smaller, more sustainable shops”
By Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
After 53 years in business, iconic independent retailer Patridges closed its Chelsea shop on 2nd February. Its second store, which opened on Gloucester Road in 1998, remains open, and managing director John Shepherd said the will be business will be looking to launch “smaller and more sustainable shops across London”.
Partridges was launched by John Shepherd’s brother, Sir Richard Shepherd, in 1972, with the slogan, “good things for the larder”. It was located on Sloane Street, and expanded to three times its original size when John Shepherd took the reins in 1981. After some tough years following the opening of Waitrose Belgravia, it was moved to Queripel House on Duke of York Square in 2004, where it also introduced a weekly Fine Food Market in 2005.
German meat and dairy banned
The UK has banned imports of German meat and dairy after a case of footand-mouth disease was declared on a farm near Berlin on 10th January.
No pork, lamb, beef or cheese will be allowed into the country, nor will live cattle, sheep, pigs or other animals susceptible to catch the highly contagious virus.
The UK’s Agriculture and Hor ticulture Development Board said it expects “disruption to supply” of ham, bacon, salami and dairy products to the UK, including cheese, yoghurt and buttermilk. Germany is the third largest exporter of pork to the UK, with a market share of 18%, and it s third largest supplier of dairy.
In many ways the retailer was ahead of its time, selling speciality food & drink sold nowhere else - items like gulls eggs and jugged hare. It now stocks a range of own-label goods as well as food and wine from around the world. The shop was awarded a Royal warrant by King Charles this year, having previously held one from Queen Elizabeth from 1994. Sir Richard Shepherd was
In a statement, John Shepherd expressed sadness about the closure of the shop, and gratitude to Kensington estate owner Cadogan, “for allowing us the opportunity to develop our creativity in Duke of York Square”.
He added: “We would like to thank all of our loyal Chelsea customers for
DOWN ON THE FARM
The latest from farm shops across the country
After years of wrangling with planning officials, retrospective permission has been granted for The Joyful Deli to continue trading from a former agricultural building at Holme House Farm on Ilkley Road.
A disused fertiliser store and two industrial
their support, over more than half a century, and we have often served several generations of the same family. We will never forget you and could not have possibly done it all without you.”
Responding to the news, Hugh Seaborn, CEO of the Cadogan Estate, said: “[Partridges] have been a cherished Chelsea institution since first opening on Sloane Street in 1972, and it is longterm partners like [them] that we particularly value and support as they help make Chelsea special. I am deeply sorry to see them go.”
Meanwhile, a statement from Cadogan said it plans to “retain a high-quality, specialist independent in this location to continue serving the community”, and it is understood that it will take over the running of the market from 8th February. partridges.co.uk
IN BRIEF
Faced with what it says is a “particularly challenging cost environment”, Sainsbury’s is set to cut 3,000 jobs. It is also shutting its remaining cafés and closing both its pâtisserie and pizza counters.
The Black Farmer has opened a second store in White City, London after securing £1m in funding. Founder Wilfred EmmanuelJones opened his first shop in Brixton in 2023.
QR-style codes could replace traditional barcodes within two years, according to GS-1, the non-profit which oversees the global standard for barcodes. As well as the price of a product, the new codes can contain information like sell-by date, instructions and allergens.
storage units are to be converted into a new farm shop and café on the Courteenhall Estate, in Northants. When opened, local produce from West Lodge Farm and other local farms will be available at the farm shop. courteenhall.co.uk
The Egg Shed in Hingham has had to close after an outbreak of bird flu forced the familyowned business to cull all 17,800 of its hens in December.
Just over a year ago, a
college campus opened its own farm shop. Based at the Suffolk Rural College in Otley, the shop sells items made, grown and harvested by students, who are encouraged to learn how to run a business. It has been such a success that there are plans to expand and create a small café adjoining the
Fodder is set for its biggest refurbishment since it opened in 2009. In a first phase, the catering and retail areas will be refitted. A refresh of the catering and ‘Fodder on the Hoof’ – a converted Airstream in the Fodder car park, which offers hot food, drinks and sweet treats –will follow. fodder.co.uk
knighted in the 2013 New Year Honours List for public service.
Partridges moved 500 yards from its original site in 2004
Winner of the Great Taste Golden Fork from England 2024
Awarded Best British Cheese at World Cheese Awards 2024-25
IF I’D KNOWN THEN WHAT I KNOW NOW...
ALAN HEMPTON, co-owner, Stonewell Spring Delicatessen, Lancaster
My business partner James Cocker and I are both chefs. In 2019 we opened The Quarterhouse restaurant. It was a success but after only a few months trading, Covid-19 forced us to close. We turned the restaurant into a deli to continue trading and it proved popular. Even after the restaurant was allowed to reopen, people were still coming in and asking for jars of sauce and loaves of bread. We could see that there was a lack of shops selling quality, artisan food in Lancaster and felt there was a gap in the market. But having seen so many town centre shops close we felt a 100% reliance on retail was high risk, so settled on a hybrid deli-wine bar model.
We found premises in a great spot, but despite an initial buzz around our opening, it took a lot of time and effort to turn that excitement into trade and footfall. Ticketed events such as our popular cheese tastings were a crucial part of this and helped us capture new customers who have since become regulars.
It’s hard to know exactly how revenue is split across the deli and wine bar because most customers do both – have a glass of wine and then leave with some shopping – but my estimate is that 40% comes from retail sales. Our focus is on treats and gifts, and, at Christmas, hampers. Our original intention was to also offer fresh produce but it soon became clear that we were trying to do too much so narrowed our focus a little. We still sell plenty of bread and cheese, but our star performer is our chocolate counter. We installed this after our first year and keep it stocked with handmade chocolates from local producers.
Neither James nor I had ever worked in retail before so there were gaps in our knowledge: we quickly learnt that while it is important to have a plan we must also be prepared to adapt. For example, we’d initially decided against having a barista machine, we felt the city centre was already well served with coffee shops, but it soon became apparent that it was something our customers demanded and we adapted our plan.
As interest rates were high when we opened the deli, we used profits from the restaurant to fund it. This was a high-risk strategy but we are now seeing the money start to come back into the business and we are exceeding our targets. Looking to the future, the changes to the minimum wage and National Insurance make growth difficult but one area we plan to push forward with is building an online store. Retail is changing rapidly and we can’t afford to ignore online channels.
stonewellspring.co.uk
Interview Lynda Searby
Photography Stefanos Aktipis
MY ELECTRIC CAR has got to go. I’ve had it since December 2022. It wasn’t really a Christmas present, but it was meant to be for life. The past two years has seen a catalogue of hinderances, incompetence and, at times, justified ridicule. The car is great. It’s the sketchy charging infrastructure across the UK and the fact that the office charger blows up every time we have a power cut, or someone pops the kettle on. Nothing around EV is robust or fit for purpose.
The one thing I will miss is the privileged parking. You can sneak into bays at various locations, often being the closest, pretend
GREAT TASTE IN ITALY
For the first time, all products entered by Italian companies will be judged in Italy in May, as part of the overall Great Taste 2025 accreditation scheme. This will enable more local producers to participate. Entry is open until 11 March. greattasteinitaly.com
DELI RETAILING CODE OF PRACTICE
A reference guide for delis on compliance and best practice, the CoP offers protection for your business under the Primary Authority Scheme if challenged by your EHO or local authority. It’s included in Guild membership or can be purchased by nonmembers for £250+VAT by emailing support@gff.co.uk
View from HQ
FFD’s publisher and Guild of Fine Food managing director John Farrand has his say
to charge (normally it’s out of order) and feel like a VIP. Now that our protesting farmers are blocking up the normal bays in supermarket car parks with their tractors, this sliver of a benefit becomes even more important.
If Rachel Reeves has a pair of wellies, I’d suggest she sells them on Vinted right now. She’s not welcome on or in farmers’ fields, forestry plantations, orchards, pack houses, or milking parlours. Not even the glamping sites or any other diversification you can think of would accommodate her. Besides, no farmer could pick her up from the station anyway, because they are all selling their crew-cab vehicles as they are no longer tax effective (slightly hidden in the budget, that one).
I’m still wrestling with the detail, the minutiae and the connotations of incoming policy on Inheritance Tax and Business Property Relief, but it seems clear that the Government has goofed. I share the opinion of farmer and author James Rebanks, who has
gone on record stating that fiscal changes were needed to penalise the tax dodgers, but the policy worked up by Rachel and her team has missed the mark big style. It will hit well-run family farms that are building and investing for the future (that counts as sustainability too, Ms Reeves), perhaps those who have built up a successful farm shop, but it won’t bother the multi-billionaire landowners that it was meant to.
If Rachel Reeves has a pair of wellies, I’d suggest she sells them on Vinted right now. She’s not welcome in our farmers’ fields
But isn’t this just the rather tired exclamation mark at the end of a challenging five years?
The Budget was another ball & chain around the farming & food sector’s ankles along with Brexit, wars, economic woes, ill-thoughtthrough food policy and wasted strategies. The farmers have done well to grab the media attention but any small or medium-sized food business, especially those owned by families should know what’s coming.
At least silly season seemed to have been jolly. Broadly positive was the reaction of those I caught up with in January. My friend, Richard Paul is a cheese wholesaler and distributor. “It was great,” he said, “I sold loads of the stuff. It’s getting them to buy cheese for the other eleven months of the year that’s the concern.” And there it is, something all of us should sign up to.
Cheese is not just for Christmas, it’s for life. Unlike that bloody electric car.
The Word on Westminster
By Edward Woodall Association of Convenience Stores
THE NEW YEAR has not started well for the Government, as many financial indicators show that the economy remains flat. There appears to be a mixed bag for retailers in terms of Christmas trading, as consumers spent cautiously. For retailers, the outlook for 2025 looks gloomy as well, with all focusing on managing increased employment costs in April. There are also other regulatory developments that food retailers must contend with, such as simpler recycling requirements from March and promotional restrictions on high fat, salt, and sugar (HFSS) products from October. It is unsurprising that there has been a drop in business confidence and, as a result, speculation that the Spring Statement on 26th March may be enhanced from a simple update to include fiscal action to
reassure businesses. I suspect that the Chancellor will explain that growth takes time and that hard work like public service reform must come first. That said, there is nothing stopping her from setting out more of her vision for creating a positive investment environment for growth. This might ease some concerns from businesses that the government does not understand what is needed for businesses, large or small, to invest.
One area the government has handled well so far is business rates reform. Yes, many retailers are disappointed that their retail, hospitality, and leisure relief is dropping to 40%, but the government has legislated to permanently lower rates for the majority of retailers through new multipliers. This is a positive first step in reforming the tax system to provide more certainty around tax liabilities, but there is more to do on business tax reform. We would welcome more clarity on how
the rates system will incentivise investment, such as enhancing small business rate relief to indexup between revaluation periods.
The government could also acknowledge the concerns of businesses in relation to the Employment Rights Bill. While many of the reforms are welcome and have already been implemented by retailers, there are pressing concerns about new administrative requirements. For example, there will be new obligations to offer guaranteed hours to employees on “low-hours contracts” every 12 weeks, which will impose huge new burdens on businesses. Some pragmatism on these types of interventions would ease business concerns about increased administration while not undermining the wider mission of greater security in work.
Edward Woodall is government relations director at the ACS edward.woodall@acs.org.uk
CONFESSIONS OF A DELI OWNER
ANONYMOUS TALES FROM BEHIND THE COUNTER
I DON’T KNOW about you, but I’m sick of reading negativity in the press. I’m sick of the grey skies and the equally grey economic outlook. The UK is a depressing place at the moment – apparently experts are calling it a doom spiral, which is a wonderful thing to find oneself in.
So I’m going to endeavour to imbue this column with a little bit of positivity. Let’s see how that goes.
It’s not far off the anniversary of us buying our business and I’ve been reminiscing about all the happy, surprising and positively challenging moments we’ve had so far. I remember early morning trips to the wholesale veg market with rosetinted glasses now that those days are past. Being so exhausted in those early weeks and months, and taking real joy in small
Expert
NICOLA WOODS
IDENTIFIES THREE KEY FOOD & DRINK TRENDS FOR 2025
luxuries, like a coffee in the sunshine and a few moments to myself.
Then there are the people we’ve worked with – from the early days to now. We have some who have been with us from the start, and I love to hear them tell stories of the beginnings to newer members of the team with pride.
It’s a great feeling to walk into a business you’ve built up and see familiar faces, to be greeted with a smile. I love being anonymous in our business and watching people enjoy what we’ve created.
Many of my happiest memories are small things that hardly warrant writing about. Are these small pleasures the reasons we do what we do as business owners? Are they the reasons why the current challenges are worth overcoming?
It’s important in difficult times for all of us to reflect on the good things, no matter how small.
The quiet pleasure of stocking the shelves with produce is something I still enjoy to this day. There’s a real satisfaction in making things look beautiful, and then watching customers’ reactions to them. ARE YOU LOOKING FOR MORE?
I believe the speciality & fine food sector is both a testing ground and a playground, and I’m sure the coming year will see even more of the same amazing creativity and sense of community. I’ve picked out three key trends from 2024’s SFFF which I think will be making a mark on the industry in 2025.
The first isn’t exactly a new trend, but one that has really been gaining momentum and credibility. There was a time when canned wine was given short shrift by connoisseurs in the industry, but a number of brands have made a huge impact in changing perceptions of canned wine to a quality product.
We’ve seen many examples at the Fair, including English wine The Uncommon’s quality range and striking branding, Wine That’s Fruit pushing the boundaries with wine made from strawberries, raspberries, apples, and more, and Can’t be Bothered really getting straight to the point with their tagline ‘(Decent) red wine in a can’.
I think above all, I love having a sense of purpose, a place that’s ours to change and flex when we need to. It’s important in difficult times for all of us to reflect on the good things, no matter how small, and to see how far we’ve come.
So, this month, why not grab a bottle of your favourite wine or guilty pleasure and celebrate your wins? I’m raising a glass with you all from my anonymous corner of the world.
Sustainable, organic salts are having a moment in the speciality food sector, with Blackthorn Salt securing a Golden Folk in Great Taste 2024 and several brands taking part in the Fair last year, including Asilia Salt, Pinchful Salt, and the Isle of Skye Sea Salt Company. As consumers eat out less, many are investing in quality ingredients to elevate meals cooked at home. Plus, many of our chef visitors also tell us that salt can often be the underrated star of dishes.
While the rush of new hot sauce brands might have plateaued, I suspect we’re on the cusp of a hot honey boom, and the product is certainly making its mark. It’s hard to find a pizzeria in London at the moment that doesn’t include it on its menu, and we’ve seen some great brands take part in the Fair such as JD’s Hot Honey.
As we begin 2025, it’s clear the speciality & fine food sector continues to lead the way in setting trends. I can’t wait to see what exciting developments the next year will bring, and I encourage you to share your thoughts on what might be on the horizon for our amazing industry.
I suspect we’re on the cusp of a hot honey boom
Source: BRC
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Clawson Farms is a British farming cooperative, we take pride in representing the passion of our 30 member farmers & master cheese-makers and the brilliant work we do here at Clawson from farm to fork.
To find out more, contact our sales team on enquiries@clawson.co.uk or call +44 (0) 1664 822332 www.clawson.co.uk
Introducing Clawson Farms deliciously
DISCOVER OUR FANTASTIC RANGE OF AWARD WINNING BRITISH CHEESE
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SUPREME CHAMPION
Norton & Yarrow moves to Wales to expand herd and repertoire
By Patrick McGuigan
Wales’s already thriving cheese sector has been given another boost after one of England’s most respected goats’ cheesemakers moved its business to Carmarthenshire.
Norton & Yarrow, which is well known for the lactic goat’s cheeses Sinodun Hill and Brightwell Ash, moved operations from Oxfordshire to a 120-acre farm in Carmarthenshire at the end of January, and plans to expand its herd of Anglo-Nubian goats and develop new hard cheeses.
The company, which was set up by Rachel Yarrow and Fraser Norton in 2014, had outgrown its previous premises at the Earth Trust farm near Abingdon, which did not have sufficient grazing pasture. The much bigger Welsh farm, which was previously used for sheep, will allow the business to grow heritage feed crops and provide enough pasture to increase the herd to around 350 animals. The farm, called Pen Crug (‘top of the hill’ in Welsh), is located in the Brecon Beacons national park near the village of Llangadog.
“We wanted to move to a lower input system, but there just wasn’t the space at our previous home,” explained
Norton. “Our new farm will allow us to become pasturefed as much as possible and grow our own high-quality fodder. We’re considering becoming accredited organic.
Agri-ecology seems a more sensible, sustainable way to farm. With greater diversity of plant species comes more diversity in terms of insects, birds and other wildlife.”
The relocation is more good news for Welsh cheese, which has seen a renaissance in recent years with several new producers starting up, including goat’s cheesemaker Wacky Wedge near Snowdonia, Caws Penhelyg near Aberystwyth, Angleseybased Caws Rhyd y Delyn and Ffynnon Wen in Llandeilo.
There is also an
NEWS IN BRIEF
A court in France has barred factory-made Camembert from being labelled as “fabriqué en Normandie” (made in Normandy) in a victory for cheesemakers producing the raw milk, PDO- cheese Camembert de Normandie
Mike’s Fancy Cheese in Newtownards, Northern Ireland, lost hundreds of kilos of Young Buck blue cheese in December after a malfunction in its maturing room. The maker has enough to sell in the shop over the coming months, but will not be able to supply wholesalers until March.
French cheesemonger Emmanuelle Metz has opened a new shop at an historic Edwardian mill in Yorkshire. Metz Cheesemonger is based at Sunny Bank Mills in Farsley, near Leeds.
increasingly strong indie cheese retail scene in Wales thanks to cheesemongers including Ty Caws, the Welsh Cheese Company, Blas ar Fwyd and Marches Delicatessen.
“Welsh cheese does seem really vibrant at the moment and we’ve already been making links with Welsh cheesemakers and organisations,” said Norton. “The Welsh Government provides good support through initiatives like Farming Connect, and its Food Centre, where we plan to pilot new hard cheeses to make the most of our summer milk and have more options at Christmas.”
Production will start at the new farm in February with cheeses available from March. nortonandyarrow.co.uk
Trainee chefs and hospitality students at the Michael Caines Academy in Exeter were the first cohort to receive a full day of bespoke, hands-on cheese training as part of their two-year programme. Delivered by the Academy of Cheese and funded by Chiswick Cheese Market, the Level One course was tailored for hospitality students on the restaurant training scheme spearheaded by Michael Caines MBE. The Academy of Cheese plans to roll out the practical, handson version of its Level One certification to other hospitality institutions.
THREE WAYS WITH...
Pecorino Romano
Pecorino Romano has had a mini revival in the past few years thanks to a wave of social media recipes for dishes such as cacio e pepe and carbonara. As the name suggests, this hard, salty PDO cheese originates in the Lazio region around Italy’s capital, but production also takes place in Sardinia and a part of Tuscany. Like Parmesan, it’s used for grating over pasta, but is made with sheep’s milk and has a much saltier, spicier taste.
Pumpkin jam
Pecorino Romano is often used as a cooking ingredient, but younger cheeses are sometimes served as an antipasti in Italy. A sweet, spicy preserve made with ‘zucca’ (pumpkins or squash) is also a familiar pairing for the cheese. The sweet earthy flavours temper the salty, piquant flavours.
Whipped Pecorino dip
Whipped Feta dip recipes have been dominating social media feeds in the past year, but it’s easy to do something similar with Pecorino Romano. Whisk Greek yoghurt with grated Pecorino, then finish with a little lemon juice, olive oil and a sprinkle of thyme for a light, airy dip with a sharp kick.
Pecorino white wine
It feels like a no-brainer to serve Pecorino with a wine that carries the same name. The white grape variety, so called because the bunches look like a sheep’s head and sheep like to eat them, is grown widely in the Abruzzo region, but also Lazio. The wines have high acidity and aromatic citrus, green apple and floral notes, which are clean and refreshing with the savoury cheese.
Fraser Norton (L) and Rachel Yarrow (R) at their farm in Oxfordshire
CHEESE
Stoney Cross the winner as judges find UK Gold at World Cheese Awards
By Patrick McGuigan
After 17 years of what cheesemaker Mike Smales called “a lot of fiddling around” the Tomme-style Stoney Cross was named Britain’s best cheese at a one-off World Cheese Awards’ judging session in December.
The grey-rinded cows’ milk cheese, which is made by Lyburn Farmhouse Cheese in Hampshire, won the Best British Cheese award at a specially convened judging session in Dorset for British entries that didn’t make it to the World Cheese Awards in Viseu.
Issues with Portuguese border controls meant no British entries made it to the main competition in November, despite organiser the Guild of Fine Food obtaining the normal derogation and licences required, and following paperwork and processes agreed in advance with partners and the authorities in Portugal.
British cheesemakers were also not responsible for the problems, so in a gesture of goodwill the Guild organised
CHEESE IN PROFILE with
and paid for British cheeses to be judged in Dorset, under the same controlled conditions as the main awards by six teams of expert judges. Around 200 cheeses were judged on the day with 68 winning awards, including 13 Gold and six Super Gold medals.
Stoney Cross, which also won the Golden Fork for England at last year’s Great Taste, was first launched in 2008 and has a velvety rind and buttery, earthy flavour.
“We had no agenda when we started; it was a case of
fiddling around to see what we could make,” said Lyburn owner Smales. “We’ve been fiddling around with Stoney ever since so over the passage of time it’s become the cheese it is today.”
John Farrand, managing director of the Guild, said: “We had an incredibly positive judging day, dedicated to the UK cheese entries. It’s not just the overall standard of British cheese that is impressive, it’s the innovation, and the oftenmaverick cheesemaking that makes our cheese scene so exciting at home.” What’s the story?
de Chavignol
goats’ milk in the Sancerre region of France. roots dating back the 16th century, it comes from the Loire Valley, renowned for its goats’ cheese and wine production. Historically, the region’s vineyards often kept goats, giving rise to the creation of Crottin de Chavignol. The name “Crottin” multiple origin stories: it may stem from the word “crot,” referring to a small oil lamp once used to light wine cellars, or from “crottin,” meaning goats’ dung, perhaps due to the cheese’s rustic, rough exterior.
British WCA winners 2024/25
SUPER GOLD
Stoney Cross (Best British Cheese & Best SCA Cheese) Lyburn Farmhouse, Hampshire
Cornish Nanny The Cornish Cheese Co, Cornwall
Corra Linn Errington Cheese, Lanarkshire
Lucky Marcel Feltham’s Farm, Somerset
St.Helena and St. Jude St. Jude Cheese, Suffolk
GOLD
Ashlynn (Harvey & Brockless), Blackmount and Elrick Log (Errington Cheese), Captains Wheel (The Book and Bucket Cheese Company), Cornish Kern (Lynher Dairies Cheese Company), Eastwood and Washington (Cheesegeek), Hallouminati (the Rennet Works), Hebridean Blue (Isle of Mull Cheese [J. Reade & Sons]), Kelston Park and Merry Wyfe (Bath Soft Cheese), St.Cera (St. Jude Cheese), Yarlington (King Stone Dairy)
How is it Made?
Production of Crottin de Chavignol follows the lactic method, where milk is coagulated over several hours primarily through acidification, with
a small amount of animal added. urds are pre-drained before moulded, turned at least once during draining, and drysalted after unmoulding. Maturation requires a temperature above 10°C. It is matured for at least 10 days and up to two months.
Appearance & Chavignol features a vermiculated rind that begins as ivory or brown when young, gradually transforming
to a blue-grey hue as it matures. The texture evolves with age, starting smooth and moist before becoming dry and crumbly. Its flavour profile offers delicate floral and earthy notes.
Variations:
None
Cheesemonger tip:
As you might it expect, pairing this with a Sancerre wine would create a good upselling opportunity.
Chef’s recommendation: Grill in slices and serve warm over a bed of green salad leaves sprinkled with pomegranate seeds.
Crottin de Chavignol is one of the 75 cheeses studied as part of the Academy of Cheese Level Two Certification. For more information on this and all of the AoC’s courses, head to: academyofcheese.org
Lyburn’s Tomme-style Stoney Cross won the Best British Cheese trophy
We’re the Margarita generation, not the gin and tonic generation
Con Tequila, making Britain happy
After years in development, Tico Tequila launched last year. The spirit is rooted in Mexican tradition and tailored for British drinkers.
By Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
TEQUILA IS A spirit that is steeped in history and tradition, dating back thousands of years. It is a matter of national heritage in Mexico. Under its PDO, there are stringent rules stipulating how it is made, where it is made and who it is made by. And lately, it is not only the second best-selling spirit in the United States, but it is taking on the UK market: sales of tequila grew by 12.4% on-and off-trade in 2023, according to the IWSR, and was on track for a similar rise in 2024. Celebrity-endorsed tequilas are everywhere, and many have seen remarkable sales growth.
It was in this context that Daniel Mould decided to create his own tequila brand, sealed in fate by a final fact: his social circle quite enjoyed drinking it.
“People in my age group – a lot of them aren’t gin drinkers, or vodka drinkers. They like tequila,” the founder of Tico Tequila tells Fine Food Digest. “We’re the Margarita generation, not the gin and tonic generation.”
At the still tender age of 28, Mould’s professional experience lies in events and hospitality; the arts and fashion collective he co-founded, Something to Hate On, often ran activation events for brands, which routinely involved working with alcohol suppliers. So when the pandemic hit in 2020, he had the time and the contacts he needed to start working on his own project.
“I’d always wanted to do something with tequila,” he says, “and the more you learn about it – and agave in general, the more you fall in
love with it. It’s such an incredible spirit.”
Mould travelled to Mexico and toured distilleries, and in Guadalajara he visited a bar called Farmacia Rita Pérez – owned by a certain Luis Michel, now Tico’s head of production. Michel happened to be in touch with the owners of Cascahuin, one of a handful of top tequila producers in the country.
Mould’s pitch for Cascahuin to start making tequila for him was simple: he wanted to sell a high-quality spirit that represented the best of what he’d tried in Mexico, not what most people understood it to be.
“How it was seen here in the UK, is that it’s this horrible drink,” he says. “The number of people that I’ve spoken to about tequila in the past four years and they’ve just shuddered, because they associate it with bad nights and bad hangovers.”
“I wanted to make something that was true to tequila, what I like in branding, and also a good price point for people to drink.”
Although it seemed like low-hanging fruit, getting it right was easier said than done. After securing investment, Mould was hoping to get through the development process and get his operation up and running within a year, but it took longer to tweak and perfect the recipes. It was only in early 2024 that he received his first batches of tequila.
Together with his head distiller, Chava Rosales, he had developed three, 100% Agave, additive-free tequilas: Bianco, Rosa and Reposado. The Bianco is unaged; the Reposado is aged in ex-Bourbon barrels, and the Rosa is aged in ex-Cabernet Sauvignon barrels.
The latter is Mould’s favourite to talk about, because it stands out: not only does the barrelageing impart floral notes, but, he explains, “it gives you the opportunity to tell people we put it in a red wine barrel. And for most people, that’s the first time they have ever made the correlation between tequila being coloured and it
going in a barrel.
“It lets us tell them about agave, how incredible tequila is and how we literally don’t add anything to it. All of the flavour and the colour comes from the barrel.”
Once he did hit the ground with Tico, Mould hit it running, securing listings at Michelinstarred restaurants like Pied à Terre, Dorian and trendy drinking establishments like Bar Levan and the Experimental Cocktail Club – as well as a handful of fine food and drink retailers like Bella’s Fruit and Veg, Starmore Boss and Independent Spirit of Bath. It was also the first spirit to be listed on the Delli app.
“And that’s the retail push,” Mould says. “We don’t want to be in Waitrose, we just want to be in the places where the people behind them actually care about the products being artisanal and well made.”
Eventually, he wants it to be the ‘house’ tequila in bars, “because that’s where you really get the impact, without someone having to care about it and buy into the brand, they just order a tequila at the bar and go ‘That was amazing, I didn’t realise tequila could taste like that’.”
Off-trade, Tico will focus on selected retailers, and is likely to produce limited-edition runs – playing with different ageing techniques, and, if they decide to release a flavoured tequila, sticking to the distillery’s strict no-additives rule.
“I get a lot of inspiration from big brands, but I want to just do it better than them,” he says.
“I want to show tequila in a similar way as they do in America, and in a similar way as the UK did with gin – there’s a lot of gin products that brought people into the category that maybe didn’t like just normal classic gin. And that’s not to say we’re going to release pineapple or watermelon tequila – it’s all going to be very traditional.”
ticotequila.com
Black Tot
Rum's soleraaged blend combines rum from Guyana, Barbados, and Jamaica. Made in the traditional method –where liquid constantly moves between barrels, and younger product is mixed with older batches for consistency and complexity – in former sherry casks, the producer says the intention was to elevate its flagship rum with the “richer, dark fruit notes associated with sherry.” blacktot.com
UK buys more Champagne than rest of Europe but demand for Crémant soars
By Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
2024 wasn’t a terrific year for Champagne – but it was a great one for sparkling wine, and specifically for Crémant. According to The Times, on December 23rd, Champagne was on track for its worst year of sales in 20 years – expecting to sell 270m bottles compared with 299m in 2023 and 325m in 2022. And although higher value cuvées saw UK sales value climb by 8.1%, sales volumes dropped by 18% to the EU, and 13.5% into the UK.
Premium fermented drinks producer
The Real Co.’s Small-Batch collection was created as a credible alternative to fine red wine and Champagne. Loose leaf tea, grape skins and seed are fermented over toasted French oak, resulting in a Noir and a Brut, said to have “a complexity and authenticity that appeals to the discerning palate.” RRP £25. realdrinks.co
If supermarket shelves stacked with discounted bottles of Champagne have become a familiar sight, explained Thibault Lavergne, owner of wholesale company Wine Story, it is due to an unfortunate series of events.
"When the market for Champagne in the US, China and Europe was booming 20 years ago, the big Champagne houses and the professional lobbies
argued to extend the zone of production to make more Champagne.”
As the application, planting and production process took the best part of 15 years, “suddenly, around two years ago, there was a lot more Champagne on the market. By coincidence, this
Crémant. Hailed as the “sparkling hero of 2024” by The Drinks Business, sales of the traditional method French sparkling rose by 9.1% in the first ten months of 2024, according to research firm Nielsen.
Cécile Lavaux, whose wholesale company Les
happened in parallel with the drop of the Chinese and European markets. So some Champagne houses tried to do massive cuts, which of course had an effect on the whole market.”
Meanwhile, the costof-living crisis has led consumers to consider alternative options, like
Producteurs et Vignerons de France works with a Crémant de Limoux producer, said recent years have seen significant growth in its sales of Crémant, up roughly 20% year-on-year for the past two years. As well as the ‘value’ element contributing to its success – with Crémant costing
much less than Champagne, sometimes by a factor of 10– there has been an education piece, too. “Consumers seem to have much more understanding of what Crémant means,” she said. “Even if they don't really understand how it's made or the intricacies –that it comes from different regions, or uses different grapes – they know it is a quality sparkling wine that's an equivalent to Champagne.”
For Lavergne, the best advice for retailers is to offer quality sparkling wines within a £20-£35 bracket. “Choose a good independent small producer from whatever region. It could be a pet’ nat’ for customers who like a bit more of an organic style but normal sparkling with decent, modern packaging like Champagne, and in fact Prosecco have. A lot of consumers will not see the difference, and you can tell them that it's better to buy some of the best sparkling than the cheapest Champagne.”
Low-and-no alcohol drinks on the up as UK consumers seek health and moderation in alcohol alternatives
East Sussex producer Everflyht has released its first Blanc de Noirs. The 2020 traditional method wine blends
Pinot Noir and Meunier, with 40% put into French oak for 7 months. It is then aged on lees for 33 months. It promises aromas of strawberry and toasted brioche with “balanced acidity and creamy textural weight.” everflyht.com
Indie retailers have been slow in their uptake of low-and-no alcohol drinks, despite the category’s significant growth. This is according to Laura Willoughby, founder of Club Soda, an alcohol alternative hub, retailer and educator.
Willoughby said her experience matches that of a study recently conducted by The Portman Group and YouGov, showing that 38% of UK drinkers consumed low and no alcohol alternatives semi-regularly in 2024. This was up from 35% in 2023 and 29% in 2022.
“The data from CAMHS research and Drinkaware all
correlates with the Portman Group's research,” she told FFD. Projections from IWSR suggest that the category could be worth £800m in 2028, up from £380m estimated by Mintel for 2024.
Although pubs and bars accounted for 34% of all low-and-no alcohol drinks consumption in 2024, according to The Portman Group, big retailers have responded to increased demand by expanding their offerings. This has borne fruit: last year, Waitrose reported a 20% increase in sales of no- and low-alcohol products; Sainsbury's saw a 19% rise in sales of lowand-no alcohol sparkling
wines, and Tesco recorded a 15% increase in the same category. Despite this, Willoughby said, indies have failed to keep up.
“This comes from trying to work out what's the best use of their limited shelf space, and not understanding the category very well. Also, wholesalers are the biggest gatekeepers to what retailers get on their shelves, and they need to up their game.”
Retail's role is significant in the uptake of the lowand-no category, she said, “because people still drink the most alcohol at home, and that’s also where they want to drink alcohol-free.”
As well as growing, the category is evolving. For example, she said, better alcohol-free wines are now common, ”with single grape varietals from specific vineyards rather than just being an alcoholfree red or white.”
The ‘mood enhancing’ category is gaining pace as well – such as CBD and functional mushroom drinks – as are non-alcoholic apéritifs. “We're seeing an emergence of drinks that are really good in their own right. They're not trying to mimic something alcoholic, even though they are designed for drinking on occasions when alcohol is usually drunk.”
Lime and fennel are fabulous with blue cheese, and orange and cardamom are perfect in a cake; both are just as good on toast!
See our website for details or e-mail us for a wholesale price list. info@thepropermarmaladecompany.co.uk www.thepropermarmaladecompany.co.uk
Step into our enchanting Wildflower Meadow with our fruity flavours inspired by nature
www.grandma-wilds.co.uk
CATEGORY FOCUS
New year, new lines
We begin 2025 looking at new launches in two core categories for the independent retail market. Whether you’re looking to boost your teatime offer or your cheeseboard accompaniments, our biscuits round-up should help. If you’re after some new pickles or chutneys for your shelves, turn straight to page 27
Compiled by Lynda Searby
Bakewell flavours in a biscuit
While many biscuit brands are adopting low fat, low sugar and free-from stances, Cartwright & Butler is still unapologetically intent on creating the “creamiest, butteriest and crumbliest” biscuits. The Hull bakery’s latest invention is the Cherry & Almond Biscuit, which combines glazed red cherries and ground almonds in a Bakewelllike treat. Stockists so far include Selfridges, Fenwicks, Harrods, Liberty, Heal’s and John Lewis. RRP £12.50 for a 200g tin. cartwrightandbutler. co.uk
Hot out of the oven from the Original Biscuit Bakers is the Easter duck sugar cookie. The hand-iced biscuit completes the company’s Easter collection, which also features bunnies, eggs and chicks. It comes in a counter display box containing 16 biscuits. Trade prices from £1.59; RRP £2.30. originalbiscuitbakers.co.uk
Clearspring has unveiled a trio of organic oat biscuits in Japanese inspired flavours Miso Maple, Matcha and Sweet Date. Made by fourth generation family bakers in the Scottish Highlands, the biscuits combine oats with organic coconut oil and olive oil, which gives them a depth of flavour, while being free of refined sugar, high in fibre and plant based. RRP £1.49 for 40g. clearspring.co.uk
Seed snack brand Pep & Lekker is shifting its focus to bringing healthy innovation to the biscuit category. This new savoury seeded cracker is high in fibre and omega-3s and a good source of protein and magnesium. Gut health is supported through the inclusion of chicory inulin, which also contributes natural sweetness to the no added sugar, gluten-free recipe. RRP £2.75 for 110g. pepandlekker.com
The duo behind Non Solo Pasta - have launched a retail range marketed under the Cotswold Cardillo label. It includes four biscotti lines. The Almond & Cherry; Hazelnut, Apricot & Coffee; Orange & Chocolate and Pistachio & Bergamot biscuits are made from Cotswold ingredients to recipes from ‘nonna Pippi’. thecotswoldcardillo.co.uk
These tongue-shaped giant crackers from Realfoods Organico are designed for that occasion when bread is too substantial or doughy and standard crackers are too tiny. Handmade in Liguria using extra virgin olive oil, the handfinished organic crackers are available in Rosemary and Classic flavours in Organico’s new yellow and white livery. RRP £3.25 for 150g. organicorealfoods.co.uk
Having a coeliac baker on board has enabled Cradoc’s to make its foray into gluten-free bakery, with a trio of crackers in Chilli, Ginger & Cumin, Rosemary & Garlic and Cheddar Cheese & Chives flavours. According to director Allie Thomas, there is more to come: “We’ve got so much expertise and enthusiasm to play with now; we are venturing into new territory with three additions to this range in 2025.” cradocssavourybiscuits. co.uk
Ridley’s has launched a range of cookies made by Chance, the bakery’s 14 year-old baker. The New York style cookies are made from a chocolate and vanilla dough, and topped with a whole Wispa bar, sprinkles and dark chocolate. RRP is £5 per cookie. ridleysbakery.co.uk
Life Changing Bakes, a social enterprise bakery in Oxfordshire, has launched a range of savoury biscuits to compliment the sweet treats that are handmade by its team of trainee bakers.
By stocking the biscuits, retailers are indirectly supporting adults with learning disabilities and autism to gain the skills and experience they need to move into sustainable employment.
There are three savoury lines - Black Olive & Cheese Flatbreads, Parmesan & Thyme Biscuits and Double Cheese Biscuits. They can be eaten as a nibble with a glass of wine or like a cracker, topped with cheese. At present they are sold mainly via Yellow Submarine’s cafés and online shop; but are also stocked by Penicuik Storehouse and included in Tordoffs’ hampers.
Wholesale prices start at £2.50 per 66g pack; RRP £4. yellowsubmarineshop.org
Alex Brassill, a biomedical scientist who has worked on sports nutrition brands such as Myprotein, Myvegan, Myvitamins and IdealFit, is applying his knowledge of product development with functional ingredients to his own business venture, Jnck Bakery
But rather than focusing on high-protein gym products, the startup has given the sugar- and fat-laden cookie a nutritional overhaul. Almost two years of development have resulted in a non-HFSS rated cookie that is said to contain 90% less sugar and 50% less saturated fat than existing products, as well as three times more protein and five times more fibre.
Brassill says his company has used “cutting-edge sweetness modulation” to create products that taste, look and feel like indulgent treats, with prebiotic fibre playing a key role in delivering the desired nutritional, gut-health and taste credentials.
The 48g cookies are available in three flavours: Milky Chocolate, Trippple Chocolate and White Gold Chocolate. RRP £1.99-2.60. jnckbakery.co.uk
Following a positive reception at local farmers’ markets, The Kitchen at Raylands House is increasing production of Stilton & Pecan All-Butter Biscuits to supply to delis and farm shops. They were created as part of the Essex producer’s Sophisticated Snacker collection, to pair with its Roasted Garlic & Shallot Chilli Jam. RRP £5.95 for 90g. raylandshouse.com
Miller’s new Baker & Barista collection is designed to elevate the coffee drinking experience. The all-butter biscuits are baked short and slow from natural ingredients and feature single origin flavours such as Bourbon Vanilla from Madagascar, and Belgian Double Chocolate Trade price is £2.35 per 120g pack (RRP £3.65), from the Fine Cheese Co. Portion packs, selection boxes and glutenfree options available. finecheese.co.uk
Ikomiki, the London-based Japanese matcha house, has introduced gifting formats for its matcha biscuits and cookies, crafted by artisans from Gifu. These include the EN Biscuits Box, a handcrafted wooden box containing matcha hojicha and cocoa flavoured cookies (RRP £24). ikomiki.uk
pickles & chutneys
GingerBeard’s Preserves has announced that these crunchy shallots pickled in sweet balsamic vinegar - which were initially launched to celebrate the Bristol producer’s tenth anniversary - are here to stay. With a wholesale price of £2.50 for a 190g jar (RRP £4.15), Sweet Balsamic Pickled Shallots are said to be a great addition to a ploughman’s lunch or cheeseboard. gingerbeardspreserves. co.uk
Anahid Ghiabi, the founder of kombucha brand Kombu Heritage, has drawn on her Persian heritage to create a range of ‘Torshi’. She started selling the spiced prebiotic pickles at farmers’ markets late last year, and says she is ready to share their gut-friendly benefits and authentic Persian taste with retailers and distributors. RRP £4 for 190g. Wholesale price from £2.40 per unit. kombuheritage.com
Tracklements has curated a year-round gift pack of its best-selling chutneys for cheese. Apple & Cider Brandy Chutney, Apricot & Ginger Chutney, Fresh Chilli Jam and Caramelised Onion Marmalade all feature in the Cheese Lover’s Collection, which has an RRP of £15.75. tracklements.co.uk
Old School House Chutneys & Preserves has made a name for itself by producing small batch chutneys from locally grown produce for farm shops and delicatessens in Somerset and Dorset. This year saw the release of Veg Patch Piccalilli - a relish that is designed to bring a spicy, crisp, ‘mustardy’ hit to a plate of cold cuts. Wholesale price £3.75/310g jar; RRP £5.65. chiltonchutney.com
The Ferm’s Spicy Cauliflower Leaf Kimchi is a zero-waste twist on traditional kimchi, upcycling cauliflower leaves discarded by food businesses. The crunchy, probiotic-rich condiment is said to be ideal for adding spice and tang to everyday meals while supporting sustainable eating. It is currently sold online direct to the consumer and via London stockists. Trade price £4.75 for 375g; RRP £7. theferm.net
Bluebadger Foods has created Kimmie’s Carrot Kimchi as an introduction to the taste of kimchi, as it says that napa cabbage kimchi can be daunting for some. Like its cabbage-counterpart, the carrot kimchi is made with authentic gochugaru to deliver smoky heat. RRP £6-6.50 for 300g. bluebadgerfoods.com
pickles & chutneys
Real Jam & Chutney Co is heading into 2025 with a new look that has been conceived to highlight the artisanal quality of its chutneys, pickles and savoury jams – all made the traditional way using simple recipes and fresh ingredients.
The producer is also part of the Minstead Trust, a New Forest charity that supports people with learning disabilities. Through its involvement, Real Jam & Chutney Co provides opportunities for individuals to gain skills and grow their independence by doing work experience.The producer’s latest introduction is Beetroot & Horseradish Chutney, a bold blend of earthy beetroot and fiery horseradish. realjam.co.uk
With its bold, edgy branding, London-based newcomer Sexy Pickles contrasts with the traditional pickles that UK consumers are used to seeing on shelf.
There’s no cabbage in sight either - founder Lyndsay Summerhill says she is keen to bring “new and innovative flavours and products” to the pickle category, and this sometimes involves identifying more unusual candidates for pickling, such as grape, pineapple and garlic. The startup’s flagship product is Crunchy Dill Gherkins (trade price £5.53 for 660ml, RRP £8.50), inspired by Canadian recipes from Summerhill’s grandmother.
The lineup also includes Spiced Pickled Grapes; Beetroot; Sweet & Salty Garlic; Sweet & Spicy Pineapple; and Spicy Mango. These products are currently on sale at Chiswick Cheese Market. sexypickles.co.uk
Laura Beltrami describes her Italian-made range of jams, sauces and pickles as an attempt to express her extrovert personality and passion for good food made from simple ingredients. Artichoke and Zucchini Cream, Pepper & Pineapple Agrodolce (sweet-and-sour sauce) and Giardiniera Pickle are among the first products to launch under the Laura B brand. RRPs are from €5 for a 212ml jar. laurabeltrami.it
Fermented food brand
The Crafty Pickle Co has treated its kimchis and krauts to a redesign. The new look has been rolled out across the range, which is made in Wales and includes Crafty Kimchi - made with Chinese leaf cabbage, gochugaru chilli flakes and miso, and Katz Kimchi-Kraut - which fuses the heat of fresh chillies with the sourness of aged sauerkraut. RRP £7.05 for 350g. thecraftypickle.co.uk
November saw the UK arrival of three new condiments from Builín Blasta, the Galway-based café and food manufacturing business known for its Smoked Onion Mayo. The Pineapple Chili Chutney, Red Onion & Tomato Relish and Apple Almond Chutney all wholesale at £3.12 for 220g; RRP £4.75. builinblasta.ie
Next month [March] sees the launch of a recipe book authored by Nick Vadasz, founder of the eponymous pickle and kimchi brand.
‘The Pickle Jar’ (RRP £20) features recipes such as pea & pickle soup and kimchi prawn toast, alongside advice for making ferments and pickles. Vadasz, who started his business in 2011 in a shipping container in East London, was a pioneer of the fermented foods movement. compleatfood.com
Lake District producer Wild & Fruitful has added two new lines to its growing range.
Sweet Mango, Garlic & Red Onion Pickle is an accompaniment for homemade curries and fried chicken, whilst Apricot & Roasted Walnut Chutney is said to be perfect for pairing with rich cheddar, strong blue or tangy goat’s cheese. Trade price £2.63 for 200g; RRP £3.89. wildandfruitful.co.uk
The term ‘Nani’ means Grandmother in Hindi, and this mango chutney recipe was passed down through three generations before being bottled by the Saucy Sisters Entwining a blend of spices with mango and a hint of chilli, it is said to balance sweetness, acidity and heat. RRP £4.95. saucysisters.co.uk
The Chilli Project’s latest obsession is the Trinidad 7 Pot Yellow chilli, named after its ability to spice seven pots of stew. These super hot chillies are the star ingredient in the Surrey producer’s new Trinidad 7 Pot Pickle. They account for 26% of the condiment’s overall content, delivering a powerful kick that is softened by the tropical sweetness of mango and pineapple. A blend of cumin, ginger, garlic, turmeric, mustard seeds and Kashmiri chilli adds warmth and complexity. Wholesale price £3.65; RRP £6.50. chilliproject.co.uk
Buoyed by the success of its mild pickle, Hungarian producer Stewe Pepper’s Chili Corporation has launched an extra spicy version for “chronic capsaicin addicts”. The main ingredients in the Chili-Chalamade are organic cabbage, onion, cucumber, paprika, chilli pepper and spices. RRP £5 for 245ml.
Where the specialist retail sector meets
Informing, inspiring and connecting the industry
Farm Shop & Deli Show will return to the NEC, Birmingham from the 7 - 9 April 2025, as part of the award-winning UK Food & Drink Shows.
This must-attend event brings together Farm Shop & Deli Show, Food & Drink Expo, National Convenience Show and Foodex Manufacturing Solutions, all under one roof. Discover the latest innovative food and drink products and key insights that will help you grow your specialist retail business.
Scotland’s premier event for the food, drink, hospitality, retail, and tourism industries is celebrating its 52nd year. ScotHot25, at SEC Glasgow from 26–27 February 2025, will bring together professionals from across the industry.
Six reasons to visit… ...ScotHot
Meet the experts
For the first time, ScotHot introduces the Buell Hospitality Advisory Hub, where industry experts will offer free advice sessions on essential business topics for those in the hospitality sector, including finance, recruitment, and sustainability. This new addition ensures attendees leave equipped with actionable strategies to grow and succeed.
Bang on trend
In partnership with the Scottish Tourism Alliance (STA), the Spotlight Stage returns as the focal point for essential conversations shaping the future of the industry. Attendees can engage with top chefs and hospitality experts, and gain valuable insights into technological advancements, recruitment challenges and the future of business tourism.
Culinary excellence
The Scottish Culinary Championships will feature over 250 chefs competing in the Live Theatre and Skills Arena. Witness culinary artistry, intricate edible displays and perfectly plated dishes. The event culminates with the prestigious Scottish Chef of the Year competition, where the country’s finest chefs will vie for the coveted title.
Fine food & drink
Liquid Academy
Liquid Academy Live, hosted by Scott Gemmell of Drink Think, will feature tastings, discussions, and the debut of the Caledonian Bartenders Cup. This stage celebrates Scotland’s vibrant beverage scene with some of the industry’s biggest names. Watch as talented bartenders mix, shake, and stir their way to glory in this thrilling new competition.
Innovate & grow
The ScotHot Innovation Awards are set to spotlight game-changing products like revolutionary technology and the freshest food innovations. Visitors can experience these groundbreaking ideas first-hand, highlighting the products that will make a tangible difference to their businesses. scothot.co.uk 1 4 2 5 3 6
ScotHot25 will champion the best of Scottish produce with the Scottish Regional Food Market and the Great Taste Market, showcasing awardwinning products from across the UK, like succulent seafood from the islands and artisan goods from the Lothians. Attendees can be inspired by the quality on display from local producers.
Fix it up, mix it up
Given the current challenging economic climate, independent retailers need to find ways of offering a memorable experience in-store. Refurbishing your shop or diversifying your revenue streams could help you adapt to trends and expand your business model – building resilience and securing a place in an increasingly competitive market.
JUSTIN
GLIDDON, partner at PKF Francis Clark with input from MICHAEL BOYLE, retail consultant at Fresh Retail Limited
When to diversify
Diversify when sales slow or plateau. It doesn’t always require massive investment better use of space, team reorganisation, or shifting to higher-margin products can help. If your market is saturated, explore new demographics or offerings.
Evaluating ideas
Ensure your financial records are up to date. Control margins and ensure recipe management is sound. Budget carefully, forecast worst-case scenarios, and start small, but don’t fear investment. If you lack a big budget, doing something well on
a small scale is better than failing to meet expectations.
Financial assessment
Focus on your customers. Conduct market research to gauge demand, and create forecasts for revenue, costs, and profits. Remember cash flow; profitability is the goal, but it must be affordable.
Starting your plan
Draft a detailed plan with clear objectives, a financial outline, challenges, target audience and marketing strategies. Start small with a trial run and promote new offerings via social media, email campaigns and other marketing channels. Track performance metrics and adjust as needed. Seek advice from those with experience in your field. Above all, enjoy the journey. pkf-francisclark.co.uk
Bell’s Farm Shop, Stourport-onSevern
Diversification at Bell’s Farm Shop began long before current owner Vicki Colwill’s time – even before her father took over a Nissen Hut selling strawberries on the roadside, some 35 years ago. Since it launched as a pick-your-own farm in the 1970s, Bell’s Farm Shop has grown, incrementally, into a onestop shop.
The current farm shop barn was built in 2020, selling fresh fruit, vegetables, and a few local products. Shortly after, it opened an inhouse butcher, Little Black Pig.
Colwill recalls that customers “were having to come to us
Interviews by Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
Rumwell Farm Shop, Taunton
In 1997, the Mitchells started selling potatoes and eggs from their family farm. 28 years later, Rumwell Farm Shop has expanded to include eight departments: a food hall selling farm produce and goods from local and UK suppliers, a butchery stocked with pork and beef from their farm, and its Jam Kitchen producing the shop’s own preserves. It also has a bakery; wine cellar; gift room; café; and, as of last year, an events space.
In 2023, the events space in question, Rumwell Orchard, was added to provide overflow seating for the café and a dedicated events area. Equipped with a licensed bar and catering service, the food is prepared by the café team. Shortly after, the café was refurbished. “It was eight years old and required a facelift to make it feel more cosy,” explains owner Anne Mitchell. During this time, Rumwell Orchard served as
for vegetables and fruit, then go somewhere else, probably a supermarket, to get their whole meal.”
The business initially bought meat from a local butcher whose location wasn’t convenient. “They offered to sell the business to us,” says Colwill, “so we took a leap of faith.”
The transition wasn’t without challenges: “We always do things without closing the shop. The challenge was doing all the work behind the scenes.”
Bell’s has since added a deli and a cheese counter, and extended its retail
a temporary café, ensuring uninterrupted service. “It was a busy week,” she adds, “with my daughter-in-law Sophie and I doing lots of wood staining late into the evenings.”
Although running events was a new function for the business, they made use of their team’s expertise to make it work. “We have staff with experience in events who gave advice on the set-up, equipment required, bar facilities, and so on,” Mitchell says. As well as welcoming weddings and parties, the addition of Rumwell Orchard has brought in more customers, while also offering variety to the team. “Most café staff work in both areas, enhancing both,” Mitchell says. Approaching three decades in business, Rumwell Farm Shop employs 70 people, and an additional 14 on its 800-acre farm, showing that the works over time have been invaluable. rumwellfarmshop.com
floorspace. It now has a free Adventure Play Area to encourage family visits and even offers glamping.
Most recently, the pop-up coffee setup was replaced with a new 50-seater café, with a full breakfast, lunch, and afternoon tea menu. It also serves as an events space.
Colwill’s advice to retailers diversifying their business is, first and foremost, to plan ahead: “Start a year before you think you need to, because getting permissons will take longer than you think.” Secondly, stay true to your ethos –
Bell’s is to “feed real food to real people”, and every element of the business, including the café, was designed to
NIGEL BOGLE of EPOS Cubed asks: is your system retail ready for 2025?
Diversification isn’t just about survival — it’s about gaining a competitive edge. It’s a business’ ability to explore new opportunities and adapt that will set it apart.
But is your EPOS system ready to power your plans?
At EPOS Cubed, we believe EPOS should be more than just a till on the counter. It should simplify operations, give actionable insights, and guide you in creating exceptional customer experiences.
Diversification might mean adding a café to your farm shop, launching online sales, or hosting workshops and events. A modern EPOS system ensures these expansions are seamless, allowing you to focus on their sales potential. It should connect every part of your business, streamline decision-making with real-time data, and scale effortlessly as you grow.
Your EPOS system should actively drive
reflect this. “It has a menu full of our own, and local, produce,” says Colwill. Everything is seasonal, and as fresh as can be.
This approach to diversification has served Bell’s well: the business has grown 20% year-onyear for four years, and Christmas 2024 was its busiest yet. bellsfarm.co.uk
your business forward by offering:
• Real time insights: know what’s working with up-to-date sales data to adjust stock, optimise promotions, and make smarter decisions
• Seamless integration: connect to wholesalers, e-commerce platforms, logistics, accounting software, or CRM systems, ensuring smoother operations
• Scalability: adapt as you grow, adding/removing tills or software modules without long-term contracts
• Customer-centric tools: build loyalty with personalised promotions, and tailored rewards Diversification means embracing innovation and delivering better experiences. But flexibility is key. If your EPOS provider limits your choice of tools, integrations, or payment options, it’s holding you back. By investing in an EPOS system designed to empower, not constrain, your business will thrive in 2025 and beyond. eposcubed.com
West Yorkshire’s XL Refrigerators has launched a new brand called Food Retail Lighting. Offering LED track, display, and downlights, it says its pink, warm white, and white tints can make products more appealing while reducing energy costs.
For butchery counters, pink lighting is said to highlight the freshness of meat, while warm white lighting is recommended for cheese and deli counters and baked goods, ensuring items look attractive without causing hot spots.
The company offers 6-8 week delivery for large orders or 2-3 days for stock items. foodretaillighting. co.uk
WBC says its BRIX modular display systems will help independents redefine their space as they please.
The UK-based supplier of retail display, packaging and merchandising products says each component is fitted with connectors, meaning they can be joined together easily. Retailers can opt for many options including low shelving, a central floor display or a deep dresser, and add baskets, dispensers and storage bins according to their needs. wbc.co.uk
FROM THE DELI KITCHEN
MELTED VACHERIN WITH WARM WINTER SALAD
Bitter leaves like radicchio work well to counteract the sweet onion pickle in this dish and the mild, gooey Vacherin. If you can’t find radicchio, try using red or white chicory instead.
Makes two portions, multiply as required
Ingredients
One large, or two small heads of radicchio
200g Brussels sprouts
Half a small onion
50g demerara sugar
75ml sherry vinegar
150g lardons
1 small Vacherin Mont d’Or, at room temperature
1 tsp mustard powder
1 tsp caster sugar
75ml light olive oil
Splash of vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
Method:
Preheat the oven to 180°C | 160°C (fan) | gas mark 4. Pick the raddichio leaves, wash them in cold water and spin dry. Set aside. Trim the outer leaves from the sprouts and cut them in half lengthways. Bring a large pan of well salted water to the boil. Plunge the sprouts into water for a minute, lift them out and place on a plate lined with kitchen paper towel to cool and dry. Whisk the demerara sugar with 50ml of the sherry vinegar and 50ml water to make the pickling liquor – ensuring the sugar dissolves completely. Peel and slice half of the onion into 1mm thick slices and place the slices into the pickling liquor – loosening them up as you do. Set aside. Whisk together the mustard powder, remaining vinegar and caster sugar with a generous pinch of salt and pepper. Gradually add in the olive oil and set aside. Place the Vacherin, still in its wooden container, into the oven for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven, run a knife around the edge of the top
EQUIPMENT
rind and carefully lift it off. Cover with foil to keep warm. Put a frying pan over a medium heat, allow to get quite hot, add a splash of vegetable oil and fry the lardons briefly until just golden. Do not overcook them – they should be crispy but still juicy, not dried out. Reserve the lardons and place the Brussels sprout halves flat side down into the pan and cook until golden, which should take around 10 minutes. Return the lardons to the pan and fry together for a minute, then set aside. Dress the salad leaves in enough vinaigrette to coat, and spread them out on a large plate. Strew the sprouts and lardons over the leaves and then lay over the pickled onions. Finish the salad with a generous drizzle of the melted Vacherin Mont d’Or.
Edvantage’s new can opener has a four-sided knife edge design which the manufacturer says can provide 10,000 openings before it needs replacement. A new larger, ergonomic knob provides comfort, while a new proprietary coating is said to prolong the equipment’s durability. It can be disassembled without using any tools, which helps with cleaning and maintenance. metcalfecatering.com
High-speed oven supplier
Merrychef is now selling accessories for its conneX16 range which it says will allow for more items to be cooked at once, reducing risks related to allergies, wastage and allowing the separation of meat and plant-based items. The accessories for the oven, which has a 16x16 inch cavity and a width of 18 inches, include deep cooking trays and liners, and 9x square moulds – all of them coated in PTFE laminate technology. The company says the trays keep ovens cleaner, reduce the risk of grease buildup, and so extend their lifespan. merrychef.com
Fri-Jado’s new connected cabinets have smart digital controllers which can operate all major monitoring systems, including Danfoss, Carel, Eliwell and RDM – rather than appliance-specific software. All equipment can be monitored through the same portal – with the aim of avoiding downtime and food waste. The smart cabinets also perform remote preventative maintenance. frijado.com
Recipe by Phil Howard, co-owner of elystanstreet.com
Salt of the Irish sea
A move from the French Alps to the Isle of Man left former chef Helen Crosbie staring at the sea, where the pools of salt crystals inspired her new career
Interview by Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
What were you doing before starting Isle of Man Salt Company, and how did it come about?
We moved to the Isle of Man just over eight years ago. We’d been living in France for 15 years, mainly working in hospitality; I was a chef and we ran luxury ski chalets.
I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do, but quickly I realised there were tonnes of opportunities to do something food-related. The idea came about in lockdown. We live right on the seafront, and our daily walks were just at the beach across the road. It struck me when we saw sea salt forming in little rock pools. I thought, ‘why doesn’t anyone make sea salt here? That would be a really cool thing to do.’ So we (literally, with the kids) started hauling buckets of water across the road back to the house and experimenting with different ways to make it.
What’s the salt-making process?
Initially, it was just pans on the hob in our kitchen, reducing seawater down to a brine, experimenting with heat lamps and various things, but I didn’t like the energy consumption. I came across a couple of producers using polytunnels to recreate Mediterranean salt flats.
That’s what we did the following year. I did a business course with the local government, and got a small grant. We built a trial polytunnel, and it worked well. We upgraded to a bigger one two years ago.
We collect seawater in big thousand-litre IBC containers on a trailer, filter it into the
polytunnel, and let it evaporate naturally. When it’s evaporated, you get the crystals, break them up, dry them on racks, and that’s it.
How did you turn it into a commercial product?
It was a simple process. To this day, I haven’t spent a penny on marketing. A friend designed a logo and some labels, and a health food shop in the next village sold my jars.
At first, I was making tiny batches of about 10 jars at a time. The business grew organically. We didn’t take out any loans or use any savings – we just grew the orders little by little. Eventually, we made enough to do my first food market in 2021. When we got the bigger
Big manufacturers reduce seawater and use heat lamps
24/7
polytunnel up, we were able to make larger batches. The biggest challenge has been meeting demand – we just can’t make enough product to supply locally.
What limits your production?
It’s down to having just one polytunnel and the seasonal nature of the process. A harvest takes 4–6 weeks. Last summer, the weather was bad, so we only got three or four harvests. The year before, we got five or six. The weather makes a big difference and has driven our expansion plans.
We’ve been working with an engineer to completely change the business model to make much larger volumes. There’s huge demand both locally and in the UK, but it’s key for us to keep the process sustainable. The only way to upscale what we do now would be to have 10 or 20 polytunnels, which we don’t want to do because
of the plastic. We’ve found newer technologies that reduce energy use, rely on greener energy, and eliminate waste.
What are the waste products in salt production?
Big manufacturers reduce seawater and use heat lamps 24/7. Once they scoop out their flakes to dry, they’re left with brine waste called bittern, which is full of magnesium and calcium. They just dispose of it. Our new system uses that waste to heat the process, so it’s completely sustainable.
What’s your product range?
Initially, it was just pure sea salt, but we knew we could only make a certain amount of salt, so by diversifying, we could create products that use less. Then we added rosemary salt, using rosemary from the field where the polytunnel is. Next came the salted caramel sauce, made with local butter, cream, sugar, and sea salt. Now we have six blends, including furikake, a Japanese-style seasoning with seaweed, currently from an Irish producer. We hope to use local Isle of Man seaweed soon.
Where do you see the business in 1–5 years?
In the next year, I hope we can scale production and meet demand locally. Delli is our first UK export link, but most sales are through local retailers, delis, and food markets.
In five years, I’d love to see Isle of Man sea salt on Booths’ shelves. That’s a dream of mine. Sustainability will remain central. We don’t plan to ship Isle of Man sea salt worldwide – we want to keep production and distribution local.
Would you pursue sustainability certifications like B Corp?
Possibly. But the Isle of Man is the world’s only nation biosphere. Our waters are marine nature reserves, and that makes our sea salt unique.
The biosphere is about sustainability and connecting the community to nature, which aligns with our values. For now, we’re focusing on sharing that story.
isleofmansaltco.com
• Chilled & Frozen Groupage Distribution
• European Groupage Distribution
• Retail, Food Service and Manufacturing Sectors
• Multi-Temperature Warehousing
• Storage & Order Picking
• Confectionery Storage
• Blast Freezing & Tempering
• Customs Agency
• Customs Warehousing
WHAT’S NEW
Nunat Snacks of Valencia in Spain is seeking distribution partners in the UK for its all-natural crisps. The snacks come in four varieties – Potato, Sweet Potato, Root Crisp and Parsnip. They are made with sustainably farmed vegetables, fried in sunflower oil, and contain no additives. nunatsnacks.com
My magic ingredient
Blackthorn Scottish Sea Salt Flakes
Good cooking lives and dies on the quality of the ingredients and this is no less true for seasonings.
Norwich-based chocolate brand Gnaw is now making a Salted Caramel filled version of its ‘Mocha Melts’, blocs of filled chocolate to be stirred and melted into coffee. The new flavour joins Hazelnut and Double Chocolate blocs, all of them made with single-origin, sustainable and ethical Columbian chocolate. RRP £12. gnawchocolate.co.uk
Honey Heaven has introduced a limitededition hot honey made with Scotch Bonnet chillies and Organic Hungarian Acacia honey. Sold in 300g jars, it has an RRP of £10, £6 to trade. honeyheaven.co.uk
What we love about this salt is its subtlety. It’s not actually that ‘salty’, so it really lets the other ingredients take centre stage. It’s great in pretty much everything, but we absolutely love using it to make chips and roasties as it adds great flavour and really helps crisp up those edges. It’s perfect as a table condiment too – a little sprinkled over scrambled eggs is amazing.
We also love Blackthorn’s backstory and the production process – they have a giant wooden tower of blackthorn branches on the Ayrshire coast which they pump filtered seawater onto. They let the sun and wind evaporate the water before forming the salt crystals in giant pans. The whole process is very environmentally sensitive (which we love) but also makes a great selling point for our customers, who love to hear the stories behind the products we stock and what makes them different to those you find in supermarkets.
Mr Organic completes rebrand and introduces premium range of beans
By Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox
Italian organic food brand Mr Organic is off to a busy start to the year after completing a rebrand of its 120-line range.
Brand manager Stephanie Lee told FFD the process had taken two years, and that after updating the look and feel of the brand last year, changing the labels had been the next logical step. Roughly 15 years since it first launched, it also seemed like a good opportunity to reassess its customer base.
“Our target audience is much broader now,” she said. “A lot of the organic market was a slightly older demographic because they could afford to eat organic, but as more people understand how it impacts their health and the planet, it has become all-encompassing and they are willing to invest in that.”
The producer has also introduced more “premium-looking” jars for the pasta sauces, and the ‘smiley face’ Mr Organic logo is now displayed on all jar lids.
The labels now show how many ‘plant points’ –or how many wholegrains, vegetables, fruit, legumes,
nuts and seeds and herbs and spices are in each product – something that Lee said would help customers meet their health objectives. “Right now there is a huge focus on gut health and research shows positive results in the microbiome by consuming 30 plants a week, so this will help.”
Finally, as premium beans become a staple – with brands like Bold Bean Co.’s value sales growing threefold in the 12 months leading up to September 2024 – Mr Organic has too introduced four SKUs: Lentils, Chickpeas, Cannellini and Butter Beans (RRP £2.30 per 350g glass jar), suspended in salt brine. It will continue selling the whole range of canned beans as well, as they still form an essential part of its offer, Lee said. “Our goal has always been to be accessible. We want people to be able to afford to buy organic products. So it’s about figuring out which products suit different audiences.”
As well as selling on Ocado, Mr Organic products are available via Infinity, CN Foods, CLF, Suma, Greencity, and Springvale. mr-organic.com
It’s not actually that ‘salty’, so it really lets other ingredients take centre stage
Natural ingredients dressing brand All Dressed Up has secured new listings with Cotswold Fayre and Diverse Fine Foods, as well penning a deal with online grocer Ocado. The dressings come in four variants: Everyday House (a classic, French vinaigrette), Miso & Sesame, Tahini & Lime and, as of January, Spicy Harissa. Developed as ‘clean label’ products, they are made without gluten, refined sugars or emulsifiers, and can be used in a variety of ways as well as on salads. Stockists already include the likes of Panzers, Bayley & Sage, Passage Pantry, Dugard & Daughters, Darts Farm and Good Food Stores. RRP £5.99 per 250ml. alldressedupdressings.com
TOM FRENCH & TOM DAY, owners, French & Day Delicatessen
The Source trade show will be showcasing the best of the South West’s food and drink on 4th & 5th February at Exeter’s Westpoint.
Six reasons to visit… ...The Source
The region’s main event
Hosted by Hale Events in partnership with food group Taste of the West, The Source trade show is focused on connecting food businesses in the South West. It runs on Tuesday 4th February (9:30am - 5:30pm) and Wednesday 5th February (9:30am - 4:00pm).
Find the newest suppliers
The show’s special Newcomers area showcases new companies from the region that have never exhibited at a trade show before, so you can be amongst the first buyers to discover them. These include Sunnyside Drinks Co, The Coco House, The Heritage Cure, and Plantside.
Everything under one roof
Whether you’re a buyer from the retail, hospitality or foodservice sector, The Source brings together a wide variety of the region’s food and drink brands, suppliers, and service providers, offering everything you need to stay ahead of the competition.
Great Taste Market
thesourcetradeshow.co.uk 1 4 2 5
The Guild of Fine Food will be bringing a Great Taste Market to the show for the first time. Great Taste is the world’s largest food and drink accreditation scheme, where every product is judged on taste alone. Great Taste Markets showcase a selection of the award-winning products at some of the best shows and events across the country.
Safe and easy access
Taking place at the conveniently located Westpoint Exhibition Centre, just one mile from Junction 30 on the M5, the show is well connected to the region and offers thousands of free carparking spaces, all within easy distance of the trade show halls, so it’s an easy trip for any visitor.
3 6
Get yourself a deal
Many exhibitors will have show-exclusive offers for visiting buyers. These include discounts, free delivery, and deals on services packages. Amongst those participating are 79 North, Balqees Honey, Willow & Finch and the Devon Rum Company
A familiar face to many in the industry, Iain Hemming has sold the successful deli-café Thyme & Tides to concentrate fully on his latest food business Salt. Deli Kitchen. It’s safe to say that the combination of retailing nous and hunger for new ideas is serving him well so far.
By Michael Lane
Photography by Sam Pearce
On the road to success… again
NOW ON HIS third deli in a third different location, Iain Hemming could rightfully tell anyone that this isn’t his first rodeo when it comes retailing. Truth be told, this isn’t even his first Deli of the Month.
Having run West Street Deli in Wilton, near Salisbury, in what was effectively their front room from 2007 to 2010, Hemming and his wife Sally then went on to open Thyme & Tides in the Hampshire village of Stockbridge. It was in the café area of this deli back in 2014 that he told me, the “the day of the traditional deli is dead”, as we casted our eyes around his rather unique deli-café-fishmonger concept in action.
Having sold that deli as a (highly successful)
VITAL STATISTICS
Location: A30 London Road, Firsdown, Salisbury, Wiltshire SP5 1ST
Turnover: £950,000
Covers: 63
Avg retail margin: 45%
Number of parking spaces: 44
Average spend: £16
going concern to the management team last year, Hemming is now solely focused on his new operation Salt. Deli Kitchen on the A30 –but his philosophy remains the same.
“The only way you can survive is to be fundamentally different to your competitors whether it be a multiple, a chain, or another independent 5 miles up the road,” he tells FFD. Within minutes of touring the site with him on a bustling Thursday morning, it’s clear that Hemming’s signature blend of careful staffing and diligent sourcing – not to mention his balancing of foodservice and retail – is paying dividends. And it clearly still enthuses him too.“I’ve probably enjoyed the last six months more than the last six years,” he says
of the launch of Salt, which began life in April 2022 as a second branch of Thyme & Tides and rebranded last June after the Stockbridge shop was sold.
Hemming concedes that despite Thyme & Tides’ continued success and profitability he was “possibly a little bit bored” after more than a decade of trading in the village.
While there’s a lot that seems familiar in his approach to Salt, it’s worth pointing out the location is markedly different from his previous ventures.
Curiously, when FFD visited Thyme & Tides back in 2014, the plan for Salt was already formulating – a decade before it actually happened.
During the interview, Hemming mentioned that he had been looking at roadside locations on the A303 to open a second outlet. While those options didn’t stack up, there was a roadside café on the A30 that nagged at him for years and years on his commute from Wilton to Thyme & Tides.
“At least three or four journeys in a week, I’d say ‘There’s something about that site’. And Sally would say ‘Would you shut up?’,” he says. “Eventually, she said ‘Will you just do it?’ So, I dropped an email to the owners.”
By April 2022, they had accepted his offer, shut their operation and become his landlord – and Hemming had opened up that muchmooted second deli-café.
It operated as Thyme & Tides Firsdown (the name of the village it sits on the edge of) until June 2024 when – keen to avoid confusion –the Hemmings rebranded as Salt after selling Stockbridge.
On paper, this spot on the A30 is a great location for a food business. Not only is the A30 the arterial road between Salisbury and Andover, it is also effectively on a main route to London. Hemming is certain the original occupant, Little Chef, had been very deliberate in its selection of this site – about an hour’s drive from the Capital when travellers might start thinking about a rest stop.
The theory is holding up well, with the 40-space car park more than half full and barely a free table inside when FFD visits. On a day like today, Hemming estimates that the split between local customers and those travelling will be roughly even.
“The split will change according to the time of year but if you’re in peak tourism time, you can say 70:30 in favour of those travelling and you could even say that’s the case on Friday, Saturday and Monday.”
While it might be an appealing place to stop for some reasons, even Hemming admits that the building itself is “a bit of a carbuncle”. But he says this helps disarm first-time customers.
“Actually, it works for us. People walk up to the business thinking ‘what are we in for here?’. And, I can say this because I see it daily, they walk in a go ‘wow this is not what we were expecting’.
While years of merchandising and shop
floor experience have played their part, Hemming tries to set a welcoming tone, especially for one type of visitor that could be considered irritating.
“A lot of people do just come in for a wee. You can see them because they creep round the walls,” he says, adding that he refuses to put up any signage dissuading non-paying customers from using the loos.
“I’m interested in those people. They have no intention, but a lot them do buy something. They didn’t realise what they were going to see.
“Yes, there’s a cost associated to it, but the law of averages says if they’ve seen what we do and then they’re on the route on their way back, and the owner didn’t tell them to ‘sling their hook’, they’ll come in again.”
And, while locals and travellers alike will be drawn in by the foodservice offer at Salt, Hemming has a well-merchandised retail range too. He bills it as “speciality food in a convenience setting”, but says the aim is broadly to entice travellers into a little top-up shopping for their journey’s end or encouraging gifting purchases. Pre-packed chilled deli items are all housed in multideck fridges along the back wall, while an eclectic selection of ambient ingredients on fixtures neatly segregates the retail and dining areas.
The proportions between the two of these have certainly changed during Hemming’s first few years of trading.
“In less than three years, we’ve expanded quite heavily, now we’ve nearly doubled the covers to 63,” he says, adding that the retail space has also given way to a second front-ofhouse deli kitchen, which prepares sandwiches and quiches to go while the rear kitchen focuses on serving up the dishes for eat-in customers.
The menu has evolved too, because as customers have kept coming back, Hemming has felt the need to raise Salt’s game.
“We’ve gone from doing a bacon bap and sausage bap to specials like dressed Brixham Crab. And we do seafood platters in the summer. We do the best bruschetta – Hoxton Sourdough, buffalo mozzarella and Isle of
MUST-STOCKS
Grette – Umami Miso Dressing
Di Santo – Lemon Sicilian Cannolo
Bret’s – Aioli Crisps
Silverscale – 100% Sustainable Salmon
Tomato Stall – Coeur De Boeuf Tomatoes
Nonya Secrets – Panang Curry Sauce
Fieldgoods – Italian Meatballs ready meal
Lakeland Mues – Toasted Muesli Mixed Berry
Bookspeed Books for gifting
Bath Culture House – Kimchi
Fior Fruit Merchants – Apple & Elderflower juice
Gunner Cocktails – Saint (non-alcoholic)
DELI OF THE MONTH
Wight tomatoes.
“We are very lucky to be where we are geographically, to source some amazing producers.”
As with the original Thyme & Tides, there is also a strong symbiosis between retail and the kitchens to make sure that wastage is kept to minimum or certain products on shelf are promoted via special dishes too.
Footfall, or perhaps it would be better referred to as traffic, has been a clear indicator that Salt’s offer is hitting the mark. What’s more the average spend on site per customer is around £16.
“There have been times here when we’ve had people queuing out the door and this is partly why we added the front, because it gets a bit uncomfortable,” says Hemming, referring to the outdoor dining area covered by a very robust canvas awning.
This area has also led to Hemming developing an entirely new concept, Salt’s now well-established producer markets. Effectively these events are large in-store tastings, gathering at least 10 producers on site to set up a pitch under the awning and showcase their wares to customers on specific Saturdays every month.
Having run six events last year, Hemming will stage them bi-monthly to spread the organisational burden but he says, at times, this concept has felt like a new pinnacle in his retailing career – because it benefits every aspect of his business.
Customers get to try new products while
Hemming boosts his sales and footfall. And, even though they are effectively selling Salt’s own stock, there is plenty of benefit for producers in the scheme too.
To soften the blow of them getting up on a Saturday morning to do a tasting, Hemming increases the number of lines he takes from the demo-ing producers. If he carries three, for example, he might expand to a full range of six products.
“We’ll place an order in advance. There’s no risk associated to you. No sale or return. The stock’s in and so is our commitment. And to be honest, a lot of them don’t want the bother of actually dealing with cash and payments anyway – but they do want to tell their story.”
There have been a number of success stories with producers boosting and broadening their orders. And it’s got to the point where the markets are actually a key part of Salt’s sourcing process too – whether as a test bed for fledgling producers or a proving ground for those seeking listings.
“I’m being a bit more bullish now and maybe that’s come with a little bit of age and confidence,” says Hemming.
“I am saying to some of the producers now, ‘I’ll list you, but you’ve got to come to a market’.”
The last party to gain from the markets – and Hemming would argue the most important – is his staff, who he actively encourages to go around tasting everything. By allowing them to get acquainted with
products, these events give every member of the team the knowledge to upsell and understand what makes a good product for the shop. It also breeds a feeling of buy-in. Regular readers of this magazine will have seen Hemming’s views on the importance of looking after your employees and their mental health and he believes that the markets feed into that process.
Not content with everyone on-site engaging with food, Hemming’s next mission is Salt Goes Back to School – a program that will see him, a chef and a nutritionist conducting a series of activities and cookery days with three local primaries.
While this is clearly a very worthy initiative (and something he believes in deeply) it is part of Hemming’s ongoing quest to make sure that Salt is engaged with the local community just as much as passing tourists.
Another new idea that might get more punters off the road, is forthcoming plans to build a log cabin on site that will house an established non-food and gift retailer, which will rent the space from Salt – and bring with it an existing customer base without treading on any toes.
With all this going on at this site, dare FFD ask the question of whether Hemming has found a concept he could roll out to other sites?
“Is this scalable? Yes. Am I looking to do it? No. Would I be interested? Perhaps.” saltdeli.co.uk
We’ve gone from doi ng a bacon bap to specia ls like dressed Bri xham Crab.
The Deli Retailing Code of Practice is available in PDF for members to download from MyGuild. The Code is free to Guild of Fine Food members and can be purchased by non-members for £250+VAT by emailing support@gff.co.uk How can I prove that I have not exceeded a given use-by date when the outer packaging has been discarded? Can I cut cheese and meats with the same equipment? Do I have to mature or ripen cheese under refrigerated conditions? Can I display olives at ambient temperature? Can
Developed by the Guild of Fine Food and food experts at Cornwall Council, the Deli Retailing Code of Practice is split into three main sections – Food Safety Essentials, Good Hygiene Practices and Trading Standards – the Code is intended as a one-stop reference guide for deli teams, providing the guidance to ensure that both compliance and best practice standards can be achieved in all areas of retail.
Expert View
AJ SHARP OF SHARP RELATIONS LOOKS THE HEALTH FOOD TRENDS RETAILERS SHOULD BE FOLLOWING IN 2025
For fine food store owners, paying attention to food trends reveals what consumers are actively seeking, it’s an essential mechanism for driving in-store sales.
If you champion the right products and spotlight them in prominent displays, this will then position you as a trusted source for what’s hot.
And this year looks set to be about health.
Like many others, I succumbed to the ZOE app, the (not inexpensive) mechanism for Professor Tim Spector’s national dietary research. You wear a blood sugar monitor, undertake a gut microbiome test and discover with total accuracy exactly which foods work for your particular metabolism, and which are actually harming your body. The effect of this research, along with
It’s not just the meat, fish and cheese counters which will take all the high-protein glory.
MODEL RETAILING
So, what qualities would you bring to the role of deli assistant?
best-selling book Chris van Tulleken’s UltraProcessed People, means that consumer awareness of the dangers of Ultra-Processed Foods (UPF) is growing fast, and it’s changing the way people shop
The anti-UPF movement is driving early adopters towards ‘clean label’ whole foods, which haven’t been tampered with: whole grains, full-fat and fibre-rich. The subsequent rise in scratchcooking will drive an increased desire for nonUPF ingredients, like canned tomatoes, sugar, beans, eggs and flour.
Gut health remains as important as ever, and the desire for fermented foods has not abated, but
there’s a shift towards brain health. Functional foods enhanced with adaptogens are performing very well as consumers seek ways to improve cognitive function. Adaptogens are plants and mushrooms which help your body respond to stress, fatigue and overall wellbeing. Popular examples include Lion’s Mane mushrooms, Ashwagandha and Ginseng roots.
High-protein diets continue to dominate. As a nation we are consuming considerably more protein than we were 5 years ago. For independent retailers, it’s not just the meat, fish and cheese counters which will take all the glory Consider including more ambient protein enriched products and creating a ‘Higher Protein’ display with seeded breads, beans and lentils.
To take advantage of these trends, think carefully about your messaging across your website, social media, and all customer touchpoints in-store. A high-protein display near the door may remind shoppers to visit the meat counter, or clearly signposting relevant trends such as health benefits, key key ingredients, or functional uses (like brain and gut health) may help to drive sales.
sharprelations.com
Displaying olives at ambient temperature
Many varieties of olives are safe to store and display at ambient but always follow the manufacturer’s storage recommendations, especially if the instructions recommend chilled storage once opened.
The quality of olives will be maintained for longer if the olives are thoroughly submerged in the olive liquor to prevent oxidation and discoloration.
Quality will be maintained for longer if the olives are thoroughly submerged
Well, I really love free food. There is free food right?
Of course, this job requires you to work some weekends on a shift pattern.
Fine Food’s Assured Code of Practice for Deli Retailing The guide is available in PDF format (free for Guild Members, £250+VAT for non-members). To request a copy of the Code,
This advice is an excerpt from the Guild of Fine Food’s Assured Code of Practice for Deli Retailing. The guide is available in PDF format (free for Guild Members, £250+VAT for nonmembers). To request a copy of the Code, email support@gff.co.uk
SOLVING EVERYDAY SHOPKEEPING DILEMMAS. IN MINIATURE.
Yeah. Nah, sorry pal. I can only do Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
I’ve only had these two apply. Which one do I pick?
FFD says: The answer to this question is most likely: neither. Finding the right people to work in your business is not easy. So, if you think you see a “red flag”, don’t ignore it. Even if the situation feels desperate, don’t hire for the sake of it. It might be some short term pain but keep looking – otherwise you’ll only be back looking again within weeks.
