SHELF TALK

Zero-waste rapeseed oil supplier branches out into crisps and snacks

By Tom Dale

Just Crisps and Just Oil are now providing a range of snacks and rapeseed oils for zero-waste retailers.

Both the oil and crisps are packaged into reusable buckets and drums which can be returned to the producer a er use.

The oil and potatoes that go into the lines are grown on the brand’s Sta ordshire farm and it says that it is the only British crisp producer that does not use imported oil.

The producer has been awarded the Happerly Transparent Gold Standard, a marque denoting food and drink businesses with sustainable provenance throughout their supply chains.

The brand’s plastic-free journey began a er Tom Pell, owner of zero-waste shop The Clean Kilo in Birmingham, got in touch while looking for an oil supplier. The two companies began working together and, soon a er, the retailer enquired about stocking the crisps. “I was initially hesitant, concerned about product quality, labelling, how they would be sold – ultimately protecting our brand, no one likes a soggy crisp,” said David Wedgwood, commercial director. “However, we launched our 1.5kg bucket of sea salt crisps with Tom as a trial. That was two years ago, we now supply shops up and down the UK and before Christmas launched our Sea Salt & Black Pepper Parsnip crisps which were an overnight hit.” The zero-waste range includes Sea Salt Crisps, Parsnip Crisps, Roasted Wasabi Peas, Roasted Fava Beans, Cold-Pressed Rapeseed Oil, and a variety of infused oils. The sea salt crisps cost £6.91/kg with an RRP of £16.67/kg while the cold-pressed rapeseed oil has a trade price of £3 per litre and RRP of £6 per litre.

justoil.co.uk justcrisps.co.uk

ZERO-WASTE SPECIAL

WHAT’S NEW

Made For Drink – which has recently moved into the potato crisp market (see Category Focus) has this year shifted its range of charcuterie-based snacks and crisps – made to be paired with a pint – into biodegradable, home-compostable packaging. All plastic has been removed and replaced with two innovative layers made from biomass and wood pulp.

madefordrink.com

Dorset Tea has launched new, fully sustainable packaging by removing the gold lettering on the outer packaging so that it is 100% recyclable. As part of the move, the brand has introduced bio-degradable teabags using plant-based, heat-sealable paper that can be industrially composted.

dorsettea.co.uk

Rollagranola offers four lines of its premium granola to retailers in zero-waste formats: Awesome Almond, Cool Raspberry, Organic & Nutty and Nuts for Chocolate which is an exclusive zerowaste line. The range has RRPs from £1.30 - £1.80/100g and wholesale of £0.70 - £1/100g.

rollagranola.com

After a year of being plastic-After a year of being plasticfree, Isle of Wight distillery Mermaid has become a Net has become a Net Zero brand. Certified as Net Zero by sustainability firm Good Business, Mermaid is now offsetting its emissions through its support of two carbonpositive projects. This includes one that actively promotes the concept of ‘blue carbon’ – oceanbased initiatives that preserve carbon-capturing ecosystems. Mermaid gins and Mermaid Salt Vodka are presented in plasticfree bottles which are 100% recyclable – the seal is plant-based and biodegradable, while the stopper is made from sustainably sourced cork and wood, while the brand encourages consumers to return the bottles to its distillery. isleofwightdistillery.com

Frozen food specialist undergoes major rebrand

One of the rst zero-waste brands to be widely adopted in farm shops in the UK has undergone a major rebrand.

Fieldfare’s new look is intended to re ect the brand’s new strategy to challenge the way consumers shop and encourage more sustainable habits.

The family-run frozen food brands managing director, Matt Whelan said: ”Fieldfare’s high-quality, loose frozen food has never been more relevant as consumers are looking for new ways in which to shop more sustainably.

“We believe that this exciting rebrand will drive substantial brand awareness and with a he y investment also being put behind marketing, we aim to encourage consumers to seek out Fieldfare as a destination brand for sustainable, convenient and quality food shopping.”

The new look includes attentiongrabbing freezer livery, in-store signposting and, in some cases when the lines need extra protection, new packaging.

Fieldfare will be replacing the livery of all current stockists at the brand’s cost, and are keen to hear from any retailers who currently don’t have its branding in-store.

In addition to the rebrand, the company will be launching a range of new products in March, including Portuguese tarts, rainbow fries and maple & bacon sausage rolls.

field-fare.com

WHAT’S NEW

Seasoned Pioneers has rebranded and refreshed its range of gourmet cooking sauces. The range – comprising ten sauces inspired by global cuisine – includes three Great Taste 2020 winners: Moroccan Fennel & Apricot Tagine Sauce, Sri Lankan Curry Sauce and Cajun Jambalaya Sauce. Each 400g pack serves four.

seasonedpioneers.co.uk

Renowned olive oil brand Filippo Berio has launched an unfiltered extra virgin olive oil, Il Rustico. The oil undergoes no filtration process and contains tiny particles of fruit which give the oil a green, slightly cloudy, appearance. Each 1litre bottle, with a porcelain fliptop, has an RRP of £8.99. Available in wholesale cases of six units.

filippoberio.co.uk

Firelli has launched its Italian hot sauce from Parma. The medium spicy sauce contains Calabrian chilli peppers, roasted red peppers, porcini mushrooms, balsamic vinegar and Italian sea salt, and is low calorie, gluten-free and vegan with no added sugar. RRP £3.95 for 148ml.

biggarandleith.com

My magic ingredient

Al’Fez Harissa paste

TRACEY TANNENBAUM Cold Bath Deli, Harrogate

It might conjure up exotic visions of Marrakesh but harissa is not Moroccan, it is Tunisian. A 16th-century concoction of chilli peppers, oil and salt pummelled by market traders.

This century’s version is a bit ‘fancified’, and my magic bullet ingredient is the version made by Al’Fez, a Great Taste 3-star winner. There are notes of five-spice and caraway, all combined with a good helping of chilli.

I’m a huge fan of Sriracha, a Thai chilli sauce, but harissa recently has the edge in dishes prepared both at the deli and at home. Mixed with mayo it becomes an exciting sauce for our sweet potato ‘chip butties’. As an unexpected ingredient in our lentil salad, it gets accolades for adding a touch of excitement… and that says a lot when dealing with lentils.

At home, I mix harissa with aubergines and chickpeas before baking in the oven. And if hung-over, I add a spoonful to my plate to devour with scrambled eggs. Tracey buys hers from Suma Wholesale.

It gets accolades for adding a touch of excitement… and that says a lot when dealing with lentils

Flour producer uses ancient grains to launch good-for-you pasta range

By Tom Dale

A South Devon-based our producer has created a range of seven pasta varieties made from einkorn wheat, which comes with a range of widely reported health claims when compared to modern intensively farmed wheats.

Grown on the Fresh Flour Company’s farm near Buckfastleigh, the organic ancient grain is stone-ground, processed and made into pasta all within a radius of just three miles.

A er learning about the grain during an MSc in sustainable agriculture, Andrew Gilhespy, founder, decided to see what could be done with the cereal crop.

“A lot of people thought I was crazy,” said Gilhespy. “Wheat production is supposed to be high yield and non-perishable. We were doing the opposite of that.”

The business was launched when he began growing Einkorn and Emmer wheat on a few acres and milling them by hand.

The popularity of the ours he produced grew organically, and he quickly moved into pasta production a er requests from repeat customers.

The our is milled on site, mixed with Dartmoor water and cut with bronze pasta cutters, before it is air-dried.

The Fresh Flour Company produces seven varieties of pasta – Sedano Rigati, Reginette, Bucatini, Casarecce, Fettuccine, Fusilli and Rigatoni – as well as a range of sourdough crackers.

The pastas retail between £2.50 and £3 for packs between 250g and 500g and the sourdough crackers have an RRP of £2.50 per 100g pack. All the lines come in fully compostable packaging.

freshflour.co.uk Award-winning preserves producer The Cherry Tree has added two new lines to its range, with the launch of a Platter Chutney and Bloody Mary Chutney.

Crafted to pair with any cheese board or cold platter, the Platter Chutney has a dark and rich tomato base with onions and brown sugar, coriander, tamarind, garlic, ginger and more.

The Bloody Mary Chutney – inspired by a cocktail favourite of Chris Braitch, head of commercial at Cherry Tree – fuses vodka with tomatoes, fresh celery, garlic and pepper to recreate the classic cocktail.

Both new lines have an RRP of £4.50. cherrytreepreserves.co.uk

MEET THE PRODUCER

Robin Longden is the founder of ROLLAGRANOLA. From humble beginnings experimenting at home, the brand has grown into a premium granola producer and now offers its range without packaging to zero-waste retailers

WHAT’S NEW

What were you doing before you launched Rollagranola?

I worked for 20 years in the food industry, and then for 15 years in consultancy across many sectors as an independent manager. Over the years, I tended to take roles that others saw as challenging or difficult.

Canadian honey producer, St

Lawrence Gold

has launched the UK’s first blueberry blossom honey. The honey is made by bees pollinating the wild blueberry bushes of Quebec, giving it a hint of tangy blueberry. It has an RRP of £5.99 per 330g jar.

djmfoodsolutions.co.uk

Why did you decide to launch the brand? I came across really good granola in the States and then started to make my own at home. When I researched the ingredients and what they could do for your body I couldn’t understand why breakfast had become so dumbed down. Instead of slow-burn energy we had a breakfast full of sugary carbs. I thought I should see if people would go for something different and pay the premium for better ingredients. So, I decided to test this idea out. us. They educate you and you end up realising your product is part of a value statement. Once you realise your ideas are shared by other, equally committed people it doesn’t seem so daunting. Why is it important for you to offer a zero-waste option to retailers? If our customers Founded during lockdown last year, The Oil Guys creates infused rapeseed oils using locally sourced produce (where possible) from its base in the South Downs. All of these small-batch oils – Fiery Sussex, Lemon Coast, Garlic Downs, and Ginger Duke – are available in 250ml bottles theoilguys.square.site What is the biggest lesson have similar Those guys are committed to making a difference; they Tracklements is set you have learned since starting the business? values to us, are more than shopkeepers. Initially, it was hard to think to launch its take on a South Asian pickle, Keep your ambition huge and be prepared to go step then we have through how to serve the sector, but it feels like a natural Feisty Pineapple Achar. This special by step. a common extension of our business to edition savoury What makes your granola purpose deal with people who fully display our product for all to preserve is said to be a good match stand out? see and to allow people to buy for grilled meats or Short answer: It’s great food the amount they want. Initially, fish. The new line is – quality ingredients, made we thought, ‘why not try it?’ available in 6x220g into fantastic tasting granolas. Long answer: As it grew, we realised we needed to figure out jars with an RRP of We want to provide something that people how to serve the sector well, or we would have £3.35. enjoy eating. to stop. trade.tracklements.co.uk Even though we make all our products in Operationally and commercially, it presents our factory, we still want to keep a homemade element. So, despite scaling up to make tonnes of product, the basic principles and approach are the same now as when I made it in my kitchen. You can taste and see the ingredients, you will know what you are eating, and it will sustain you through the morning – unfortunately for consumers, challenges but the idea of supporting people with the same values who were bringing life back to the high street meant we decided we needed to make it work, rather than find reasons to not. They serve people who want better, who will walk to the shops, who care about the environment and who value good food. Attempting to shake up the spirits market with its premium botanic vodka is Gattertop Drinks. Joining its Great Taste 2-star winning damson liqueur is Botanic Nº7, a 100% Britishnot many products are made in this way What is next for Rollagranola? made grain spirit with anymore. Despite the pandemic, we remain ambitious. botanicals foraged from We are expanding our offering into snacks and the producer’s ancient What made you want to make the fabric porridge, developing new concepts and we like orchards fields and of your brand eco-conscious? woodlands: damson the idea of more organic products.Freshly Ground Sponsor advert 2016 print ready.pdf 1 16/08/2016 10:37 It’s about values, for us and our customers. blossom, apple We want to make and sell good, honest C blossom, elderflower, food – the honesty ends up going beyond M basil, lemon, rosemary food. As a small brand if we can help make Y and nettle. Botanic a difference, why not? And if our customers CM Nº7 is available in have similar values to us, then we have MY 70cl bottles and 5cl a common purpose. I started selling on CY miniatures. RRP, £40, markets, direct to the public – this grounded CMY trade ££26 incl. VAT (70cl). K

gattertopdrinks.com