FFD May 2017

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COURT FARM SHOP 6 ‘We hit our annual turnover target in the first six months of trading’

May 2017 · Vol 18 Issue 4

PRIVATE AND CONFIDENTIAL? 13 Why more stores are being upfront about who’s behind their own-label lines

IN GOUDA WE TRUST 19 Ceredigion’s John SavageOnstwedder on life in the raw

INCLUDING: • CWM FARM CHARCUTERIE

CRISP OR CRUMBLY? Take your pick as we bring you the best in biscuits and crackers

• TEIFI CHEESE • GINHAUS DELI • PRODUCER ROUND-UP

QUESO OAXACA OILS & VINEGARS SAVOURY SNACKS SHELF TALK

Register for free entry to visit Monday 26 June 10am-4pm Tuesday 27 June 10am-4pm Hall 2, Yorkshire Event Centre HG2 8QZ

www.gff.co.uk/harrogate • Maximise profits and pick • A showcase of the finest up key industry trends food & drink producers • Sample and compare a gathered in the North range of award-winning •D iscover the story behind craft spirits their products • Taste and try before you buy • Book into the Cracking • Learn how to create in-store Christmas retail seminar theatre for your customers email jilly.sitch@gff.co.uk

•T aste the best British and Continental charcuterie •T ake part in the FineFoodLive! seminars and tastings •D eliciouslyorkshire Pavilion revealing Yorkshire’s best food & drink

TRADE ONLY: Easy access and free parking. Under-18s will not be admitted. Students by prior arrangement only

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@guildoffinefood #harrogateffs #ISpyGreatTaste

contents news private label cheesewire news profile: Teifi Cheese

p4 p13 p17 p19

opinion I’M WARY OF DISHING OUT ADVICE to new retailers, given that I haven’t worn a shop coat in anger for 30 years. But there’s one bit of advice I always feel safe dispensing, which is: “Make friends with your EHO.” I can’t really go wrong with that, given that “make an enemy of your EHO” would be a bad idea on every count.

But it does rather assume your friendly local environmental health office doesn’t work out of Dumfries & Galloway.

As we report on p15, D&G’S environmental health department has issued a blanket recommendation that raw milk cheeses should be kept away from pasteurised varieties on deli counters – even though this directly contradicts advice from the Food Standards Agency.

It’s not as if this is a new question. Here at the Guild of Fine Food we’re working on a new code of practice for deli retailers which will cover the two troublesome areas of cheese and charcuterie, and that issue – “should we keep raw and pasteurised milk cheeses apart?” – has been on our hit-list of most-asked questions from day one.

Last month, I sat down with cheesemaking consultant Paul Thomas to look at the latest draft of the deli code. Paul is a biochemist who worked as an affineur at IJ Mellis in Edinburgh and then spent six years as head cheesemaker at Lyburn Farm, where he made one of my favourite cheeses: Old Winchester.

He’s now a consultant – and, among other things, trains enforcement officers on food safety in cheesemaking. So he can be quite intimidating company for a non-scientist. But when I mentioned that the code should really include specific advice on that raw milk display question, I already knew the answer: of course it’s safe to display the two side by side, because if the raw milk cheese wasn’t safe it shouldn’t be on display in the first place.

Giving guidance (as D&G has apparently done) that staff should wash hands after handling raw milk cheese, keep it apart with glass panels and use separate implements to handle it is therefore a nonsense.

In effect, this Scottish council seems to have got a wee bit muddled between raw food and a cheese made with raw milk – as though specialist cheese shops were advocating hanging a hunk of raw rib-eye above a block of cheddar.

Can it be that, say, a piece of Stichelton can be perfectly safe to sell to your shoppers, but somehow becomes a threat when placed alongside a piece of Stilton?

Of course it can’t. The only reason to separate them, as far as I can see, is that one shopper in 50 might themselves be twitchy – just as my vegetarian best mate considers a chip “contaminated” if it has been on the same plate as a slice of ham and a fried egg.

But the cheese on any deli counter in the land should be ready-to-eat and therefore safe. If an EHO tells you otherwise, you may have to ignore my usual advice and reconsider your friendship.

This Scottish council seems to have got a wee bit muddled between raw food and a cheese made with raw milk

cut & dried: Cwm Farm welsh products sweet & savoury biscuits savoury snacks speciality oils & vinegars shelf talk

p21 p23 p31 p37 p41 p47

deli of the month: Ginhaus Deli p52

MICK WHITWORTH, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR

editors’ choice MICHAEL LANE, DEPUTY EDITOR

Brindisa nuts & snacks range www.brindisa.com

p38

Sometimes products are chosen for this spot in the magazine because they are unusual. Perhaps they made the grade because they are beautifully packaged. Or, occasionally, it just boils down to a great commercial prospect for retailers.

I can’t say that Brindisa’s range of nuts and other dried snacks really nails any of these criteria but they are here for the most vital reason of all – they taste brilliant.

Take the salted Marcona almonds from Catalonia. Just the right level of salt so you can still taste the sweetness in the nuts. Not too greasy. Not too dry.

All of the nuts in this line-up, sourced from artisan producer Termens, follow suit with great texture and balanced seasoning. And if you don’t like nuts, the broad beans pack a spicy punch and the maize kernels (my favourite) will make you wonder why people bother popping corn at all.

For retailers that already buy from Brindisa, hearing they’ve nailed it again won’t be much of a surprise. But these really are top drawer.

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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finefoodnews Food industry lobbies as May triggers Brexit EDITORIAL editorial@gff.co.uk

Editor & editorial director: Mick Whitworth Deputy editor: Michael Lane Assistant editor: Lauren Phillips Reporter: Andrew Don Art director: Mark Windsor Editorial production: Richard Charnley Contributors: Nick Baines, Bridget Cowan, Clare Hargreaves, Patrick McGuigan, Lynda Searby ADVERTISING advertise@gff.co.uk Sales director: Sally Coley Sales manager: Ruth Debnam Sales executives: Becky Stacey, Maria Burnett Published by the Guild of Fine Food Ltd Printed by: Blackmore, Dorset Fine Food Digest is published 11 times a year and is available on subscription for £45pa inclusive of post and packing.

© The Guild of Fine Food Ltd 2017. Reproduction of whole or part of this magazine without the publisher’s prior permission is prohibited. The opinions expressed in articles and advertisements are not necessarily those of the editor or publisher.

GENERAL ENQUIRIES Tel: 01747 825200 Fax: 01747 824065 info@gff.co.uk www.gff.co.uk

BY ANDREW DON

Top speciality food importers and distributors have spelled out their requirements for trade negotiations following prime minister Theresa May’s triggering of Article 50 and the Brexit process.

Their priorities will come into sharper focus in the run-up to next month’s snap General Election as May seeks to return a strong Conservative majority to strengthen her hand in Brexit negotiations.

Duncan Hider, managing director of Hider Foods, told FFD getting trade deals should not be all about merely getting the best deal for the UK. “We need to ensure other countries know we are open for business, keen to buy new and interesting commodities and foods, and pay a fair price for these, too.”

He added: “Whether we voted for it or not, it [Brexit] is happening. The clearest picture and shortest timescale will provide the smoothest route. A clear vision, clearly communicated

Prime Minister Theresa May triggered Article 50 and the official process of Brexit last month

and moved forwards by the government is key.”

Hider Foods has already reassured its foreign customers of the value the business placed on their relationships, he added.

Some felt snubbed by the UK, but it was Hider’s role within the sector to promote

Bird flu ban leads to farm shop egg giveaway

Guild of Fine Food, Guild House, 23b Kingsmead Business Park, Shaftesbury Road, Gillingham, Dorset SP8 5FB United Kingdom

Managing director: John Farrand Marketing director: Tortie Farrand Commercial director: Christabel Cairns Operations manager: Karen Price Operations assistant: Claire Powell Training co-ordinator: Jilly Sitch Circulation manager: Nick Crosley Financial controller: Stephen Guppy Accounts manager: Denise Ballance Accounts assistant: Julie Coates Chairman: Bob Farrand Director: Linda Farrand

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

the economic and quality opportunities within our food sector.

Jason Fisher, managing director of Anthony Rowcliffe & Son, said the general consensus was that food prices were going to rise which meant “we need to be on our game”.

Fisher said he would like to see government negotiators prioritise the food industry to achieve minimal disruption on the movement of goods.

“We are seeing producers in this country and in Europe really pushing the boundaries, including innovation.

“We work with them and provide the insight and intelligence from being there in the market and would hate to see them repressed and stop any product innovation.”

The comments came as major trade bodies urged the government to facilitate “a smooth and orderly Brexit” that ensures “frictionless” trade between the UK and the European Union.

A joint statement from the Food and Drink Federation, the National Farmers Union of England and Wales and the British Retail Consortium, addressed what the sector organisations said was the food supply chain’s strategic importance for the UK.

The Countryside Alliance Awards, also known as the “Rural Oscars”, were handed out at a ceremony at the Houses of Parliament at the end of March. Among the winners was South Yorkshire’s Lawns Farm Shop (pictured above with Defra Secretary Of State Andrea Leadsom MP), which won the hotly contested Local Food & Drink Champion title.

The field of regional finalists also included Darts Farm and Ludlow Food Centre. www.countrysideallianceawards.org.uk

One farm shop owner is cock-a-hoop after Defra lifted restrictions last month on keeping poultry enclosed in high risk bird flu areas.

Matthew Carter of Greendale Farm Shop, near Exeter, had given away 24,000 surplus eggs to customers for free during the restrictions because he could not sell them as ‘free range’.

Under the government measures, poultry in higher risk areas of England had to be housed or completely enclosed in netting because of the risk of catching avian flu from wild birds.

Carter told FFD he gave the eggs to his customers rather than sell them below

cost to supermarkets and discounters. The giveaway did see customers continue to buy eggs from the shop so lost revenue was limited to £4,000.

DEFRA said the risk of avian flu had not gone away and keepers must still take steps to prevent disease spreading.

Currency shift a boon for British charcuterie

BY ANDREW DON

Stocking British charcuterie should be a more viable prospect for fine food retailers as the price differential with comparable Continental products has narrowed significantly.

The currency impact of last June’s Brexit vote has reduced what was about a 50% premium for British charcuterie to an estimated 10-15%.

Capreolus Fine Foods owner David Richards said this, coupled with the growing consumer appetite for provenance, made British charcuterie a much easier sell and artisan producers were “keen on using British meat of very high standards of husbandry and quality”.

He told FFD: “We’ve always accepted the fact we have a higher cost base than those that use industrial techniques, both mechanical and chemical, to increase levels and speed of production.”

Richards said that consumers were not just purchasing on price and were also beginning to

Thanks to Brexit’s effect on currency, British charcuterie is now only 10-15% dearer than Continental products

accept spending more for better quality.

He added that the circumstances also provided a platform for British producers to develop more products.

Distributor Harvey & Brockless said its British charcuterie had been growing at 75% yearon-year, outstripping Continental by three to one.

Graham Stoodley, category manager, said the growth of British did not necessarily mean it was at Continental’s expense.

“It’s an expanding market.

The demand for grazing

Scottish food gets £10m boost Scotland first minister Nicola Sturgeon has announced £10m backing to support the food industry north of the border and double its value to £30bn by 2030.

The £10m, provided by the Scottish government, the enterprise agencies, and the industry, will fund Ambition 2030 over the

next three years – a new strategy delivered by the Scotland Food & Drink Partnership to target key markets, boost innovation, focus on skills and support local producers.

Scottish food and drink exports grew by £421m last year to a record £5.5bn – up 8% year on year.

and sharing is growing and growing.”

British charcuterie specialist Cannon & Cannon, which opened Nape, a charcuterie bar and deli in Camberwell in February, has also seen increasing demand.

“Our charcuterie sales were up more than 50% in sales value in March, year on year. We see that continuing,” said director Jamie Wallace, adding that British producers’ willingness to experiment meant they were more innovative than Continental companies.

Peter Themans, owner of Wenlock Edge Farm which has two farm shops, in East Wall, and Shrewsbury, Shropshire, said Brexit was a big opportunity to sell more British charcuterie, which was competing with cheap product from Holland and Germany – “pink stuff you perhaps find in a cheap Continental breakfast in a hotel”.

Themans said those who sold British salami for “three times our price” were doing the industry a disservice.

“There’s no need for a piece of salami to be sold for £60 a kilo. It’s a ridiculous price.

We still make a margin.”

Having abandoned plans to expand his British range beyond Cornish Charcuterie, Edward Pearce of Pearce’s Farmshop & Café said the narrowing price gap might convince him to revisit his offer.

“There are less people doing it than those abroad but the ones that are are turning out first class product,” he said. “I think Brexit will helps us sell more British gear.”

M&S shedding clothes to open 34 food stores

BY LAUREN PHILLIPS

Marks & Spencer has announced plans to open 36 new stores, 34 of which are food halls, over the next six months to meet the changing habits of shoppers.

The retailer plans to open food stores in more convenient locations in a bid to remain relevant and cater to shoppers who no longer do one weekly shop or browse the store as they used to.

“Our customers’ shopping habits are changing,” said M&S chief executive, Steve Rowe.

“Picking up food for now or tonight rather than doing one big shop or browsing and shopping online and collecting in store are great examples of this.”

The new move by the retail giant is a part of its five-year plan, announced in November 2016, to open 200 new food-only stores and reduce its clothing and home operations by 60 stores.

Mr Rowe added, “We will open new stores, some will reduce in size, some will move, some will close and others will convert to food-only.”

In brief Food firms across the British countryside are being invited to enter the 2017 Rural Business Awards. The only UKwide business awards for rural enterprises are made up of 13 categories including Best Food & Drink Business, won by Yorkshire-based Keelham Farm Shop last year.

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www.ruralbusinessawards. co.uk

Noble Foods says its new Heritage Breeds premium range of hen, duck and quail eggs will be sold at Tesco and Ocado as well as at speciality shops to show the value of higher quality eggs to a wider market.

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Cottage Delight adds gin twist Cottage Delight has launched two new preserves made with gin to tap into the growing popularity of the spirit and appeal to younger consumers. Orange marmalade with gin (RRP £2.95) can be used as an alternative filler for sponge cakes, while lemon curd with gin (RRP £3.75) is designed to emulate the flavours of the classic gin and tonic. www.cottagedelight.co.uk Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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finefoodnews

Report prompts indie hygiene fear

BY ANDREW DON

The results of a UK-wide investigation into food businesses’ compliance with hygiene regulations has prompted debate about how well the independent retail sector follows best practice.

Consumer watchdog Which? found one in five high- or medium-risk food establishments – including restaurants, takeaways and retail outlets – were failing to meet requirements across the country Food hygiene expert Sarah Daniels, of The RedCat Partnership, told FFD that independent retailers tended to be “more high risk” because they pushed boundaries, such as selling unpasteurised cheese or milk, and they could score the same as the worst takeaways if not well managed.

She added that some people that ran “lifestyle” businesses did not have the hygiene knowledge. “It’s the people running businesses that are hazardous, not the businesses,” she said.

Georgie Mason, director of Gonalston Farm Shop in

In brief The Welsh government has invited companies and research organisation to apply for a share of up to £1m funding to develop innovative solutions to make the food and drink available to children healthier, while reducing the cost. The Welsh government says more than 40% of Welsh children are either obese or overweight by 11.

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Reading-based Greys Cheese Direct has ceased trading after more than 10 years. Owner Lizzy Grey, blamed “the increasing activity of major retailers in the online cheese sector”.

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

Indie shops may be higher risk because they push boundaries more

Lowdham, Nottinghamshire, agreed the artisan sector was “potentially high risk”.

“A lot of these businesses open and they take off and the ideas go wild and all of us think we can produce this, that and the other.”

Operators could be farmers one day and shopkeepers the next, she added.

Sarah Fraser-Steele, proprietor of The Deli Downstairs in east London, said all the businesses she knew that were similar to her own were “pretty good” but she acknowledged

there could be a hygiene knowledge vacuum where, for example, someone went from trading in a market to opening a shop.

Fraser-Steele said when food safety enforcement became extreme it could become difficult such as when environmental health officers initially wanted her eggs stored in a fridge which she said was unnecessary.

Paul Castle, consultant at Farrington’s Farm Shop in Farrington Gurney, Bristol, said: “There is very varied compliance in our sector.

The best businesses are the ones that don’t see it [compliance] as a burden.”

The Food Standards Agency categorises risk from A – the highest – to E – the lowest – determined by the type of establishment, the types of, and number of, people it serves and management competence.

The Which? hygiene report found that two in every three food businesses were failing to comply with legal requirements in the worst area – Hyndburn Borough Council, Lancashire.

Real Bread Campaign fails to derail misleading Tesco ad Tesco has come under fire from the Real Bread Campaign (RBC) for allegedly misleading customers and luring them from independents.

The RBC claimed a recent Tesco bread advertisement implied the supermarket made bread in accordance with traditional craft methods.

It complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) that Tesco’s clear intention was to lead the viewer into thinking Tesco loaves were made in small batches, mainly by hand and using only three natural ingredients.

The ASA rejected the complaint on the grounds a conveyor belt could be

glimpsed and, given Tesco was a well-known large-scale retailer, viewers were unlikely to be duped into thinking its bread was handmade.

It also threw out a follow-up complaint in which the RBC asked how the ASA could believe that the advertisement was not likely to mislead when it presented “a mythical image” of the advertiser’s loaves.

“If I’d known then what I know now” LISA GRAYSON, CO-OWNER, COURT FARM SHOP, STOKE ORCHARD MY FIANCÉ SIMON, his dad Ray and his great uncle John manage thousands of animals here on the farm.

For many years, we were selling beef, lamb, pork and eggs via the farmgate. This grew in popularity, until, in September 2015, we demolished an old barn and built a farm shop with butchery in its place.

Our aim was to provide an outlet for our own produce and a platform for local producers – 70% of our products are sourced from within a 50 mile radius. The first week saw over 1,000 customers come through the doors. We expected numbers to fall after that but they never did. We blew our initial expectations out of the water and hit our annual turnover target within the first six months of trading. We’re now 18 months in and have already seen a 24% increase in sales versus last year.

Prior to running our farm shop I worked as an operations manager at a publishing company. I have applied the same logistics, customer service and business knowledge to the shop. Before we opened I asked our existing customers to complete a questionnaire on what they wanted the shop to offer. I visited food festivals, delis and farm shops and I gauged supermarket pricing. That research has paid off as the majority of ranges we have stocked have worked. We quickly learned to listen to customer recommendations. For example, we started stocking two products from The Garlic Farm on customer request.

Now we stock a large selection of their range and it sells really well.

I knew the importance of data from day one so we invested in an EPOS system. It quickly tells me what turnover is, how many customers we have had in that day, what our top and worst sellers are, and more. Butchery products and eggs dominate our top 30 sellers; butchery accounts for 50% of our turnover and eggs 9%. Taking them out of the equation, our best selling items are pies from Jumbo’s Cuts, bread from La Parisienne in Tewkesbury and locally produced honey.

We learned early on that word of mouth and social media are more effective than advertising in local magazines. We use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram, but it does require someone to keep on top of it daily.

Generally that someone is me, although I am in the process of handing it over.

Events are great marketing tools. We do Lambing Live and Open Farm Sunday, which we did last year for the first time and it attracted more than 2,000 people.

Delegating and letting go has been my main challenge; it was fine to have full control over the shop for the first few months, but I couldn’t continue like that. I’ve learned that I need to trust people and give them responsibility, for example, getting them to take on the ordering of stock, researching of new products and merchandising of the shop floor. It not only frees up my time but empowers and motivates them.

In the next two to five years, we’d like to put in a kitchen, a deli counter and a café, so we can produce our own sliced cooked ham and ready-meals, and further reduce wastage by using food from the shop.

Before we opened I asked our existing customers to complete a questionnaire on what they wanted the shop to offer

INTERVIEW BY LYNDA SEARBY

CHEESE WHICH SELLS ITSELF We’re making it even easier to introduce your customers to the fabulous Le Gruyère AOP Cheese from Switzerland.

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New Year, New Roastery, Cafe and Production for Ponaire Coffee After 10 years in business, Ponaire has built a new Roastery, Cafe, and Production Facility. They now serve their own coffees in a cafe that overlooks the roasting.

Most of their business still comes from wholesale to food service, however, web sales are growing exponentially and with the launch of a new website this month, the e-commerce experience is even easier. Ponaire is not shy of challenges – while roasting 6 Great Taste Award winning coffees in 2016, they built and moved into their new roastery, and to complete the enhancement, Ponaire has launched their new branding. The new Ponaire look reflects, their 10 years of developing expertise as a Speciality Coffee Roaster. With over 10 Speciality Coffees on offer at any given time, Ponaire provides consistency, quality, variety and full traceabiity of all their coffees.

Now also open on Fleet Street, Temple Bar, Dublin

www.ponaire.ie

info@ponaire.ie +353 (0)61 373 713 8

May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

finefoodnews

Taste Wales gives small producers global stage

Register now for Harrogate FFS

BY MICK WHITWORTH

Retail buyers and import agents from as far afield as Hong Kong and Canada held face-to-face talks with the cream of speciality producers from Wales in late March, at a Welsh Government event designed to raise the food and drink sector’s profile on the global stage.

Some 50 overseas buyers were invited to the two-day Taste Wales event, together with 100 of their UK counterparts.

Taste Wales, held at the Celtic Manor resort near Newport, showcased scores of Welsh producers, ranging from larger retail and foodservice suppliers such as The Village Bakery to artisan producers Sarah Bunton Chocolates and Cwm Farm Charcuterie (featured on p21).

It featured two days of one-to-one meet-the-buyer sessions, where producers held pre-booked meetings with retailers including Selfridges and Dean &

The event brought together Welsh speciality producers and buyers from as far afield as Hong Kong and Canada

Deluca – the US gourmet store operator that opens its first UK shop in London next month.

Among the other producers taking part were Trealy Farm Charcuterie, the Pembrokeshire Beach Food Co, Patchwork Paté and Halen Môn, the Anglesey Sea Salt Co. Halen Môn is an established exporter, whose North American clients include Dean & Deluca.

“We’re already stocked by them in the US,” Halen Môn

MidCounties Co-op gets Happerley

BY ANDREW DON

Happerley, the food provenance “passport” scheme Gloucestershire farmer Matthew Rymer launched last year, has signed up MidCounties Co-operative Food, which has more than 500 outlets.

MidCounties has become the world’s first retailer to pilot the system, which will track the provenance of its Best of our Counties range.

The society invited 200 local producers to adopt the system at its annual supplier conference in March.

Participation will see the products granted Happerley certification and a handful of the suppliers to the Best of Our Counties range were also invited to participate in trials of the Happerley Passporting

technology which provides details of farm to fork.

Rymer said: “I see a real opportunity for the UK farming industry and its supply chain to flourish post Brexit, despite less subsidy and cheap imports.

“However, farmers must lock in their provenance differentials – across food miles, welfare, sustainability, environment and creed and for these values to be validated through to the consumer for the benefit of all, for this to happen.”

brand manager Jess LeaWilson told FFD, “so it was wonderful to meet them and discuss the UK stores.”

Cwm Farm co-owner Ruth Davies met with a buyer from Canadian fine food distributor Finica, who was interested in trialling the Welsh firm’s laverbread salami in 25 Toronto stores.

Cwm Farm had already begun the export approval process as FFD went to press.

Food and drink is worth around £17bn to the Welsh economy and employs over

In brief Nearly half of UK wholesale and retail SME decision makers have been put off applying for finance because of complicated terminology, according to a survey by finance company LDF. The report found that 39% of SMEs did not understand the term CAPEX and that half of wholesalers and retailers see business finance as a last resort for solving cashflow issues.

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Small retailers are being asked to sign-up to a specially designed gluten-free guarantee basket by Coeliac UK. The basket is made up of four gluten-free items: bread, breakfast cereal, pasta and sandwiches, wraps or ready-to-eat meals on the move.

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220,000 people. The Welsh Government is embarked on a five year programme to grow the sector by 30% by 2020.

It used the Celtic Manor event to announce a £21m programme, Project HELIX, to fund research into global food production, innovation and waste reduction.

It will be delivered by Food Innovation Wales, a partnership of three food centres across Wales that give technical support to Welsh producers.

Registration is now open for deli, farm shop, café and garden centre owners looking to visit the Guild of Fine Food’s Harrogate Fine Food Show, which returns to the Yorkshire Event Centre on Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 June.

As well as retail buyers, the show will also welcome chefs, publicans, hoteliers, bars and restaurateurs, when it opens the doors on a hall packed with artisan producers and specialist suppliers.

Visitors will have the chance to join a number of workshops, discussions and demos in the FineFoodLive! theatre, such as a session on turning counter leftovers into money-making nibbles with consultant and TV chef, Stephanie Moon, and a cocktail showcase with pioneering mixologists.

Trade visitors can register now for their free Harrogate Fine Food Show tickets at www.gff.co.uk/ shows/harrogate.

Research shows healthy snack growth A consumer backlash against sugar, salt and artificial ingredients along with changing lifestyles and a focus on personal wellbeing continues to boost the healthy snacking market, according to new research.

The research from Euromonitor, Chocolate Strategy – Repositioning Indulgence To Remain Relevant in the Healthy Snacking Era, shows that sales of healthy snacks by retail value will climb 3% (CAGR) globally over 2016-21 compared with conventional snacks, up 2%.

Lianne van den Bos, global lead analyst at Euromonitor, said mature markets such as Western Europe and North America were driving the growth of

healthy snacks, a trend that was expected to intensify.

“We are now seeing a movement towards healthier snacks such as yoghurt, milk drinks, energy bars and nuts, as a growing segment of the non-snack food market is rebranding itself as snack replacements”, she said.

While chocolate volumes were declining, value still offered a huge opportunity and dark chocolate was enjoying success based on its positioning as a healthier alternative to other types of chocolate.

When selling premium chocolate, consumers needed to be educated on premium ingredients, cocoa content and origin, Van den Bos added.

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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finefoodnews

Webbs goes all out on food hall

BY ANDREW DON

Webbs Garden Centre in Wychbold, Droitwich, has hired a top design agency in a £1.7m redevelopment of its food hall and restaurant.

It briefed Cada Design, whose prestigious client list includes Harrods, Fenwick and Fortnum & Mason, to transform the Worcestershire food hall into “a food destination”.

The work has been phased and Dudley Clifford, head of food at Webbs, told FFD the butchery counter, and a Himalayan salt-aged beef room, would not open until July.

The redevelopment also includes its own bakeoff operation and a deli counter, which features a range of French cheeses but is also “very strong” on British cheeses like Fowlers cheddar, Croome Cuisine’s honey & fig cheese made from Webbs’ own honey, Brie de Meaux, Cornish Brie and Barkham Blue.

The counter also offers locally crafted pies, hand-made scotch eggs, charcuterie, pesto and fresh pasta.

Webbs revamp of its Wychbold outlet has been designed by Cada, which has also worked for Fenwick and Fortnums

The new format boasts an in-store gelateria selling 12 homemade ice creams, which currently includes Worcestershire rhubarb & custard crumble, using local rhubarb.

The new wine, beer and spirits department has “a wall of wine” with an enomatic machine for sampling wine at the correct temperature.

The redesign also includes a new grab-andgo coffee and food offer

for those in a hurry, a “chocolate library” and a hot chocolate fountain.

The new open-plan development sees the refurbished food hall flow through to the re-imagined restaurant – 18,000 sq ft in total – that now uses ingredients sold in the food hall.

Cada used metro shelving, timber and a colour palette of black and white to “let the food do

Holwood Farm shop adds dining mezzanine in £250k upgrade

BY ANDREW DON

Holwood Farm Shop in Keston, Kent, is in the throes of a £250,000 capital expenditure project to expand the business.

A new mezzanine floor featuring the enlarged coffee shop has opened, doubling the number of covers to 30, and installation of a kitchen has enabled it to upgrade from merely sandwiches, paninis and soups to hot food.

The mezzanine overlooks the farm shop, which is also getting a new 230 sq ft butchery that owners Gary Mercer and Sarah Clout hope will be open by September.

A preparation room will be added at the end of the barn in which the shop is sited.

Mercer said the shop would also expand its greengrocery and install more fridges to support that – moving from the covered porch area outside the main shop.

“We’re not looking to pay back all of that capital expenditure through the shop,” said Mercer, adding that it would be recouped through the increase in the asset value.

Mercer said the motivation behind the expansion of the farm shop, which is now in its fifth trading year, was to accelerate the growth of the business.

“When you look at the really successful farm shops they have a balance of a good deli counter and a luxury restaurant,” he said.

“That’s the way to increase basket spend.” www.holwoodfarm.co.uk

the talking”. It removed the ceiling above the food hall to create a sense of scale and developed a standalone identity based on the Food at Webbs brand.

Clifford said the rationale behind the expenditure was creating a “destination”.

“Retailing is all about customer experience now,” he said. “It’s like being in the leisure business. We are an attraction in our own right. People come for a day

out with us and we are best in class now.”

The food hall and restaurant is just one tranche of a two-branch business that sells everything from snakes [not to eat] to mini greenhouses.

Webbs other store in West Hagley, Sourbridge has a 100-cover restaurant and 269 sq ft of food retail.

Elements of Food at Webbs will be implemented into the outlet, Clifford said. www.webbsdirect.co.uk

The Co-op to bolster food provenance The Co-op Group is increasingly following where specialist food retailers lead with its retrenchment on provenance issues, as disclosed in its full-year results last month.

The society, which sold £7.1bn of food last year, up 1% on the previous year, said food provenance really mattered to its customers.

It was committed to selling only British meat by May 2017. It said this would make it the only major food retailer to stock 100% ownbrand fresh British beef, chicken, pork, lamb, bacon and turkey.

It has also committed to using 100% British meat

in its chilled ready meals, pies and sandwiches, except those featuring a continental meat such as chorizo.

Its food business was using digital technology to improve efficiency in a variety of ways and it was looking into the provenance of goods in its supply chains, seeing if tracking this digitally could give it a competitive edge.

Pre-tax profit fell from £23m to a £74m loss which reflected a £74m increase in finance changes and a writedown that related to its 30% stake in The Co-op Bank. Group revenues rose 3% to £9.5bn.

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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private label

focus on

Your name here?

“What they're saying..”

We do raspberry & rose, orange & geranium and bergamot, lime & lavender chocolate, which is made for us. The recipes are unique to us. We have our own hives and do our own honey. Customers are looking for things that are interesting and have relevance. You have to treat customers as well informed nowadays.

Dudley Clifford, head of food, Webbs Garden Centres, in West Hagley, Stourbridge, and Wychbold, Droitwich

Own-label is becoming more sophisticated and fine food retailers are seizing the opportunity to accentuate their point of difference, build their brands and improve their margins. ANDREW DON reports.

H

istorically, it has (quite literally) been the preserve of shops looking to cash in on coach parties and day-trippers. But it seems today’s independent retailers are wary of slapping their logo on any old jar supplied through own-label services.

Given the ever more discerning nature of consumers, many farm shops and delis are approaching these types of products with a good deal more thought.

Millets Farm Centre in Frilford, Oxfordshire, sells a wide range of products made in its bakery, butchery and delicatessen that it produces on the farm, including 12 types of apple juice.

Lucinda Lavelle, manager, says: “We feel strongly we don’t want to be confusing customers by putting

our brand on a preserve or chutney bought from a wholesaler that offers an own-label service.”

The business uses a separate Millets logo on anything it produces in-house, featuring a stamp in the corner that says ‘hand-made at Millets Farm’.

Lavelle suggests it was fashionable to make use of wholesaler own-label services 15-20 years ago, but she says people do not want something that has been produced for the store hundreds of miles away – at least not duplicitously.

Millets, however, recognises it has a demand for a category of customer that wants mementos of their visit so it also offers “Millets Selected” products.

“We are not telling people

it’s something we’ve produced ourselves,” says Lavelle, adding that Millets is completely clear about what the Selected range represents. “We are telling them it’s a good product and we are happy to endorse it.”

Hunters of Helmsley, in North Yorkshire, which is six months into an own-label overhaul, as first reported in FFD last November, is using United

by Design to give a new, consistent look to an assortment that has grown up haphazardly over the years.

Co-owner Christine Garnett admits its own label previously looked “amateurish”.

The business began the makeover with new biscuits, hand-made locally for the label. “They are flying out,” Garnett says. “I’m so pleased. We

We’ve done it with our own chocolates. They are made for us by James’s Chocolate and packaged with our branding.

The product itself is available to other people but that doesn’t seem to be an issue.

We package our coffee beans from a local producer with our own label and grind them if customers want – and it’s the most popular coffee we sell. One of our best-selling Christmas items is the oils and vinegars we get from Anthony Rowcliffe. We are honest when people ask us where they come from. We don’t boil them up in our back kitchen.

David Greenman, Arch House Deli, Clifton, Bristol Own label is more profitable for us because people are willing to spend.

Consumers can’t compare prices in other stores. That’s the key.

Kieran Sloan, owner, Sawers, Belfast We very much favour partnership approach with a producer. We are not keen on taking over a producer’s brand and making it our own product. We are champions of the producer and think it is always important that the producer who is putting in all the hard work should get the recognition for that product.

James Dart, co-owner, Darts Farm, Exeter Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

13

private label

focus on Sawers, Arch House Deli and Webbs Garden Centres each take an intelligent approach to ownlabel, reflecting a more savvy consumer.

“What they're saying..”

I get asked all the time for our own label, even for hampers.

They want our name on things because they’ve enjoyed their experience in the shop, have taken something for lunch and come back and wanted to buy something to take home as gifts for people. People are demanding it and that’s why we are increasing it and re-looking at it.

Christine Garnett, co-owner, Hunters of Helmsley

are in a tourist area so people want to take home something that tastes good and is genuinely made in the area.”

Hunters is gradually going through all its ranges and will introduce new own-label lines.

Garnett says that every product must taste good but also meet certain standards for ingredients and provenance.

“For our particular shop, as long as what you’re selling under your own label you can sell with integrity, it works for us,” she adds.

“I can look my customers in the eye and say this is a genuinely good product and we’ve worked with suppliers and we are proud to put our own label on it.”

All own-label uses local ingredients wherever possible. The business argument speaks for itself. Hunters’ own-label jams and chutneys sell at least three times more than any other brand.

“One of the questions I get asked a lot about our own label is whether it’s produced here. I explain we don’t have the facilities for that therefore I go to a local producer whose quality I’m happy with,” she says.

London cheesemonger Paxton & Whitfield agrees it is important to promote the retailer’s own name rather than other people’s, “but it’s

14

May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

not just about chucking our name on any old product”, says managing director Ros Windsor. “It’s about choosing products we feel fit with our brand in the category we are looking at.”

Paxton & Whitfield has a few key cheeses that are own-brand, but it primarily puts its name on associated products, such as biscuits and chutneys.

“Because of who we are and because it’s quality and artisan, we work with producers we believe can supply us those to deliver quality, unique, artisan products.”

For others, she says selling ownlabel is about focusing on a few key lines that have high margins, for customers who are never going to return, such as tourist coaches.

“You have to be clear why you are doing it and what you are going to get out of it.”

One advantage is that with an own-label product there is not necessarily a price comparison which potentially offers the opportunity for a higher profit.

“For us it’s about reinforcing our brand and choosing the very best products.

“We do it to develop the brand and because we want to give people what we think is the right product to eat with our cheese because

you can’t find exactly that product elsewhere. It gives people another reason to come to us.”

Belfast delicatessen Sawers, Northern Ireland’s oldest, has an array of artisan products made for it by small, local Belfast independents.

Twenty per cent of what it sells is own-label. SD Bells grinds and blends tea and coffee for it.

The retailer sells its own Sawers blend Assam and Ceylon. Its coffee blends are named after streets that it used to have shops on, such as Castle Street, College Street and High Street.

Belfast Jam and Belfast Marmalade is made in Enniskillen for the shop and Sawers has ownlabel condiments – sweet chilli jam, Indian-spiced pineapple chutney, smoky apricot chutney, chilli & lime chutney and a cheese board chutney – which sold 3,000 jars at Christmas.

It has 200 own-label cheeses, charcuterie, pasta and pasta sauces as well as gift packs in own label, such as hampers.

Sawyers supplies some of its own label to other retailers and where it does this, it ensures they sell it at the same price.

Owner Kieran Sloan says: “People aren’t stupid anymore. They want to know where it’s coming from and where it’s being made.”

As a sector, more and more people are trying to develop their own ranges. If farm shops are big into butchery they will be seriously considering making their own lasagnes and ready-meals because it adds value and gives the convenience that customers prize at the moment, and you get a really good margin out of it. It gives you that provenance to cement your position as a farm shop in the sector. Customers like to see you producing and making. It’s this USP they don’t get to see in supermarkets.

Lucinda Lavelle, manager, Millets Farm Centre It’s very easy to slap your brand on anything just because you want as many products as you can, but that isn’t what it should be about. It should be reinforcing who you are and what you are trying to be. It’s about being really clear where we are adding value and where we are not.”

Ros Windsor, managing director, London cheesemonger Paxton & Whitfield

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cheesewire Unsung Dumfries EHOs order heroes raw milk segregation

news & views from the cheese counter

HIDDEN GEMS FROM BRITISH PRODUCERS

BY PATRICK MCGUIGAN

Retailers in the Dumfries and Galloway area of Scotland are being advised to separate raw milk and pasteurised cheeses in their counters, despite official guidance stating the opposite.

An investigation

by FFD has found the council’s environmental health department is implementing a blanket policy of recommending cheeses should be divided even though this conflicts with advice from the Food Standards Agency (FSA).

“Our guidance during a retailers’ risk assessment is that raw milk cheeses and unpasteurised cheeses should be kept separate in the same way that raw meat and cooked meats are kept separate,” a council spokesman told FFD. FSA guidance on controlling E.coli 0157 cross contamination in

Loch Arthur Farm Shop has resisted “pressure” from EHOs to separate raw milk and pasteurised cheeses

foods explicitly states that all cheeses, whether pasteurised or not, are ready-to-eat products, and so can be sold side by side.

This is also the stance of Food Standards Scotland, but a spokesman for the Scottish body said that individual councils were “responsible for their own interpretations of the rules”.

Sunrise Wholefoods in Castle Douglas started

separating cheeses on its counter a year ago following advice from its EHO. The counter, which contains 40 cheeses, is divided with a glass panel and staff must wash hands after serving raw milk cheeses, and use dedicated chopping boards and knives.

“We were told that ready-to-eat and raw foods must be kept separate, which is ridiculous but

we thought it easier to comply,” said owner Pauline Tilbury. “It’s putting out the message that raw milk cheese might somehow be riskier than pasteurised, but thankfully it hasn’t affected sales.”

At Loch Arthur Farm Shop in Dumfries, manager Barry Graham confirmed that he had also been advised to split the cheeses on his counter. “We have come under pressure, but we’ve resisted. We’ve had guidance from the Specialist Cheesemakers Association saying that we don’t need to.”

In other news, the FSS issued a product recall for two raw milk cheeses made

by Loch Arthur Creamery in December after Listeria monocytogenes were detected. Crannog and Killywhan cheeses are now produced with pasteurised milk, said Graham.

Authorities stand by Errington E.coli claim

BY PATRICK MCGUIGAN

Rollright gets spruced up The washed rind cheese Rollright has won several major awards since launching in 2015, but that hasn’t stopped cheesemaker David Jowett from making a significant change to how it is made. The cheese, which is made at Kingstone Dairy in Oxfordshire, now comes encircled with a spruce band, which has been introduced to stop the cheese from spreading as it matures and to make it easier to handle.

“The banded cheeses have been richer, with more cultured butter and crème fraiche flavours, less peanut flavours to the rind, and an all-round savoury, cured-meatlike quality,” said Jowett. www.rollrightcheese.com

Health Protection Scotland has concluded that the raw milk Dunsyre Blue, made by Errington Cheese, was the source of the E.coli O157 outbreak last year, which led to 17 people being hospitalised and the death of a young child.

The findings, which were immediately challenged by Errington, are the latest chapter in a long and bitter dispute between the Lanarkshire cheese company and Scottish authorities, which has rumbled on since the outbreak last summer and is still the subject of a court inquiry.

The report said: “Extensive investigations concluded that the source of the outbreak was the consumption of Dunsyre Blue. This conclusion was based on evidence from

epidemiological and food chain investigations and supported by microbiological evidence and deficiencies identified in the procedures for the monitoring and control of STEC [pathogenic E.coli] at the food business.”

A statement from Errington Cheese countered: “There is no microbiological evidence that Dunsyre Blue caused the outbreak – all they have concluded is that raw milk cheese carries a small risk of STEC which is already well recorded in scientific literature; there has been no highly pathogenic STEC found in any of our products, nor anything found linking our cheese to the outbreak. This is fact.”

Errington restarted production of its Lanark Blue sheep’s cheese last month after making changes to its food safety controls.

QUESO OAXACA In a nutshell: Made under a railway arch in Peckham by Gringa Dairy, Queso Oaxaca (pronounced ‘wahaca’) is a Mexican-style string cheese, not dissimilar to mature mozzarella.

It is made with raw organic cows’ milk from Commonwork Farm in Kent.

Texture and flavour: Semi soft and pliable with a sweet, milky flavour, but also delicate farmy notes.

History: A former corporate high flier, owner Kristen Schnepp is from San Francisco, but followed her calling by setting up Gringa Dairy in 2013 after training at the School of Artisan Food.

Cheese care: The cheese is individually wrapped and has a 22-day shelf life.

Why stock it? Apart from the brilliant back story – a Mexican cheese made in Peckham by an American – the plaited shape will be a natural talking point.

Perfect pairing: It’s made for melting in a quesadilla, but is also a great snacking cheese. A few slices with a cold beer or a tot of smokey mezcal works a charm.

Where to buy?

Contact Gringa directly. www.gringadairy.com FFD features a different ‘unsung hero’ from Specialist Cheesemakers’ Association members each month. To get involved, contact: patrick.mcguigan@gff.co.uk

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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Doing it for yourself N

ever mind Hugh FearnleyWhittingstall preaching the virtues of self-sufficiency at River Cottage. Tom and Barbara Good were living off the land at a detached house in Surbiton more than 40 years ago in The Good Life.

One of the BBC’s most successful shows of all time, the sitcom perfectly captured the earnest enthusiasm and idealism of the smallholder movement that swept the country during the 1970s.

The movement wasn’t just good news for TV ratings. It also did wonders for reviving traditional cheese-making in the UK. Modern classics such as Golden Cross, Tymsboro and Beenleigh Blue were all created by smallholders in the 1970s, but it was arguably Wales that was at the heart of the move towards small-scale, sustainable production thanks to pioneering cheesemakers, such as Leon Downey and Dougal Campbell, and organic dairy farmer Patrick Holden, who went on to be the chief executive of the Soil Association.

Often referred to as the godfather of Welsh artisan cheese, John Savage-Onstwedder was an important part of this illustrious group, setting up Caws Teifi Cheese at Glynhynod Farm in Ceredigion’s beautiful Teifi Valley in the early 1980s after being inspired by the self-sufficiency movement. The son of a Dutch father and Scottish mother, Savage worked as an English language teacher in the Netherlands in the 1970s, where he translated the Complete Book of Self-Sufficiency by influential author John Seymour, from English to Dutch.

“That book inspired a lot of people to drop out and start smallholdings, including me,” he tells FFD. “Land was relatively cheap in Wales, which made it accessible to people interested in sustainability and alternative lifestyles, so that’s why so many of us ended up here.”

Savage and his then wife Patrice (who had trained under a famous raw milk Gouda producer in the Netherlands called Mrs Vermeer) first

started production at the farm in 1983, using raw milk from their own tiny herd of organic cows to make a Gouda-style cheese called Teifi. The cheese is still made today and has been joined by numerous different versions flavoured with ingredients such as seaweed, cumin and nettles.

The company also makes Caerphilly, but is arguably bestknown for its washed rind cheeses Celtic Promise and Saval, which were developed with the late cheese maker and maturer James Aldridge (Saval is an amalgamation of the names Savage and Aldridge).

Celtic Promise was named Supreme Champion at the British Cheese Awards in 1998 and 2005, while in a nice twist Saval won the James Aldridge Memorial Trophy in 2009.

“James would have been looking down smiling at that one,” says Savage.

All Teifi’s cheeses are unpasteurised, although the size of the operation (it produces 24 tonnes a year) means that milk is now sourced from a small non-organic

farm overlooking Cardigan Bay around 10 miles away. A long-term advocate of raw milk cheese, Savage has never considered pasteurising, although he says there is pressure to do so.

“Raw milk cheese is under threat across Europe from environmental health agencies,” he says. “EHOs go to college and the mantra is raw milk is dangerous. It’s a hangover from the 1950s when it crept in because of TB. We’ve been making cheese for more than 30 years, but we still come under pressure. We’re inspected at least twice a year and we have our milk and cheese tested on a regular basis. It’s not a problem because we know what we’re doing.”

The benefits of using unpasteurised milk far outweigh the hurdles, he adds, with big advantages in terms of flavour and the environmental impact. “When God promised Abraham a land flowing with milk and honey, he wasn’t talking about pasteurised milk,” he says. “The flavour of raw

milk cheeses takes you on a journey with a start, a middle and an end.

You get the flavour of the land – the salt meadows that the cows graze on which comes from the salty spray blowing in from Irish sea. They also have a much lower carbon footprint.

It takes three times as much energy to make pasteurised cheese as it does raw milk because you have to heat the milk up to 72°C and then cool it again.”

Savage’s two sons have joined the business in recent years, with John-James running a new distillery on the farm, making gin and whisky under the Dà Mhìle brand, while Robert heads up the farm and is looking to build up a herd of dualpurpose Welsh Black cattle. The dairy is also about to launch a new flavoured cheese called Ddraig Goch (Red Dragon), which is dusted in paprika and has a line of the spice running through its centre.

The new developments are not a sign that Savage is abandoning his smallholder principles, however.

“The family has got bigger so you have to generate enough income that they have a livelihood as well,” he says. “I don’t think you can keep growing, growing, growing as a business without compromising quality. It’s better to keep things manageable.” www.teificheese.co.uk

When God promised Abraham a land flowing with milk and honey, he wasn’t talking about pasteurised milk John Savage-Onstwedder, Teifi Cheese

Kiran Ridley

Teifi set up in Ceredigion during the early 1980s and has won plaudits for both its Gouda-style and washed rind cheeses. Founder John Savage-Onstwedder tells PATRICK McGUIGAN about the self-sufficiency movement that has inspired him for more than 30 years.

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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Where laverbread leads the way While Cwm Farm makes conventional beer sticks and ’nduja with its own rare breed pork, it’s a uniquely Welsh ingredient that is catching the eye of trade buyers. MICK WHITWORTH reports.

W

hile Eurocrats ponder the big questions posed by Brexit, an application chugging quietly through the EU’s Protected Food Name system could have its own profound implications for one small Welsh charcutier.

Selwyn’s Seafoods, based at Llanmorlais near Swansea, is seeking Protected Designation of Origin status for Welsh Laverbread, a delicacy made from cooked and minced purple laver (the common name for porphyra umbilicalis, a sea algae).

Although laver is also eaten in parts of Scotland, Ireland and the south-west of England, laverbread is one those ingredients instantly associated with Wales.

It’s also the key element in the best-selling salami from Cwm Farm Charcuterie, a new producer based in Pontardawe, just a half hour’s drive from Llanmorlais.

If Selwyn’s PDO application is accepted it should give a major boost to a Cwm Farm product that is already grabbing attention from buyers both at home and overseas.

According to Ruth Davies, who runs the firm alongside husband Andrew, laverbread salami has been driving interest in their fledgling business, which sells it alongside fennel, paprika and venison varieties, and a recently launched ’nduja.

“It’s our baby, and our real point of difference,” she says, adding: “There are a lot of people doing charcuterie now, so you have to think outside the box.”

An on-trend ingredient, seaweed is being used by other UK makers, but for Ruth and Andrew Davies, both “passionate Welshies”, their indigenous version sets them apart.

“Already, if people hear ‘laverbread salami’ they think of us,” Ruth says.

In March the firm took part in the Welsh Government’s Taste Wales trade event in Newport, which included two days of ‘speed dating’

Ruth and Andrew Davies: ‘We want to move up the ladder slowly so we don't fall off’

sessions with buyers from all over the world. At Cwm Farm’s booth, it was the seaweed line that grabbed most attention, with one Canadian buyer interested in trialling it in 25 stores.

“They said they could get paprika or fennel salami from anywhere, but laverbread was unique,” says Ruth.

“They fell in love with it.”

Another fan is Welsh chef Tomos Parry, a rising star who has just left

teacher for 18 years. Neither had a food processing background when, in 2010, they bought their own farm to rear rare breed pigs and cattle.

Ruth says: “We bought 40 acres near Pontardawe, got hold of two in-pig sows, and raised the first two litters for the table. Then we started making burgers, sausages and bacon, bought a catering trailer and cooked them at the roadside.”

In 2012 they entered three products in the Royal Welsh Show, won three awards, and began pondering how else to add value to their pork.

With help from a £1,000 government grant, Ruth headed to Denmark to spend a week at a family-owned farm with 52,000 pigs – a business fully integrated from breeding and feed production to slaugherhouse. “Their main product, at the end of it all, was beer sticks,” Ruth says. “I went home to Andrew

There are a lot of people doing charcuterie now, so you have to think outside the box the award-winning Kitty Fisher’s in Mayfair to set up his own eatery. He has used the laverbread product on his menus for the past two years.

Closer to home, Cwm Farm beer sticks are also sold in the bars at the Llanelli Scarlets rugby ground.

Although Andrew Davies comes from farming stock, he is a carpenter by profession, and Ruth was a school

and said, ‘We’re going to make salami.’”

Government-backed mentoring service Cywain pointed them towards Food Centre Wales in Ceredigion, where they had 18 months of training and technical advice before launching three flavours of salami at the Royal Welsh Show in 2014.

They were also offered a starter unit at Food Centre Wales, but opted to stay closer to home, with Andrew building a food-safe processing operation within an existing unit on a council-owned industrial estate in Pontardawe.

The council has offered them a second unit too, but with the firm just starting to pay their salaries and repay some of its set-up costs, the Davieses are playing it safe. “We feel we can start to do bigger numbers and reach a bigger audience,” says Ruth, “but we want to move up the ladder slowly so we don’t fall off.” www.cwmfarm.co.uk

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

21

Prosecco and Chambourd Sorbet Bombe

Proud suppliers to Castell Howell Foods Limited

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

Blue cheese and Welsh honey ice cream

product update

From icons like Halen Môn and Patchwork to innovative newcomers like The Parsnipship, Wales has dozens of speciality producers vying for a shelf space east of the Marches. LAUREN PHILLIPS reports.

Specialising in handmade chocolates, Afan Vale Chocolates sources ingredients locally from other Welsh producers, including honey from local

l

Maesteg bees for its 100g honey & nut chocolate bar. Its newest range of vegan truffles come in a variety of flavours from orange, cappuccino and mint fondant to Dà Mhìle Distilleries’ organic sloe gin and apple brandy. The RRP for the truffles is £5. l Beekeepers Rhodri Owen and Richard Jones have expanded operations

products in brief Clam’s Handmade Cakes has launched a range of pre-cut loaf cakes, available in white chocolate & chia seed, strawberry & pistachio,

l

and banana & cranberry flavours. The products can be purchased through wholesalers frozen or directly from the bakery. www.clamscakes.co.uk

Daffodil Foods has added salted caramel to its 125g layered yoghurt pots range alongside

l

Moroccan roast on board at The Parsnipship Vegetarian and vegan food producer The Parsnipship has launched a Moroccan cashew & walnut roast. The product made its debut over Christmas as St. Nick’s Nuts and is filled with cashew nuts, walnuts, courgette, dates and Moroccan spices. The company is also introducing a retail packaging option for stores preferring to display in open display fridges. Products are sold in cases of 20 usually of one variety but mixed cases are available.

cherry & blueberry. RRP 60p per pot. www.daffodilfoods.co.uk

www.theparsnipship.co.uk

Hoppy Seabird is the new range of craft beers from Gower Brewery.

The company has launched an initial range of three bottled lines – Nosedive APA, Rockers IPA

l

at Cilgwenyn Bee Farm after their pure Carmarthenshire wildflower honey was awarded a Great

Taste award last year. The honey is filtered three times without heat and bottled on site to ensure the product remains in its rawest form.

Its taste is developed from the surrounding wildflowers in the area including bluebells, poppies, waterlilies and wild clover. l Brothers Pete and Danny Cameron from Dyfi Distillery produce their

artisan gins with wild Welsh botanicals foraged from the Dyfi valley. Their first batch of Hibernation Gin launched

this spring and is claimed to be the world’s first gin aged in a 100-year-old White Port cask. Their Pollination Gin is produced using pure grain spirit and locally drawn spring water. Both products are 45% ABV and come in 500ml bottles. www.afanvalechocolates.co.uk www.bees.wales www.dyfidistillery.com

“Our best Welsh suppliers...”

Mary-Ann Wright Co-owner, Wright’s Food Emporium, Llanarthne, Carmarthenshire www.wrightsfood.co.uk

and Light44 Lager – with a fourth, Fifty6, a silky oatmeal stout, to follow shortly. RRP for 24x330ml bottles £22.99-23.99. www.gowerbrewery.com

Charcutier Ltd. www.charcutierltd.wordpress. com

We stock their pork products such as the salted bacons and the gluten & preservative free sausages. It’s a wellresearched and locally sourced product.

Hazelwell Farm

Based in Whitland in

Carmarthenshire, they supply us with their organic Welsh native breed beef and organic lamb. It is grass-fed and tastes amazing.

Hafod Cheese www.hafodcheese.co.uk

Traditional Welsh cheddar cheese which is perfect for dishes and we use it a lot in our café too.

JCFJ has introduced organic coconut jam to its Bouoli brand. Made from 100% coconut, the jam will be available in 340g jars with a wholesale price of £3.75 (RRP £5.99).

l

www.bouoli. com Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

23

ys od. ady om hop,

focus on wales Named Best Drinks Producer at the BBC Food and Farming Awards 2016, Hallets Cider began when former engineer Andy Hallet designed and built his own equipment to produce a range of ciders. His Real Cider is made from aged Dabinett and blended with the previous year’s vintage cider. This year, Hallet will be launching a lighter version of its Real Cider, available in 330ml cans. Trade price for 24x330ml cans is £30.65. l Raw British honey producer Hilltop Honey’s l

latest addition is a cut comb in acacia honey. The rawest form of honey, the cut comb slab is a great source of vitamins and minerals and is packaged in a 340g hexagonal jar. The sweet, runny and chewy slab can be eaten whole, broken up and stirred into porridge or spread on toast. Its retail price is £7.50. l Mantle Brewery has been producing six craft beers in Cardigan since

Halen Môn’s smokin’ new products A gift pack of its ‘famous five’ best-selling salts is among this year’s launches from Halen Môn, the Anglesey Sea Salt Co. Stylish 5g vials of four flavoured salts, including chilli & garlic and oaksmoked, are included alongside one of pure sea salt in each slim gift box (RRP £7.95, trade £4.80 each; cases of 15).

As well as smoking salt at its Anglesey ‘saltcote’ and visitor centre overlooking the Menai

2013. The drinks range from light golden ales to strong dark beers and are available in 500ml bottles. After less than one year of brewing Mantle won a SIBA award for its slightly spiced 5.2% porter dark heart, made with two British hops. Its premium blond-coloured 5.0% Hoodwinked lager was awarded gold in the SIBA Premium Lager and pilsner category last year. l NoNonsense Foods has unveiled its new range of preserves after launching

Strait, Halen Môn has been experimenting with other products, including smoked water and smoked demerara sugar.

It is also offering 500g bags of oak chips and dust (RRP 3.95, trade £2.49) and hickory chips and dust (RRP £2.95, trade £1.68) for shoppers to use in their own barbecues or hot smokers at home.

Founded 21 years ago by Alison and David Lea-Wilson, and now a flagship of the Welsh speciality food sector, Halen Môn will this year be presented with the Queen’s Award for Sustainable Development. www.halenmon.com

last summer. Based in Cardiff, the company has created a tomato & apple chutney, chilli & chocolate jam and an onion & orange marmalade. Co-founder Andrew Walker developed the chutney from his late grandmother’s recipe. The preserves come in 310g jars with a recommended retail price of £4.50 each. l Hay-on-Wye based Passion Preserves has teamed up with local Welsh coffee roaster Black Mountain Roast to produce its new espresso marmalade. The ingredients include Seville oranges, lemon juice and Black Mountain’s espresso blend coffee to produce a dark and smoky flavoured preserve. The company makes its products in small batches by hand and won gold at this year’s World Marmalade Awards in

trio of chilled, smooth parfaits launched under the new Mags & Jen brand last summer.

Each tray contains four of the 120g patés, which come in original, smokey and chilli flavours.

Chief operations officer Rufus Carter said the success of last year’s launch had led to “numerous demands” for shelf-ready packs, especially from delis and farm shops.

Patchwork‘s smooth patés have an RRP of £2.80-2.90 each, and are dairy- and wheat-free.

Cumbria. All jars are 8oz and cost £2.00 per jar (RRP £3.00-3.50). l Premium paté maker Patchwork is introducing shelf-ready packs for the

www.halletsrealcider.co.uk www.hilltop-honey.com www.mantlebrewery.com www.passionpreserves.co.uk www.patchwork-pate.co.uk

“Our best Welsh suppliers...”

Barrie and JoJo Thomson Owners, The High Street Delicatessen, Newtown, Powys www.thehighstreetdelicatessen.com Snowdonia Distillery (Forager’s Gin)

Coedcanlas

www.snowdoniadistillery.co.uk

The changing of the seasons in beautiful Pembrokeshire has a profound effect on the honey harvest at Coedcanlas.

But scarcity is a virtue and we have a 100% taste-topurchase ratio on the pure Welsh honey which Nick and Annette Tonkin conjure out of nature’s bounty.

Chris Marshall is creating a gorse and elderberry infused buzz around his stunning limited-release Yellow Label small batch gin.

Hand-foraged botanicals from within the National Park create a true taste of Snowdonia.

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

www.coedcanlas.myshopify.com

Holden Farm (Hafod Cheese) www.hafodcheese.co.uk

Raw milk, organic Hafod with its distinctive nutty finish is matured for 12 months and flies out of our cheese counter. Holden Farm feeds the whey to its veal calves so Illtud Dunsford can create outstanding Welsh charcuterie.

Our small batch coffees are dragon-roasted by the sea, and freshly made to order.

Introducing our delicious

NEW

Strawberry & Mint Flavour

Available to all independent retailers nationwide Perfect for your deli café, bar or restaurant Private label orders welcome Ring today to have a chat about your business needs on 07900 011 244

www.welshcoffee.com

Purple Moose Brewery Porthmadog

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Available in 330ml & 750ml glass bottles and 425ml PET

Strawberry & Mint Heartsease has been our family farm since 1903. We love great flavours and using our own spring water, we have blended this delicious Strawberry & Mint pressé for you.

I hope you enjoy it!

Multi Award Winning Real Ales from North Wales Purple Moose Brewery Ltd Madog Street, Porthmadog, Gwynedd, LL49 9DB Tel: 01766 515 571 www.purplemoose.co.uk

@PurpleMooseBrew

Radnor Hills Mineral Water Co. Ltd. Heartsease, Knighton, Powys, LD7 1LU T: +44 (0) 1547 530 220 E: sales@radnorhills.co.uk W: www.radnorhills.co.uk

Facebook.com/PurpleMooseBrewery

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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Mirandaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s PR ESE RV ES www.mirandas-preserves.co.uk

award-winning: additive free home cooked in small batches responsibly sourced ingredients suppliers to the retail and catering trades

Jam Marmalade Chutney Jelly

villagedairy.co.uk llaethyllan.co.uk TEL: 01745 540 256

LOVINGLY MADE BY THE ROBERTS FAMILY

ON THEIR FARM IN WALES

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

focus on wales Penylan Preserves was set up by Clare Williams in April 2014 in the heart of the Welsh capital. With a strong ethos for locally sourced ingredients,

l

for their products which was unveiled in April this year. l Tregroes Waffles has introduced a new rustic cracker as part of its savoury Williams’ handmade jams, marmalades, curds and chutneys are made using produce from her own allotment and are glutenand dairy-free. Last year, her fine cut Seville orange marmalade won gold at the World Marmalade Championships and her piccalilli holds a Great Taste gold star. l Soft drinks company Radnor Hills has developed a strawberry & mint flavour for its Heartsease Farm premium pressè range. The

cracker range. The company introduced the new product at the Royal Welsh Show last December along with its savoury and cheese crackers, baked with real cheddar.

The rustic cracker is made with wholemeal flour and recommended to be eaten with Welsh cheese, patè or a dipping sauce. All three cracker varieties are available in cases of 12 units. l The Coconut Kitchen restaurant in Abersoch

Monty’s Dark Secret wins second gold at SIBA 2017 Monty’s Brewery has won gold again at the SIBA Wales & West 2017 awards for its 5.6% Dark Secret beer. Brewed with malted oats and barley with the gluten removed, the kegged oatmeal stout has been officially certified by Coeliac UK as a gluten-free product.

The drink itself is rich and full bodied with flavours of chocolate and coffee. The product is available in 500ml bottles, craft kegs and occasionally in casks and polypins. www.montysbrewery.co.uk

Welsh soda pops back into industry new addition is the seventh flavour in the line-up and is blended with the company’s own spring water. The product is available in glass bottles (330ml and 750ml) and PET plastic bottles (425ml), which owner William Watkins says has helped the company supply outlets that cannot stock glass. l The Siwgr a Sbeis (sugar & spice) bakery sells a range of cakes, pastries, desserts and savoury products to farm shops, restaurants and garden centres. Its products include the traditional Welsh fruit cake Bara Brith – fat-free for those with special dietary requirements – and blackcurrant flapjack.

Owners Rhian Owen and Rhian Williams have also introduced new packaging

began selling its Thai curry pastes and sauces to diners in 2014. It has since rebranded its range, launching a Pad Thai Kit and offering for spring a miso, sesame & lemon dressing.

The vegan-friendly dressing can be used on salad leaves, noodles, fish, meat or sushi.

It has a hint of wasabi and is used in the restaurant to dress cured fillets of local mackerel. www.radnorhills.co.uk www.siwgrasbeis.com www.tregroeswaffles.co.uk www.thecoconutkitchen.co.uk

A carbonated soft drink popular in Wales more than 100 years ago has been re-launched this year. Lurvill’s Delight is based on an original recipe, made between 1896 and 1910, using Welsh spring water balanced with nettle, dock and juniper berry extract.

The drink is dry, gently sparkling and only 66 calories per 330ml bottle.

Production of the drink ceased in 1910 due to a shortage of dock leaves in the local area. Now, however, Dave Steward, former managing director of Proximo Spirits UK, has revived the botanical soda with production by Radnor Hills in Powys. RRP for a 330ml bottle is £1.89. www.lurvillsdelight.com Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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focus on wales products in brief

Snowdonia sees return of Red Storm

Micro food producer, The Bridge Lodge produces products based on wild ingredients it forages in the Dee Valley

l

The Snowdonia Cheese Co is reintroducing Red Storm to its range this August after taking it off sale last year. The cheese, in a scarlet waxed truckle, offers a different take on Red Leicester through its strong, nutty flavour and notes of caramel, developed through its 18 to 21-month maturation process. Red Storm returns to a range that includes Snowdonia’s flagship Little Black Bomber, which was voted ‘Best British Cheese Brand’ by FFD readers for a second time this year. RRP £4.50 for a 200g truckle.

in North Wales. Now, in its newest range, wild garlic takes the spotlight as its chief ingredient. The company has developed a wild garlic vegan pesto and collaborated with Halen Môn to produce wild garlic leaf salt. www.thebridgelodge.co.uk

Trailhead Jerky has added two new flavours to its beef jerky collection: teriyaki & toasted sesame

l

www.snowdoniacheese. co.uk

Producing sea-inspired products – including seaweed condiments Welshman’s Caviar and Mermaid Confetti – The Pembrokeshire Beach

l

seed and black garlic & ginger. RRP £2.99. www.trailheadfinefoods.co.uk

Food Co’s newest addition is its range of Sea Herbs.

These are made up of individually packed seaweed varieties (laver, dulse, grass kelp and kelp) which have been washed, dried and flaked into pieces. The flakes come in re-sealable pouches for freshness and can be sprinkled over eggs, seafood, cheese and bacon. l The Preservation Society has added Bangin BBQ Sauce to its range of chutneys, sirops and preserves. Its ingredients include tomatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, smoked paprika, all-spice and

Cnwc’s newest crunch Unable to find an alternative savoury cracker for their deli in Newcastle Emlyn, Paula Owen-Nunes and Heather Rees-Gaunt decided to make their own and thus established Cnwc Crackers. The products are made using awardwinning Shirgar Welsh butter and Halen Mon Anglesey sea salt to make light and buttery savoury crackers. The name Cnwc (pronounced Kuh-nook) was inspired by Heather’s mum’s Welsh home – Cwncllwyndu – where the

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

crackers were first trialled.

Flavours include Halen Mon Anglesey sea salt, sweet onion, red chilli, toasted seeds & garlic, and Welsh cheddar & cracked black pepper which is its newest addition. All products are available in 75g boxes or 25g snack packs. RRP £2.45. This year, however, big changes are in store for Cwnc as the company is in the process of being taken over by Gower View Foods, which currently makes the crackers on Cnwc’s behalf. www.cnwccrackers.co.uk

to showcase both sound and taste of North Wales, each bottle has a handwritten Welsh tune on the labelling written by a local musician. l Now in its 51st year, Welsh Lady Preserves is one of only two producers to have been twice crowned Great Taste Supreme Champion – once for its lemon curd and once for its apple & cinnamon curd.

This year it has refreshed its packaging, giving a more contemporary look to the Welsh lady in its logo, but it remains best known as a producer of private label preserves for retail, foodservice and gift food clients worldwide. is described as having “a smooth, strong juniper lead which is quickly followed by clear and developing sweetness and floral complexities”. Determined

Aspall’s red wine vinegar.

The sauce can be used as a marinade for a barbecue or as a dipping sauce and is available in 100ml (RRP £3.50) and 250ml (RRP £4.50) bottles. Trade prices are £2.50/£3.50 per unit in a case of 12. l Launched last year in the Conwy Hills, North Star Distillery produces its Merywen Gin in small batches of less than 30 bottles at a time. The product takes its name from Welsh word for juniper, which grows on nearby hills, and is distilled using water from the foothills of Snowdonia. The gin

www.cafemor.co.uk www.thepreservationsociety. co.uk www.northstardistillery.co.uk www.welshladypreserves.com

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

• Oatcakes: 1-star 2015 • Millers Crunch: 1-star 2014, 2015 & 2016 • Kenmore Shortbread: 1-star 2015 • Scottish Homemade Tablet: 1-star 2016 · Stem Ginger Tablet: 2-star 2016 • Traditional Scottish Tablet: 1-star 2014 & 2015

sweet & savoury biscuits

product focus

Enjoying the comfort of crumbs ANDREW DON raids the biscuit tin for the category’s newest additions Belgian Boys’ new Mini Cookie Stash cookie butter cookies are now available through Cotswold Fayre.

The moustache-shaped

Cheshire-based glutenfree artisan bakery Mummy Bakes has changed its name to Lottie’s Bakehouse and introduced new packaging to present what it says is a more sophisticated image.The company, which supplies Fortnum & Mason as well as numerous farm shops and delicatessens, produces Fiery Gingers (trade £2.30, 170g) and a

O

butter cookies – a twist on Belgium’s national cookie, the Speculoos – come in a pouch designed for eating on the go.

The RRP for the pouches is 79p each or £3.99 for a 140g box of five 28g pouches (£2.40 wholesale or £19.25 for case of 8x140g).

O Rhythm 108’s dairy-free, gluten-free and certified organic Ooh-La-La tea biscuits are made with superfood coconut oil and unrefined coconut flower sugar. The RRP for the singleserve 24g packets of two biscuits is £1.30. The product, which is listed with Planet Organic, All Revital and The Natural Kitchen, comes in chocolate hazelnut and lemon & ginger varieties.

O Paxton & Whitfield has developed the exclusive recipes for its latest range of Biscuits for Cheese with an artisan bakery in the West

O

Nila Holden Artisan Bakery, which boasts listings in Harrods, Selfridges and Fortnum & Mason, has extended its range of contemporary premium iced biscuits and added more gift-focused designs.

The boutique bakery’s new packaging for its iced biscuits and artisan cakes features bows and swing tags.

Biscuits come wrapped in clear cellophane or clear gold cartons. RRPs range from £2.20 to £4 for individual biscuits. www.nilaholden.co.uk

Country. They are charcoal crackers (RRP £2.65, 80g), Cornish buttermilk biscuits (RRP £2.65, 100g), poppy & linseed crackers (RRP £2.65, £150g) and rosemary

wafers (RRP £2.65, 150g). A Biscuits for Cheese Selection Box (RRP £5.25, 240g), containing individually wrapped packets of all four varieties is available too.

products in brief Border Biscuits has launched a snack pack, which contains eight

O

individually wrapped mini packs in four varieties: Viennese Whirls, Butterscotch Crunch, Divinely Choc Chip Cookies and Crunchy Oat Crumbles. www.borderbiscuits.co.uk

Abbey Foods Northwest has added Orange & Lemon St Clements and Mixed Berry to its Abbey Biscuits range.

Formats include acetate trays, retail boxes and retail tubes (all 150g), as well as twin packs.

O

www.abbeybiscuits.co.uk

range of biscotti, including dairy- and gluten-free Awesome Almond and Ginger Zinger (trade £3.20, 200g). www.belgianboys.com www.rhythm108.com www.paxtonandwhitfield.co.uk www.lottiesbakehouse.com

Dark chocolate apple crisp thins are the latest extension to The Lismore Food

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Company’s range, dried and wrapped in dark Belgian chocolate. The RRP is £8.50 for 100g (trade £4.79+VAT). www.thelismorefoodcompany. com

Chins Kitchen has added cocoa & vanilla to its range of hand-made nankhatai – “crumblycrisp”, buttery Indian shortbreads available in 150g mandala tins (RRP £8-9; wholesale £5.80).

O

www.chinskitchen.co.uk

The Authentic Bread Co is now baking biscuits for cheese and is looking for listings with wholesalers.

Botanical beetroot & rosemary pairs well with soft goats’ cheeses it says, while the crumbly, buttery sunflower & pumpkin oatcakes are a good match for mature cheddars.

The Gloucestershire bakery’s latest range also features a sweet fig & walnut cracker and sea salt & cracked black pepper biscuits.

Boxes are available in cases of 10 units. RRP per box is £2.99. www.authenticbread.co.uk

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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Organic, handmade & the perfect partners to your cheese board From our infatuation with innovative organic ingredients comes a new range of biscuits for cheese. With botanical flavours, West Country butter, British milled oats & all the best ingredients that nature can deliver, our biscuits have our expertise & passion baked into every bite O R G A N I C

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

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sweet & savoury biscuits products in brief

How we stock it…

Butter, lemon, cherry, chocolate chip, and ginger shortbreads have joined the range from

AVA JAVADZADEH, OWNER, UMAMI DELI, WANTAGE, OXFORDSHIRE

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Umami Deli sources its sweet and savoury biscuits from all parts of the world.

From strudels filled with fruit compote made by Elsa’s Story in Israel to handmade puff pastries from Italian brand Matilde Vicenzi (£7 per tin), there are 12 different varieties of biscuits on offer.

The firm favourite with customers, however, are the savoury Ship’s Biscuits from Daveiga in Spain, available with butter, olive oil or olive oil & chia seeds.

Having been the deli’s top-selling biscuit for the past six years, it was a nobrainer for Ava Javadzadeh and her husband Dan to continue stocking them

This Little Farmer in Northumberland.

All come in packs of six (wholesale £1.60) or 10 (£4.50). www.thislittlefarmer.co.uk

Rise Bakery kicked off 2017 with the

O

Cottage Delight has introduced stem ginger, toasted coconut and chocolate chip biscuits to

O

introduction of hazelnut biscotti (RRP £4, trade £2). Each clear cellophane bag includes five pieces. www.risebakery.london

Most Marvellous Baking is working on new and improved

O

packaging that will be more suitable for retail shelves for its slow-baked My Munchable multiseed crackers. They come in 210g packs with an RRP of £3.45. www.mostmarvellousbaking. co.uk

Dutch-owned patisserie Van Strien will make 90g packs of cheese & onion straws and toasted multiseed straws available this autumn via its wholesalers. Almond feuilletes will also be available (RRP £2.49).

product focus

its bakery range. The RRP is £2.59 for the trio which are suitable for vegetarians.

Minty chocolate shortbread and butter caramel shortbread (RRP for both £3.25) are also new to the Staffordshire producer’s roster, as are crunchy and chewy chocolate slices (RRP £3.25).

O Artisan Biscuits has taken inspiration from Noah’s Ark with the launch of Two by Two peach biscuits for children.

The all-butter flavoured shortbread biscuits are made with real peach juice

after taking over Umami last year.

When it comes to pricing its biscuit range, Umami tries to work to set margins, says Ava, but selling at reasonable prices is paramount to compete with fine foods sold online.

“One lesson we’ve learnt is to always try new

The peach variety features Mary and her lamb.

O Windmill Organics has combined two trends with a new range of raw superfood-enhanced crispbreads made with organic seeds, nuts, grains and vegetables that are soaked and sprouted, and then dehydrated.

They come in three flavours, each with different superfoods: spirulina & baobab, maca & turmeric, and quinoa & chia. The RRP for the 90g packs is £2.59 (£15.54 for a case of six).

O Buiteman, the Dutch savoury biscuit brand distributed by fine food specialist RH Amar, is

products that come out and make sure our new lines have promotions and plenty of samples,” she says.

The deli has a dedicated ‘buy one get one free’ table to showcase its newest lines in the hope of tempting customers to try products at a lower price and become regular buyers.

launching new formats designed for sharing, gifting or entertaining.

Its popular Gouda cheese crumbles, made with 18-month Gouda, now come in the new 180g boxes as does a twin selection featuring biscuits made with 12-month matured cheddar and Double Gloucester. Both have an RRP of £3.99 O The Fine Cheese Co has improved the recipes of its Flavoured Crackers For Cheese range which it has relaunched in new

Cheese & Charcuterie evenings have also proven popular and, by serving its biscuit range alongside its cheeses and meats, it gives the deli a chance to get customers to try as many products as possible on sale in the shop. www.umami-deli.co.uk Interview by Lauren Phillips

packaging, and added two new variants.

The crackers are now made solely with extra virgin olive oil, which it says makes them unique to the market. The all-natural flavour has also been upgraded with the addition of ingredients such as air-dried basil and fig purée. The two new flavours which join the existing six, are lemon & sea salt and walnut & honey. The RRP is £2.75 per pack and £13.95 for the gift tin. www.cottagedelight.co.uk www.artisanbiscuits.co.uk www.windmillorganics.com www.rhamar.com www.finecheese.co.uk

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www.van-strien.nl

and clotted cream. They are recommended for sale at £2.50 (£1.60 trade).

The new product joins four other varieties – vanilla, strawberry, toffee and lemon curd – in the range of biscuits that are cut into animal character shapes.

Spanish food company Delicioso has just released two new Trias triangle-shaped fan wafer biscuits in milk & orange and Double Choc. Both come in cases of eight and carry a trade price of £18.70 (RRP £3.95-£4.75). www.delicioso.co.uk

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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sweet & savoury biscuits

product focus The Great British Biscotti Company has added Belgian chunky choc & honey, lemon & ginger and coffee & walnut varieties, available in 100g packs or 33g twin packs (RRP £2.99 and £1.50 respectively). It has also introduced savoury biscotti, available in Indian spice, chorizo & Parmesan and Parmesan & fennel.

(100g, RRP £2.99).

This spring has seen the addition of choc orange, white chocolate, cranberry & pistachio, jalapeno & cheddar, seaweed & cracked pepper, sundried tomatoes & olives and garlic & rosemary (100g, RRP £2.99).

O Stag Bakeries has created a selection of dipping crackers with unusual ingredients and contemporary flavour profiles. Initially, three varieties of cracker have O

been launched. Lentil & biriyani is made with mathia flour and spiced with traditional Indian flavours, while the green bean & ras el hanout variant is inspired

by Middle Eastern cuisine.

Completing the line-up is chickpea & garlic, made with besan flour. All three come in 80g packs with an RRP of £2.30.

O Easy Bean’s new seaweed & sesame crispbread (110g, RRP £2.95) is rich in umami components and made with a colourful blend of native,

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

wild harvested seaweed.

It joins the Somerset producer’s chickpea crispbread range, which also includes Moroccan spice, seeds & black pepper and mung bean & chive. The crispbreads are handmade using chickpea flour, so they are naturally gluten-free, wheat-free and high in fibre.

O All butter, lavender & almond, and dark chocolate chip & orange are the first three flavours in new Scottish shortbread company Love Shortie’s range launched at Harrods.

The shortbread is handbaked in small batches in the Scottish Highlands

using just a few simple ingredients. The RRP is £5.25 for 180g.

O Manfood has branched out into baked goods with the launch of three biscuits.

Its sweet-savoury mature cheddar and blue cheese & walnut shortbreads both come in 150g boxes, as do its smoked oatcakes for serving with cheese. Made by a Scottish bakery to Manfood founder Andre Dang’s recipes, all three have an RRP of £2.99.

The Roka range of cheese savouries, available through UK partner Euro Food Brands, is relaunching with a new retro design and the inclusion of new flavours: cheddar & onion, cheddar & black pepper and cheddar & raspberry Crispies (RRP £1.50, 70g).

O Billionaires salted caramel shortbread is new from Felicity’s Chocolate. A hand-made, allbutter, vanilla infused luxury shortbread with a layer of milk Belgian chocolate on top and finished with gold confetti, the 550g biscuits are recommended for sale at £9.90.

O Cheese and biscuits are the perfect pairing which is why The Flavoured Shortbread Bakery has come up with gluten-free Stilton, cranberry & walnut. It is also introducing snack packs. The first will be juniper, gin & lemon (RRP £1£1.20, estimated trade price £20£24) for retail-ready packages of 30 units.

O The Eatery has improved the recipes of its ginger nuts (RRP £2.65, trade £1.25) and Jammy Dodgers (RRP £3.69, trade £1.47) O

and relaunched its custard creams and bourbons (RRP £2.57, trade £1.59). The business has redesigned its packaging to make it simpler and more eyecatching. www.greatbritishbiscotti.co.uk www.stagbakeries.co.uk www.easybean.co.uk www.loveshortie.co.uk www.welovemanfood.com www.cheesecrispies.com www.eurofoodbrands.co.uk www.felicityschocolate.com www. theflavouredshortbreadbakery. com en-gb.facebook.com/ TheEateryOldham

Thanks to their specially designed left arm, Arden Fine Foods’ new Mug Huggers biscuits will “give your mug some love”.

The hand-decorated, all-butter shortbread biscuit characters can be hooked on to hot drinks and come in three designs: Duncan, Tom Tash and Betty Bow. Further designs and seasonal tie-ins for Halloween and Christmas will be created.

They are available in retail display boxes of 14 individually wrapped biscuits of one character for £16 (RRP £1.99 each). www.mug-huggers.co.uk

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email order@tyrrellscrisps.co.uk or call 01568 720244 tyrrellscrisps.co.uk tyrrellsofficial tyrrellscrisps @tyrrells Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

35

Cracking snacking!

Double roasted for intense flavour and crunch. High-margin garlicky treats that add some snap, crackle and pop to your POS. Available direct or though Cotswold Fayre.

www.thegarlicfarm.co.uk | wholesale@thegarlicfarm.co.uk | 01983 865 378

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

savoury snacks

focus on

It’s munch time MICHAEL LANE tucks into the newest crisps, nuts and other bagged snacks O Pipers Crisps has padded up for summer as it sponsors cricket’s National Village Cup and is also running an on-pack promotion allowing 100 lucky consumers to win

a branded deckchair. The promo will be supported with various PoS materials, including counter-top display units, for retailers. For the first time in nearly four years, Pipers Crisps recently added a new flavour to its range of premium crisps.

Atlas Mountains wild thyme & rosemary is available now in both 40g packs and 150g sharing bags.

O Banana Joe banana chips are now being imported into the UK from Thailand exclusively by The Coconut Kitchen. The Thai sweet chilli, sea salt, Sriracha chilli, Hickory BBQ

all based on Peter’s Yard’s classic sourdough crispbread recipe, which is high in fibre and made with all-natural ingredients including organic whole-wheat flour, rye sourdough and organic fresh milk.

O Staffordshire’s Just Crisps has extended its snack range beyond the potato crisp with the creation of wasabi flavour

products in brief The production of Yorkshire Crisps is now SALSA-accredited.

The Sheffield-based

O

Yorkshire Crisp Company produces a range of 10 flavours of gourmet crisps available in 100g drums, 40g single bags and 150g sharing bags (selected flavours). www.yorkshirecrisps.co.uk

Launched last summer, Abakus Foods’ hickory nuts have already picked up a one-star award in Great Taste.

The ovenbaked sweetsavoury nuts come in cases of 24x20g pouches for £25.92. RRP £1.99 per pouch.

O

Just Peas and Just Beans in sweet chilli and sea salt flavours. The new lines are made with British green split peas and British fava beans respectively and, like Just Crisps, they are roasted in cold pressed rapeseed oil from sister business Just Oil. All three products are high in fibre and protein, low in fat and come in 50g pouches and 1kg catering bags. www.piperscrisps.com www.thecoconutkitchen.co.uk www.petersyard.com www.justcrisps.co.uk

Leafy’s unique kale crisps are made in The Cotswolds with fresh kale, straight from the fields. Each leaf is lightly seasoned with 100% natural ingredients and slowly air-dried. Original (a one-star Great Taste winner last year) and tomato & oregano are sold in 10g singleserve packs (trade £1.39, RRP £2), with just 41 calories per bag. www.leafyfoods.co.uk

www.abakusfoods.com

Toppå is the name of a new dairy- and wheatfree savoury granola made with seeds, rye

O

Crackling keeps coming and Gruyère cheese all come in 50g bags (RRP £1.79).

Retailers can buy them through distributors SUMA, Tree of Life, Diverse Fine Foods and Hider.

O Peter’s Yard has redesigned the packaging

and relaunched its range of three Crispbread Bites (formerly known as Knäcks) with tweaks to each variant’s flavour profile. The bitesized sea salt, 5 Seed, and cumin & nigella seed (RRP £2.49, 105g) varieties are

The renaissance of the pork rind is not done yet, with a number of new products hitting the market.

Gruntled is a new brand of premium pork crackling from Chiltern Snacks, the company behind Salty Dog and Darling Spuds. Available in Cornish sea salt, habanero and English mustard flavours, it comes in 40g bags (RRP 90p).

Meat snack specialist Serious Pig has developed Snackling (RRP £2.50, 30g), which is said to be the first oven roasted crackling.

The technique makes for a crispier take on the classic pub snack and the final product contains about half the fat of fried scratchings.

Meanwhile, Openshaws of Lancashire has been exploring new flavour combinations and launched pork & stilton pork crackling and haggis & whisky pork crunch

flakes and rye sourdough.

Produced by PlainTasty, the range comprises lime, seaweed and chilli & lime flavours. www.plaintasty.com

The Ludlow Nut Company has launched a 125g easy-open pouch to add to its existing range sizes of 40g, 65g & 250g. The 40g and 65g come in cases of 12 while the 125g & 250g pouches come in cases of 10.

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www.ludlownut.co.uk

www.getgruntled.co.uk seriouspig.london www.freshersfoods.co.uk

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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savoury snacks

focus on

O Launched last year, Willy Chase’s Fitcorn is air-popped and seasoned using fresh locally sourced ingredients on the company’s farm in Herefordshire. The gluten-

free line-up features five flavours: apple cider vinegar (with the Mother), salted honey, smoky Bloody Mary, Nearly Naked and goats’ cheese, red onion & thyme.

O Delis and farm shops with cafés looking for something different to serve might want to explore the Belazu Ingredient Company’s new gourmet nut range.

Available in 1.2kg bags (prices from £20), these nut mixes have been infused with the flavours of the Mediterranean. Products include sea salt & smoked Mignonette pepper almonds and cashews spiced with ras el hanout, as well as mixes flavoured with rosemary and truffles.

O Ideal for marathon movie nights, ZaraMama’s new The Eight Till Late set (trade £6.70, RRP £10) contains eight assorted 90g bags of popping corn, which

Brindisa’s new snacking range features premium Grade 16 Marcona almonds sourced exclusively in Catalonia, as well as three further types of Catalan almond (salted, smoked and smoked paprika). There are also spicy broad beans, maize kernels and a Cocktail Snack Mix – containing fried and salted Marcona almonds, cashews, peanuts, maize kernels and broad beans, as well as roasted Reus hazelnuts. www.brindisa.com

Food Co is carrying The Eight Till Late pack.

O Fori has developed the UK’s first ambient, high protein savoury snack bar made from free range meat.

Currently listed in Selfridges, Whole Foods and Eat 17 as well as independent retailers makes 8 large bowls or 16 portions. The popping corn specialist has also created The Bee Pack (trade £3.35, RRP £5), which contains four 90g bags of yellow & black popcorn and a free sachet of Bee-friendly seeds.

Both are available through Cotswold Fayre and The Cress Co while The Bay Tree

A new kind of Brazil nut Nut specialist Kinomi is laying claim to a UK first, with the launch of the nutrient-rich baru nut from Brazil.

Found in the Cerrado savanna, the baru trees grow in the wild and its nuts are high in protein, low in fat and packed full of antioxidants. Once roasted, the flavour is reminiscent of peanuts and soy nuts.

Bari Bari Baru is the latest nut to join the Kinomi lineup – roasted until crunchy and flavoured with its signature mix of soya sauce, kombu and sake. It is then sprinkled with a spice blend of cumin, coriander, chilli and lime.

They are available in a 20g mini pouch, 40g tubes and 200g sharing bags. Wholesale prices are 99p, £2.00 and £8.50 respectively. www.kinominuts.com

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

and gyms, the 69g bars (RRP £2.99-£3.49) contain 20g of protein. Chilli beef with cranberry & date, Moroccan lamb with apricot & date, Piri Piri chicken with apricot & chilli and Thai turkey chia & lemongrass are all glutenfree and have a shelf life of 12 months.

O Plymouth-based artisan crisp producer Burts Chips has boosted its ‘Better For You’ range with the launch of a lighter snack, Quinoa Crinkles.

Available in cases of 16x20g bags, the quinoabased snack comes in two all-natural flavours: West Country cream cheese and sweet pepper & chorizo, made using chorizo from local producer the Good Game Company. This latest addition to the portfolio

follows the success of Burts’ Lentil Waves range, which has seen 74% year-on-year growth in sales.

O Hider Foods’ recently launched World Flavours range features three snacking mixes.

Moroccan Spice (100g) is a combination of harissaflavoured roasted nuts and fruits while Mexican Chilli (90g) is a mixture of Habanero-flavoured roasted nuts. Completing the line-up is Thai Green Curry (75g), which combines roasted nuts, noodles and coconut.

All have RRPs of £1.99 and are supplied in cases of 12 foil-packed bags. Hider has also got new-look Christmas party snacks, including “Perfect for Sharing” selection trays aimed at delis, food halls and garden centres.

O Famed for its fruit varieties, Emily Crisps has added two vegetable crisp lines, made using a technique that reduces the absorption of oil and retains the flavour, colour and nutrients of the produce.

Crunchy French bean, sugar snap peas & black edamame and carrot, beetroot & sweet potato come in 23g bags with an RRP of £1.19.

O The latest flavour combination from Tyrrells pitches Bedfordshire’s own Serenade chilli against “the mellow twang” of Dorset sour cream.

Launched in April 2017, the variety is available in 40g (RRP 99p) and 150g bags (RRP £1.99). www.willychases.co.uk www.belazu.com www.zaramama.com www.fori.co.uk www.burtschips.com www.hiderfoods.co.uk www.emilyfruitcrisps.co.uk www.tyrrellscrisps.co.uk

products in brief Joe & Seph’s launched the first official Marmite popcorn last summer. Glazed with both the divisive spread and smooth caramel, the sweet-savoury snack comes in 75g pouches

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(RRP £2.99) and smaller snack sized 21g packs (RRP £0.99). www.joeandsephs.co.uk

Cheese & Love is the latest addition to the Hippeas range of organic chickpea puffs. Additive-, preservative- and gluten-

O

free, the vegan-friendly puffs come in 22g bags (RRP 99p). www.hippeas.com

Ten Acre has added a taste of New York to its award-winning ‘Free From Plus’ snacks range.

Despite its name, Pastrami in the Rye is suitable for vegans and vegetarians and free from dairy, gluten, MSG and GMO. Available in 28g and 40g bags with an RRP from 89p.

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www.tenacresnacks.com

Launched last summer, the I Love Snacks range includes two savoury lines. Smoked almonds (RRP £1.29, 25g) and Nocellara del Belice Olives (RRP £0.89, 30g) are both available through Cotswold Fayre.

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www. ilovesnacks. co.uk

ld le o e ab sw or ail ot m Av h C lake ds u g B oo ro & F th yre ine Fa F

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100% British snack High in protein ,MKL MR ½FVI Nut Free

We even have our very own potato – the Naturalo potato is only grown on our farm in the rich peaty Cambridgeshire fens. It is the perfect frying potato and its what gives Corkers their unique flavour and crunch. Simply, British Good Taste.

Call us: 01353 699 000 Email us: info@corkerscrisps.co.uk www.corkerscrisps.co.uk

For more information please contact us on 01543493081

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

39

®

NEW

ORGANIC CRAFT CRISPS

CRISPS WITH ALTITUDE Introducing our brand new hand-cooked craft crisps, Available in 40g and 140g bags.

JOIN THE CRAFT CRISP MOVEMENT LISASCRISPS.CO.UK Sales enquiries: rachel@lisascrisps.co.uk Place an order: order@lisascrisps.co.uk Give us a call: 01568 720916 Follow us: @lisascrisps

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

oils & vinegars

product update

Pours for thought BRIDGET COWAN checks out the latest launches in speciality oils and vinegars

products in brief Wignalls Yallo, a cold pressed rapeseed oil, is grown on a Lancashire farm that’s been nursed back to life using

O

O New on the shelves this spring is Azouro, a PDO extra virgin olive oil from

non-industrial farming methods. The oil is bottled on the farm. www.wignallsfarm.com

Fuud is now the exclusive importer of Kalamata premium organic extra virgin olive oil. Made with

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northern Portugal made with a blend of indigenous olive varieties: Verdeal, Madural and Cobrançosa.

The bottle design is inspired

by Portuguese mosaic tile designs and creates a continuous effect when displayed in a block. Trade price £9.00 from The Fine Food Angel.

O The rebrand of From Dorset With Love now includes the gooseberry vinegar and the Great Taste

handpicked olives from the Koroneiki tree, it is available in 500ml glass bottles. RRP £25. www.fuud.co.uk

Oro Don Vincenzo has been making extra virgin olive oil since 1919 in Calabria in southern Italy but only started selling into the UK last year. Using olives from the Carolea cultivar, it produces three different extra virgin oils. Bio Organic is a green, robust oil for steaks, salads and dipping. DOP Lametia is a lighter oil for cooking and Il Classic is said to be just right for fish dishes, light salads, baking and mayonnaise. Trade prices range from £5 for 250ml to £14.40 for 750ml. www.orodonvincenzo.com

winning raspberry balsamic vinegar. Available in 250ml bottles with an RRP of £6.00 with a trade price of £3.50.

O All ingredients for the new range of infused olive oils from The Gift of Oil are grown on a family estate in the hills of Western Sicily, alongside the olive groves, and are picked fresh and pressed with the

olives within hours of being handpicked. This includes limes, lemons, mandarins, basil, rosemary garlic, ginger and chilli. Available from

Divine Distribution in 100ml sizes and gift sets.

O Ross & Ross Food has teamed up with fellow Cotswolds producer Cotswold Gold to produce BBQ Oils to cover the meat before cooking and to baste during grilling. The Original Oil is infused with smoke and garlic and the Spicy blend infused with chilli, charcoal and smoke.

The 100ml bottles come in a pack of 12 and are priced at £2.30 for trade.

O Bayin, one of the first

importers of food products from Myanmar to Europe, has built up a market in Ireland for its cold pressed and ethically sourced sesame and peanut oils, and is now looking for retailers in the UK. RRP is £4.50 per bottle.

O Seggiano’s extra virgin olive oil from southern Tuscany has been rebranded as Lunaio. It is still mainly made with the Olivastra Seggianese olives that grow around the village of Seggiano but now also uses a small amount of olives from the nearby Monte Amiate region.

Lunaio Olivastra Seggianese extra virgin olive oil is £14.25 for 500ml.

O Borderfields Gold, is a cold pressed rapeseed

Made in Kenya using locally grown Hass and Fuerte avocados, Crofts extra virgin avocado oil is a cold pressed oil ideal for high heat cooking. Crofts uses a pro-fair trade contract structure which ensures all farmers are well treated and well informed. RRP £5.49 for 250ml.

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www.croftsltd.com

The recently rebranded Kalamea extra virgin olive oil is now packaged in a 500ml premium glass bottle. Distributed

by Empire Bespoke Foods with an RRP of £3.99.

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www.empirebespokefoods.com

oil made with a specially selected seed and produced in small batch runs, is supplied in a specially designed bottle and offers a smooth, nutty flavour. RRP £6.99. www.thefinefoodangel.co.uk www.fromdorsetwithlove.co.uk www.divinedistribution.co.uk www.rossandrossfood.co.uk www.bayin.ie www.seggiano.com www.borderfieldsltd.co.uk

Reinos de Taifas oils are produced by a family who have been farming olive trees since 1700. It offers single variety, low cost EVOOs, including Picudo (500ml, wholesale £6) – grown in Castro del Río.

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www. reinosdetaifas.com/trade/

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

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Product Launches

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

WƌĞŵŝƵŵ ŶŐůŝƐŚ ƌĂƉĞƐĞĞĚ Žŝů ƐĞůĞĐƟŽŶ ĨƌŽŵ ĂǁĂƌĚ ǁŝŶŶŝŶŐ ƉƌŽĚƵĐĞƌ͕ ^ĐĂƌůĞƩ Θ DƵƐƚĂƌĚ͘ ǁǁǁ͘ƐĐĂƌůĞƩĂŶĚŵƵƐƚĂƌĚ͘ĐŽ͘ƵŬ

39

oils & vinegars

product update Qadisha Valley extra virgin organic olive oil is produced by a monastery in Lebanon where the olive groves have been farmed for centuries without fertilizers or chemicals. RRP for 500ml is £18.00 and for 250ml is £10.00. An extra bottle can be supplied for in-store tastings upon request.

O Aspall’s raw organic unfiltered cyder vinegar, launched in 2016, is made with a mix of whole organic dessert and cider apple and is unfiltered to retain the natural enzymes known O

as the mother.

RRP £2.79 for 500ml.

O Hellenic Agricultural Enterprises has recently introduced an ACAIA Organic extra virgin olive oil to its range of oils made from the native Kolovi olives,

The Artisan Olive Oil Company has added the organic and biodynamic extra virgin olive oil, Finca La Torre Hojiblanca, to its range with an RRP of £16.85 for 500ml. Also new to the range are olive oil pearls by Oro Bailen referred to as ‘vegetarian caviar’ and made from what is said to be one of the world’s best olive oils (2nd best 2017 by Evooleum) RRP £15.80 for 50g. Also new is olive oil marmalade, which contains 50% premium extra virgin olive oil and half the amount of sugar of a traditional marmalade.

RRP £8.20. www.artisanoliveoilcompany. com

products in brief Kokkinakis Premium Extra Virgin Olive Oil, a PDO oil, will be shipped to the UK ready for the shelves by the beginning of May. Available in 500ml bottles at €5.50 per unit.

O

Unfiltered and unpasteurised Willy’s Apple Cider Vinegar with The Mother (RRP £6.95) is made with apples from the farm’s 300-year-old untouched apple orchards, home to 48 varieties of apples. Apples are picked by hand from un-farmed orchards, gently pressed and then left to ferment to make an unfiltered cider. With the help of some fresh Herefordshire air, the cider turns into vinegar which also creates The Mother, a good and friendly bacteria which makes the vinegar cloudy. www.willychases.co.uk

which are hand-picked on the mountainous slopes of Lesvos. Also new to the range is the competitively priced Aeolian Olive with a RRP £7.50 for 750ml.

O New to market is Eliris, an organic singleestate extra virgin olive oil in a dark Italian glass with wood-top cork, a limitedrelease numbered harvest tag and finished with a hand-tied ribbon.

The 100ml format protects

the organoleptic and nutritional value and makes it suitable as a finishing oil for chefs, foodies and gifts.

RRP is £10.

O The 2016 harvest was only the second commercial harvest of Querubi French extra virgin olive oil. The farm, Domaine de Querubi, was planted in 2006 in the foothills of the French Pyrennees with local olive varieties: Poumal, Verdale, Oliviere and Piccholine.

Harvested and bottled by hand, unfiltered and unblended, the oil has a spicy, green taste thanks to the early harvesting.

Every bottle is wax-sealed to guarantee authenticity. £22.50 for a 500ml bottle.

Wildwood has a new range of balsamic, barrelaged vinegars, recently been released after five years in the oak. They are made using blossom, berries, herbs and seaweeds either organically grown or harvested from the wild on Ireland’s Atlantic coastline.

O OliveOlive, the new brand name for the Original Olive Oil Company, brings an extra virgin olive oil direct from the family farm in Cyprus, as well as three flavoured oils made with fresh basil, chillies & garlic, which are added to the mill and get pressed together with the olives. Trade price for 100ml of extra virgin olive oil is £2, flavoured olive oil is £2.50.

O

www.roseashfoods.com www.aspall.co.uk www.hae-gr.com www.elirisgreece.com www.querubi.fr/shop www.wildwoodvinegars.com www.oliveolive.co.uk

www.pasiphaeoliveoil.com

Newly available are La Cultivada Oils, produced by Arbequino Andaluz, a familyowned company in

O

Cordoba that produces oil from the arbequino olive trees. www.mediterraneanluxuryfoods. co.uk

Vallebona is offering a new Single estate Sardinian EVO harvest 2016 (Sardinia) olive oil.

Green and fruity, the extra virgin olive oil is cold pressed and suitable for dressing or drizzling.

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www.vallebona.co.uk

Until this year Palta Valle avocado oil was only available in its home country, Chile. Three kilos of avocado pulp, without the skin and stone, is cold-pressed for every 250ml bottle of oil.

O

www.paltavalle.com

The deep green, velvety oil from Pepo Papa is made from the first press of Hungarian pumpkin seeds. Rich in antioxidants and a good source of vitamins and minerals, it can be used in salads and with cheeses, soups and meat dishes.

Pipkin coconut oil, launched at the end of last year, is a cold pressed using handpicked organic, coconuts, and is suitable for cooking and baking. RRP 500ml £8.99.

www.hunfoods.com

www.pipkin.co.uk

O

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

43

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

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All you need to know.

Now all together.

For over 30 years, we’ve helped fine food businesses to grow and thrive through professional training. Our range of courses, taught by industry experts and practising deli owners, will help you gain the product and tasting knowledge, commercial insights and practical behind-thecounter skills you need to boost sales, and win and retain customers.

And now, you can find all that knowledge, support and expertise in one, new organisation.

The School of Fine Food brings together all our Guild of Fine Food training for the first time, offering courses across three key programmes to help you learn, be inspired and succeed in food retailing. The School will have two homes: the Guild of Fine Food HQ in Dorset; and new, dedicated premises in London. We will, of course, continue to take our courses on the road as well.

CHEESE PROGRAMME

DELI PROGRAMME

BUSINESS PROGRAMME

RETAIL – a standalone one-day course for deli, food hall and farm shop owners, managers and key counter staff. You’ll learn how cheese is made, how it should be sold, and taste over 40 cheeses to enhance your product knowledge.

We offer three separate courses, focusing on product knowledge, tasting and counter skills. You can take whichever you choose, in any order and at any time, according to your needs.

A development of our pioneering business course Retail Ready, the School of Fine Food Business Programme will offer a wider, deeper range of content through three new one-day workshops, allowing you to pick the most relevant course for you.

ACADEMY OF CHEESE (Level One) – a one-day course for professional and amateur enthusiasts who wish to gain the Academy of Cheese Level One certification. You’ll cover the whole Level One syllabus, including tasting 25 different cheeses.

ACADEMY OF CHEESE CONVERTER (Level One) – if you’ve previously completed the Retail course, this one-day session will help you apply your existing knowledge and understanding to fulfil the Level One requirements.

You’ll spend half the day learning about the 25 cheeses specified by the Academy – and the other half tasting them.

ACADEMY OF CHEESE (Level Two) – a one-day course for those wishing to progress to the Level Two certification. Through further, more in-depth tastings, you’ll add to your existing cheese knowledge, expertise and confidence.

These ‘bite-size’ experience days cover the basics about each product area, and are designed to inspire you to learn more. Each session includes tutored tastings and looks at in-store cross-selling opportunities.

DELI 1 Charcuterie Olive oil Beer & cider Meat slice training DELI 2 Pies, pasties, pâté Chocolate Fruit & vegetable preserves Merchandising DELI 3 Coffee Tea Biscuits & bread Customer service skills

RETAIL READY 1 – Planning your business. For aspiring fine food retail business owners who have not yet started training (though may have secured premises and funding).

RETAIL READY 2 – Getting your business going. For owners in their first one to two years of trading, and staff taking on or preparing for management roles.

RETAIL READY 3 – Moving the business on. For established owners and senior managers looking to review, refresh or reinvigorate their business, take it in new direction, or prepare an exit strategy.

SPONSORSHIP We have sponsorship opportunities available in all three programmes, giving your products and brand unique access to retail buyers and decision makers. For more details, email sally.coley@gff.co.uk

For more details of all School of Fine Food programmes, courses, fees and dates, visit gff.co.uk/training or contact jilly.sitch@gff.co.uk, +44 (0)1747 825200

If you’d like more information visit academyofcheese.org Vol.18 Issue 4 | April 2017

45

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

shelf talk Fine Cheese introduces Californian fruit crisps packs, promotions, people

Olive Branch gets dressed

By MICHAEL LANE

The Fine Cheese Co has partnered with US producer Dardiman’s California for the UK launch of a range of fruit crisps that can be used as cheeseboard accompaniments, food decorations or healthy snacks.

The five flavours – apple, tomato, pineapple, strawberry and blood orange – are all made from hand-selected Californiagrown fruit, with the exception of pineapples from Hawaii.

Available from this month in large (RRP £4.95) and snack (£1.95) packs, the crisps are made by slowly dehydrating thinly sliced ripe fruit, without preservatives, additives or sugar. The rinds are left on to retain maximum flavour, nutrients and vitamins.

Each snack pack contains 25-30 calories per portion and every crisp is suitable for vegan, kosher and raw diets.

Greek food specialist Olive Branch has added three dressings to its selection of products.

The Greek salad (RRP £3.39), orange balsamic, and fig balsamic dressings (both RRP £3.99) all come in cases of 6x250ml bottles and are made using Olive Branch’s Cretan olive oil and vinegar made at the Agia Triada monastery. www.myolivebranch.co.uk

what’s new...

Snacking aside, The Fine Cheese Co recommends using the crisps to decorate cakes, top ice cream or even as part of canapés but they will really excel paired with cheese.

“As a cheese company we are always on the look out for new partners for cheese,” said co-founder of The Fine Cheese Co AnnMarie Dyas. “Try the sweet

yet savoury tomato crisp with a full-flavoured Brie de Meaux, the apple crisp with a raw milk cheddar and the pineapple crisp with an aged Gruyère – heavenly, delicate and super-fruity”.

The fruit crisps are the second US-made preserved fruit product that The Fine Cheese Co has set up an exclusive import deal for in the last year.

It launched a range of pressed fruit slices, made by Grace & I, last September.

The slices can be cut into cubes and served as part of a cheese board or served with cheese as an aperitif.

The Bath-based company has also begun importing artisan cheeses from the States, branding the range American Originals. www.finecheese.co.uk

Take a trip down the N7 with gift packs from Provençal producer London-based distributor The Artisan Olive Oil Company is now carrying a range of trio gift sets inspired by the N7, a traditional gastronomic route for holidaymakers in France.

The range from Provençal producer Aix&Terra includes a set of tapenades (black olive, green olive and grilled aubergine) and jams for pairing with cheese (olive

Love Cocoa has just launched a new gin & tonic bar as well as two coffee bars working in partnership with Pact Coffee.

Founder James Cadbury – a descendant of the Cadbury family – recently secured a listing with Fortnum & Mason, nearly 150 years after his greatgreat grandfather first secured a product there. www.lovecocoa.com

jam, Solliès fig jam and green tomato jam).

Completing the line-up is a selection of appetisers: red bell pepper dip, artichoke spread and sundried tomato spread.

The sets are all packaged in sleeves that depict the N7 route and pinpoint the farming communities that supply Aix&Terra.

Speciality tea company English Tea Shop has announced that its range of 500 teas and tisanes are now 100% organic due to consumer demand for organic products. www.etsteas.co.uk

www.artisanoliveoilcompany. com

Here’s the scoop on Yee Kwan East Asian inspired ice cream producer Yee Kwan has updated its branding, retail packaging and website.

Made using Peak District milk and cream, the gelato-style flavours include matcha green tea, yuzu and chocolate miso.

Available via Stratford Fine Foods in 8x500ml tubs (trade £31.18, RRP £5.95 each) and 4 litre tubs for foodservice.

Snack brand, Nomads, has entered the UK market in response to demand for healthier, eat-on-the-go, gluten free snacks. RRP £1.79 for a pack of three datebased snacks..

www.yeekwan.com

Looking for suppliers accredited by the Guild of Fine Food? Follow the logo

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

47

shelf talk

packs, promotions, people

chef’s selection FOOD WRITER CLARE HARGREAVES INTERVIEWS TOP BRITISH CHEFS ABOUT THEIR FAVOURITE STORECUPBOARD PRODUCTS

Alastair Ross Chef-patron The Oak Tree Inn, Hutton Magna, County Durham Born in Arrochar, near Loch Lomond, Ross went to London in the early ’90s to work in a number of celebrated kitchens, including The Savoy, The Lanesborough and Leith’s restaurant in Notting Hill.

After opening the kitchens at Adam Street Private Members’ Club he took over The Oak Tree Inn in County Durham in 2002. www.theoaktreehutton.co.uk

Merangz drop a few sizes Flower & White has created a new format for its Merangz brand. The Mini Drops (100g, RRP £2.95) will come in three varieties: chocolate (fat- and dairy-free), white chocolate & raspberry (low fat) and a rainbow fruit (fat- and dairy-free) mix of strawberry, lemon, passion fruit and black cherry flavours. Swissbaked in the same way as the Merangz Giants, Bites, Pavs, the new Drops have been developed to tap into growing demand for snack foods. www.flowerandwhite.co.uk

what’s new...

The Wasabi Company fresh yuzu juice I love this hand-squeezed Japanese yuzu juice – yuzu is less sharp and harsh than lemon and has a lovely delicate flavour. I use it in petit fours truffles, blended with double cream and chocolate. I also make an ice cream with yuzu and honey which works brilliantly. In addition I combine honey with yuzu to make the dressing for a salad to go with pork belly and black pudding; the yuzu cuts through the fattiness of the meat and takes the edge off it. www.thewasabicompany.co.uk

Eurovanille tonka bean I heard about tonka bean about 14 years ago by reading cookbooks, which is one of my passions. I grate the beans finely into or onto pannacottas, ice creams and other milk puddings – I like its smoky, ‘burnt’ taste. The beans provide an unusual twist. Another way I use it is to put a tonka bean in a sealed tin or Kilner jar with uncooked pudding rice; the rice takes on the flavour of the tonka bean, rather like truffles with eggs. www.eurovanille.com

Tim’s Dairy has added five lines to its range of yoghurts made from British milk and cream. Its new thick set biolive Greek Style yoghurt will be available in natural (no added sugar), passion fruit and coconut flavours. All will be available in 450g pots while the two flavoured versions will also be sold in 150g.

Yutaka roasted seaweed Sushi Nori This seaweed is roasted so it’s dry and comes in wafer thin sheets, rather like gelatine. I soak it in water or fish stock, then blend it with butter to make a seaweed butter. It’s delicious and beautifully salty.

Another way I use it is to slice it and put it inside fish before grilling it; it works well with fish such as salmon and turbot. Sometimes I soak the seaweed, to make it more pliable, then wrap it round a piece of fish before steaming.

www.timsdairy.co.uk

www.yutaka.co

The creator of Rysp crispbreads, PlainTasty has now created a savoury granola called Toppå.

The mix of seeds, rye flakes and rye sourdough comes in three flavours – lime, seaweed and chilli & lime – and can be added to soups and salads or eaten as a snack. All varieties are free from dairy, wheat, baker’s yeast and added sugars. www.plaintasty.com

Elanthy extra virgin Greek olive oil I’ve used this extra virgin cold-pressed oil ever since I started at The Oak Tree Inn – I was sent a sample and fell in love with it straight away. It’s really strong, and bitter, with a sharp pepper taste at the back of the throat. On a plate it’s a wonderful bright limey green. I might use it in a dressing, or smear it on a piece of fish or meat before putting it on the grill. Its lovely pepperiness infuses into the flesh. We buy the oil in threelitre cans. www.elanthy.com

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Peanut & pumpkin and peanut & coconut varieties are the latest varieties to join Meridian Foods nut bar range. The 40g bars (RRP £1.19) – which feature Meridian’s popular peanut butter – are both dairy-, soya- and gluten-free as well as suitable for vegans.

Vilux Dijon mustard This mustard has a lovely smooth flavour and exactly the balance of heat that one wants – some mustards can be too aggressive and burn your mouth so that you can't taste anything afterwards. I use it (along with dill etc) in the marinade that I use to cure fish. It’s great in dressings too. I buy it through Delifresh, who are based in Bradford in West Yorkshire.

www.meridianfoods.co.uk

www.vilux.com

May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

Looking for suppliers accredited by the Guild of Fine Food? Follow the logo

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Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

49

shelf talk

packs, promotions, people All of A Little Bit’s products have new branding, including the new ambient dips and pasta sauces

what’s trending NICK BAINES KEEPS YOU UP-TO-DATE WITH THE NEWEST DISHES, FLAVOURS AND INNOVATION IN FOOD AND DRINK Dumplings Instagram is teeming with pictures of various Asian dumplings, varying from Tibetan momos and Japanese gyoza, to Korean mantou. However, it is Chinese steamed dumplings, like the shengjian bao from London’s Shenghigh, that are getting the most social media love right now. Expect a lot of consumer attention in

A Little Bit to do quite a lot

BY MICHAEL LANE

this market, not to mention big players getting in on the action. Recipe kits, steamers and frozen dumpling wrappers can equip home cooks with everything they need to make authentic versions at home.

Mezcal and tonic, anyone?

Consumer interest in gin continues to soar and has opened up a wider market for craft spirits. And, given the recent popularity of Mexican food, mezcal is now worth a closer look. While tequila is made only from the blue agave plant and has become notorious as a ‘slammer’, mezcal is treated more like single malt whisky and is made from any of the 30 other varieties growing in the state of Oaxaca. This gives the spirit a wide range of unique, smoky flavours, ranging from dark and sweet, through to light and salty. Brands like QuiQuiRiQui work with single estate producers in Mexico who nurture slow growing varieties of agave like espadin. Although traditionally sipped on its own, many bars are now serving up long drinks with mezcal using tonic water and ginger ale, making it an ideal supplement to your gin offering.

The next sriracha Now that sriracha has become a mainstream favourite, with the iconic Huy Fong brand now available in UK supermarkets, the hipsters have found a new fix for their I-likedthis-before-it-was-cool chilli kick. Gochujang is a Korean chilli paste made with fermented soy beans and is being used to marinate meats and pep-up rice bowls in places like Busan BBQ, and Caravan at Kings Cross. The paste can be thinned with ketchup to make a unique spicy sauce that harnesses all the funky fermented flavours you’d expect.

Available from a number of Asian wholesalers including Japan Centre, multifunctional gochujang could be a hit during the summer barbecue season.

A Little Bit Food Company has not only rebranded its range of sauces and dressings but it has also boosted its line-up with a selection of ambient dips and two new pasta sauces.

The new-look packaging emphasises the brand’s horticultural philosophy and its founder Sophie Lane Fox’s focus on using fresh herbs and all-natural ingredients.

Although made with

fresh ingredients, the producer’s three new dips do not require refrigeration and have a 12-month shelf-life. Fresh thyme & butternut squash, fresh oregano & aubergine and fresh mint, beetroot & feta all come in 250g jars.

Following the success of A Little Bit’s spicy tomato & sage pasta sauce, it has developed two additional versatile cooking sauces in 250g jars: fresh basil & tomato and fresh oregano, olive & tomato. Both are

Copper Rivet sets about producing Kent’s first single malt whisky

BY ANDREW DON

Dockyard Gin’s producer The Copper Rivet Distillery has just taken delivery of 70 Bourbon barrels from the US to begin the production process for Masthouse whisky, which it says will be Kent’s first single malt.

Masthouse will be made following the strict traditions and regulations laid down for Scotch whisky, which requires the spirit to be brewed and distilled on the same site to qualify as a single malt. The malt will feature local spring barley grown by Burden Bros

especially for the distillery, which is based at the Chatham Maritime Marina.

More whiskies are being planned and the distillery has also started work on another small-batch product, its English grain spirit, Son of a Gun – a clear spirit with a sweet, vanilla whisky flavor distilled from locally grown grains.

Masthouse Whisky is expected for initial release in 2020 and the first batch of Son of a Gun was expected to be on sale late in April. www.copperrivetdistillery. com

additive- and wheat-free.

“There is something so deliciously rewarding about harvesting your own fresh produce and I wanted to convey this in A Little Bit’s updated brand identity,” said Sophie Lane Fox. “Our key message is that we only ever use fresh herbs, as it makes a big impact on the final flavour. The new packaging illustrates the botanicals and nurturing aspect that are essential to the finished product.” www.alittlebit.co.uk

what’s new...

Somerset’s Brown Cow Organics has just launched two live organic vegetable yoghurts.

Made with milk from the company’s own Guernsey herd, the organic carrot & turmeric and organic beetroot varieties are both low in sugar www.browncoworganics.co.uk

Belfast-based Suki Tea has added two teas to its dessert range. Turkish Delight tea has a base of high grade Rwandan tea blended with cocoa nibs, rose oil and rose petals, while green tea mint is a blend of Gunpowder green tea and Moroccan mint. www.suki-tea.com

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

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www.bizerba.com Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

51

shelf talk

The Kindreds’ spirits Artisan gin is doing the business for delis and farm shops up and down the country but one retailer in Carmarthenshire has taken it to a new level. FFD visited Llandeilo’s Ginhaus Deli to find out how its founders have incorporated more than 350 different gins into its deli-café set-up.

W

hen Mike and Kate Kindred first met in a pub on Market Street in Llandeilo, I doubt anyone could have predicted that they would be sat in almost the exact same spot some 20 years later.

Back in 1997, Mike was the bar manager at The Three Tuns, “a proper drinkers’ pub”, and Kate was a customer. Fast forward two decades, including a few years away from their hometown, and the couple are indeed back where it all began.

While they can’t prop up the bar anymore (the pub closed in 2002), drinking is still very much a part of the building’s current existence, as Ginhaus Deli.

A deli-café/gin bar is not something FFD has encountered before – and it is just as much the former as it is the latter – but the Kindreds’ concept is thriving in this

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

relatively remote Carmarthenshire market town.

There are still traces of the original pub, such as the smokestained textured ceiling above the deli, but the gloom is warmed by a charming hotchpotch of furniture, signs and homemade light fittings.

The whole space feels both modern and old at the same time – a bit like the spirit formerly known as Mother’s Ruin.

Given the renaissance of gin, the Kindreds’ timing was very good. But

Deli of the Month INTERVIEW BY MICHAEL LANE

not necessarily intentional.

Mike, also an experienced builder, was looking to get out of the trade in 2014 and the lease on a deli within the since-converted and partitioned Three Tuns had come up.

His sister-in-law and brother now owned the building and suggested he and Kate take up the lease. But before they had even signed the documents the other retail units in the pub also became available.

So, Mike ironically found himself knocking down walls to prepare the floorspace for the forthcoming larger-than-intended deli.

It was only when the Kindreds were searching for a name and branding that the idea for Ginhaus was born.

“We were looking into the history of the street and this building and we read that there was a gin distillery on Market Street, hundreds

of years ago,” says Kate.

The couple started researching gin and soon found themselves making friends with start-up distilleries, like Burleigh’s in Leicestershire and The Old Bakery in North London, and piecing together what has become a wall of different bottles in the shop.

“We started off with about 30 gins,” says Mike. “We’ve got about 360 now. We don’t sell any other spirit, just gin.”

There are no mainstream brands in the line-up because Ginhaus cannot compete on price with the local supermarkets for gins like Bombay Sapphire and Gordon’s. The collection spans a variety of price points (some even exceed £200 a bottle) and geographical locations.

There’s still room for Welsh distillers like Da Mhile, a sister business of Teifi Cheese, and Forager’s from

deli of the month

vital statistics Where? Market Street, Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire Opened: July 2014 Opening hours: 8am-5pm (Mon-Thurs), 8am-10pm (Fri & Sat) Staff: 7 full-time, 7 part-time Floorspace: 1,000 sq ft

must-stocks l Coaltown

Coffee strawberry gin jam (Miranda’s Preserves) l Happy Belly scotch eggs l Rhydlewis smoked salmon l Alex Gooch artisan bread l Albert Rees Carmarthenshire ham l Silver & Green piripiri stuffed olives l The Baker’s Pig salami l Dash Seafood Pembrokeshire crab l Gwenlas dairy milk and butter l Foraging Fox beetroot ketchup l Snowdonia Black bomber l Trealy Farm merguez salami l Ginhaus

Snowdonia.

The deli has such a specialist reputation now that both start-up and foreign distilleries will approach the Kindreds on social media. Often they get hold of first batches and, in some cases, Ginhaus is one of a handful of UK stockists – alongside esteemed London bottle shops and food halls – for a brand.

“It’s nice to be recognised and not be a big company in London,” says Mike. “We are stuck out here, pretty much as far west as you can go, but we can still do it.”

Even if other independents reading this think stocking so many spirits is beyond them, Ginhaus is a stellar example of how to sell successfully, regardless of volume.

On the bar side, it sells a regularly changing gin tasting board of three shots with all the trimmings.

The board includes tasting for each gin to encourage “trainspotterish” note-taking from regulars, who can then build-up their knowledge and enthusiasm.

When the deli is open on a Friday and Saturday night, customers

can buy whole bottles (plus £20 corkage) and they’ll also get a pinney plus all the kit they need to run their own little bar-within-a-bar at their table.

But Ginhaus does roaring trade in off-sales, too. And that is partly because their approach is fearless.

Mike shrugs at the thought of having some £4,000-worth of glass bottles on shelves within reach of

just put it on pour with the rest of them.’ It’s not a big deal.”

Given that samples are only a quarter of a shot glass, wastage and losses are negligible but the customers are engaged, Mike says, and they will come back.

“If people come in here, especially now, they know they’re coming for a bottle of gin. They want something different.”

For the Kindreds, selling gin is just like selling any other deli product.

“The ones that are easy to sell are the ones where we’ve been and met the distiller,” says Kate Kindred.

“We know the story, we know about the botanicals and we’ve seen where they’ve picked them.”

While gin is obviously the shop’s USP, the deli itself is tended just as enthusiastically by Kate and the result is a cut above the average.

The cheese selection is a mix of revered locals, like the Goudastyle Teifi and Caws Cenarth’s

must-stock gins l Burleigh's l Da

signature Mhile seaweed

We started off with about 30 gins.

We’ve got about 360 now. We don’t sell any other spirit, just gin. customers (“We’ve got cameras”) and he’s not shy of giving tasters, either.

“We have 40-50 gins on pour [from the bar]. If there’s a bottle customers haven’t seen before, at £60-£70 a bottle, I’d hate to think they’d pay that much and get home and not like it.”

“So I say ‘I’ll open it and you can try it. If you like it, that’s fine, it’s the bottle for you. If you don’t then I’ll

l Old

Bakery

l Snowdonia l Masons

Forager's Yorkshire Dry

Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

53

shelf talk

washed rind Golden Cenarth, and Continental classics such as Brie De Meaux. There are often Spanish cheeses from specialist wholesaler Ultracomida and a few Swiss oddities from Borough Market’s Jumi.

The counter offer also includes Happy Belly scotch eggs, self-service nuts from Olives Et Al and a variety of self-service chilled antipasti in a separate chiller.

Unusually, the charcuterie selection stands at more than 20 different lines and it’s not just European staples. There are several Italian salamis but Ginhaus stopped selling Parma Ham a while ago, instead going for a duo of Serrano and Carmarthenshire ham for slicing on the counter. Cannon & Cannon supplies them with some British lines, including Moons Green beer sticks, and Wales is also wellrepresented with salamis from Trealy Farm and The Baker’s Pig. At one time, Ginhaus stocked only British charcuterie but it was just too much of a hard sell given the step-up in price from European products.

“The British charcuterie scene has such good products but it’s really hard when customers say ‘I can get pre-packed salami down the Co-op for £1.50’,” says Mike.

“If I really love something, we get it in,” adds Kate. “I am passionate about them but

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May 2017 | Vol.18 Issue 4

deli of the month

sometimes people here don’t actually want to pay more for it.

We’re learning that you can’t always do what you want to do.”

That said, Ginhaus has found a way to carry 50-plus cheeses and more than 20 charcuterie lines with minimal wastage – Mike estimates it’s just 2% across the whole business. After a year of trading, the Kindreds switched the bar’s evening menu from tapas to pizza, allowing it to manage the levels of the standard cured meats on the counter.

And despite the basic setup in the kitchen – two electric hobs and one electric oven, no gas – the bar’s chef, Becky Guillet,

and cakes throughout the day. On Saturdays, this rises to 100 and punters often have to queue for tables as no bookings are taken.

Many of these dining customers are sent back to the deli counter via meat and cheese boards, which always come with a small ‘On your plate today…’ card identifying every single thing they are sampling, including the bread, the crackers and the dressing.

“Customers don’t even ask how much it is then because they’ve already decided they want it,” says Kate. “They’ve tried it, they know they like it, and that’s it.”

On the ambient front, Ginhaus’s minimal shelf space accommodates

If people come in here, especially now, they know they’re coming for a bottle of gin offers an outlet for pretty much anything approaching its dates on the counter. She is updated on what might be coming her way every day and devises dishes to sit alongside other specials that showcase the meat from Cooper the Butcher across the street. FFD was lucky enough to sample the faggot & bacon sandwich on Alex Gooch’s artisan bread, served with Cumberland sauce.

The bar is a big driver of footfall, serving at least 40 covers every weekday lunchtime as well as coffee

a mix of well-known-but-modern deli brands like The Garlic Farm, The Foraging Fox and Eat 17 Bacon Jam as well as local items like Coaltown Coffee, Calon Lân condiments and a range of preserves made by Miranda’s – including its own-branded gin jams made in collaboration with Burleigh’s.

“It’s quite low on the deli at the moment,” says Kate. “We’ve had that period where you stock up for Christmas, like all delis, then we have this lull before we stock up again for Easter.”

Before the deli was remodelled and moved from facing the front door to the end of the building (another building job carried out

by Mike) in January 2016, there was a lot more shelving but they’ve managed to maintain similar levels of stock without it. At one point the Kindreds even considered moving the deli into another part of the old pub building in favour of more tables for customers eating in.

“As much as we love having the deli it’s not the money-maker. But it feeds the kitchen so we have to think about the amount of area we give to the deli and get that balance right.”

Mike adds: “If we got rid of it, we wouldn’t be what we are.

This is what we set out to do, this other side has just grown. We quite like the idea of running a deli and closing at 5!”

During holiday season the two sides of the business contribute evenly to turnover and Christmas and Easter normally see the deli beat the bar but most of the time sales are split 70:30 in the bar’s favour.

However you look at Ginhaus, what the Kindreds have created in a former pub in west Wales is successful and pretty unique. And it’s hard to see how it could be completely replicated elsewhere. No wonder they seem so attached to the building. www.ginhaus.co.uk

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CRACKING CHRISTMAS WORKSHOP 10am-1pm, Monday 26 June, Hall 2, Yorkshire Event Centre

This popular workshop takes place every June at the Harrogate Fine Food Show and runs from 10am-1pm, allowing plenty of time to visit the show.

Getting your sales right in December can save your year. Come and learn how you can crack Christmas trading from two retailers who have 30 successful festive seasons between them…

What will you learn • What a 2% increase in margin can do to your profitability • How to extend your Christmas sales into November • How you can play the cash flow game to your advantage • How to create a business plan specifically for this time of year • How to make sure your food shop is top of your customers Christmas list • How to manage wastage and stock season-specific products For just £65.00 pp plus vat you can get Christmas all wrapped up!

Limited places available so call Jilly Sitch on 01747 825200 or email jilly.sitch@gff.co.uk to make a reservation now.

www.gff.co.uk |

@guildoffinefood | #harrogateffs Vol.18 Issue 4 | May 2017

55

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18/04/2017 13:40