FFD May 2015

DELI OF THE MONTH 48

VIEWPOINT 11

“I can’t advocate recessions, but they do make you look at your bottom line,” says Richard Mayo

Don’t kick the wholesaler: shops don’t always pass on price cuts, says Paul Hargreaves

SHELF LIFE SHOWDOWN 4 Steven Salamon faces a huge bill for shelf life testing – and fears other delis could too May 2015 · Vol 16 Issue 4

SMART COOKIES Short and snappy, buttery and crumbly, we bring you biscuits for every occasion CHEF’S SELECTION 42 Why Steven Edwards, professional MasterChef champion in 2013, keeps Moons Green guanciale, Weald Smokery smoked eel and Goodwood’s Levin Down cheese in his larder

FLAKING IT 12 Halen Môn’s Alison and David LeaWilson on their onecompany ‘Campaign for Real Salt’ – and the competition it has spawned

NEWS CHEESEWIRE CHARCUTERIE BISCUITS SPECIALITY OILS SHELF TALK

4 15 21 29 35 41

co A S nt N PE ac D CI F t y LA AL OR ou TE O r l ST FF oc E al PR RS w IC ho E le S sa le r

TRADITIONAL DANISH BLUE A FRESH TAKE ON A POWERFUL CLASSIC

lue anish B art D ® o ll e t us T Cas sparag A & e s Chee

Castello® Danish Blue with Cold Lamb & Basil

Castello® Danish Blue served on a Smörgåsbord

Crafted in Denmark and PGI certified, Castello Traditional Danish Blue is a creatively crafted, powerful classic with a lot to say for itself.

Sharply piquant and slightly salty, its tangy bite gives a full-flavoured finish that really gets people talking.

For more expert thinking, visit castello.co.uk for serving inspiration and great recipes from our food and drink experts Trine Hahnemann and Matt Day.

100g & 3Kg available

opinion

What’s new this month:

M

Supplier competition. The winner ore muddying of the waters was due to be announced days after between ‘speciality’ and FFD went to press, but both Foraging mainstream this month with Fox and Manfood – two of the most news that a score of British fine food talked-about start-ups of the last brands have gone on-shelf in M&S as year or so – were in line for a listing part of its artisan range. with the online supermarket and a Compared with what Waitrose big package of marketing support. does with speciality products it’s To target a new brand like Foraging nothing. But it does represent around Fox – my own pick of the launches at 170 more high-footfall outlets where Olympia last September – seems the shoppers can now pick up brands ultimate in cherry-picking. that might once have been exclusive We go around these particular to independents. houses in just about every issue of Up to a point, as ever, indies FFD – small businesses that want to need to hold their nerve. As Nigel become bigger businesses and can’t Chandler of Garsons Farm Shop (April’s Deli of the Month) pointed out, For Ocado to target Foraging Waitrose is actually Fox – my pick of the launches a rationalising out many Olympia last September – seems of its more niche the ultimate in cherry-picking brands. Looking round our local store in resist the lure of the multiple. And Gillingham, Dorset, the reduction in after spending three hours in the choice is actually visible. company of Halen Môn’s David and Trouble is, of course, that what Alison Lea-Wilson last month, at their Waitrose is still doing is cherryundeniably impressive new £1.25m picking the best-sellers from each ‘saltcote’ on Anglesey (see p12), range and leaving the indie sector I’m reminded that even successful with the tail. M&S, you could say, speciality brands need to keep the is doing the same thing – it doesn’t pennies rolling in. need to cull any speciality brands, “We’re not making salt out of since it never had them before. It babies,” Alison told me at one point, can just take a few dozen of the as if I was accusing her of being the top sellers and milk devil incarnate for selling Halen Môn those for everything as an ingredient to Pepsico-owned they’re worth. crisp maker Walkers.

We also And while Walkers’ Market Deli report this month crisps and Green & Black’s chocolate (p5) that Ocado both feature Anglesey sea salt, so too has just held does Nom Nom chocolate – a new its second West Wales start-up run by 21-yearBritain’s old Liam Burgess. His salted caramel Next with smoked Halen Môn is one of Top the best things I’ve tasted this year.

Oh, the moral dilemma...

p31

p23

p37 p24

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p29

p15

Editor’s choice

Selected by MICHAEL LANE Deputy editor

Quinteassential tea boxes MICK WHITWORTH Editor

www.quinteassential.co.uk

Piddington jams www.piddingtonjam.co.uk

EDITORIAL

GENERAL ENQUIRIES

editorial@gff.co.uk

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

Editor: Mick Whitworth Deputy editor: Michael Lane Art director: Mark Windsor Editorial production: Richard Charnley Contributors: Clare Hargreaves, Patrick McGuigan, Lynda Searby

ADVERTISING advertise@gff.co.uk Sales manager: Sally Coley Advertisement sales: Becky Stacey, Ruth Debnam Published by Great Taste Publications Ltd and the Guild of Fine Food Ltd Managing director: John Farrand Marketing director: Tortie Farrand Chairman: Bob Farrand Director: Linda Farrand Operations & Guild membership: Charlie Westcar, Karen Price, Jilly Sitch, Claire Powell Accounts: Stephen Guppy, Denise Ballance, Julie Coates

Guild of Fine Food, Guild House, 23b Kingsmead Business Park, Shaftesbury Road, Gillingham, Dorset SP8 5FB United Kingdom Fine Food Digest is published 11 times a year and is available on subscription for £45pa inclusive of post and packing.

Printed by: Blackmore, Dorset, UK © Great Taste Publications Ltd and The Guild of Fine Food Ltd 2015. 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. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations.

For regular news updates from the industry's favourite magazine visit:

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There’s been some debate about innovation, or the lack of it, in fine food (see last month’s and this month’s Viewpoint columns) but I don’t think it’s time to panic just yet.

There have been plenty of attention-grabbing products crossing my desk recently, such as Quinteassential’s cubes of loose tea. Not only do they look great but the effort to enhance the experience of tea-drinking actually pays off. The QR code (which links to music to time your brew by) is a nice touch while the assemble-your-own tea bags are both fun and faff-reducing. More than half the range boasts Great Taste awards, too.

I thought I had my winner until, at the last minute, we opened some jjars of p Piddington Jam. Apricot cot & rosemary and strawberry & black pepper should not work but they do, in a remarkable way. What’s more, the flavours are robust st hat enough to suggest that they could be deployed ed in cooking as well as on toast.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a tie.

p42

p41

www.gff.co.uk/ffd

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Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

3

fine food news A row between Cardiff deli Wally’s and its EHO could cost it thousands – and have wider implications

Will Salamon’s shelf life dispute signal testing time for all delis?

A Cardiff deli owner has warned that sales of cheese and charcuterie could be “wiped out” if guidance issued by his EHO on the display life of unpackaged products is applied nationally.

Steven Salamon, owner of longestablished Wally’s Delicatessen, has been told he must sell unwrapped cheeses and charcuterie on his counter within three days of them being opened, despite official guidance from the Guild of Fine Food detailing much longer display lives.

The shop’s EHO argued that the Guild’s guidance, which is based on microbiological testing and procedures followed by supermarkets, was not valid because they applied to different business with different food safety systems.

Salamon has been unable to secure sufficient guidance on display lives from his suppliers, so he is now faced with a choice between paying hundreds of pounds for his own microbiological testing or selling products within three days of them being first cut into.

“This is an issue which is not going to go away,” said Salamon.

“If it is happening here it will soon crop up elsewhere.

“The independent deli fresh goods trade could be wiped out in one stroke if it does not get to grips with this issue.”

Salamon added that suppliers needed to provide retailers with better information. “I have had enormous difficulty in getting suppliers to commit to display life guidance.

“There is some generic information available from some cheese wholesalers, but this is not very precise, while charcuterie suppliers can provide even less. The

Matthew Horwood

By PATRICK McGUIGAN

Steven Salamon: ‘Enormous difficulty’ getting shelf life advice from suppliers

costs of doing our own testing on each product are enormous,” he said.

“The cheese and cold meats industry is severely deficient in this area, particularly the Continental charcuterie industry. It seems the availability of evidence supporting product display lives is random, inconsistent, or completely lacking.

Surely this should be a mandatory requirement for manufacturers to provide this information?”

The Guild of Fine Food has contacted the Specialist Cheesemakers Association to see if it can include shelflife guidance for retailers as part of its Primary Authority partnership with Cornwall council, which covers food hygiene and standards in specialist cheesemaking in a new Assured Code of Practice.

Guild chairman Bob Farrand said Cardiff’s decision to reject the Guild’s current guidance was “unreasonable” and criticised

inconsistencies in how rules are applied nationally.

“Does Cardiff seriously think that every individual Tesco or Sainsbury store works exactly to the guidelines from their home authority any more or less than independent food shops might or might not?” he said.

Life after the knife: Rowcliffe suggests the following display shelf lives from the point at which a whole cheese is first cut: Blue cheese (eg Stilton): 7-9 days Mould ripened cheese (eg Brie): 6-8 days Hard cheese (eg cheddar): 16-20 days This assumes appropriately high standards of hygiene, wrap and temperature control.

“The problem is the constant variation in the way regulations are interpreted by different areas.

Cardiff is insisting on a three-day shelflife on all open fresh food whereas in Kensington Parmigiano Reggiano may be stored out of refrigeration and with up to 28-day display life.”

He added that all food business are governed by exactly the same handling, monitoring and storage temperatures, meaning procedures followed by supermarket deli counters should also apply to independents.

“To believe each product might behave in a unique fashion and therefore requires individual testing by every food retailer is not only unreasonable and unnecessary, it is also guaranteed to undermine the way food is sold throughout the UK,” he said.

A spokesman for Cardiff council told FFD that EHOs deal with each business individually taking into account the types of foods being handled and the food safety management procedures in place.

He also cited a Food Standards Agency factsheet on listeria, which states that chilled ready-to-eat foods must be used within two days of opening unless the manufacturers’ instructions state otherwise.

“National retailers assess each deli product that they sell to extensive product testing to carefully calculate the product life,” he said.

“These calculations are based on the particular business circumstances, storage, handling including the product specifications themselves. Given this, it isn’t credible to apply this information to similar products in another business – as the results are unique to that business.”

Rowcliffe’s view: ‘We have to give guidelines with a disclaimer’ Jo Mason, technical and commercial director at cheese supplier Rowcliffe, told FFD: “Open life of cheeses depends on a number of factors including individual product, its maturity, how it’s handled and how it’s kept. This makes it hard to give specific guidance – and why you will receive different advice from different suppliers.

“Our guidelines are approximate and we have to give them with a disclaimer, as we can’t vouch for how an individual outlet handles and stores products. Correct hygiene and

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

temperature controls are vital, of course.”

While it is common for EHOs to query shelflife of ‘loose’ cheese and charcuterie, Mason said guidance given by Rowcliffe or the Guild of Fine Food is usually considered

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We can’t vouch for how individual outlets handle products Jo Mason, Rowcliffe

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acceptable for ‘due diligence’. “Three days normally applies to smaller retail pre-packs with modified atmosphere or vacuum packaging, which are opened by the consumer, but it’s often inappropriate – and unworkable – to apply that to whole cheeses or charcuterie,” she told FFD. “The limiting factor of open life on many ripened cheeses is organoleptic, not microbiological. They will generally deteriorate in terms of appearance, texture and flavour rather than being a microbiological risk.”

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Seaweed and salt feature as M&S nds moves in on speciality brands

By MICK WHITWORTH

Mara seaweed, Suki tea, Halen Môn sea salt and Ditty’s oatcakes are among a clutch of fine food brands going on-shelf in Marks & Spencer as the multiple lists a selection of British specialities under their producers’ names for the first time.

Famed for the strength of its own-brand food offer, M&S has only previously carried overseas brands under their own names in its artisan range.

While the small range is hardly on a par with Waitrose, the move means a second higher-end supermarket is now treading on the toes of independent delis and farm shops.

M&S product development manager Melissa Webb said: “We’re really proud of the latest collection of artisan, branded foods. This is the first time we’ve featured anything from the UK, and from April there

will be over 20 new foods ds and ingredients from great eat sh suppliers across the British Isles.” se Mara Seaweed’s dulse flakes join a range on sale le in 173 M&S food halls across the UK – one of four products featuring n seaweed that have been listed. The others are seaweed oakcakes and water biscuits from Stag Bakeries on the Isle of Lewis, and ship’s biscuitss from Pembrokeshire Beach Food Co. Mara co-founder and d chief executive Fiona Houston said: “Launching as a branded product in Marks & Spencer is a huge step for us, and shows that seaweed is now firmly on the British menu.”

Great British BBQ rub and bloody mary rub (an FFD Editors’

Has Ocado sunk its teeth into the Fox? Foraging Fox’s beetroot ketchup – one of the standout launches at last year's Speciality & Fine Food Fair – was among five finalists in the second annual Britain’s Next Top Supplier competition run by Ocado.

In April, Foraging Fox founders Frankie Fox and Desiree Parker joined entrepreneurs from preserves maker Manfood, confectioner Belinda Clark, Meg Rivers Bakery and Atom Beers in a Dragon’s Den style pitch to the online supermarket’s chairman Lord Stuart Rose, top chef Tom Kerridge and last year’s winner, Hannah Rhodes of craft brewery Hiver Beers.

The 2015 winner, announced this month, gets a listing with Ocado, a £20,000 marketing package and one-to-one mentoring sessions.

CRAFT AND DESIGN: Craft London, a stylish new restaurant, bar and café in the Greenwich Peninsula development, features a shop stocked with charcuterie, freshly roasted coffee beans, pickles and bread, all made in-house.

Craft is a partnership between chef and food writer Stevie Parle and interior design brand Tom Dixon.

It kicked off with a café-roastery last October and has now added a restaurant, rooftop bar and the shop.

Other retail lines include London Postcode honeys from Barnes & Webb, a London-based ‘beehive rental’ company that has installed hives at Craft London as well as on other sites across the Capital. Each host site receives a percentage of the honey from the urban hives.

Stevie Parle said: “On the one hand we’re opening a New British restaurant, but that really doesn’t convey the scale of what we’re doing. There’s a café, a restaurant, a cocktail bar and a shop over three floors of an amazing new building. The café and shop have their own roaster, the restaurant a meat curing room and fermenting cellar. Just outside is a new park by Alys Fowler with an orchard, a smokehouse and a kitchen garden for Craft London.” www.craft-london.co.uk

IN BRIEF Mara has joined brands including Halen Môn inclu sea salt, Stag Bakeries biscuits and Hurstwood bisc Farm cobnut oil onshelf in M&S shel

Cho winner at Choice last year’s Harrogate Fine Food Show) and Hu Hurstwood Farm’s Ken Kentish cobnut oil (Gr (Great Taste supreme cha champion in 2010) are also on the 24-strong Brit artisan food British list, together with two chutneys from Mrs Bennetts in Suffolk, Roastworks Espresso and Bacheldre Watermill smoked flour.

While the M&S move will raise eyebrows among independents already concerned at Waitrose’s strength in artisan-style foods, Mara Seafoods’ marketing executive Evie Dunne said the Edinburgh-based firm had no plans to push further into supermarkets.

“We will always be a branded, premium, high-end product,” she told FFD. “M&S have an exclusive on only one of our seaweeds – dulse – for multiples in the UK. We are still pitching ourselves towards the fine food and gift market.”

M&S’s Melissa Webb said: “Mara Seaweed taps into a trend we see growing through 2015, as shoppers start to understand how seaweed is used and search it out to use when baking or to season dishes.”

O Eusebi's deli, one of Glasgow’s best known Italian deli-eateries, is opening a new outlet in the city’s Woodlands area. The site in Park Road, opening in July, will combine a ground floor food emporium with a downstairs restaurant.

O The Guild of Fine Food’s Retail Ready course for new or aspiring deli owners is heading up-country this autumn. The next two-day course – on October 27-28 – will be held at Manor Farm Tea Shoppe, Bleasby, Nottingham, a dining and function venue run by owners Andrew and Caroline Goodwin. The course will be run by deli owner Charlie Turnbull and Gonalston Farm Shop’s Georgie Mason, who will also host delegates at her award-winning shop on the evening of October 27. Contact Jilly Sitch at the Guild on 01747 825200 to book places, or email: jilly.sitch@gff.co.uk

O Butchers and bakers at Bodnant Welsh Food Centre in the Conwy Valley took five golds and three silvers at the Welsh Awards for Excellence in Meat Products.

Winning lines included a Welsh Black Beef Burger, made with Welsh Black beer from nearby Great Orme Brewery. Eighteenyear-old butchery appentice Sam Birchall picked up a silver in the Young Sausage Maker of the Year section. www.bodnant-welshfood.co.uk

O BodyMe matcha tea, Coyo cherry coconut milk yoghurt and Kale-os kale crisps from InSpiral Visionary Products were among the category winners at the Natural & Organic Awards 2015, held alongside last month’s Natural & Organic Products Europe trade show.

O Mexican food entrepreneur Katya Torres de la Rocha is targeting delis, farm shops and “leading multiples” with her latest venture: importer and distributor MexImport. It will bring in leading Mexican brands including sauces, spices, drinks, cooking oils and agave syrup. www.meximport.co.uk

O Alex James has insisted his job as bass player with Blur – back in business with their first album for 12 years – is not incompatible with his more recent fame as a celebrity cheese-maker. “I don't like this ‘Because you make cheese you can’t be a musician’ thing,” he told Sunday Times Culture magazine. “Monks make cheese in the morning and sing in the afternoon.”

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

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fine food news Holland & Barrett targets pole position in free-from foods

Loch Duart closes after takeover talks collapse

By MICK WHITWORTH

By MICHAEL LANE

Health products specialist Holland & Barrett has opened the first of several dozen “new concept” stores majoring on gluten-free and other health foods, in a move to become the UK’s biggest free-from retailer.

The new Holland & Barrett More store in Chester, which opened on April 23, carries more than 700 freefrom products.

Around 50 More stores are set to open over the next two years and, together with its online offer, Holland & Barrett says it will have over 3,000 free-from lines available by the end of 2015.

With an estimated 10 million Brits suffering from food allergies or intolerances free-from has been a growth category for independent delis and farm shops as well as the major retail chains.

Even those without specific health issues are buying into the sector, with YouGov research showing 15% of households avoiding gluten and wheat.

At Garsons Farm Shop in Esher, Surrey – FFD’s Deli of the Month in April – store manager Nigel Chandler said: “Gluten-free and sugar-free are two trends that we are pushing.

People think gluten free is more healthy, and we are not going to say they are wrong – they are generally premium products.”

Peter Aldis, CEO of NBTY Europe, which owns Holland & Barrett, said

The Loch Duart Smokehouse in the Outer Hebrides has ceased production and faces permanent closure if its owners cannot find a buyer for the business.

The South Uist-based smokehouse – previously known as Salar, before salmon farmer Loch Duart purchased it in 2008 – was in talks with a local consortium about taking over the business but the deal fell through in April.

In a statement on the smokehouse’s website, Loch Duart sales director Andy Bing said the business had “not been the success that we had envisaged”.

“We have been hoping a local consortium would take over the business in time to ensure continuity of supply and, during 2014, we invested a great deal of effort into setting up a form of community ownership which fell through for reasons outside our control,” he said.

“There is still a chance that another consortium will take on the smokehouse but, unfortunately, a break in production is now unavoidable.”

The smokehouse was famed for its flagship oak roasted flaky salmon, which was awarded two stars in Great Taste 2013, while its oak smoked salmon was also a Great Taste winner, most recently picking up two stars in last year’s awards.

Holland & Barrett plans to dominate high street sales of free-from foods – a major growth area for delis and farm shops

the chain’s heritage and market positoning meant free-from was “natural territory” for it to lead.

“The speed of growth of freefrom has seen it transform from what was once regarded as a nutritional niche into a mainstream shopping option.

“YouGov data on where people buy free-from products shows we already do well in this market, scoring significantly ahead of Boots and very close to Waitrose and Morrisons.

“We already have more high street stores than many of the big supermarkets, and the 50 new-

concept stores we have planned for the next two years will help ensure we can deliver against our ambition to become the largest free-from retailer in the UK.” According to researcher Mintel, one in 10 new food products launched in 2014 were gluten-free, nearly double the rate of development two years ago.

Aldis said Holland & Barrett was seeing “an explosion of new freefrom products, with many of those on our shelves being produced by small British businesses”. www.hollandandbarrett.com

If I'd known then what I know now...

given over to South African products, such as chocolate and rusks. Initially we tried loads of products but over time we’ve reduced and refocused our pre-packaged range based on GISELA HANS VELDT DELI, GLASGOW what sells.

I run the deli with my Scottish husband Mark, a former bored civil such an industry.

Veldt was born from a yearning for servant. I’m a classical musician.

We’ve honoured our USP closely, my beloved Cape Town and a love of Neither of us had any business and as the months go by, our freshly Scottish fresh produce. experience – only a shared passion. made biltong and droewors have The South African community is We didn’t know anything about become a firm favourite not only growing here in Scotland, especially health & safety or food regulations. with South African ex-pats, but with Glasgow, and our hope was to bring It all got thrown at some of my country people a bit of us and we just had joy in the form of those products We can now predict demand and to learn. so loved in South Africa, from know that people don’t spend as We are both boerewors to biltong. much in the second two weeks of the organised though, We also wanted to introduce month as they do in the first two and, being a South African culture and food into musician, I am very disciplined and intrepid Weegies [Glaswegians]. our west end Glasgow community. accustomed to working to achieve Another hit is our fresh, juicy Since we opened our doors an outcome. I knew that the amount boerewors made with Scotch beef in May 2013, we’ve welcomed we put into the business would be and a coriander spice mix – perfect customers from near and far: Cape reflected in what we got back. for a Scottish summer braai.

Town, Johannesburg, Durban, Sales are climbing year on year Café sales form the bulk of Aberdeen, Ayr and Oban. Our and we have taken on two part-time our business. We serve fusion food regulars are fairly loyal. We see members of staff, but even after two based on locally sourced produce. familar faces every day and this is years, running a shop brings new We also have ambient shelf space one of the biggest joys of being in

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daily challenges. We are constantly working to strike the right balance between ensuring we have products in stock and trying not to waste too much.

We can control this to an extent, by building relationships with good, reliable suppliers, and monitoring buying patterns. After a while we started to feel the cycle. We can now predict demand during busy holiday periods and know that people don’t spend as much in the second two weeks of the month as they do during the first two.

Even so, things crop up that we aren’t expecting. Sometimes products and stock don’t always arrive on time, so we have to improvise.

Still, all those situations have been part of the experience. We are realising our dream each day. We have our arguments and our tiffs, but our love, respect and passion far outweighs any daily challenges.

Interview by LYNDA SEARBY

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

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fine food news Soil Association says independents now outperform supermarkets for organic food

Indies offered marketing package to support revival in organics ByMICHAEL LANE

The Soil Association is offering free support, including merchandising and marketing advice, to independent stores looking to grow sales of organic food and drink.

The organic accreditation body’s announcement comes in the wake of its 2015 Organic Market Report, which revealed that sales across independents were exceeding £10m per week and outpacing those in supermarkets.

From the end of last month the Soil Association has made a variety of marketing materials free to download from its website.

These include marketing tips and ideas on how to talk to shoppers about organic produce.

Shops can also order point of sale materials including shelftalkers,

window stickers and ‘open’ and ‘closed’ signs.

The support package is running alongside a new media initiative in partnership with the Organic Trade Board, called Naturally Different, that will include a separate launch event for consumers to drive demand.

Soil Association trade relations manager Lee Holdstock said there had been a change in consumer behaviour towards buying organic as part of smaller, more frequent shopping trips at independent and specialist stores.

“Retailers have told us they

want more information about how to communicate the many benefits of organic to their customers, and this new package of support will help with education and accessibility,” he said.

“By leveraging existing interest in the organic products on offer, we can help support independent retailers and consequently build a stronger organic market.”

Phil Haughton, founder and owner of Bristol organic shop The Better Food Company, is also backing the campaign.

“The more training and support we can get the stronger we will be, leading to happier customers, sales growth and improved service and professionalism from our suppliers,” he said. www.soilassociation.org

Organic supply chain needs bolstering too, says OF&G

By MICK WHITWORTH

Organic Farmers & Growers, whose organic certification scheme is used by nearly half of Britain’s organic growers, has welcomed the Soil Association’s new support package for retailers. But it says the supply chain also needs to be strengthened.

OF&G chief executive Roger Kerr told FFD: “We are really pleased to see initiatives being introduced that support the organic sector.

“Independent farm shops and delis have a crucial role to play in helping increase access to organic food.

“This is particularly true when the Organic Trade Board’s recent retail report indicated ‘availability of specific type’ and ‘lack of range choice’ caused one third of organic food consumers to buy non-organic instead.”

OF&G is on target to certify over 50% of the UK’s organic land during 2015. Kerr said it was in a “strong position” to help retailers who are struggling to source specific organic products to locate potential suppliers.

“The key issue that accompanies the recent revival in organic sales is availability,” he said. “To this end, one of OF&G’s key objectives is to help strengthen the organic supply chain.

“We know our licensees are expanding their businesses to address this increase in demand. With OTB data showing 45% of consumers intending to buy more organic products in the future, we would happily welcome newcomers to the organic sector, to take advantage of the opportunities clearly available.” www.organicfarmers.org.uk

Major expansion for Farmer’s Fayre at Stoneleigh Park Farmer’s Fayre, a family-run farm shop at Stoneleigh Park in Warwickshire, is embarking on a major expansion after outgrowing its existing premises.

Refurbishment of a redundant two-storey building on the site will enable the business to move from its existing 1,500 sq ft premises to a 6,000 sq ft building, giving it more space for food preparation, production and storage under one roof.

Due to open in September, the revamped store will include 2,000 sq ft more retail space than before.

Ground-floor restaurant seating will rise from 20 to 50, with seating for a further 100 on a new veranda and garden area.

It is the biggest refurbishment project yet undertaken by LaSalle Investment Management, which is developing Stoneleigh Park –

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

formerly home to the Royal Show – as a hub for science-based rural industries. The Park is also home to the National Agricultural and Exhibition Centre.

Nicola Reece, who founded

Farmers Fayre with husband Michael, said: “This is a major expansion for us, given that we started out at Stoneleigh Park in a log cabin eight years ago.” www.farmersfayre.co.uk

Pictured (l-r) are Michael and Nicola Reece of Farmer’s Fayre with Stoneleigh Park’s Colin Hooper

OF&G’s Roger Kerr says availability is a key issue as demand for organics picks up

Total refurb for Sussex smokery The Weald Smokery in Flimwell, East Sussex, has undergone a complete refurbishment, with a refitted shop and a new brasserie and coffee shop.

The retail area – where customers can browse the firm’s range of Great Taste award-winning smoked foods, produced on the premises since 1985 – is now fitted with contemporarystyle fridges and freezers that have been incorporated into the shelving.

More space has also been given to British and Continental cheeses within a new deli counter. Products from other Guild of Fine Food members are also on display.

The new licensed brasserie and coffee shop, serving breakfast, lunch and tea, has been incorporated into the existing shop area, with a terrace outside. www.wealdsmokery.co.uk

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From the green rolling hills of Devon to where the land meets the sea.

Seven years ago this year we embarked on an adventure. The adventure, born from passion, ambition and a dream, was to make outstanding English wines embodying Lyme Bay Winery’s fruit-driven, award-winning ethos.

In 2010 we planted 26,000 vines and with hard work we have been rewarded with an excellent harvest in Autumn 2014.

The Winery and its three vineyards are situated in Devon’s beautiful Axe Valley. A maritime region, it enjoys a temperate climate and a long, warm growing season, affording the grapes exceptional depth and expression of character.

We are delighted to offer you our stunning range of still and sparkling English wines for the first time.

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PIN NOT NOI NOIR R ROS ROSÉ 201 0 4 A fun un win w e; gentle gen tle st straw raw rawber aw wbe berrie ber r s rie and nd d cr cre eam am a m wi w th a ro rosehi ros ose ehi hip un nde nd derrto de to one one. ne ne. e.

BACCHU BAC CHUS S FUMÉ FUMÉ 201 01 14 A complex om omp om mp plex lex le e wine; wiine; w ne; ne e; gr pef gra pefrui ru rui u t, t, lemon, lem em mon,, an and nd n d su s btl btle t e oak ak w wit it ith fa ffan antas a tastic tast tic le en ngth. ngt h

Lyme Bay Winery Shute, Axminster, Devon, EX13 7PW Telephone: 01297 551355 Email: sales@lymebaywinery.co.uk

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/LymeBayWinery www.lymebaywinery.co.uk

Thank Every s to Visitinone For at the g Us Show!

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

No smell, No Waste, No Mess Tel 01472 355217 GSRXEGX$FMK½WLFVERH GS YO [[[ FMK½WLFVERH GS YO $&MK*MWL&VERH FMK½WLFVERH GS YO

fine food news There’s no lack of innovation – just too many brands competing for the same business

Viewpoint PAUL HARGREAVES Founder & chairman, Cotswold Fayre I was interested to read last month’s Viewpoint by Paul Castle of Farrington Farm Shop, arguing that the ambient speciality food market was flat and suppliers were not helping increase it.

I couldn’t agree more that farm shops should – like Farrington’s – produce as much of their own products as possible. I have encouraged shops to do just this if I have been in conversations when they are setting up. But they are always going to need other products in their stores I also agree some independents have far too many jams, pickles and chutneys and need to reduce the space given to them. Many have done exactly this, but if you compare the percentage of shelf space given to this category in supermarkets with the space given in delis and farm shops, it's sometimes two, three or even four times as much in the independents.

However, I completely disagree with the point about a lack of innovation within the ambient speciality food sector. Judging by what comes through our door every single day of the year there is more innovation currently than I have seen for a while.

At the start of this year we took on 10 more brands than we normally do as we simply couldn’t leave these ranges out! Having said that, we are sent on average 30-35 brands for every one that makes it through to the final stages to our catalogue.

No, the problem isn’t the lack of innovation, it is that there are too many brands with limited marketing budgets behind them, all competing for the same small slice of the market.

There is a very valid point about more growth being in chilled products, and that’s something a number of wholesalers are looking at for later this year. But technological advances have also made it possible for some types of product to be ambient that previously had to be chilled. This means a longer shelf life, ambient distribution and lower risk for the retailer, yet the products can still be merchandised in the chiller. More innovation!

Yes, some producers, in these times of zero inflation, should be looking at passing on cost-savings to customers. Cotswold Fayre actually had more price decreases than increases in its most recent

catalogue, but these were largely us taking a cut in margin, not the producer.

There was one notable exception – Bim’s Kitchen, originally brought to my attention by Mick Whitworth in this magazine. This was a company that was based in London, and was looking to outsource production.

I encouraged them to try and continue to make the product themselves. They did just this, moved to Wales and reduced their prices by 15% this year. More innovation!

The main point that annoyed me enough to want to respond this month was the claim that distributors do not pass on the promotional discounts their suppliers give to them. I can categorically say we never fail to do this.

We have 12-16 promotions each

realising the good business sense of having several promotions within their stores to drive basket spend, and more are participating than they used to.

Furthermore, due to our close working relationships with suppliers, we often organise them to come in and do a tasting event alongside the promotions to drive business even more.

Yesterday, as I write, I presented our company aims for this financial year to our whole staff team. One of our core aims was “to make our customers more money.” We will do that this year by working with our suppliers and customers for mutual benefit.

Wholesalers seem to have been an easy target for several people who have featured in this magazine, but we, and a number of Frequently, promotions we have will sold into retailers are not passed on to others, always ensure consumers. It’s often retailers lining we are offering their pockets, not wholesalers the best deal to their customers.

If more retailers actually counted their time month and these are all available to and their staff’s time spent ordering all our customers. from too many producers, receiving In fact, over the 16 years too many deliveries and paying too of running this business it is many invoices, many would save a the opposite scenario that has fortune by working with the kind of continually frustrated me. Frequently wholesaler that understands their the promotions that we have sold business, and isn’t just “lining their into retailers are not passed onto own pockets”. consumers to drive business. It is often the retailers lining their HAVE YOUR SAY pockets, not wholesalers!

Tweet us: @ffdonline Many more, these days, are Email us: editorial@gff.co.uk

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June’s Cheltenham trade show to Step-change in capacity for Sussex coffee roaster feature 26 first-time exhibitors Hand-crafted vodka producer 55 Above, Spanish food import Bellota and desserts maker Ministry of Cake will be among the 26 first-time exhibitors at this year’s Food & Drink Trade Show in Gloucestershire.

Taking place at The Centaur at Cheltenham Racecourse on June 3-4, the show is described by organiser Hale Events as “a great mid-season opportunity to try out new specialist products on customers, fine-tune menus or replace products that have been less popular, without having to wait until the off-season”.

Crantock Bakery, Creed Foodservice, Lovely Drinks and Zenith EPOS are among the more familiar faces at an event that covers everything from beverages to BBQ rubs and wine to whisky, The Target Catering Equipment Follow us on

@ffdonline

By MICK WHITWORTH

Creed Foodservice is among the show’s regular participants

Demo Kitchen will host demos by chefs such as Gareth Crys-Williams from Gloucester College and Will and Calum Thompson from Eat Wild.

Open from 10:00am to 5:00pm each day, the show’s main partner for 2015 is Taste of the West.

Visitors can pre-register via the show website. www.thefoodanddrinktradeshow. co.uk

West Sussex coffee roaster and tea blender Edgcumbes has made a fourfold increase in its on-site roasting capacity with the installation of a new Giesen roaster.

The firm, based near Arundel, now plans to offer more independent stores the chance to buy coffee to re-pack under their own labels.

Edgcumbe currently sell to farm shops across the south of England, including Charlie’s Farm Shop in Pulborough, Rushfields Farm Shop and Newhouse Farm.

It also supplies 11 regional Co-ops with its retail filter coffees, and their central hub in Hampshire, which distributes out to another 3 stores.

Edgcumbe’s Zara Brazil told FFD: “We’ve been serving local village stores and farm shops for a long time

and now we’re looking to expand out and reach more farm shops and delis.

“We would love to supply them with their own brand of freshly roasted coffee which they could then package themselves.”

Brazil said Edgcumbes now had capacity to roast up to half a tonne of coffee a day, but was initially aiming to produce 25 tonnes a year, compared with around 8 tonnes previously. www.edgcumbes.co.uk

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

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fine food news Interview

As more British producers surface in the premium sea salt sector, the owners of pioneer brand Halen Môn have invested in a new £1.25m ‘saltcote’ to harvest and showcase their PDO-protected crystals. MICK WHITWORTH reports.

Crystal palace

I

n the late Nineties, i i when the owners of Anglesey Sea Zoo began experimenting with gourmet sea salt to boost their winter cashflow, the new venture was adopted as a post-graduate project by Manchester Business School.

To give the embryonic firm a helping hand, students were tasked with investigating the market potential for artisan salt and whether ‘Welshness’ would help justify a highend price ticket.

“We were keen to promote ourselves as an Anglesey producer,” says Alison Lea-Wilson, who co-founded Halen Môn – the Anglesey Sea Salt company – with husband David, “but we didn’t know how that would be received. “It seems odd now, but in those days no-one talked about ‘provenance’.”

The post-grads duly carried out their research, concluding that, yes, Wales was viewed positively by consumers as a clean environment for food and, yes, a handmade Welsh salt would command a healthy premium.

Their professor, however, was less impressed. “The students presented their findings,” Alison Lea-Wilson recalls, “and were told, ‘This is

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

ridiculous – you’d never sell a pack of salt for that price’.”

Which, she adds with a laugh, is pretty much the sort of comment she and her husband have been contending with ever since.

Fortunately, they chose to listen to the students, not to the academic, and today the Lea-Wilsons run one the UK’s most recognised speciality food brands.

After a long slog, Halen Môn sea salt has proved successful in both home and export markets, with fans ranging from the Hairy Bikers to Heston Blumenthal. Its pouches and flip-cap Kilner-style jars of salt are found in hundreds of delis and farm shops, and its export customers have included the legendary El Bulli restaurant in Barcelona.

Halen Môn is also a named Halen Môn’s flip-cap jars and pouches are in hundreds of delis and farm shops, but a third of its sales come from exports to around 20 countries

ingredient in everything from M&S ready-meals to Patchwork ice-cream and Pipers crisps. Most famously, it’s a component in Barrack Obama’s favourite smoked sea salt caramels, made by Fran’s Chocolates in Seattle and presented to White House guests.

Until recently, all this was achieved from the most prosaic of production sites: a cluster of nine converted containers on Anglesey’s south-east shore, facing Snowdonia across the Menai Strait, from which Halen Môn draws 12,000 litres of seawater a day under licence from the Crown Estates.

This Spring, however, the LeaWilsons and their 23 staff moved out of their big tin boxes and into a visually striking new 1,000 sq m, BRCaccredited salt-making facility and visitor centre. Steel-framed and clad in Welsh larch beneath a sweeping

roofline, it cost £1.25 million to build and is said to be the first new Welsh ‘saltcote’ (the traditional name for a salt-making building by the sea) for 240 years.

Despite securing over £300,000 in grants from various funding bodies, including £200,000 from the Big Lottery Fund’s Coastal Communities Fund, the owners have had to find over £500,000 themselves to realise the project. And it certainly hasn’t been rushed. Planning permission was obtained a full decade ago, but the death of the Welsh Development Agency in Labour’s 2006 ‘bonfire of the quangos’ killed off a key source of funding. When recession followed, the project was put on hold.

Talking to the Lea-Wilsons last month in their shiny new office, I suggest it’s a bold long-term

Saltcote images: Smallislandbigcity

Alison and David Lea-Wilson (pictured left) have invested over £500,000 of their own money in the first new Welsh saltcote to be built since the 1700s

investment for a couple who were at Bangor University together back in the 1970s. Successful entrepreneurs with little to prove, they might legitimately be thinking about their exit strategy rather than remortaging their home.

“Of course that’s something we think about from time to time,” says David Lea-Wilson. “But this has given us a burst of energy. And we’re doing something we really enjoy, so we’ll keep doing it.

“Having had planning permission for 10 years, we now want to use the building, and we’re looking forward to showing it off.”

Already, the saltcote has won an award for sustainable building from the international Green Organisation – the latest in a string of recent plaudits for a brand now regarded as a role model for small food firms UK-wide.

In February, Halen Môn was named one of Defra‘s 50 ‘Food Stars’, and last summer its entrepreneurial owners were made honorary fellows of Bangor University for their services to business.

Earlier in 2014 they also secured EU Protected Designation of Origin status for Anglesey Sea Salt/Halen Môn – of which they are the only producers.

The PDO doesn‘t just give legal protection to the name, in both its English and Welsh forms. More importantly for the Lea-Wilsons, it spells out the location, history and even chemical composition that makes the product unique: salt harvested from the highly tidal waters of the Menai Strait; crystalline white, flat (not granular) soft flakes containing over 30 trace elements; rinsed by “hand wafting through concentrated brine” in an artisan process; dried using a unique “jiggling” process to handturn the salt; and so on.

Why more importantly? Because, in the 18 years since the Lea-Wilsons revived sea salt-making on Anglesey, the number of producers around the British Isles has risen from two (Halen Môn and Maldon) to at least seven. While imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, for the couple who pioneered high-end salt in the UK there has been an inevitable muddying of those “cold, clear waters” which all makers seem to claim as their USP. When I ask how the arrival of competitors like Hebridean Sea Salt, Isle of Skye Sea Salt and – the first of the newcomers – Cornish Sea Salt has changed their market, there follows some vigorous discussion between husband and wife (it happens a lot during our interview) as David vents his spleen and Alison, no shrinking violet herself, tries to manage what might actually end up in print.

“We would not have a go at our competitors,” she tells me eventually, with a glint in her eye. “We respect our competitors.”

The launch of Cornish Sea Salt in 2008, supported by a slick marketing campaign, clearly went down badly with the Anglesey business, but the market then seemed to settle for a while into three price bands, with Maldon in the cheaper mainstream, Cornish in the middle and Anglesey at the top.

Today, Cornish Sea Salt is widely available in supermarkets and, according to Alison Lea-Wilson, is undercutting even Maldon on price.

experimented with production methods, developing a distinctive flaky salt that has been followed over the years by spiced salts, smoked salt, and a celery salt that was served to Will and Kate at 2011’s Royal Wedding.

Exports have been part of the business almost since the beginning, and represent a third of sales. But it was a move into supplying other manufacturers that gave them volume – a concept they happily urge other small producers to consider.

There are a couple more sticky moments in our interview and subsequent email exchange. One is when I ask Halen Môn’s annual turnover, which proves harder to extract than salt from seawater. The best I can report is that it’s over £1 million but considerably less than £10 million.

The other is when – playing devil’s advocate – I ask how far It’s enshrined in EU law they can go now that we have a different in supplying type of salt. So if anyone says Halen Môn as ‘It’s just sodium chloride’ the an ingredient to mainstream answer is ‘No it’s not’. brands while maintaining its high-premium cachet. Most of its anyone says ‘It’s just sodium chloride’ 20 or so manufacturing customers the answer is ‘No it’s not’.” are themselves premium producers Sea salt was one of dozens of (Rococo chocolates, Pipers Crisps) ideas – some food, some non-food but the firm also works with Green – the Lea-Wilsons toyed with when, & Black’s and Market Deli, the snack after running their Sea Zoo for 20 range from Pepsico-owned Walkers. years or so (they have since sold it), The couple admit it’s a dilemma. they got fed up with losing so much They’ve turned down a lot of cash when the tourists went home. requests, says David, because they “It was thriving in the summer, don’t want to be “everywhere”. then we’d lose all our money in the And their policy doesn’t seem to be winter,” says Alison. costing them any business overall, They were already paying £6,000 since their top 24 clients across retail, a year for a seawater licence and foodservice, exports and ingredients knew the water in the Menai Strait have not changed in three years.

– highly tidal and naturally filtered Sometimes, says Alison, “you by mussel beds – was exceptionally have to make decisions based on the clean, since they were using it to number of mortgages your staff are breed seahorses. David, who has having to pay”. a masters in financial economics She continues: “It’s all a from Bangor, managed to secure a compromise, but we have to keep Winston Churchill scholarship to travel growing our business. We have to the world studying aquariums and keep it sustainable. And we’re not aquaculture. But it was a museum of making salt out of babies. We’re salt in Tokyo that “absolutely blew following our consciences.” me away”, he says. “It was the first She adds: “The other thing is, culture I’d found where salt was at it’s not like we’re producing a lowerthe top of the value tree – it wasn’t a quality salt for some customers. It may common commodity. be in a different form, but it’s made “It was at that time when the same and tastes the same.

CAMRA had launched the Campaign “And if people are prepared to for Real Ale, and I thought we could pay for it, and we’re prepared to sell it have a one-company Campaign for to them, we will.”

Real Salt.”

Back on Anglesey, he and Alison www.halenmon.com “But Maldon is a very old company, and has very, very deep pockets,” she says, with a note of warning to her Cornish rivals.

Halen Môn, on the other hand, has always been pitched at the high end, and there is stays. David LeaWilson tells me: “Our view is that you always have to be either the best or the cheapest. It’s very crowded in the middle. And our product, because it’s made by hand, will never be cheap.”

The important thing, his wife says, is that each producer creates its own niche. “The consumer gets a bit confused,” she says. “Salts need to be sufficiently different that consumers can understand those differences.

“That’s partly why we went for the PDO, because it’s an objective measure of our salt’s qualities. It’s enshrined in EU law now that we produce a different type of salt. So if

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Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

13

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May 2015 ¡ Vol.16 Issue 4

cheesewire Unsung heroes Hidden gems from British producers

news & views from the cheese counter

Jowett returns to the helm at new King Stone Dairy

By PATRICK McGUIGAN

HAYTOR In a nutshell: Rachel Stephens of Curworthy Cheese has been making cheese in Okehampton for 25 years, with the lion’s share of production devoted to a hard cheese called Devon Oke. But she also makes the underrated Haytor. Similar in style to Gruyère or Emmental, the six-month-old cheese is made with pasteurised cows’ milk in 3.5kg rounds and is named after a peak on nearby Dartmoor.

Flavour and texture: The cheese is made with helveticus and propionic starter cultures and the curds are scalded to a high temperature, so it has a pliable texture and small holes with a sweet, almost confectionery-like, flavour balanced by a nutty finish.

History: The cheese business was set up by trade magazine Farmers’ Weekly in the 1980s, as part of a dairy farm, owned by the publication, which was featured in regular articles. It was sold to employee Stephens in 1987, who moved it to her own farm. Haytor was developed in conjunction with cheese shop Country Cheeses, which sells it as Sweet Charlotte.

Cheese care: The cheese has a two-month shelf-life and should be stored at below 10ºC. Why stock it: British alternatives to Gruyère and Emmental are relatively hard to find, while its sweet nutty flavours will appeal to a wide customer base.

Perfect partners: Would work nicely with a fruity brown ale – Stokey Brown from Pressure Drop Brewing is a good beer – or try a nutty oloroso sherry.

Where to buy: Wholesaler Hawkridge or direct from www.curworthycheese.co.uk FFD features a different ‘unsung hero’ from Specialist Cheesemakers’ Association members each month. To get involved, contact: patrick.mcguigan@gff.co.uk

Two years after he took the difficult decision to close down his fledgling cheese business, David Jowett has bounced back with a new company based at a dairy farm near Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire.

The School of Artisan Food graduate first made a name for himself in 2013 when, at the tender age of 21, he set up his own business making an Alpine-style hard cheese called Jowett.

The ambitious venture quickly ran into cashflow problems and was closed within six months.

However, the young cheesemaker has now co-founded a new business called King Stone Dairy, which will launch a raw milk soft, washed rind cheese called Rollright later this month.

Jowett told FFD he had learned important lessons from his previous experience in business, as well as from the past two years working as a cheese-maker at Gorsehill Abbey.

“Rollright will be sold six to eight weeks after it is made, which makes more financial sense compared to a Comté-style cheese, which takes much longer

Cheese-maker David Jowett is a 50:50 partner in King Stone Dairy, which will soon launch the raw milk Rollright

to mature.” said Jowett. “I’ve also learned an awful lot about the practicalities of farmhouse cheesemaking working at Gorsehill, from logistics on a farm level, but also distribution and dealing with customers.”

The business is a 50:50 partnership with Antony Curnow, who manages the farm for owners Jennifer and David Haine and oversaw construction of the timberclad production premises to help add value to the farm’s milk.

The 90-strong herd comprises

breeds including Brown Swiss, Ayrshire, and Dairy Shorthorn.

Rollright, which is named after local villages and neolithic stone circles, is made in 1kg discs and is washed in brine for around four weeks.

“We’re tasting young cheeses at the moment and they have gentle, aromatic, milk-driven notes, but also doughy, bready flavours from the rind which is similar to what you would find on a Reblochon,” said Jowett. www.facebook.com/KingStoneDairy

Nettlebed Creamery launches Taleggio-style washed rind The new King Stone Dairy (above) will face competition from fellow start-up Nettlebed Creamery in South East Oxfordshire, which has also recently launched a raw milk, washed rind cheese called Saint Bartholomew.

The business started production in January using organic, unpasteurised milk from nearby Merrimoles Farm in premises shared with two other artisan producers ce – caterer Chocolate Strawberry and d Lashbrook Farm Lassis.

Produced iin n 500-litre batches, hes, the 1kg cheesee is matured for six weeks and shares similarities ties with Taleggio and and Reblochon.

It has savoury oury and buttery flavours rs with a squidgy texture under the rind and a firmer centre, said owner Rose Grimond, who formerly marketed food and drink from the Orkney Isles under the Orkney Rose brand.

“There aren’t a lot of washed rind cows’ milk cheeses like this made in Britain,” she added.

The cheese is made by Anne

New maturing rooms open at Colston Bassett

Hastings, who previously worked for Neal’s Yard Dairy, and former Stichleton employee Tee Scotthorn.

It is named after the local church, which overlooks the creamery. Saint Bartholomew was also the patron saint of Florentine cheesemongers.

Stilton producer Colston Bassett has completed the first phase of a 10-year investment plan to increase production at its Nottinghamshire premises.

The company opened new maturing rooms last month after construction work began in October 2013. The increased capacity will help ease pressure during the busy Christmas period, said dairy manager Billy Kevan.

“We face an issue every Christmas period of not being able to meet demand. Managing any growth of a handmade product effectively is a business challenge,” he said.

www.nettlebedcreamery.com

www.colstonbassettdairy.co.uk

Nettlebed’s Net Rose Grimond: Ros ‘There ‘The aren’t a lot of cheeses like St Bartholomew in Britain’

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

15

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

cheesewire

Ireland’s trail blazer

Interview If Veronica Steele hadn’t developed Milleens 40 years ago, the vibrant Irish artisan cheese sector might not

exist. While its creator is battling illness, PATRICK McGUIGAN finds her washed rind cheese going from strength to strength.

I

Valerie O'Sullivan

rish cheese buffs are in for a treat over the coming months with some of the country’s best cheesemakers opening their doors to the public. The Discover Farmhouse Cheese programme, which is co-funded by the EU, will celebrate one of Ireland’s most successful and vibrant food sectors with a series of free dairy visits for the public.

There are certainly plenty to choose from. Ireland boasts more than 60 artisan producers, who export all over the world, but things haven’t always been so rosy.

Forty years ago there wasn’t a single farmhouse cheese-maker left in Ireland after the industry had been decimated by the Second World War and the rise of factory food production. That was until 1976 when Veronica and Norman Steele decided to give up their city lives in Dublin – he was a philosophy professor at Trinity College, she a former pupil – and move to a small farm on the rainsoaked Beara peninsula in Cork.

Veronica Steele made the first batches of the Milleens during the ‘70s with the milk from just one cow They started with just one cow called Brisket, who was missing What’s desperately sad about them. Some like it mild and some a horn, and Veronica was soon the story is that while Irish cheese like it screaming on the plate, so we experimenting with the milk in her is in excellent health, Steele is not. are holding onto stock longer and kitchen. Most of the cheeses she She has been diagnosed with a trying to second guess customers’ made ended in failure. The salty terminal neurological disorder called needs.” coastal air gave the cheeses a sticky multiple system atrophy, which While different maturation orange rind so, rather than fighting leads to problems with movement, times and the size of the cheeses it, Steele actively encouraged the balance and other functions. (they range from 100g to 1.5kg) all mould to grow on a soft washed The disease has taken affect flavour and texture, Milleens rind cheese that was christened its physical toll – she had a typically exhibits floral notes and a Milleens, after the farm. tracheostomy last year to help her rich, creamy texture, which owes “I wouldn’t have known a breathing and finds it harder to much to the remote landscape washed rind cheese if it kicked get around – but Steele’s spirit, where it is made. me,” she says. “I was trying to enquiring mind and good humour “The secret is good rain and lots make something like an Emmental. are undiminished. Speaking from of it,” he says. “All our rain comes I washed the surface to keep it her daughter’s house in Surrey, in off the Atlantic and is as clean clean and because we’re near the she tells me how much she enjoys and fresh as you can get, which sea it evolved into something else.

“It’s a cliché, I know, but we stand Facebook and painting. leads to a diverse flora. The cows It wasn’t quite an accident, more a on the shoulders of the giants,” “I’m fighting it tooth and nail are not just eating grass, but also concatenation of forces.” he says. “My parents had a long but there’s no cure or treatment,” hedgerow and all sorts of different It’s not an exaggeration to say successful career and I’ve been she says. “I’m staying with my plants that change throughout the that, without Steele, Irish cheese lucky enough to build on their life’s daughter for a while to give year.” would not be where it is today, work.”

Norman a break – it’s hard work Back in the tamer countryside although she is far too modest Output has doubled in the looking after someone who’s sick.” of Surrey, Veronica Steele’s mind is to agree. past five years to reach 20 tonnes on more exotic destinations as she Milleens annually, with plans to extend the recounts some of the adventures I wouldn’t have known a washed rind helped production space later this year to she has been on recently despite cheese if it kicked me. I was trying to inspire double capacity again. The company her condition. There was a train ride make something like an Emmental. other exports to the UK and further afield, from Chicago to LA, a trip to see farmers to but it’s the home market that has the Northern Lights, and a visit to start making their own cheese, with really driven sales.

Vienna to hear Mozart, and she is There’s a slight pause, before she Steele running courses at the farm “There’s been this foodie not finished yet. adds with a mischievous tone: “I’m for anyone who was interested. “It revolution in Ireland in the last “I’m enjoying dying,” she says. milking it for all its worth!” and was £10 for a day’s teaching and 5-10 years and there are so many “It’s quite funny, once you know bursts into laughter. that included lunch,” she recalls restaurants who want our cheese,” you’re for it you can reassess and The cheese business is in the with a chortle. She also helped Quinlan says. “We’ve been focusing start doing your bucket list. I’d still safe hands of her son Quinlan, who found Cais – the Irish Farmhouse more on what customers want and like to go to Japan to see the spring is taking it forward with the same Cheesemakers Association – which when they want it, making sure blossom.” enthusiasm and commitment to has done much to raise standards. the age profile is exactly right for traditional practices as his parents. www.milleenscheese.com

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Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

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Corn

Cornish, sweet and creamy

WANTED

A dedicated cheesemaker to make Stilton’s Village Blue Cheese in the historic village of Stilton.

We are launching a bespoke, high quality Harris Tweed fabric and an Axminster Carpet in the style of our wonderful cheese, forming part of our on-going marketing campaign for this ground-breaking addition to the cheese industry.

The launch will take place at our annual cheese rolling event on May 4.

If being part of this exciting project has tempted a talented and dedicated cheesemaker to get involved, please call or email today!

01733 240321 Richardlandy2@gmail.com

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

www.cornishcheese.co.uk Tel: 01579 363660

enquiries@cornishcheese.co.uk

SUPREME

CHAMPION 2010

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G TO IN E P ST C N U TA WA 0 £5 LLO

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SUPPORTING INDEPENDENT RETAILERS The Le Gruyère AOP retail promotion has become a regular in the deli and farm shop calendar. It is part of their continued support and investment in helping you sell more cheese and create in-store promotionss of value, helping you to educate your customers.

LE GRUYÈRE AOP FACTS

It’s simple. Sign up and you’ll receive all you need to run a successful in-store promotion: • A high quality counter-top sampling tray • Recipe leaflets, product info sheets and exciting POS materiall • A cash allowance for up to £50 to cover the cost of the Le Gruyère AOP cheese for customer sampling

The promotional pack was great for promoting Le Gruyère AOP helping us to sell lots of this help wond wonderful cheese. Winning this prestigious award has generated pres lots of positive publicity which in t turn has attracted excited new customers into our shop whic which has been great for busi business.

George Mewes, Gruyère AOP Cheese Counter of the Year 2014 Lee G

• Le Gruyère AOP is made in village dairies using the same recipe since 1115 • Each wheel has the number of the dairy in which it was produced thus ensuring traceability • There are no additives or preservatives • The cows only eat grass and hay, no sileage is allowed • Le Gruyère AOP is made with unpasturised milk • Le Gruyère AOP is naturally gluten and lactose free • Le Gruyère AOP is completely natural and high quality • Available in 3 maturities, Classic (6 to 9 months), Réserve (minimum 10 months) and Mature (minimum 14 months).

HOW I APP DO L The p rom Y?

ot p and y lace May – ion takes ou ca n run July 2015 over it at a t h at jilly.sit n ch@g period. Co y stage ff.co.u n k or c tact t e all the on 01 am 747 8 to sig 25200 n up

Taking part in the promotion means that you are entered into the Le Gruyère AOP Cheese Counter of the Year competition, along with the nation’s best cheese shops. This coveted award leads to huge press and media coverage for the winner and one person from the shop will be whisked off to Switzerland.

Cheeses from Switzerland.

Switzerland. Naturally.

www.cheesesfromswitzerland.com

W LE NO ILAB A AV

WE’RE PROUD TO LAUNCH OUR BRAND NEW COLLECTION OF MUSHROOM MARMALADES. This exciting Mushroom Marmalade is a sweetly sublime relish packed with mushrooms, charmed with caramelised onions and shiitake mushroom, with a wonderfully mushroomy umami aroma that lingers until you have some more.

This innovative range of mushroom relishes are perfectly suited to enhance any vegetarian or meat burger, they’re great with cheese, cold or hot meats, or why not have them just on their own on a slice of toast for a tasty light supper.

Relish the thought!

For more information call Rufus, Gabby or Helen on 01824 705832 they’ll be delighted to help you.

Come and visit us at www.patchwork-pate.co.uk Tel: 01824 705832

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Successful company established for over 20 years must relocate due to Nine Elms development and is seeking new premises.

Partnerships also considered.

Call Kitty Barclay on 020 7720 3818 or email on kitty@brownscakeandpieco.co.uk www.brownscakeandpieco.co.uk

20

May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

cut & dried

making more of british & continental charcuterie

Pub group Three Cheers puts Moons Green on menu London-based Three Cheers Pub Co – formerly Renaissance Pubs – has introducing a range of bespoke charcuterie to its menu in association with East Sussex artisan producer Moons Green.

The seven-strong pub group’s executive chef, Massimo Tebaldi, has worked with Moons Green to develop recipes for lomo, coppa, a fennel salami and salt & pepper beer stick sticks.

They will feature as a starter or part of a sharing platter across all of the chain’s South London sites, with the Moons Green collaboration highlighted on the menu.

Tebaldi told FFD he had been put in touch with John Doig of Moons Green by Owen Davidson Knight, formerly with Borough Market retailer and wholesaler Cannon & Cannon.

Davidson Knight now runs The Charcuterie Board, a London wholesaler that represents both Moons Green and Gloucestershire’s Native Breeds.

Moons Green has developed two exclusive recipes for Three Cheers. “The first is a lomo [pork loin], which is cured and flavoured with paprika and chilli,” said Tebaldi, who grew up in Liguria, Italy.

David Griffen

By MICK WHITWORTH

Three Cheers is happy to sacrifice margin for a British artisan product

“The second is a coppa – or pork collar – with a final cure of thyme and rosemary. Those are traditional Italian herbs and flavours that I grew up with and that remind me of childhood.

“Both products go very well

with the beers we have on tap, and are part of our charcuterie sharing plate which also includes the fennel salami and beer sticks.”

Three Cheers also sources nduja, the spicy spreading salami, made

by Blackhand Food of Hackney Wick in London E3, via Cannon & Cannon.

Tebaldi said quality had been the most important element in choosing the chain’s charcuterie, so he was prepared to pay a premium for British artisan products. “We only use the best ingredients – that’s the ethos we apply to all our dishes – so margin is always less important.”

Moons Green, which has been trading since 2011, makes artisan charcuterie with free-range and outdoor-reared pork from Kent and the Sussex-Hampshire borders.

Products include saucissons, salamis, bacon and air-dried hams and are sold at Borough Market, Brockley Market and from John Doig’s production unit at Northiam, near Rye. Renaissance Pubs changed its name last month following a trademark dispute and has made several changes to its food offer – including the new charcuterie – as part of its relaunch as Three Cheers. www.threecheers.co.uk

Creedy Carver targets delis with free-range duck salamis A leading supplier of free range duck to chefs nationwide is hoping to target delis and farm shops with a new range of duck charcuterie.

Devon-based Creedy Carver processes around 5,000 ducks a week, with many of them finding their way onto high-end restaurant menus.

While breast meat is a big seller, the move into charcuterie is designed to find an outlet for harder-to-sell leg meat, according to director James Coleman, who built the duck business alongside his family’s longer established freerange chicken operation.

“Leg sales have always fallen behind due to the very cheap and competitive French market,” Coleman told FFD.

“After years of selling legs off cheap one of my butchers asked for some duck leg meat, to experiment with making a duck salami. Initially I thought the idea was mad but let him carry on. Once it was cured he invited me to his shop to try it, and I was blown away by the results.”

Creedy Carver processes 5,000 ducks a week for the restaurant trade

Great Glen takes on Italian salami in Milan

By MICK WHITWORTH

Scotland’s Great Glen Charcuterie hopes to giving Italian producers a run for their money after winning an order to supply green pepper venison salami for ExpoMilano 2015, the six-month ‘global exhibition’ in Milan.

Great Glen co-founder Anja Baak told FFD the order had come “out of the blue” via a wholesaler.

“We’re very excited that our Scottish salami is going to Italy, and we hope it will lead to more exports to this country,” she said.

Highlands-based Great Glen’s green pepper venison salami won the inaugural Great Taste Charcuterie Product of the Year award in 2013.

Baak said the business, which she runs with husband Jan Jacob, was also in final talks with “a renowned Paris food hall” and hoped to have confirmation of its first order this month.

Great Glen has increased production in recent months to supply new customers in the UK too, and Baak said the Year of Food and Drink in Scotland was making a noticeable difference to Scottish chefs’ sourcing policies.

“We’ve had a lot of new customers in the foodservice industry putting our charcuterie on their menus,” she said. www.greatglencharcuterie.com

The same butcher has now developed a number of other recipes for Creedy Carver, including a duck & plum and duck & Cointreau.

They each use whole boned free-range duck leg meat rather than offcuts and trim for the salami “so you get a really meaty texture and flavour”, Coleman said.

The products have been launched as part of a ‘fine dining’ range that includes seven confit cooked products, such as free range Creedy Carver duck breast confit marinated in Devon Red Cider.

“The idea behind these is that all the work has been done for the consumer making cooking at home hassle free, quick and simple,” Coleman added. www.creedycarver.co.uk

Anja Baak: Italian order came ‘out of the blue’

Vol.16 Issue 4 May 2015

21

ACO 0 1 9 2 0

Packaging Ltd 4 8 4 0 5 0

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22

May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

THE COTTAGE

Montgomery, Powys, Wales

01686 668 933

www.montysbrewery.co.uk

product focus

craft beers & ciders

Bottled bounty Whether it’s fruit beer or brut beer, Britain’s brewers continue to come up with new ideas and cider-makers have been equally as busy. MICHAEL LANE cracks open some of the latest releases.

As we well as boosting its capacity with a £250,000 investment in a new bottling line, Little Valley invest Brewery has also added a bottle-conditioned vanilla Brew porter to its range. Organic and vegan-friendly, the dark porte brew (4.5% ABV) is made with real vanilla pods and come comes in 500ml bottles. The West Yorkshire brewery recommends pairing the beer with stews, steaks and reco rich chocolate puddings. ri www.littlevalleybrewery.co.uk

Hawkshead Brewery has re-launched its Cumbrian Five Hop beer at 5% in bottles. Available in cases of 12x330ml (£19.30, RRP £2.40 each), the “well-hopped” golden ale is made with a blend of two modern American hops – Citra and Amarillo – and three traditional English hops: Goldings, Bramling Cross and Fuggles. The Cumbrian brewery says the ale’s “juicy malt character” balances its tropical fruit and marmalade flavours. www.hawksheadbrewery. co.uk

To toast the grand opening of its £3.4m production facility and visitor centre in March, Healeys Cornish Cyder Farm has added the sparkling Cornish Gold to its range. The 4.5% ABV cyder comes in 500ml bottles (RRP £2.52). www. thecornishcyderfarm.co.uk

Ashridge Cider has a new and consistent look across its bottled range, thanks to agency Buddy Creative. Eschewing the rustic fruit and rolling landscape imagery traditionally deployed on cider bottles, the Totnes producer has gone for a more modern approach. The Ashridge range comprises organic vintage cider and organic Devon blush in cases of 12x50cl (£18.48 and £20.64 respectively) and d 22x33cl (£29.80 and £34.56 respectively) as well as sparkling versions of these hese two varieties in cases of 12x75cl bottles (£102 and £120). www.ashridgecider.co.uk

It may have only been launched last September but Harviestoun Brewery’s Broken Dial amber ale (4.5% ABV) has already won a Gold in the International Beer Challenge 2015 and was named Scotland’s Best Bottled Beer 2015 by SIBA. Available in 33cl bottles (RRP £1.99), Broken Dial is made with Simcoe hops, which produce a “fruity finish with distinctly malty undertones”. www.harviestoun.com

Trendwatch: dessert ciders For cider drinkers in search of something ng more refined, there are several dessert ciders now on the market.

The Somerset Cider Brandy Co (also the home of Burrow Hill Cider) has created ice cider, which it makes by allowing apple juice to freeze and removing the ice before fermentation. The result is a 13%ABV dessert drink (50cl, RRP £12) that has been described by one reviewer as “cider on steroids”.

In England’s other major cider territory, Once Upon A Tree has developed the Blenheim Superb dessert cider on its farm in Putley, Herefordshire. The latest vintage

(20 (2011) of the small batch drink has been launched in a reb rebranded 375ml bottle, which has an RRP of £19. The pro producer recommends serving it with truffles and foie gras gr as well as desserts and cheese.

Meanwhile, Ireland’s Stonewell Cider has just claimed c a Pomme D’Or at the specialist Apfelwein W Welweit cider show in Frankfurt for its latest creation, Tawny.

T Described as an “opulent complex cider with chewy c tannins and hints of fruit”, Tawny (RRP €18-20) is made from the fermented juice of Dabinett and M Michelin apple varietals and elaborated with El Dorado dry d hops. The producer recommends serving it chilled a an aperitif or with cheese and dessert courses. as w www.ciderbrandy.co.uk www.onceuponatree.co.uk w w www.stonewellcider.com

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

23

product focus Elgood’s Brewery has been working on a number of Belgian-style beers. It’s Coolship p sour beer is brewed using wild yeast and spontaneous fermentation, just as lambic beer eer is brewed in Belgium, then matured for at least east a year to produce a sour, tart, fruity beer with th an “incredible” depth of flavours. There are e three Coolship beers: blonde, dark and fruitt (blackberry & raspberry ).

The Cambridgeshire company has also launched two fruit wheat beers under its QE brand. These Belgian-style wheat beers are blended with natural fruit juices to make e “wonderfully refreshing” long drinks in two o flavours: apple with vanilla and cherry with raspberry.

All of these beers come in 330ml bottles. www.elgoods-brewery.co.uk

Following a visit from sharp-tongued troubleshooter Alex Polizzi, for the third series of her BBC2 show The Fixer, Hunter’s Brewery has overhauled its branding, both on its pump clips and its bottles. Having received advice from London agency Underscore, the Devon-based brewery gave the job to Totnes design firm VU Online.

The bottles are now available to order through Holleys Fine Foods and West Country Direct as well as specialist drinks wholesalers. www.huntersbrewery.com

Launched last August, Monthmouthshire’s Apple County Cider produces a number of single variety ety ciders with apples from its own orchards in the Monnow Valley. Its Vilberie Medium Dry (6%ABV) is d lightly sparkling and is lent a robust fruity taste and crisp finish from the bittersweet Vilberrie apples.

Its Dabinett Medium 6% is also lightly sparkling but tastes “delicately fruity with a hint of spice and long clean finish”. Both come in cases of 12x500ml bottles for £20+VAT. The Welsh producer also offers its 6.5% Naughty Horsey cider, made with Dabinett apples, in 20-litre bag-in-boxes (trade £40) and can supply branded 2.2-litre carry kegs for customers to fill in store for an RRP of £15 a time. www.applecountycider.co.uk

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

Somerset’s Sheppy’s has unveiled new branding to reflect nearly 200 years of cider-making heritage. The bottles have been designed for improved shelf impact but each label retains the familiar Sheppy’s logo. Single variety products now have labels featuring a distinctive apple logo in differing colours while the blended varieties feature a scenic image – a nod to the company’s orchard-tobottle tradition.

Among those to undergo the transformation are Sheppy’s multi-awardwinning Oak Matured Vintage, Great Taste-winning Dabinett Apple, Taylor’s Gold and the latest addition to the range: Mulled Cider. www.sheppyscider.com

As usual, Thornbridge has developing new been busy b beers in a variety of styles.

6 ABV Bamberg The 6% (£20 (£20.09 per case) is a gold golden brown beer tha that carries a “charred ma maltiness” from nose th through to tasting.

TThe “massively h hoppy” Bear State ((7% ABV, case price £ £21.96) is a classic IP IPA, brewed in the sp spirit of the USA’s West Coast, while the deep reddish bronze Jehanne (7.4% ABV, case price £21.96) is sweet on the nose and smooth in the mouth with a medium dry finish.The new line-up is completed by JaipurX (10%, £36 per case), which has been brewed to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the Derbyshire brewery and its highly decorated Jaipur IPA. All are available in cases of 12x500ml bottles. www.thornbridgebrewery.co.uk

After launching its cycling-inspired crisp ale Hello Velo for last year’s visit of the Tour de France in Yorkshire, Wold Top Brewery is bringing the beer back for the Tour de Yorkshire cycling race. The 4.2% ABV ale, which has an “earthy spiciness and honeyed marmalade overtones”, comes in cases of 8x500ml bottles for £11.98 (RRP £1.99 per bottle). www.woldtopbrewery.co.uk

Trendwatch: canned beers If the US continues to dictate craft beer trends, then UK drinkers should expect to see more and more canned beers hitting the market in the next few years.

According to Vigo, a supplier of equipment to artisan drink producers, sales of craft beer in cans surged by 89% year-on-year in the States compared to a 9% uplift in bottles. The Devonbased company clearly expects this “revolution” to hit Britain’s

craft beers & ciders

brewers (there are already some producing canned versions of their beer) and has become the UK agent for US craft canning equipment innovator American Beer Equipment (ABE) and its LinCan canning line.

As well as protecting beer from light and oxygen, cans retain the hop flavours that characterize a good deal of craft beers. They are also more portable and welcome in places where bottles are not. www.vigopresses.co.uk

BE

2014

ST WELSH

2014 SP

E CIA LIT Y

330ml Organic Cider

Multi Award - Winning Welsh Ale

www.purplemoose.co.uk TEL: 01766 515 571

Ashridge, Staverton, Totnes Devon TQ9 6AN 01364 654749 orders@ashridgecider.co.uk www.ashridgecider.co.uk

Vol.16 Issue 4 路 May 2015

25

View our lines at: www.dayladrinks.co.uk 01296 630 013 www.3663direct.co.uk www.holleysfinefoods.com 0117 938 0084 www.huntersbrewery.com 01803 873 509

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At Nudie, we only hand select the finest, fresh slices of coconut, carefully toast them to perfection and hey voila, scrumptious little morsels of goodness.

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CREAMY LANCASHIRE CHEESE & ONION: 2-star SIMPLY SPUDS(NO SALT): 2-star SEA SALT: 1-star

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

product focus

craft beers & ciders January saw Thatchers add three more varieties to its range of ciders in 500ml bottles. The “refreshingly mellow” Thatchers Red (4% ABV, RRP £2.09) and the cloudy Somerset Haze (4.5%ABV, RRP £1.99) are medium sweet while Old Rascal (4.5%ABV, RRP £1.99) is a medium dry cider made with a number of bittersweet apple varieties, including Redstreak, Dabinett and Tremlett’s.

Devon’s Otter Brewery plans to launch its recently developed Tarka lager into premium retail and foodservice “within the year”. The North German pilsner-style Tarka (4.8%ABV in its cask version) has been introduced to West Country pubs and bars first, ahead of a launch into farm shops, delis and restaurants. Otter Brewery MD Patrick McCaig decribes Tarka as “full, with lots of depth, some slight fruity notes but also some bitter notes”.

Given the different type of drinker that it is pitched at, the new lager’s branding will be very different from Otter’s other beers which all feature its Derek the Otter character. The cobalt blue colour scheme chosen for the pump clips may also be extended to the bottled version with Otter mooting using “super expensive” blue glass.

Brewed using 100% British malt, hops and three yeast strains, Savour Beer’s sparkling beer Brut is matured in the bottle for 100 days before being riddled and disgorged using the so-called traditional method to remove the yeast sediment. It is one of only six breweries in the world using the traditional method in the production of beer. Its Brut is said to have an elegant floral and spicy aroma with a rich body and effervescent finish. It comes in cases of 6x750ml bottles (trade £8, RRP £17 each).

Northern Ireland’s Long Meadow Cider is due to release an oak-aged variety. The Co Armagh company steeps raw cider in oak barrels to infuse the drink with the wood’s natural essences. It currently produces a medium (winner of a star in Great Taste 2014) and a sweet cider in 500ml bottles.

Both are available in cases of 12 for £15+VAT.

www.savourbeer.com

www.longmeadowcider.com

A relatively new member of the ever-growing band of craft beer operations in the Capital, Wild Card Brewery has launched three beers in the last 12 months, all of which come in cases of 24x330ml (trade £35+VAT) available across the country.

The Queen of Diamonds (5.0%) is an India Pale with complex citrus flavours, a fresh bitter edge and tropical fruit aromas created by dry hopping the brew.

It also produces King of Hearts (4.5%) – a blonde beer brewed with lager malt – and a London Porter called the Ace of Spades (4.7%).

These beers complete Wild Card’s core collection of four beers alongside its existing Jack of Clubs (4.5%) ruby ale.

The recipes were all devised by London’s only female head brewer Jaega Wise. www.wildcardbrewery.co.uk

www.thatcherscider.co.uk

www.otterbrewery.com

The Loch Ness Brewery has teamed up with soft fruit experts from the James Hutton Institute near Dundee to create a new blackberry beer. The two were originally brought together by a possible dispute over the use of the Loch Ness name (Loch Ness blackberries were developed and launched by the Institute in 1989) but they decided to marry their products instead. Berry LochNESS beer was realised after Fife berry farmer Robert Simpson produced a large enough harvest of Loch Ness berries for a batch of beer.

Adding berries to the brewery’s classic Scottish ale softens its malty flavours and sweetens the usually drier finish. The Institute is now exploring the possibility of developing a hop variety that could be grown viably in Scotland to improve the provenance of beer in the country. www.lochnessbrewery.com

Polgoo says its cider-maker’s 7%ABV Gold Cider (75cl, Polgoon trad £4 £4.95+VAT) has a well-balanced acidity to rival a quality wine. w The Cornish vineyard and orchard’s latest output is described as a “completely unique cider with a refresh refreshing apple taste and a light sparkle” and has been develo developed for pairing with food. Polgoon says it works well w with cheese, pork, chicken and fish dishes. www.polgoon.com www.

Originally created cr

by Suffolk cider-maker Aspall for JD Wetherspo Wetherspoon’s 2013 Cider Festival, th the premium Waddlego Waddlegoose Lane brand will now be launched into retail. Tw Two of the brand’s four var varieties – Deben Draught (4.6%ABV) and Three Be Berry (3.8%ABV) – will be ssold in 500ml glass bottles, with the former already listed by Tesco.

Both wi will also be available in PET b bottles to meet demand from festivals and outdoor events. www.aspall.co.uk www.as

In response to the growing craft cider market, Lyme Bay Winery developed Lyme Bay Sparkling Cider (4.8%ABV) in 500ml bottles. This fizzy medium cider has already won a one-star award, in last year’s Great Taste. The East Devon company has also added the still Lyme Bay Devon Cider (5%ABV) to its line-up for the ontrade. The “full-flavoured, quaffable” drink comes in a 20 litre bag-in-box with a Vitop tap for extended shelf life. www.lymebaywinery. co.uk

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

27

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

product focus

biscuits

Roll out the barrel LYNDA SEARBY lifts the lid on the biscuit tin to discover the latest innovations Sey Seymours Irish Biscuits has come com up with a new chocolate biscuit bisc concept that it hopes will attr attract the interest of UK fine food stor The Cork based familystores. run farm/bakery has encased sho shortbread in a circular chocolate cup to make the biscuits, which it has named Social Circles. The first p pack of Social Circles (135g, £ RRP £4.99) contains two varieties: carda cardamom orange and vanilla pecan. pecan.

Distributor Cotswold Fayre has expanded its gluten-free biscuit offering with Food of Athenry’s new range of bite sized treats.

The Irish producer, named after its location in the rolling fields of Athenry, West Ireland, has introduced gluten-free brownie cookie shots, es blondie cookie shots, all butter flapjack mini bites 20The Works and flapjack mini bites Just Oats in 120150g tins (RRP £3.15-3.50). Wholesale cases of 12 tins cost £26.90-29.75. www.foodsofathenry.ie

NISI’s has launched seven of its biscuit varieties in 120g packs, available to the trade via Cotswold Fayre. Each box contains eight all-butter shortbread, currant garibaldi or butter oat biscuits and has an RRP of £2.49.

There are three flavours of shortbread (classic, with a hint of lemon and with chunks of dark chocolate) as well as two flavours each of garibaldi (classic currant and nd with chunks of chocolate) and two varieties es of all-butter oat biscuits: dark chocolate chunk nk and ginger. This summer, the small batch bakery ry is also introducing flow-wrapped 30g twin packs, which it says are ideal for deli cafés.

www.seymours.ie www

O Mrs Crimble’s has added hot chilli cheese crackers to its line-up of gluten-free cheese crackers.

RRP from £1.60. www.mrscrimbles.com

O Taste of the Country is pitching its new n 300g assortment a of hand h baked crackers c for cheese (RRP (R £5.95) as a competitively priced option o compared with other artisan selection se boxes. www.tasteofthecountry.co.uk w

O Eas O Easy Bean’s chickpea crisp crispbreads are now available in a 30g snack pack, containing two crispbreads. (RRP £1.29). They come in a branded counter top box that holds 12 packs.

www.nisis.co.uk is.co.uk

www.easybean.co.uk

O Italian importer

Retailers stocking Lottie Shaw’s Yorkshire parkin ginger biscuits might also be interested in listing the company’s new 375g all-butter shortbread biscuit box.

According to the Yorkshire bakery, siting the two packs next to one another makes for a visually appealing display that should boost sales of both SKUs. The new shortbread box is included in the latest Hider brochure and has an RRP of £3.95.

The popularity of the paleo diet – which avoids cereals, root vegetables that require cooking, refined sugars, dairy products and processed foods – has prompted Cakes & Bakes to create a ‘paleo’ honey & nut cookie. The cookies are currently only on sale in Cake & Bakes’ bakery in Harrogate, where they retail at £0.85 per cookie, but the artisan baker welcomes enquiries from potential stockists.

www.lottieshaws.co.uk

www.cakesandbaking.com

Donatantoio’s Lupetta range now includes two traditional Tuscan biscuits – cantuccini and amaretti – both available via Cotswold Fayre. www.donatantonio.com

O Lanark-based Border Biscuits has enhanced its gift offering with the introduction of five ‘carry packs’. www.borderbiscuits.co.uk

La Fromagerie makes a snappy comeback La Fromagerie biscuits for cheese are back, with new improved recipes and packaging, after a spell of absence.

The bakery producing the London cheese store’s own label biscuits went under last year, forcing La Fromagerie to find a new producer – a task that has not been easy, according to director Sarah Bilney.

“It has been quite a long slog to relaunch them – nearly a year,” she tells FFD. “I had no idea how difficult it would be to find a good quality bakery willing to take on our recipes; there are excellent bakeries out there but those I approached only did own label with their own recipes.”

Eventually she found the right partner and is now confident that the finished product is better

than ever.

“The recipes have been slightly improved and so hopefully they will be well received. It was important for us to maintain the quality of the biscuits to do justice alongside all the other produce we sell, especially as they have our name on them. I feel really proud that we have created something that complements our cheese so well and flies the flag of everything we are trying to achieve.”

The biscuits launched in April in four varieties: caraway for pairing with gouda, gruyère and washed rind cheeses; charcoal for goats’ cheese, camembert and creamy blues; oat for mature cheddar, Stilton and Brie de Meaux;

and rye for Beaufort, ewes’ milk and washed rind cheeses.

While the biscuits were primarily designed for sale in La Fromagerie’s own shops, in the past they were also supplied to Melrose & Morgan, The Hungry Guest in Petworth, Connage Highland Dairy, and Murrays in New York, Brussels and Shanghai. Bilney hopes that, following their reincarnation, this will continue. RRP is £3.25 per pack and the biscuits are available to the trade in wholesale cases priced at £24 for 12 packs, or in retail ready display cases priced at £25.20 for 12 packs. www.lafromagerie.co.uk

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

29

Helen Dean began baking shortbread in her kitchen to raise money for the Huntly Pipe Band where her husband Bill was drum major.

Forty years on, Dean’s continue to bake their shortbread to Helen’s original recipe – still delicious and guaranteed to melt in the mouth.

We are a SALSA accredited family craft bakery, offering an extensive range of award-winning traditional products for retail trade and gifting.

Our ‘Treats to Go’ range is ideal for tea room counters & food service.

We also offer a delicious range of ‘homestyle’ biscuits and cheese oat nibbles.

Browse our full product range at www.deans.co.uk

Contact us for samples or to discuss your requirements: Email: lottie@lottieshaws.co.uk Telephone: 01422 372335

www.lottieshaws.co.uk Dean’s, Huntly, Aberdeenshire AB54 8JX

or call Lottie on 07703029087

Discover a New Chocolate Biscuit!

Social Circles are a new and original chocolate biscuit from the handmade farm/biscuit bakery of Seymours of Cork, Ireland. We immerse a shortbread biscuit piece in luxurious Belgian chocolate and blend with a combination of Cardamom and Orange/Madagascan Vanilla and Pecan. They make a perfect after-dinner treat.

Seymours are proud suppliers li to independent i d fine food retailers.

We welcome interested UK retailers & distributors to contact Philip O’Connor for further information on Social Circles. Tel.: 00353 86 3309378 or email: philip@seymours.ie.

Seymours Irish Biscuits, Bandon, West Cork, Ireland.

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

product focus Lancashire’s Farmhouse Biscuits has brought a little nostalgia to speciality biscuits with a new retro range. The gift tin and complementary tubes contain the original recipe oat flip, priory crumble and oat ginger biscuits. RRPs are £7.99 for the oat flip tin and £2.502.99 for the priory crumble and oat ginger tubes.

On the back of a “fantastic reaction”, the producer has also developed snack packs with the same retro feel. These come in cases of 99 biscuits (33 of each flavour) at a cost of around £16.50 to the trade. www.farmhousebiscuits.co.uk

biscuits

New to biscuits… Mineral Harvest A new Norwegian artisan producer has set out to reinvent the Scandinavian crispbread to tap into modern day health and diet concerns.

Besides having a low GI (glycaemic index) and being dairy-, egg- and sugar-free, Mineral Harvest Snaps are said to be bursting with minerals, fibre and vitamins.

“The basic crisp bread is part of our inheritance, but this new product is bringing it up to date by supporting our 21st century lifestyle,” explains Siv Scotton, founder of Mineral Harvest.

Mineral Harvest Snaps are available with an introductory RRP of £2.50 for 100g. Up until now, the company has been selling direct

Rude Health’s oat cakes have taken an exotic direction with an Indian-inspired ginger & turmeric variety joining the range this month.

A second new variety, the four seed oaty, taps into the “super seed” trend, by combining sesame, black sesame, chia and poppy in a baked, wholegrain oatcake. Each 200g pack has an RRP of £2.10. www.rudehealth.co.uk

to consumers, but is launching to the trade at the Harrogate Fine Food Show in June. mineralharvest@gmail.com

In a departure from its usual circular format, Peter’s Yard has launched a square and a rectangular shaped crispbread, in seeded wholegrain and spelt & fig flavours (both RRP £2.50). Just like the original recipe, the two new varieties are made from naturally fermented sour dough.

Stag Bakeries has partnered with the last traditional smokehouse in the Hebrides to create a new smoked oatcake range. Both varieties in the range – smoked butter oatcake and a walnut oatcake – are cocktailsized and made with oats and butter that have been smoked over oak and beech. RRP £2.45 for 125g. www.stagbakeries.co.uk

www.petersyard.com

Seggiano is bringing two classic Italian biscuits to the UK market, with the introduction of brutti ma buoni (hazelnut biscuits) and amaretti.

According to Seggiano, amaretti often contain imported ready-made almond paste made with nuts of unknown pedigree and cheaper apricot kernels. Seggiano amaretti, by contrast, are made using freshly ground current-harvest almonds.

Brutti ma buoni biscuits are textured hazelnut meringue biscuits, containing 46% freshly ground hazelnuts.

Both biscuits are gluten-free, have an RRP of £6.25 (wholesale £4.05) and are made by a family that has been baking biscuits in the Siena region of Tuscany for three generations.

On the savoury side, Seggiano’s new hand-baked mini tongues, or lingue, come in a choice of three recipes – classic, Parmesan and rosemary – in 100g bags (wholesale £1.95, RRP £2.95). www.seggiano.com

Trendwatch: Olive oil tortas travel from Seville Tortas de aceite (olive oil biscuits) wrapped in wax paper are a traditional Andalusian snack, but with Spanish producers and importers promoting these biscuits heavily, their presence on British retailer shelves is growing.

In response to growing demand, Rosales has developed

two new varieties of its Spanish olive oil biscuits: almond sweet olive oil torta and sweetened sugar-free olive oil torta.

This producer has made the sweet, flat olive oil tortas in Seville to the same recipe since 1910.

Today they are still made with extra virgin olive oil and individually hand flattened. Described as “beautifully light, delicate and crisp with a slightly sweet and gentle flavour of olive oil, anise and sesame”, they are said to be delicious with cheese, tea or coffee.

Brindisa, meanwhile, is

launching a new orange flavour torta de aceite made with brown sugar and orange zest. Said to have “a satisfying crunchy texture, fine aroma and pure flavour”, these biscuits are shaped by hand and individually wrapped in wax paper. RRP £2.95.

The first weekend in May saw the launch of LittlePod’s long awaited vanilla shortbread at Darts Farm during the Devon shop’s Mad Hatters’ Tea Party event. Janet Sawyer, MD of LittlePod, explains the genesis of the biscuit: “These biscuits were developed as sample tasters when we launched the company in Scotland, and have been made for every significant event since.

Following continuous demand from people tasting them I have been promising Darts Farm for the last three years that I would officially bring them to market.” She says the biscuit, which is being made by Reids of Caithness and will be available through Cotswold Fayre, is a great way to show off LittlePod’s vanilla paste. www.littlepod.co.uk

www.brindisa.com www.inesrosales.com

Vol.16 Issue 4 May 2015

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product focus

biscuits

On-trend green tea is the star ingredient in Mullion Cove’s latest biscuit: green tea shortbread with matcha. The Cornish producer has also introduced lemon curd shortbread made with homemade lemon curd. Both biscuits use Cornish butter and have an RRP of £3.50-4.50 for 98g. In addition, Mullion Cove’s most popular biscuit flavour, original ginger & spice, is now available in a twin-pack in cases of 50 with a wholesale price of £36. www.mullioncove.net

Delect ct has hed three launched new blonde cookie doughs. The Belgian chocolate chip, orange Belgian chocolate chip and white chocolate, cranberry & macadamia doughs (all RRP £3.50) have a chewy texture when warm and a crunchier texture when cooled. www.delect.co.uk

Isle of Skye Baking Co has taken a fusion approach with its latest innovation, Lavosh Jaggies.

Lavosh is a traditional Armenian flatbread and ‘jag’ is a Scots word describing something sharp or spiky. The tortilla-like crispbreads can be eaten on their own or with cheese and charcuterie and come in six flavours: hot, spicy butternut squash; roast garlic & olive; rye, ale & mustard; sesame, apricot & cranberry; spelt, heather honey & almonds and spicy gluten free. All varieties come in 100g packs (RRP £4.50). www.isleofskyebakingco.co.uk

Baked with pulses and oats, Pulsetta’s new oat thins are billed as a “healthier breed of biscuit” that is suitable for those following gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan diets. There are six varieties in total, spanning both savoury and sweet flavours, in 150g boxes (RRP £2.50). These are cracked black pepper, rosemary & thyme, sunflower seeded, lemon, mocha and vanilla. www.pulsetta.com

Chocolate anzac cookies and dark chocolate cookies are the latest creation to come out of Cocoa Loco’s West Sussex kitchen. Both have an RRP of £2.99 for a 200g bag and are made from Fairtrade cocoa, sugar and vanilla. www.cocoaloco.co.uk

The language of taste...

BISCUITS

FIND OUT WHAT GREAT TASTE JUDGES LOOK FOR IN KEY PRODUCT CATEGORIES, WITH SILVIJA DAVIDSON You’d think it would be a simple matter of crisp, crunchy, sweet or savoury and maybe buttery.

But consider two rather different Great Taste three-star products: Stag Bakeries’ Stornoway seaweed water biscuits and tortas de aceite, imported from Andalusia by Delicioso. One is cocktail-sized, the other akin to a china tea plate. The first is powerfully evocative of seaside walks and rock pools while the second carries an anise-scented breath of the exotic.

The first is substantial in texture, the second is featherweight and flaky.

Neither contains butter.

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

What entranced the judges, and continues to charm consumers, is character and balance. Then the judges’ thoughts turned to likely use, as would those of consumers. We tend to think in terms of dunkers, stop-gaps and indulgences (mainly the chocolatey kind). Or cheese, of course.

Interestingly, both the out-ofthe-ordinary water biscuits and tortas gave rise to visions of blue

cheese (ultra-savoury umami hit or sweet/salty palate teasing) and tots of aromatic gin. It’s worth thinking outside the box.

But back to daily standbys, both savoury and sweet. A cheese biscuit (or those for dipping or spreading) is nothing without bite and snap, and just the right amount of salt to taste good in their own right but also to let the topping shine. Aromatics should be subtle, not block-busting. Stand-alone cocktail nibbles can afford more upfront character but they need to be engagingly crisp and moreish.

Oatcakes are inbetweeners; whether chunky and crumbly or thin and friable, the oaten flavours and textures need to make a good impact,

Judges’ thoughts turn to likely use. We tend ^ to think in terms of dunkers, stop-gaps and indulgences. Or cheese, of course. _

and be just crumbly enough to invite another bite.

Speaking of crumbly, we all have our favourite shortbread, and yes it has to be short or crumbly, with a bit of a crunch, as well as golden, buttery, rich and indulgent.

Simple.

Dodgers, digestives and ginger snaps remain old faithfuls, and we welcome artisan takes on these, but it’s cookies (more accurately drop cookies) that have muscled their way into malls, delis, lunch packs and Great Taste. What distinguishes a great cookie from the run of the mill? No, not the way it crumbles, but that ineffable blend of crisp crust, gooey or chewy centre, toasty nuts, maybe chocolate and butter.

Think of indulgence and triple it.

• Food writer and editor Silvija Davidson is chief judging coordinator for the Great Taste awards.

New Cheese Straws made with Scottish Speciality cheeses

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At Peter’s Yard, we are on a mission to bring the very best of Swedish baking to the rest of the world.

Always using authentic recipes and completely natural ingredients including naturally fermenting sourdough, #/"0% *&)(Ǿ %&-1,+ &)) Ɲ,2/Ǿ 0 )1 +! %,+"6ǽ

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These thin, crispy crackers are the perfect host for smoked salmon, artisan cheese and any number of sweet and savoury toppings.

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Hand-made Great Taste Award-winning oatcakes & biscuits contact kenmorebakery@hotmail.com or call 01887 830556 Also available from Ochil Foods www.ochilfoods.co.uk

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• Oatcakes: 1-star 2008, 2011 & 2013 • Millers Crunch: 1-star 2009, 2012, 2014 & 2-stars 2010 • Kenmore Shortbread: 1-star 2009 & 2-stars 2010 • 6KHLOD·V *LQJHUV: 1-star 2010 • Traditional Scottish Tablet: 1-star 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 & 2-stars 2010 Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

33

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May 2015 ¡ Vol.16 Issue 4

Visit www.kentskitchen.co.uk, email emma@kentskitchen.co.uk or call 01732 758024

Ke nt no ’s K w itc av he Co aila n’s t b f Fa swo le ull r yr ld fro an e m ge

Kent’s Kitchen has recently launched its new Pasta Pots

product focus

speciality oils

Exploration and reďŹ nement LYNDA SEARBY S extracts the latest product news from speciality oilss Seggiano has had to go beyond Italy to produce its everyday, economica economical oil, following the worst harvest in living memory.“We have always alway offered a mill blend Calabrian EVOO, ideal for cooking and a cost competitive with any equivalent supermarket oil,â€? says Seggiano’s David Harrison. “Unfortunately this year’s prices hav have soared and quality has plummeted to such an extent th that for the ďŹ rst time ever we have gone beyond Italy to Greece, w where we have sourced a mono variety EVOO from the Mavrelia olive, a soft palatable oil and a very reasonable price.â€? www.seggiano.com www.seg

Retailers looking to target experimental cooks should check out Freshburst home coo olive oil pearls from Imaginative Cuisine. These little balls, which encase French extra virgin olive oil in an edible sphere, are a feat of molecular gastronomy that works as either an ingredient or garnish. They are not available in the multiples and have an RRP of ÂŁ17.99 (trade price ÂŁ11.77). www.imaginativecuisine.com

Scarlett & Mustard has expanded its range of infused rapeseed oils with three new lines – chilli, garlic and smoked – that can be used as both ďŹ nishing and cooking oils.

All three come in 100ml and 250ml bottles (trade ÂŁ2.89 and ÂŁ4.93 respectively).The Suffolk producer has also recently developed a pumpkin seed oil (250ml, trade ÂŁ5.98), which will be the ďŹ rst of a new range.

Despite being Chile’s largest olive oil producer, Olisur is virtually unknown in the UK, with most of its production going to the domestic market, the USA and Canada. But with distribution on via Fine Oils and Ingredients now in place, this looks set to change. The importer is carrying three Olisur lines: Santiago Premium – a blend of Arbequina, Frantoio and Coratina olives; Santiago Premium – a full bodied oil made from the best varieties harvested each year; and OliveCo – a blend of Arbequina, Arbosana and Koroneiki. www.ďŹ neoilsandingredients.com

Wild Island has turned up the heat with a new range of spiced oils that takes in PiriPiri dressing & marinade, chilli oil and lemongrass & ginger chilli oil. All three use Isle of Wight cold pressed rapeseed oil as a base and have an RRP of ÂŁ7.45.

O Gaea, represented in the UK by RH Amar, has extended its EVOO range, adding a single estate Vranas from Lesvos and a new organic oil to complete the line-up. www.rhamar.com

O Orange & chilli completes Drwytho’s collection of herb infused extra virgin olive oils for cooking and drizzling. www.facebook.com/ drwytho

O The Cold Pressed

www.wildislandstore.co.uk

Oil Company has infused its rapeseed oil with white trufe to produce an oil that it says “adds that touch of luxury to any dishâ€?, as well as launching a chilli infused oil.

www.scarlettandmustard.co.uk

www.coldpressedoil. co.uk

Top sellers‌ NEW LOOK: Both Farringtons, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary, and Just Oil have recently re-branded their ranges of rapeseed oil products. www.farringtonoils.co.uk www.justoil.co.uk

Provençal oil producers unite A new organisation called Olivence was formed last year to represent olive oil producers from ďŹ ve of Provence’s eight PDO areas. With the backing of the Association Française Interprofessionelle de l’Olive (AFIDOL), it will help small producers market their wares outside France.

Provençal oils are particularly rare because the majority of olive trees were wiped out by a ferocious frost in 1956. Those that survived – and their descendants

– are now being nurtured by a new generation of artisan producers, which includes Moulin Castelas, Moulin Cornille, Codefa, La Lieutenante and Vignolis.

Farm or th Estate ...at Chatsw ire ell, Der bysh Shop, Bakew

ed oils or ten rapese Brock and M olive oil Peak District l o & garlic oi barelli oregan Teresa Lam QJOLVK DQG WHU EODFN ( 7UXIĂ€H +XQ H RLOV ZKLWH WUXIĂ€ OO Organico EV

O Kentish Oils has created a new gift set that showcases the extra virgin rapeseed oil that is grown, pressed and bottled on the Quex Park Estate. www.kentishoils.com

O OH!Lío is a new O s single variety oil made from Arbequina olives grown on Olivares del Derramador’s family-owned estate near Alicante. www. olivaresdelderramador.com

Vol.16 Issue 4 ¡ May 2015

35

An extraordinary range of sweet and savoury condiments

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Great Taste Great Provenance Great Branding Great Service

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www.scarlettandmustard.co.uk 01728 685210

Just Oil is a fine culinary oil grown, harvested, cold pressed, filtered and bottled on our farm in Staffordshire.

Half the saturated fat of Olive Oil. High in Omega 3.

Drizzle, Fry, Roast, Bake, Dress.

Just Oil is also available in a range of infused oils and salad dressings. Full details are available on our website.

For more information visit www.justoil.co.uk, call us on 01543 493081 or email us on enquiries@justoil.co.uk

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May 2015 路 Vol.16 Issue 4

product focus The Oil Merchant has taken on a new estate-bottled olive oil called Tamía from Tuscia, a region to the north of Rome.

The importer has also added four new SKUs from French oil purveyor A L’Olivier: fennel & pink peppercorn, Corsican grapefruit and peppermint flavoured olive oils, as well as Rivoli extra virgin olive oil. www.oilmerchant.co.uk

speciality oils

New to olive oil…Wolf Pit Matthew and Marianna Sainz have taken inspiration from the luxury goods market to launch a Sicilian olive oil with perfume-like branding and packaging.

The couple both worked in the yacht industry – Matthew as a naval architect and Marianna an interior designer – before moving onto terra firma 18 months ago to start their own olive oil business.

The oil, branded Wolf Pit, is obtained from fruit grown on their olive grove in Fossa di Lupo, part of the PDO Monti Iblei area in Sicily.

It is currently selling direct to consumers and the pair are keen to establish a retail channel in the UK.

O An oil with “an intense O scent and sharp flavour” that blends Athinolia and Koroneiki olives from Lakonia, Greece, is now on sale under the Urbangrains label. www.urbangrains.net

O Bath Harvest has infused its cold pressed rapeseed oil with sweet basil oil to create an “aromatic yet delicate oil” that it says is great with pasta or salads. www.bathharvestoils.co.uk/

O County Kilkenny rapeseed producer Second Nature Oils has diversified into flaxseed oil, producing an organic cold pressed, unrefined oil from the so-called ‘superseed’.

www.fossadilupo.com

After nine years in the making, the first commercial harvest of a new French oil, Querubi, that goes “beyond organic” has gone on sale in Bayley & Sage, Italo, Gog Magog Hills and Cowdray Farm Shop, at £25 for 500ml. The oil is produced under the stewardship of Willem Voorvaart, a Dutch entrepreneur who is committed to environmental sustainability.

Voorvaart bought a 500 hectare estate in the French Pyrenees in 2006, where the land had been unfarmed for 50 years, and adopted stringent, non-chemical farming principles. “We are organic certified but in theory that would still allow us to use chemical pesticides and fertilisers if there is no biological alternative. We don’t,” he says. “We are one of the few farms not to use any chemicals.”

The oil is a blend of Pyrenees Orientales olive varieties Poumal, Verdal, Oliviere and Picholine.

Valencian family producer Cal Mas is keen to increase its presence in the UK market. Its extra virgin olive oil, obtained from organic Blanqueta and Alfafara olives, is currently on sale through just one UK outlet – Ultracomida in Wales – where it has an RRP of £13.95 for 750ml.

It is unusual to find an organic and a non-organic olive oil from the same producer, but El Olivo has tracked one down. Made in Castellon, Valencia, DOR Ecológico (RRP £2.95) blends Arbequina, Picual and Serrana varieties, whilst DOR Albares (RRP £2.50) is a mix of Arbequina and Picual. www.elolivo-olive-oil.com

O Filippo Berio has unveiled its annual limited edition festive tin, which this year features the cathedral in Florence.

www.oliscalmas.com

Azada, a producer located in Cataluña, Spain, has created a taster pack of its flavoured oils for the gifting market (RRP £10.95). Unlike most flavoured oils, Azada’s oils are not infused but produced by cold pressing Arbequina olives together with fresh basil, chilli, garlic and citrus fruits to obtain their own oils.

www.querubi.fr.

www.azada.es

Top sellers…

Deli, Bristol ...at Chandos

Trendwatch: Going coconuts Coconut oil is becoming a cooking staple, thanks to its high smoke point, zero cholesterol content and purported health benefits.

Tapping into its popularity is Clearspring, with an organic cold pressed raw and unpasteurised oil made from fresh Sri Lankan coconuts. Available from Hider, the oil has an RRP of £4.19 for 200g and £7.99 for 400g, with respective trade prices of £3.14 and £5.99.

Another

producer at the forefront of this trend is Windmill Organics, with two lines marketed under its Biona brand: raw virgin coconut oil, now available in a 1.2kg jar (RRP £19.89), and Coconut Cuisine, coconut oil that has been steamed to remove the coconut flavour and aroma, which is now available in a larger 800g jar (RRP £8.65).

www. secondnatureoils.com

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www. filippoberio. co.uk

O Italian importer Donatantonio is pitching its new Lupetta extra virgin olive oil, a 50:50 mix of Sicilian and Puglian origins, as a “versatile oil that is sensibly priced”. www. donatantonio. com

O The Mas Tarrés range from Catalonian producer Olis Solé is sporting a new look. www.olissole.com

www.biona.co.uk www.clearspring.co.uk

Vol.16 Issue 4 May 2015 Vo

37

THE EXCEPTIONAL TASTE OF FRESH OLIVE OIL New season, early pick, organic and unfiltered, from Lesvos Island Greece

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

Fine Oils & Ingredients Ltd has been established to market products produced in Chile. We are proud to have been appointed the exclusive distributor in the UK for Olisur’s fabulous Extra Virgin Olive Oils.

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“Harrogate Fine Food Show is the reason why regional food shows are so important. The show offers an exciting and efficient way for buyers, from all sectors of the trade, to see first-hand what’s new and where the next big launch might be coming from.”

Scott Winston, Harrods

Harrogate Fine Food Show combines first-time and long-standing exhibitors. As a visitor you will get to meet new producers and taste products that will have never been seen before at a trade show. Come and discover food and drink that will make your shop, restaurant, café or pub a more interesting place to visit.

Featuring this year: Feed the Dragon: producers pitch to big-name food buyers Cracking Christmas: retailer’s workshop to maximise sales Fine Food Live! Theatre: Demos & tutored tastings hosted by radio’s Nigel Barden Expert advice & support from the Guild of Fine Food Great Taste: sample many award-winners Deliciouslyorkshire@Harrogate Fine Food Show

WHO SHOULD VISIT: delis, farmshop, foodhalls, garden centres, pubs & restaurants, hotels, cafés & coffee shops, butchers, bakers, high-end grocers, heritage & gift shops Easy access and free parking. Under 18s will not be admitted. Students by prior arrangement only

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May 2015 路 Vol.16 Issue 4

shelf talk

products, promotions & people

Lyme Bay vineyards yield their first English wines

By MICHAEL LANE

After several years in the making, Devon’s Lyme Bay Winery is unveiling its own five-strong range of English wines, which will be pitched at its independent retail customers.

The line-up (see box) features four still wines – two whites, a red and a rosé – as well as a sparkling wine that will be launched in the summer.

Every wine will be available in cases of six bottles, priced at between £52.50 and £69.96. RRPs will range from £14.99 to £18.99 per bottle.

All are made with grapes grown across three vineyards in the winery’s native county. In total some 26,000 seyval blanc, bacchus and pinot noir grape vines were planted in 2010 and the 2014 harvest had been used for the inaugural vintage.

Head of sales Roger Barrey told FFD that independent retailers would be the winery’s “primary focus”, given the demand for English wine that many customers had shown.

He added that the plan was to produce the range every year.

“This is now a fundamental to Lyme Bay and a growing part of what the business is about,” he added. “We are continuing to invest in new and existing vineyards but final annual volumes will be heavily influenced by the harvest.”

As well as this latest addition, Lyme Bay Winery also produces ciders, meads, liquers and fruit wines.

Suffolk’s Aspall has relaunched its pressed English apple juice in 1 litre Tetra Paks (RRP £2.29), which feature illustrations and details of the business’s 300-year old history. www.aspall.co.uk

Herbal Fusions, the company now making Norfolk Punch, has added two more flavours in 700ml bottles under the brand.

Both the apple and cranberry Norfolk Punches are blends of the original recipe (attributed to Benedictine monks) with fruit juice. www.norfolkpunch. com

what’s in the range Bacchus – Varietals: 100% bacchus Off-dry, crisp wine displaying characters of grapefruit, nettle and elderflower.

Long finish.

Shoreline – Varietals: 51% seyval blanc, 46% bacchus, 3% pinot noir Dry with complex layers. Notes of rose petal, lemon, nettle and grapefruit.

Recommended with seafood.

Bacchus Fumé – Varietals: 100% bacchus Fermented with wild yeast and transferred to French oak barriques for six months. Hints of grapefruit, spicy oak and lemon with a long finish.

Pinot Noir Rosé – Varietals: 100% pinot noir Medium dry rosé with hints of strawberries and cream and a rosehip undertone.

Lyme Bay English Sparkling – Varietals: 100% seyval blanc A fruit-driven sparkling wine with lemon citrus notes and a gentle and persistent mousse.

www.lymebaywinery.co.uk

Piddington seeks listings for novel jams and marmalades

By MICHAEL LANE

Piddington is looking to build on the initial successes of its unusually flavoured preserves, such as apricot & rosemary, with more listings in independents. London-based Catherine Piddington’s creations are already on-shelf in Selfridges and she has recently fulfilled an order for 22,000 jars placed by German food box website Foodist.

The strawberry & pepper, apricot & rosemary, strawberry & vanilla and plum & rose jams are all available in trays of six jars, as are the lemon & thyme and lavender marmalades.

After trading at market stalls for the last 12 months, 30-year-old Piddington told FFD she would like to get into more shops and can handle orders of up to 1,000 jars in her own kitchen. She has also found a

what’s new in soft drinks

reliable contract manufacturer. She sells each 220g jar for £6 on her website (they are listed at a similar price in Selfridges) and is pitching the preserves as luxury products.

“I tested the price and found people were buying it even if they thought it was expensive,” she said.

While she plans to stick with the core range for now, there could be more novel combinations on their way. “I have lots of things in the pipeline,” she told FFD. www.piddingtonjam.co.uk

BIG CHANGE FOR LITTLE’S: Flavoured coffee company Little’s has undergone a rebrand as it looks to gain more ground in the UK’s instant coffee market.

The new packaging design is inspired by the backgrounds of the Devon-based company’s founders Henry and Leila Little – from the US and Finland respectively. It incorporates influences from both Scandi design and retro American packaging from the 1940s and ‘50s.

Now under the stewardship of a second family generation, the company wants to continue the sales growth of its instant flavour-infused Arabica coffees (50g jars, RRP £2.99). www.littlesltd. com

Already listed in As Nature Intended and Partridges, Sibberi (300ml, RRP £3.30) is a new “alternative water” flavoured with the sap from birch trees. It is lower in calories than coconut water and boasts “a rich nutritional profile”, including potassium and vitamins B and C. www.sibberi. com

Rocks has launched a readyto-drink range in 250ml bottles (RRP £1.99) featuring the sparkling organic ginger & wasabi, organic strawberry & blackcurrant, pink lemonade and organic raspberry & lime, as well as two still flavours: organic blackcurrant & elderflower and organic mango & orange. www. rocksorganic. com

Following the launch of its first canned drinks, Cawston Press has boosted the range with two more flavours.

Elderflower lemonade and ginger beer join cloudy apple and rhubarb in the firm’s liline-up of adulto oriented sparkling drinks (330ml, RRP £0.99). www. cawstonpress.com

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

41

shelf talk

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CHEF’S SELECTION Top chefs tell CLARE HARGREAVES their deli essentials

Quinteassential unveils multi-sensory packaging

Steven Edwards

By MICHAEL LANE

www.etchfood.co.uk www.steven-edwards.co.uk

Loose-leaf tea specialist Quinteassential has collaborated with artists to develop new multisensory packaging that offers consumers a more immersive teadrinking experience.

Each of the new boxes features a striking photograph of coloured inks – matched to evoke each blend – suspended in water while QR codes on the rear of the packaging take users’ smartphones to a music track, which also doubles up as a brew timer.

Quinteassential founder Bernadine Tay said she was looking to “alter customer perceptions” and to stand out in the crowded tea market.

“The need to differentiate and offer alternative experiences has never been more important,” she added.

The Quinteassential range

includes British mint & caramel, Imperial Earl Grey and a Signature Breakfast blend as well as Great Taste award-winning Tales of the Orient (rooibos, lemongrass & mango) and White Elixir (white tea, jasmine and spirulina).

The new boxes, which vary in weight from 85g to 125g, have RRPs ranging from £15 to £23. www.quinteassential.co.uk

2013 winner MasterChef: the Professionals

Steven Edwards trained at South Lodge Hotel under Matt Gillan, then moved to the hotel’s Camellia restaurant where he was promoted to head chef in 2012. In 2013 he won MasterChef: the Professionals.

Wobblegate Bramley apple juice www.wobblegate.co.uk

I’ve been using Wobblegate apple juices for years – they’re e produced by a father and son team on the family farm in the middle of Sussex where I also live. I like the fact they don’tt add amley any sugars or preservatives. I’m particularly fond of the Bramley single-variety juice which is quite unusual, so is one of the ce company’s real USPs. It’s lovely and sharp – often apple juice can be too sweet – and it won a Great Taste gold in 2011..

I use it in desserts such as panna cotta and sorbets, which I sometimes serve with fresh raspberries.

Goodwood Estate Levin Down cheese www.goodwood.com m

SUMMER PICKLES: The Carved Angel has boosted its savoury preserves range with three more varieties for spring-summer eating. Wired spiced apple & onion chutney is said to be good with salads, cheese and cold meats while the Blaze hot chilli chutney can be used as a dip or a cooking ingredient. Completing the new trio is Crunch sweet cucumber pickle, which the producer is pitching for burgers and sausages at BBQs. All three come in cases of 6x320g (RRP £3.95- £4.25 per jar).

This creamy Brie-style mould-ripened cheesee n is handmade by artisan cheese-maker Bruce wood Rowan on the Goodwood estate. It uses organic non-homogenised milk from Goodwood Home Farm’s herd of 200 dairy Shorthorn cows which graze on the rich pastures of the South Downs National Park. I use Levin Down in my Cheese and Pickle dish. The cheese is so good you don’t want to mess it around too much. I often pair it with Auntie Val’s chutneys (see below).

Unlike blues and cheddars, this cheese can take on the flavours of the dish and give it an extra creaminess.

www.thecarvedangel.com

Auntie Val’s marrow & red tomato chutney

Tree Of Life launches ownlabel service for retailers

By MICHAEL LANE

Health food wholesaler Tree Of Life is launching a bespoke retailer ownlabel service featuring around 100 products across a variety of categories.

Alongside the 800-plus brands in its catalogue, the company currently offers a wide range of lines under its own brand and will now supply a selection of them with custom labels.

Marketing manager Kirsten Sowerby told FFD the move had been prompted by the success of Tree of Life’s own brand, as well as customer requests for own-label.

Not all of the lines that Tree of

Life sells will be included but the 100-strong range will cover popular categories, including beans and peas, cereals, dried fruits, nuts and seeds, and snacks.

“We’ve come up with the range on the basis of what we know sells well but as we develop with customers we can add to it,” said Sowerby.

She added that there was currently no minimum order for the service and labels would be designed free of charge as the distributor looks to encourage retailers to try the service.

Examples of the lines available include organic quinoa (both grain and flakes), porridge and jumbo oats and snacks like yoghurt-coated fruits and nuts.

While Tree Of Life’s core business remain health shops, Sowerby said that there were lines that would also appeal to delis, farm shops and garden centres. www.treeoflife.co.uk

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

www.auntievals.com

Val’s is another great artisan business that’s local to me, and I love the fact that she employs people with learning difficulties to help make her jams and chutneys. This sweet but tangy chutney is a traditional recipe that’s been pared down – a true part of our English heritage. It uses marrow, a vegetable that’s rarely used but it holds the flavour brilliantly here. The chutney offers lovely acidity when paired with cheeses.

Moons Green guanciale www.moonsgreen.co.uk

This guanciale is made by a local charcutier using meat from outdoor-reared rare breeds. Guanciale is Italian for dry-cured pork jowl and what a different taste it has from other cuts, such as pancetta! It has a firm texture, and normally you’d cook it – but we serve it raw, sliced very thinly. It’s a fatty cut of meat that’s broken down by the curing and ageing process to take on a smooth, creamy taste and texture. I sometimes serve it with gooseberries and mackerel, as something a bit different. A little goes a long way too.

Weald Smokery smoked freshwater eel www.wealdsmokery.co.uk

This smokery certainly produces some unusual products, including this eel, from highest-grade silver eels that are hot smoked over oak. I partner the eel with pigeon and beetroot, as it provides a wonderful creamy smoky flavour. It might seem odd, but smoked eel goes brilliantly with game.

Your Customers Want Healthier Hot & Chilled Drinks. Give Them Tg Green Teas Delicious RTD Iced Green Teas with Ginseng • 3 refreshing varieties (original, mandarin, jujube) • 30 calories per bottle • Low in sugar Inspired by ancient wellness traditions, designed & bottled here in the UK

Naturally uplifting Green Tea blends in 15 pyramid bags • Organic green tea • 3 refreshing and delicious varieties • Come in resealable stand-up pouches A generous serving in each bag.

No added flavourings.

For more information on delicious hot & chilled Tg Green Teas visit www.drinktg.com, call on 0800 7723885 or email hello@drinktg.com Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

43

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May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

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shelf talk what’s new Curry sauces THE ART OF CURRY www.theartofcurry.co.uk

Frustrated with the “bland and tired” taste of curries across the UK, Surrey-based Sameena Thompson quit the corporate world to set up The Art of Curry.

Her new business offers catering, cookery classes and supper club services as well as a six-strong range of fresh sauces. King Korma, Queen Bhuna, Royal Dopiaza, Mellow Moghul, Majestic Maharani and Raging Raja are all cooked by hand in small batches and come in 350g pouches (RRP £4.99).

Spanish namesake. All the user has to do is make a paste with the chillies and spices then add them to beef or pork mince with some cider vinegar to cook up the crumbly meat dish, which can be served in tacos or atop scrambled eggs. Each 46g kit, which also comes with a recipe sheet, has a trade price of £1.52.

ROSE FARM www.rosefarmsomerset.co.uk

After 30 years of making handmade preserves in open pans, Rose Farm has overhauled its labels. As well as emphasising the “handmade” nature of its products, the labels also feature nutritional information and highlights necessary allergens in the ingredients section. Along with the new labelling the Somerset producer has launched a chilli piccalilli and a beetroot & red onion relish. Both come in cases of 6x300g jars and have RRPs of £2.50 and £3.30 respectively.

www.drinktg.com

COOL CHILE CO The Mexican ingredients specialist has developed a new seasoning kit for consumers to produce their own version of the country’s chorizo, which differs from its better-known

www.yorkshirecrisps.co.uk

Bone Broth LODGE FARM KITCHEN / OSIUS Ready meal specialist Lodge Farm Kitchen has launched two bone broths in 720ml jars (RRP £10.95) under a new brand, Osius. Both its beef and chicken varieties are made using British organic bones, which are simmered for 24 hours with organic herbs and Cornish Kombu seaweed. The producer says that the product can be added to recipes, especially soups, but it can also be consumed for its health benefits by the spoonful.

HOLY LAMA NATURALS www.holylamaspicedrops.com

Chilli chocolate SOUTH DEVON CHILLI FARM www.sdcf.co.uk

The farm has extended its range of chilli chocolates with two wo d new “smooth and warming” bars made from ethically ally produced single source cocoa. Thee Madagascar dark 0% chilli chocolate 70% g) is (RRP £4.49, 100g) nd made using a blend of the farm’s f own n chillies c and the “ airest “World’s Fairest ”, Chocolate”, produced in M Madagascar from the A African island’s fruity Criollo, T Trinitario and Forastero cocoa be beans.

Created in response to co consumer demand, the Costa Ri Milk Chilli Chocolate Rica 38 (RRP £3.99, 100g) is 38% m made from Trinitario beans gr grown on a Rainforest Alliance Ce Certified farm in the Ca Caribbean country.

Having previously carried a photo of Rotherham’s Templeborough steelworks, packs of Yorkshire Crisps’ sweet chilli & lime flavour will bear a new heritage image from the company’s home city of Sheffield. A photo of tramcar no. 510, the last electric tram to run in Sheffield, will feature on both the drum and foil bag packaging in a mono print. The tram has recently been restored and can be seen at Crich Tramway Village.

Spice Drops Holy Lama has added rose, paprika and red chilli to its existing range of 26 Spice Drops. These concentrated spice and herb extracts are pitched as a convenient alternative to dry spices and have a three-year shelf life.

Each 5ml bottle has an RRP of £3.99 and an average wholesale cost of £2.16. All of Holy Lama’s range is sourced from its parent business in Kerala, southern India.

TG GREEN TEA

Mexican chorizo kit

THE YORKSHIRE CRISP CO

www.osiusbonebroth.co.uk

Labels, pickle and relish

Green tea pouches Following on from its line-up of ready-to-drink iced teas, Tg has launched its new range of hot organic green teas in a nontransparent resealable standup pouch, which it says will keep the teas fresher for longer. Each pouch contains 15 pyramid bags (RRP £3.99) filled with tea from an organic plantation in eastern China. A member of the Ethical Tea Partnership, Tg has launched with three varieties: green tea, green tea with ginger & lemon and green tea with jujube & osmanthus.

Packaging change

Chef’s gravy Chef’ ESSENTIAL CUISINE ESSEN www. www.essentialcuisine.com/ homechef homec

African sauces GOURMET AFRICA / COTSWOLD FAYRE www.cotswold-fayre.co.uk

Cotswold Fayre is now carrying a range of traditional African cooking and BBQ sauces. The six-strong range of cooking sauces (RRP £3.20) – including Classic Harira from Morocco and an Ethiopian stew called Doro Wat – come in cases of 6x400g pouches for £13.65, while the BBQ sauces (6x250g, £11.70) come in four flavours, including Lekka Peppa and Chatsworth Bunnychow.

Chicken, beef and gluten-free savoury (suitable for veget vegetarians, vegans and coelia coeliacs) are the three variet varieties of gravy mixes devel developed for home chefs by Essen Essential Cuisine. The Cheshir ed Cheshire-based company, which has oducts been making products for professional chefs since 1995, says the powdered mixes make “perfect rich, tasty gravy with a gorgeous sheen finish”.

Each 76g pot (RRP RP £2.50) produces 1 litre of gravy.

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

45

SET THE COWS FREE Moo Free Chocolates is an ethical, quirky, fun UK chocolate brand who have just redesigned their packaging. The brand is aimed at children and adults with food allergies and intolerances.

“We do our own design because we want to maintain the brand’s key attributes and keep to a minimal colour palette. National Flexible helped us to create different effects using the metallised base film. They maintained our costs even though we have moved to a far superior pack, their help was invaluable.”

Mike Jessop Moo Free co-founder

For further details on either the product, the packaging or what National Flexible can contact Jacqui Sadler on 01274 685566 or on jacqui@nationalflexible.net

www.nationalflexible.co.uk

10 – 1pm, Monday 22 June, Hall 2, Yorkshire Event Centre The workshop costs £50 (+VAT) and will end promptly at 1pm to allow time to visit the show

CRACKING CHRISTMAS Back for a fourth year, this popular workshop takes place again at the Harrogate Fine Food Show in June. Getting your sales right in December can save your year. Come and learn how you can crack Christmas trading from two retailers who have over 25 successful festive seasons between them.

Then spend January on the beach.

What will you learn What a 2% increase in margin can do to your profitability How to extend your Christmas sales into November O How you can play the cash flow game to your advantage O How to create a business plan specifically for this time of year O How to make sure your food shop is top of your customers Christmas list O How to manage wastage and stock season-specific products O O

To book your place call Jilly Sitch on 01747 825200 or email jilly.sitch@gff.co.uk Due to limited space, places for this workshop are confirmed on a first come first served basis only

www.gff.co.uk | 46

May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

@guildoffinefood | #harrogateffs

LED for fresh food

Andrew and Maria Henshaw, owners of Mainsgill Farm Shop

“We are delighted to have chosen Imoon LEDs over several competitors, they have delivered exactly what we were looking for in our lighting solution and the whole project not only looks fantastic, it is extremely energy efficient”

Heather Parry, Managing Director of Fodder, Harrogate

“We chose Imoon Lighting to change our Food Hall and Café to LED and are absolutely delighted with the results, Fodder is literally sparkling! The team from Imoon were a joy to work with – thank you Imoon”

iMOON Lighting (UK) Ltd Caspian House Caspian Road Altrincham Cheshire WA14 5HH Tel. +44 161 710 3170 www.imoongroup.co.uk Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

47

shelf talk

Get yourself out there Whether he’s running for office or tweeting about his latest sandwich, the owner of Truffles Delicatessen is determined to be more than a man behind a counter

Deli of the Month INTERVIEW BY MICHAEL LANE

T

ypical. Classic. Archetypal.

These are all words you might use to describe Ross-on-Wye. It’s got everything you’d expect of a rural market town, including a healthy dose of independent businesses and an exemplary 17th century market house. The same adjectives could be used about Truffles, the town’s only deli.

When I arrive, owner Richard Mayo is cheerfully receiving a delivery from one of his numerous local suppliers while, out back, his wife Hayley is baking cakes for the counter.

Three other staff members are busy readying lunchtime sandwich platters and attending to the shopfloor. It’s a reassuringly familiar set-up.

But, as Mayo and I settle down by the sandwich bar at the rear of the long, narrow and slightly kinked shop, it’s clear that there’s one stereotype he’s not willing to play up to.

“You can’t just sit behind your counter,” he tells me. “A lot of shopkeepers around the country, they’ll open their door and just expect people to come in.

“It’s not like that anymore. You’ve got to be more savvy and interactive.”

Although the Facebook notifications are coming thick and fast on the screen of Mayo’s trusty iPad (his mobile office) while we talk, he’s not just extolling the well-worn virtues of social media.

In truth, he is as much of a presence on the street as he is online. A founding member and former chairman of Ross-on-Wye’s traders’ association, Mayo is also both a town and county councillor for the Conservative party. This is, of course, subject to his re-election this month and during FFD’s visit he is still campaigning.

Looking at his list of extracurricular activities, you might think Mayo has taken his own advice a little too far but they haven’t detracted from his actual business.

In the financial year just gone, Truffles’ turnover rose by £30,000 to £260,000 and Mayo has his sights on further increases by introducing sit-in dining in the next few months.

Despite the trek past the serveover and up a slope to the back of the shop, the sandwich bar accounts

48

May 2015 · Vol.16 Issue 4

for roughly a third of all sales and “When people ask, I say we’re a Truffles has a steady stream of outside traditional deli,” says Mayo. “We do a catering jobs for local offices and bit of everything. We do ingredients, functions. Retail sales are the core of treats, quality cheese and alcohol. the business, with the cheese counter Things haven’t always ticked along – stocked with local gems like Smart’s as nicely as they are now. Mayo says Single Gloucester and Monkland’s trading in the wake of the global Little Hereford and deli staples like financial crisis was a struggle. He Colston Bassett and Montgomery’s – admits that he had taken the steady a major draw. year-on-year sales growth for granted “I haven’t themed it on just Herefordshire Town centres like ours are going produce or as an Italian to become social hubs where deli, because there’s people come to relax rather than nowhere else in town,” for their weekly shop says Mayo. “If there was a Spanish deli in town I wouldn’t choose Spanish but, as the recession bit, people products, obviously.” stopped buying the big-ticket items – Even though he insists that the like £40 bottles of vodka – and then busy Easter Bank Holiday weekend started spending less generally. has left Truffles’ shelves depleted, “It took us a year to realise that it there are still some 1,000 lines was going to continue,” says Mayo. merchandised across the shop’s “It dropped but then it plateaued and “Heath Robinson” (Mayo’s own now, within the last year, it’s started to words) shelving. This includes a wall build again.” of local bottled beer and – one of Staff hours were cut, Mayo got Herefordshire’s most famous delicacies rid of the Truffles delivery van and – cider. both he and his wife were taking

^

_

less money out of the business and spending more of their time in it.

Sourcing 75% of his stock direct meant Mayo was able to be more flexible with his orders.

“I can’t advocate recessions but they really make you look at your bottom line and think: ‘Right, we’re spending too much, where can we trim the fat?’” says Mayo. “You come out of it much leaner and, when the economy starts to recover, you’re more profitable because you’ve cut everything back.”

Mayo is no stranger to austerity on a wider scale, either. Although he admits central government cuts have made councillors’ jobs tougher, he would like to see a Conservative majority or (more realistically) a Toryled coalition return to parliament to continue its work.

“The most important thing any government can do is keep the economy improving because that then has an effect on the money in people’s pockets,” he says. “And if people feel a little bit more wealthy, they’ll come in and buy something

products, promotions & people

Hayley and Richard Mayo H o opened Truffles in Ross-onWye during winter 2003 W

there is an “organic change” taking place in the middle of town.

“Town centres like ours are going to become social hubs where people come to relax rather than for their weekly shop,” he says, citing coffee shop culture and a consumer preference for buying bulk items from numerous out-of-town TOCKS -S ST U M S TRUFFLE options. “That’s just the Cider public changing and we Ross-on-Wye olate bars have to try and keep up oc ch r ou s Sue Gilm en preser ve with that.”

Artisan Kitch es While Truffles’ mix of uc sa en ch Bim’s Kit food-to-go and speciality la no ra G Wye Valley foods sits well alongside classic chilli l A coffee shops and eateries Et Olives es of the evolving high & garlic oliv street, Mayo says visitors ds ea crispbr need a steady stream Peter’s Yard ornwall) of incentives to keep t Vinegar (C al M n isa rt A tell Stinking them coming back. ar M s le ar Ch se This is largely what the Bishop chee Association of Ross os st pe Seggiano Traders was set up to r de Ci re hi ds or do. As well as regular Wilce’s Heref Vinegar events like the May le eese Litt Fayre and Christmas Monkland Ch that maybe they wouldn’t have, and that’s where we make our money.”

One thing he doesn’t expect the next government to be is the saviour of Britain’s high streets. Rather than surviving as they are or dying off completely, Mayo says

Hereford

Shopping Festival, the group has also created a pack of leaflets and discount vouchers that is sent to every new homeowner in the local area.

“With a market town you really need these events to create a buzz and keep people interested,” says Mayo. “You get more footfall on the pavement and I get more people in the deli buying cheese.”

Given that Ross-on-Wye relies on a summer tourist influx, keeping the town up to scratch has long been a concern of Mayo’s. After years of being “a thorn in the side” and complaining to the council, he got his chance for office when a councillor passed away and the Conservatives approached him to run in the byelection for seats on both the town and county councils.

While he says the volume of meetings can be a hindrance to the business, Mayo evidently relishes engaging with the public in all capacities, whether he’s fielding complaints about bin collection or advising a customer on cheddars.

This enthusiasm extends to the

digital world and social media. He follows and updates using his iPad, which doubles up as his order book and banking portal. He uses twitter for business – both in his council capacity and when searching for new suppliers – and Facebook for reaching out to consumers.

Posting photos of new sandwiches and cakes to entice both potential and regular customers comes naturally to Mayo because, he says, he enjoys using technology. It works for him, as is evident from a younger demographic that is increasingly visiting the shop, but he stresses that social media won’t help shopkeepers that can’t be enthusiastic about it and update it regularly.

No doubt, Mayo’s feeds will soon be documenting the latest stage in Truffles’ evolution – sit-in dining. He has been making the store longer and longer ever since it opened, pushing the sandwich bar all the way back into the kitchen, but now he is moving outside. The shop has a previously disused courtyard, which can be accessed both from inside and from an alleyway next to the shop, and it is now decked out with chairs and tables for customers to eat at.

The next step will be staging evening events with set menus and wine.

Truffles’ owner freely admits that he can’t stay still and it’s been the same from day one. Back in August 2003, he decided to give up his comfortable job – selling skips and wheelie bins for a waste management company – to open a deli. Ross didn’t have one at the time and visiting some local farmers’ markets had inspired Mayo to go for it.

By November of the same year he had handed back the keys for his company car, got married, been on honeymoon and renovated a shop on the high street – which had previously been a drapers’, health food store, antique dealership and an ironmongery – in time for opening.

“The first day we were in such a mad panic,” recalls Mayo. “I’d never used a till or a meat-slicer before.

“It was just me and Hayley behind the counter. We opened the door and people came in. We just went for it.

No training, no experience.”

Nearly 12 years on from that chaotic opening day, Richard Mayo says he wouldn’t recommend teaching yourself to run a deli. His advice is, simply, to get stuck in.

“You’ve got to enjoy it. Retail’s changing all the time. The dominance of the big supermarkets seems to be waning and our high streets are changing. People don’t shop like they used to and we’ve got to use anything we can to encourage trade and be multitasking to get people in.”

Given that attitude, Truffles looks set to remain as much of a fixture in the town as Ross’s famous market house. www.trufflesdeli.co.uk

Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

49

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>Ä‚Ä?ÄžĹŻĹŻÄžĆŒĆ? Ä¨Ĺ˝ĆŒ ĆŒĹ˝ĆľĹśÄš Θ Ć?Ć‹ĆľÄ‚ĆŒÄž Ä?ŽŜƚĂĹ?ĹśÄžĆŒĆ?͘

ĹŻĹŻ žĂÄ?ĹšĹ?ŜĞĆ? ĂǀĂĹ?ĹŻÄ‚Ä?ĹŻÄž Ć?ĞžĹ? Ĺ˝ĆŒ ĨƾůůLJ ĂƾƚŽžĂƚĹ?Ä?͘

Í— Ĺ?ŜĨŽΛĂÄ?Ĺ˝Ć?Ä‚ĹŻÄžĆ?͘Ä?Ĺ˝Í˜ĆľĹŹ ÍŹ Ç Ç Ç Í˜Ä‚Ä?Ĺ˝Ć?Ä‚ĹŻÄžĆ?͘Ä?Ĺ˝Í˜ĆľĹŹ

VISIT www.johnhuntbolton.co.uk TO SEE OUR RANGE OF MACHINES, PLUS VIDEO CLIPS OF THE MACHINES IN OPERATION OR CALL + 44 (0) 1204 521831 / 532798 OR FAX + 44 (0) 1204 527306 OR EMAIL spencer@johnhuntbolton.co.uk

JOHN HUNT (Bolton) Ltd Rasbottom St, Bolton, England BL3 5BZ • baking equipment

Packaging Ltd

• food processing machinery

• ingredients

• ingredients

Crestchem

Crestchem Ltd., 10 Hill Avenue, Amersham, Bucks, HP6 5BW

Food Division - suppliers of

PECTIN CITRIC ACID GUMS SORBATES LACTOSE & more Contact: LORETTA ATKINS loretta@crestchem.co.uk T: 01494 434660 - F: 01494 434990 www.crestchem.co.uk • labelling

Refractometers for Quality Control

@Refractoshop

www.refractometershop.com • bottles & jars

• food processing machinery

• ingredients

• labelling

The heart of UK food manufacturing

EASY ROLLER Tel 44 (0)1706 (0 364103 mike@becketts.co.uk www.becketts.co.uk www.bakeryequipment.co.uk

• bottles & jars

Sugar & dairy Standard & ingredients bespoke dairy blends Starches & sweeteners Emulsifiers & stabilisers Fats & oils Tel: (01454) 411446 sales@garrettingredients.co.uk www.garrettingredients.co.uk

• ingredients

• ingredients

HS HS French Flint Ltd. FF

Sweeten up your sales.

Advertise in Fine Food Digest

Speciality Glassware, for the more discerning producer.

‘‘Dynamically Designed Depositor’’ Contact: Daniel Dunne Unit 2, Bridge Mills Rochdale Road, EdenďŹ eld Lancashire, England BL0 0RE OfďŹ ce: 00 44 (0)1706 825596 Fax: 00 44 (0)1706 826686 Mobile: 07710 723901 Email: david@interbake.co.uk

Unit 4G, The Leathermarket, Weston Street, London SE1 3ER Tel: 020 7407 3200 Fax: 020 7237 9093 www.FrenchFlint.com

50

May 2015 ¡ Vol.16 Issue 4

Built in Britain

01747 825200

• labelling

“We can help you label every step of the way, manually, semi and fully automatically�

Proudly supplying British made packaging equipment and labelling machines for 50 years 1964-2014

01274 681022 info@norpakltd.com www.norpakltd.com

Call our sales team on 01747 825200 today to discuss the right classified heading for your equipment, ingredients or services

• labelling

• labelling

• packaging

• software

", ÊÊ ÊÊ / " " 9 Ê -FBTF &-' MBCFMMFST GSPN b QFS NPOUI

`Û> Vi`Ê Þ > VÃÊ Ì` /ʳ{{ʭ䮣ÓÇ{ÊÇΣÓÓÓÊ Ê v J>`Û> Vi``Þ > VðV °Õ Ê 6 à ÌÊÜÜÜ°>`Û> Vi``Þ > VðV °Õ • refrigeration

• refrigeration

Stagionello

TM

Patented showcase for Salami Drying & Seasoning New to UK: MaturmeatTM For Dry Aging of Meat

www.stagionello.it UK sales & support: 01978 846173

Don’t leave advertisers in the dark – tell them you saw them in Fine Food Digest

t %JHJUBM TIPSU SVO MBCFMT t *OLKFU QSJOUJOH t )PU GPJMJOH BOE EPNFE MBCFMT t CBS DPEJOH WBSJBCMF EBUB BOE DPOTFDVUJWF OVNCFSJOH t 3FFMFE MBNJOBUFE TIFFUFE t )JHI WPMVNF QMBJO MBCFMT 8F IBWF UVSSFU XJOEJOH DBQBDJUZ

t )JHI WPMVNF QSJOUFE MBCFMT VQUP DPMPVST In addition with in-house design and plate making we can offer unrivalled service and response to meet your needs

Tamper evident & film sealable plastic food packaging Reliable leadtimes and service – sensible minimum order size Sizes available from 30ml to 5000ml – transparent products in stock

Unit C McKenzie Industrial Park Birdhall Lane, Stockport SK3 0XX TEL : +44 (0)161 428 1617 FAX : +44 (0)161 428 1603 www.windmilltapes.co.uk

Visit www.innavisions.com or call us for a brochure TEL: 01886 832283 EMAIL: nick.wild@innavisions.com

• packaging

M O HA E N LF AL PR OF MB L C IC F ER JU O E T ER S’ N UR RA E 2 S IN 01 ES IN 5 UN G TI L

• packaging

• vacancies

Guild Retail Cheese Training dates:

Cheese retail: it’s all in the detail Training is vital to retail success and will dramatically improve sales.

Guild retail cheese training will help you to: •n Enhance your understanding of the cheese packaging • iingredients ngr ng gredi g ed ent s •p ackagi ack agi g ng making process • Understand the impact terrior has on cheese • Recognise the main families of cheese • Comparatively taste over 40 cheese types • Sell proactively rather than reactively Book a Guild Retail cheese training day for you or a member of your team and take advantage of our members’ half price training offer of just £35 plus vat.

May 11 May 12 June 23

Brixton, London Brixton, London Harrogate

Course costs Guild Member Offer: 50% off normal price £70 (now £35) plus 20% VAT Non-members: £95 plus 20% VAT *NB: London training is subject to an additional fee of £10pp plus VAT. Course fee includes full seminar, including tastings, study work book and issue of Diploma on successful completion of the course.

Call 01747 825200 or email jilly.sitch@gff.co.uk LEARN

BE INSPIRED

SUCCEED

SPONSORED BY

www.gff.co.uk |

@guildoffinefood Vol.16 Issue 4 · May 2015

51

See you at WINNER 2014-15 DISTRIBUTORS

THIRD YEAR RUNNING!

on

STAND 144