Sandwich & Snack News - Issue 144

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Sandwich snack news INTERNATIONAL

www.sandwich.org.uk

issue 144 MARCH 2013

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CONTENTS

EDITOR SIMON AMBROSE t: 01291 636343 e: editorial@papa.org.uk

ADVERTISING PAuL STEER t: 01291 636342 e: paul@jandmgroup.co.uk

SUBSCRIPTIONS TONY LORIMER t: 01291 636333 tony@sandwich.org.uk

CONTENTS

MANAGING EDITOR SIMON AMBROSE, Tel: 01291 636343 e-mail: editorial@papa.org.uk

NEWS Page 4. SUBWAY has launched a new partnership with Ireland’s independent forecourt retailer, Applegreen

ADVERTISING PAuL STEER, t: +44 (0) 1291 636342 e-mail: paul@jandmgroup.co.uk

PROFILES Page 10. Juliet Shield on London’s new Scandinavian sandwich trend Page 14. EAT has launched a new look at its shop on the Strand, London - a template for a new raft of expansion, with plans to double the number of branches within five years.

Simon Ambrose investigates PROFILES Page 16. Subway and Pret A Manger are members of Jacques Borel’s VAT Club, which is leading a campaign for a VAT cut to create jobs and stimulate the economy

PRODUCTION AND DESIGN JAYSON BERRY, t: +44 (0) 1291 636339 e: jayson@jandmgroup.co.uk SUBSCRIPTIONS TONY LORIMER t: +44 (0) 1291 636333 e-mail: tony@sandwich.org.uk ©Published by J&M Group 2006.

Association House, 18c Moor Street, Chepstow, Monmouthshire NP16 5DB In association with The British Sandwich Association.

PHONE +44 (0) 1291 636338 FAX +44 (0) 1291 630402 WEB www.sandwich.org.uk EMAIL info@sandwich.org.uk Paper used in the production of this publication is sourced from sustainable managed forests

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 3

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NEWS

Subway franchisees protest about ‘unfair’ VAT SUBWAY franchisees recently took a petition containing more than 150,000 signatures across the country to Downing Street to voice their concern about the entrenched tax loophole given to pasties following the pasty tax u-turn.

They claim that it is unfair that hot pasties can effectively enjoy a tax break while low calorie sandwiches supplied by small businesses like theirs are penalised.

The Subway brand as a whole welcomed the Government’s move to introduce greater clarity and a level playing field for all hot foods within the 2012 Budget statement. But changes to the rules meant that on October 1, 2012 a “cooling down” test was incorporated.

Food which has been heated for the purpose of cooking and is cooling down naturally, even if it happens to be hot at the time of sale, remains zero rated. But takeaway food that is heated to order or kept hot after cooking, for example in a heated cabinet or in heatretaining packaging, is standard rated.

Subway’s view is that the legislation “still fails to create a legal framework which applies only an objective test, which it understands is required by European Law.” These are potential breaches of the EU principles of equality of treatment and fiscal neutrality amongst retailers selling similar products that fulfil the same purpose, it adds.

David Cameron, an aptly named franchisee, said; “My staff and I work very hard to offer our customers freshly made, low calorie subs which

Subway franchisees hand in the petition: David Cameron (Yorkshire), Harvey Brown (South West), Jitin Dixit (London), Rachana Pancholi (Derby) and Maureen Hibbens (Scotland)

include 1 of your 5 a day vegetable portions from our salad bar, yet I am penalised because some of the items are toasted. It seems unfair that hot pasties can enjoy a tax break while low calorie sandwiches supplied by small businesses like mine are penalised.”

Meanwhile, in an unrelated matter, Subway has promised that customers will get the full 12in length of its ‘Footlong’ sandwich, following customer complaints about being ‘shorted’ on the size.

The move follows a US lawsuit filed by two New Jersey customers which contends the world's largest fast-food chain was skimping on its sandwich size. The company said it now regrets

'any instance where we did not fully deliver on our promise to our customers.'

It had previously issued a statement – later removed - saying that the sandwich lengths could vary a bit when franchises do not bake to the exact standard.

The sandwich chain will now 'ensure that every Footlong sandwich is 12 inches at each location worldwide,' says the statement released by the company.

The men behind the lawsuit, John Farley and Charles Noah Pendrack, are taking legal action in order to claim compensation and “try to bring about a change in Subway's practices”.

Sandwich manufacturer set for 100 new jobs Sandwich manufacturer Solway Foods, part of 2 Sisters Food Group, based at Manton Wood Enterprise Park, is recruiting 100 new jobs in its factory, which supplies retail customers including Tesco and Costa.

This follows additional business gains over the last 12 months, which has seen production volumes increase by around 6%.

The site already employs around 1200 permanent staff.

The site is a key part of 2 Sisters Food Group’s growth agenda, says the company.

Steve Bryant, General Manager for Solway Foods at Manton Wood, said: “This is good news for Solway Foods and shows how under 2 Sisters we are

4 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

focused on growing our business into the future.

“The food industry overall remains tough and highly competitive, but the chilled sandwiches market is showing continued growth and by putting our customers at the heart of everything we do, we have been able to benefit.”

Recruitment is already underway at the site.

2 Sisters, which employs around 18,000 people in the UK, Ireland and Europe, is one of the UK’s largest food manufacturers, supplying products including chicken and poultry, chilled ready meals, pizza, soup, sandwiches and salads; frozen pizza, fish and vegetables; puddings, cakes and desserts.

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NEWS

CEO Chris Thomas set to leave Adelie Foods ADELIE Foods’ CEO Chris Thomas is leaving the sandwich manufacturer to join Tulip as the Chief Executive Officer of its UK operation from May 15th. A replacement has yet to be announced.

Part of the Danish Crown Group, Tulip’s UK portfolio includes sandwich manufacturer Freshway Chilled Foods, acquired from Parkam Foods in 2011.

Chris Thomas has been a key figure in maintaining Adelie as the UK's second food to go businesses behind Greencore since he joined in 2009, supplying retail, coffee shop, travel and contract catering sectors, and developing the foodservice brand Urban Eat, against the difficult background of the lengthy recession. His legacy is likely to focus around the rationalisation undertaken at the group.

Previously a collection of largely autonomous companies, snapped up in a rapid series of acquisitions by the previous PE owner, Duke Street, he ‘simplified’ the business by taking on the role of single head, ‘establishing central direction and local autonomy’. This

saw the departure of two managing directors – Joe Rainert and Paul Bates.

He also initiated a programme to substantially reduce the previously ‘vast’ supply base to around 350400.

Before joining Adelie, he held senior management positions with businesses including Mars, PepsiCo, St. Ivel and, most recently, as Managing Director at Bakkavor, during which time he gained a broad wealth of experience across a range of disciplines including R&D, Supply Chain, Commercial and Operations.

Chris Thomas commented: "I am absolutely delighted to have the opportunity to join a business of Tulip's expertise and scale and look forward to working with the team to build on the phenomenal growth it has enjoyed over recent years."

Tulip Ltd's current CEO and Chairman Flemming Enevoldsen explains: "We have undertaken a rigorous search in order to find the right individual to lead the Tulip business here in the UK and I know that Chris' experience, customer relationships and value set make him a fantastic fit for our business."

FSA extends survey to sandwiches THE Food Standards Agency had expanded its UK-wide survey of food authenticity through local authorities to include beef based pre-packed, or 'loose' sandwiches, as we went to press.

The survey, expanded

New British Sandwich Association logo launched THE British Sandwich Association has updated its logo around the Union Jack to identify it more closely with the British heritage of the sandwich.

The new logo, which has been launched in advance of British Sandwich Week (May 12-18), follows last year’s celebrations to mark the 250th Anniversary of the Sandwich.

The Association has also announced plans to substantially increase activity around British Sandwich Week this year with a greater presence for the campaign at point-of-

sale, consumer competitions and an attempt at a world sandwich making record.

The British Sandwich Industry Awards, also known as the Sammies, will also be taking place during the Week.

“The new logo has been designed to capture the British heritage of the sandwich and to give it greater impact,” says Director Jim Winship. “It also marks a move by the Association into consumer marketing which will see greater support for our awards and British Sandwich Week this year.”

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to ensure that a wider range of products are sampled, will include a total of 514 products.

The sampling will be carried out by 28 local authorities. Findings were likely to be announced early this month (March).

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 5

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NEWS

Greggs to sell more hot food GREGGS has started to sell hot pasties subject to VAT six months after leading the campaign for the government to overturn its ‘pasty tax’, because of customer demand. The company also plans to extend its range of food that can be served hot or heated up.

It currently bakes savouries in-store before leaving them to cool to avoid charging customers the 20 per cent tax that was levied on hot takeaway food by the Chancellor in 2012 budget.

Greggs made the decision after receiving feedback from customers who were unhappy with

being served lukewarm food and wanted their food piping hot.

A spokeswoman for the

Lavazza plans to open 400 shops selling sandwiches ITALIAN coffee giant Lavazza plans to open nearly 400 shops selling Italian-themed sandwiches over the next decade across the UK. Lavazza Espression outlets serve a variety of hot drinks and Italian food, including sandwiches, paninis, pizzas and salad, and over 40 nonalcoholic and alcoholic beverages.

Matt Ilingworth, partner at Cushman & Wakefield, said: “Lavazza Espression is a new and exciting concept which will give UK customers a real taste and experience of Italy on their doorstep. The concept really offers something unique amongst other coffee brands and we see it becoming a favourite on our high street and in shopping centres throughout the UK.” The roll-out in the UK forms part of a wider international expansion plan, which includes openings in North America, Western and Eastern Europe, Far and Middle East and

South America.

The capital will be a key target for Lavazza Espression, the coffee maker’s new store format, with 50 shops planned for Greater London over the next three years. It will open its first shop on Villiers Street

by Charing Cross station in April and another on Cannon Street in June, while others are set for Derby, Leeds and Newbury over the coming months.

Lavazza Espression, currently with just one standalone shop in Manchester’s Trafford Centre, has appointed property consultant Cushman & Wakefield to advise on its UK roll-out.

In addition to its coffee and Italian food, the shop sells a selection of more than 40 non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages.

Luigi Lavazza founded the coffee maker in 1895 by opening its first store in Turin, Italy.

company said it had begun experimenting with increasing the amount of hot food it serves in stores.

Although she would not confirm which products were being trialled, they are likely to include Cornish pasties, steak bakes and sausage rolls.

She added: “Greggs already offers toasted sandwiches but is looking at extending the range of food that can be served hot or heated up. If something is served hot, it will attract VAT.”

Costa deluged by job applicants MORE than 1,700 people recently applied for eight jobs at a new Costa coffee shop – a clear indication of how difficult the jobs market remains.

The coffee shop chain received 1,701 applications for the posts at their new branch in Mapperley, Nottingham, after advertising in early December.

A spokeswoman said the firm was shocked at the response for the three full-time and five parttime posts at the shop, which is due to open on Woodborough Road on Friday.

She said applicants for the posts, with wages between £6.10 and £10 an hour, ranged from new graduates to former managers who were clearly overqualified for the positions.

Sandwich bar owner convicted of dishonestly claiming disability benefits A sandwich bar owner who claimed she could not walk far has been convicted of dishonestly claiming £11,000 in disability living allowance — after being filmed carrying deliveries for her shop.

Julie Peters, who runs Victoria Sandwich in Horwich, Bolton told the Department of Work and Pensions she

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could not walk far and had been claiming disability benefits for seven years.

But her dishonesty was revealed following a tip off when she was caught on camera. Peters, aged 56, from Breightmet, was found guilty at Manchester Magistrates Court of failing

to notify the Department of Work and Pensions between October, 2008, and November, 2011.

She launched the business after beating depression following breast cancer surgery.

She will be sentenced at Manchester Crown Court this month (March).

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NEWS

Subway launches new forecourt partnership SUBWAY has launched a new partnership with Ireland’s independent forecourt retailer, Applegreen.

The deal will see stores open this month (March) in two of its service station locations, Uckfield in East Sussex and Gorey in the Republic of Ireland, with more sites due to open later this year.

The sandwich brand currently has

more than 1,600 stores in the UK and Ireland, over 300 of which are open or in development in non-traditional locations, such as on forecourt sites or within convenience stores. Applegreen operates 95 sites in the UK and Ireland.

Trevor Haynes, Subway area development manager, said: “We are delighted to be working with

Applegreen across its UK and Irish retail portfolio. It’s a great opportunity for the brand to continue its expansion into key forecourt locations.

“We are seeing a great deal of demand for Subway stores on forecourts and within convenience stores at the moment, due to the simple operations, alongside minimal space and equipment requirements.”

3663 partners with SITA for zero waste to landfill 3663 has joined forces with SITA UK, a recycling and waste management company, to provide customers with a recycling programme to achieve zero waste to landfill.

SITA will provide an initial audit on waste and recycling requirements and an onboard weighing facility for each collection, which will then distribute waste to be reused and recycled at 26 sites. This

will give customers live and accurate access to the progression of the decrease in the environmental impact across their business.

For larger customers this means providing bespoke ‘packing in’ stats, ensuring that they receive a closed loop report based on what physically goes in and out.

Bernadette Chamley, 3663’s manager of the scheme comments: ”Our

customers have been asking us for some time to collect packaging and other waste streams. Up until now, we have only been able to collect and recycle waste cooking oil via our partnership with Convert2Green. As part of our continued commitment to sustainability initiatives, we are now able to offer our customers a fully comprehensive waste and recycling service.”

New marketing manager for Pret Pret a Manger has appointed former Green & Black marketer Mark Palmer as marketing manager.

He has previously worked with brands including Union Hand roasted Coffee, Cawson Press, First Natural Brands and Burger King.

Urban eat extends product ranges Food to Go brand Urban eat is extending its range of salads, sandwiches, halal and gluten free products.

The brand is introducing two new sandwich varieties, Roast Beef and Horseradish and Chicken and Chorizo, to extend the product range further.

Halal consumers will be offered a variety of sandwiches and wraps created to reflect their preference for stronger tastes and flavours including a new Bombay Chicken and Potato wrap and a feisty Piri Piri Chicken sandwich.

For wheat intolerant customers there are Pesto Chicken and Cheddar Ploughman's Gluten Free rolls and a Chicken, Rice & Lentil Salad with edamame beans, pumpkin seeds & soy

sweet chilli dressing.

The salads range has been extended with five new layered salads incorporating

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superfood ingredients such as pomegranate seeds, pumpkin seeds, edamame beans and puy lentils.

Meanwhile, snack size pasta salads have had a makeover with improved recipes and more shelf friendly pack formats.

Brand manager Isla Biggin explains: "Choice and quality are the real essence of the brand and this latest range of launches underlines our commitment to ensuring we continue to deliver products that excite and delight modern UK consumers.

"We have really taken the time to listen to customer feedback, in particular from those consumers who have a restricted diet, and have worked hard to create a range of products that means they shouldn't have to make compromises on either taste or variety."

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JULIET SHIELD

A Nordic

Triangle Scandinavian or, more accurately, Nordic sandwiches are starting to take off in London, as the next big trend. In suitably freezing weather, consultant Juliet Shield visits Scandinavian Kitchen, Nordic Bakery and Fabrique for some open (and closed) sandwich treats

I

n the late 1960s my mother inherited an interior design business in Manchester. This was not quite the glamorous occupation it has now become. Much of her time was spent lugging colour cards and swatches of fabric across muddy building sites to fit out show houses for new estates which were then mushrooming around the country.

One treat to look forward to, when I accompanied her on these expeditions, was lunch at the Danish Centre in the centre of Manchester. There was something a bit racy then about the idea of open sandwiches, the predominant theme of the menu.

Sandwiches at that time were considered to be entirely functional: some kind of spread, inferior ham, grated cheese or egg, binding two pieces of bread (usually white and flaccid) together.

At the Danish Centre, the fillings were exposed in all their glory, arranged on

neatly cut slices of dark rye bread – perhaps herrings in pickled sweet sauces, smoked salmon, pink salami or chopped eggs gently mixed with chopped onion and gherkins. It was a revelation. There was no perching on stools at a counter either; this was a proper sit down knife and fork operation.

All these memories flooded back as I walked to the Scandanavian Kitchen in Fitzrovia to talk to one of the owners, Brontë Blomhøj. In 2006 Danishborn Brontë and her Swedish husband Jonas decided they wanted to open a business and have a family, which would allow for sharing the responsibilities of both, Scandanavian style.

Somewhere in the discussions, the idea of a café came up, with a shop attached where homesick Scandis could buy things Juliet Shield is a café and restaurant consultant www.julietshield.com office@julietshield.com

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from home that they missed. And so in 2007, their café and shop opened in Great Titchfield Street on the same day as their first baby was born. A busy day!

I asked the vivacious Bronte what had made them choose this location.

It was not possible to find a site in Soho with the money they had, but Great Titchfield Street was affordable five years ago, and still in central London.

I remark that the spot was perfect for the burgeoning media businesses all around, and ask about the competition from the many trendy coffee bars and lunch places which have opened over the last few years. “I

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JULIET SHIELD don’t like the word competition. It’s so negative. We all have our place, and really the more of us that are here the better. When we moved here the only cafes were of the greasy spoon variety, and now the standard is generally much higher.”

The service system at the Scandanavian Kitchen is straightforward. Mini open sandwiches on rye bread, a bit like large canapés, are sold for £2.25 each. Three portions cost £5.95 to take away, or £6.50 to eat in.

Five pieces cost £8.95 or £9.95 respectively.

Toppings include:

Swedish meatballs with beetroot and apple salad, gravad lax with dill and mustard sauce, and egg mayonnaise salad with tomato and onion . They are all carefully made and delicious, with the flavours of dill, pickled sweet onion, mustard and sour cream predominating. Having 50% less bread, this is a healthy way of eating sandwiches – a step away from a salad selection, also on the menu. I tried a particularly good new salad creation consisting of spelt,

sweet potato, spring onion, feta and tarragon.

Less healthy are the tempting cakes, particularly during the cold months of January to March when a wicked looking traditional Semlor bun, flavoured with cardamom and filled with an almond paste and whipped cream is on the menu. Other regulars include carrot and pine nuts and an apple, cinnamon and custard cake.

Throughout the process of researching this piece I was learning more and more about Nordic food.

Not the stuff of Noma in Copenhagen, many times voted the best restaurant in the world, and where experimentation with foraging reaches ever new heights annually, but the everyday kind of food.

Brontë was quite definite about this. “The kind of food we serve in the Scandanavian Kitchen is what people eat in their homes, not what people are experimenting with in restaurants. It’s called husmankost – famers’ food – simple and honest – what you find on the land around you.”

This down to earth approach is what has enabled the two owners to build an exceptionally happy band of staff. From her previous existence as head of HR at Innocent, Brontë has clearly learnt how to make her employees happy and run the business with a big dose of humour.

Mottoes such as “Happiness is a warm bun” or “In the land of the midnight herring the oneeyed moose is king” are emblazoned on the back of the staff t-shirts.

I wondered how much of the business was shop and how much café. “It depends on the day of the week,” Bronte told me.

“From Monday to Friday

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JULIET SHIELD the trade is around 85% local and 15% Scandi. At the weekend it is reversed, about 80% are Scandinavians who travel to come here, and buy more groceries while having coffee or lunch.” This is a model that clearly works well for them. The crispbreads, pickled herrings, Scandanavian cheese, jams and cordials provide shelf decoration during the week, and translate into proper sales at the weekend.

The terms Scandinavian and Nordic seem almost interchangeable these days, but when I visited the Nordic Bakery, the founder Jali Wahlsten, was quite specific about the difference. “Scandanavian refers to the geographic peninsula of Norway, Sweden and Denmark. So technically Finland and Iceland are not Scandinavian.” Jali is Finnish and started the Nordic Bakery in Golden Square London in 2007, and there are now three branches, the other two in Marylebone.

Décor is clearly very important to Jali. In contrast to the cheerful red theme with national flags which dominate the Scandinavian Kitchen, the Nordic Bakery is austere by comparison. The décor in the two branches I visited: Golden Square and New Cavendish Street, dark blues, greys and white create a north light broodiness, in keeping with the detective stories of Nordic literature.

Jali is emphatic that his concept was not created for the Nordic expats, like at Scandanavian Kitchen, although the products are distinctly Nordic with the dense round rye bread flat rolls imported from Finland. I asked Jali what the best selling fillings

were. “At the beginning it was salmon, but now it’s becoming the egg and pickled herring, and the gravad lax.”

It seems that customers are wanting to buy into the whole Nordic product when they visit. The Bakery is famous for its cinnamon buns. These are hefty pastries, bulging with apple and cinnamon filling, which would keep you going for many hours walking across the snow. The whole shop smells of cinnamon and coffee which is very attractive.

My Nordic journey finished with a visit to the newly opened Fabrique, a

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branch of a fast-growing Swedish bakery company with 10 branches in Stockhlom. The owners Charlotta and David Zetterström have chosen to open this in a railway arch next to the station in trendy Hoxton, East London. I have to admit to a soft spot for bakeries. I admire the discipline of the night shift, and the physical process itself, particularly when an authentic sourdough is allowed to rise very slowly, and is then transformed into a crusty loaf still springy and alive after baking.

I talked to the head baker Frida at Fabrique

about the baking process.

She told me that all the bread was actually better the following day after baking, particularly the Danish Rye which needed to rest. A bit like a roast joint of meat, we agreed. I tried one of the cinnamon buns beautifully knotted into a twist, which had been baked that morning and was heavenly. Most of the bread is a kind of wheat or sour rye levain. It was all a revelation to me, and is taking artisan bread to a whole new level. The prices however, are to match: £2.50 for any bun, croissant or pain au chocolat.

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JULIET SHIELD

Mayonnaise, Dressings and Sauces Sublime...

There are no compromises either on the wheat and rye filled baguettes. Smoked salmon with a dressed fennel salad, Serrano ham and roast vegetables and pepper pastrami with potato salad in mustard vinaigrette were some of the ingredients generously filling the mini baguettes with pointed ends at a brave ÂŁ6.

In my consultancy work, I am constantly looking out for small businesses producing food of exceptional quality and integrity (and there are many of these currently in the UK) for my large and smaller clients. The holy

grail for a hotel, for example, would be to provide a croissant which would last well into the early hours of the following morning, to provide breakfast for the early rising/jet-setting guests.

I decided to test out Frida’s claim. Resisting the temptation to take nibbles of it during the rest of the day, the croissant remained intact till breakfast the following morning, and was absolutely delicious.

Slow rise is definitely best, and well worth the price, judging by the way this stylish outfit has been received.

Piquant manufacture a range of quality mayonnaise, dips, dressing and sauces from our BRC accredited production facility in the West Midlands. We supply many standard products as well as being able to work on bespoke development using our in house NPD facility. If you are looking for unusually high quality products, from a company with a real interest in your business then look no further, you have found us!

www.piquant.co.uk To see our complete range of products visit our website or give us a call to discuss any of your requirements.

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Scandanavian Kitchen 61 Great Titchfield Street London W1W 7PP Nordic Bakery 14a Golden Square London W1F 9JG Fabrique Arch 385, Geffrye Street Shoreditch , London E2 9HZ

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 13

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NEWS FOCUS

New look for

EAT. EAT has launched a new look at its shop on the Strand, London - a template for a new raft of expansion, with plans to double the number of branches within five years. Simon Ambrose investigates Sandwich chain EAT has launched a new look and branding in its Strand, London shop, which is now being rolled out to the chain’s 120 shop estate.

This follows the appointment of Sarah Doyle as the company’s first marketing director last year, with the task of steering a rebrand ahead of ambitious expansion plans. The chain aims to become more national, doubling the

number of branches within three to five years, a move that will shift its focus away from Greater London where two thirds of its shops are currently sited.

Created by architects and designers Stiff and Trevellion, the new store on The Strand has been designed with customer experience in mind, with significant changes made to the way the store operates. Most significantly, the kitchen has been opened

14 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

up to allow customers to see what’s going on, putting the preparation and serving of food at the heart of the business.

EAT has also introduced a new digital menu board for its hot food menu. The digital menu lets customers see what is coming up on the menu for the next day and next week.

A new self-service area will have breakfast on display in the morning and

then afternoon tea from lunchtime onwards. This displays freshly baked goods such as breakfast pastries and cookies and then shows afternoon tea from lunchtime onwards, enticing customers with freshly baked pastries and cookies. EAT is also introducing a number of new food and drink ranges including a Spanish Cortado coffee and a self-service freshly baked breakfast range.

e

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NEWS FOCUS There’s a homespun feel to the graphics and décor, underlining the brand values of “honesty and simplicity”, as Sarah Doyle explained before the launch: ‘We are very excited to be unveiling EAT’s new look which we feel reflects the core principles on which our brand was originally founded. It is modern and stylish, yet also has a natural, simple and handcrafted feel, which reflects the essence of our food.

“We've gone for a brand that's very much about a craft paper background – the light brown paper that is core to the idea of the paper bag. It reflects EAT's honesty and simplicity and allows the food values to come through, because it's not over-packaged. But whereas this worked on a brand level, people were not necessarily seeing how diverse the food was.”

EAT worked with the design agency The Plant on the new branding, and artist Joel Penkman, from the Handsome Frank illustration agency, who produced four egg tempera food illustration paintings for the space, highlighting the crafted aspect of its food.

Meanwhile, there’s a new tagline of 'Let's Eat’' .

Justin Hallström, designer at The Plant, said: “We tried to create something a bit more hand-crafted to reflect the food. The logo has a lot

of equity so we only slightly tweaked it to make it more friendly and approachable, and to update it to make it a bit more modern.”

The hand-crafted feel of the new branding is revealed in a new typographic style, using updated graphics that reference the idea of ingredients coming together ‘in the way you would put together a dish,’ according to Hallström. The Plant introduced a new colour palette on the food range packaging with red, greens, yellow, pink and grey, replacing the previous brown and white. These are used to differentiate the food offers, such as grey for coffee, egg-yolk yellow for soup and terracotta red for hot food.

Hallström added: “It was a big thing to bring in a lot more colour. We wanted to bring in a bit more life and energy.”

The new positioning has also introduced new ‘key

Tel: 01992 641641 email: sales@martinmathew.co.uk www.martinmathew.co.uk

thoughts and messages’ for the brand, created with copywriter Jamie Huxley, which are shown across instore graphics. These messages include: ‘We add the finishing touches right from the start’ and ‘a healthy obsession with food.’

The new marketing element reflects a real culture change for the company, which opened its first shop in October 1996 in Villiers Street, London, next to Charing Cross railway station.

Owned and run by

couple Niall and Faith MacArthur, the pair have at pains to avoid courting publicity, with the founders keeping a relatively low profile.

The business, previously owned by Penta Capital, was bought by Lyceum Capital (a private equity company) in March 2011.

Annual sales were £68 million in 2008 and approximately £100 million in 2012. The 2012 profit was £2.7 million.

The company was linked with a possible takeover by Waitrose in 2010, although this failed to happen.

It sells sandwiches, wraps, soups, salads, sushi, fresh fruit, tea and coffee. Also, breakfast foods such as toast, muffins, hot porridge, croissants, yogurts desserts and fruit juices.

Sarah Doyle now plans to develop a social media strategy for the brand to optimise its existing presence on social media as much of its marketing is through word of mouth.

We offer an extensive range of premium quality ingredients for the Sandwich & Snack market.

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NEWS FOCUS

Cut VAT on food and drink to 5% Subway and Pret A Manger are members of Jacques Borel’s VAT Club, which is leading a campaign for a VAT cut to create jobs and stimulate the economy

N

ow how’s this for an idea to get the country back on its feet: what about cutting VAT on food and drink to, say 5%, from the current 20%? Simples! …. or end of the world as we know it, with a massive loss in Government revenue and the Treasury in meltdown?

It works like this: lower prices are passed on to the customer, which means lots more business for sandwich bars, cafes, restaurants and the food and drink industry in general, creating up to 670,000 jobs. Any loss for the Government would be more than made up eventually by the additional income tax from the extra jobs. So, in a nutshell: more revenue, less unemployment.

Sounds too simple to be true? It’s already convinced the likes of Subway and Pret A Manger, who have joined the VAT Club set up by the originator of the idea, veteran campaigner Jacques Borel. Other Club members, incidentally, include Pizza Hut, Roadchef, TGI Friday, JD Wetherspoon, Mandarin Oriental and a host of brewers such as Charles Wells, Shepherd Neame, Hall & Woodhouse and Fuller’s.

And if the octogenarian’s track record is anything to go by, it’s only a question of time before the UK gives in and adopts his idea.

He’s been lobbying successfully for VAT cuts across Europe for a number of decades. Many countries, including Belgium, Germany, Finland, France, and Sweden have already implemented a cut, stimulating job creation in the process.

Ireland has gone the same route, knowing that a targeted VAT cut for the hospitality sector was a great way to create more jobs.

The results across the various countries have been better than anyone could have anticipated. In France, for example, a total of 127,500 jobs have been created in just over two years.

The reduction in VAT there cost £2.702 billion but the government was soon receiving £3.230 from the restaurant sector in taxes and National Insurance from a larger workforce (not to mention the reduction in the black economy). In other words, the restaurant sector produced a net surplus of £528m for the government in the wake of the VAT cut.

Driven by a mission to reduce unemployment, fuelled by his religious beliefs, he’s actually taken the fight to 60 countries around the world and won a reduction in VAT or sales tax in 58 of them. One of his failures was the U.S (over luncheon vouchers) when he lost by just one vote in Congress and ended up footing the bill for millions of dollars! It took him years to pay it back.

16 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

Certainly a remarkable man, with a steely determination to succeed, he’s cut down his working week from 100 hours to around 70, as a concession to his advancing years – he’s 86 this year – and has the final ambition of launching one and a half million new jobs in bars and restaurants throughout Britain and Europe before he retires.

The time is now right, he says, to convince the government in the UK that the same positive results can be produced with a VAT reduction for the sector. “Right now, its focus is on reining in public expenditure to start to reduce public debt. But the focus will shift quite soon – it will have to start showing results ahead of the next election in Spring 2015,” he says.

“Politicians know full well that they will be judged, not by public deficits and cost reduction, but unemployment.”

He’s already had a meeting with the Treasury last year and his lobbying efforts remain intensive. Meanwhile, membership of the VAT Club continues to grow, and he expects to have 75 members by July, at which point he will be covering his costs – campaigning has already cost £1m in the last three years.

“The key here is making the point over and over that the hospitality industry is willing and able to create thousands and thousands of skilled jobs for young people who are currently languishing without work.”

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SANDWICH BAR DIARY

Dressing to

die for...

Would-be sandwich and café owner David Bell is getting close to signing up for his first unit in London, but in the meantime he’s been ‘helping’ to harvest olives in South Italy, destined to be used with his in-store salad dressings

S

o….the search continues for the…ha….”perfect first unit” and, finally just finally, I may be getting somewhere. No deal done yet but .…TA-DAH....I’ve offered on a fantabulous A1 property in fantabulous Fitzrovia (loooove this part of town great office demographic and busy busy busy lunchtime traffic). There is also a cheeky little opportunity tucked away in Covent Garden that could come good.

If you caught up with the last missive in the last edition of ISSN then the quick SP is this: I’ve got a healthy foodto-go concept with branding, suppliers, business plan, financials, shop fitters, designers and uncle tom

cobblers and all lined up like flippin’ dominoes ready to go.

It’s just a matter of securing the *!*?*!*! location!

You know, when I first started on this journey someone told me it took them a year to find the right property and I thought….. “plonker!”.

Repenting in leisure on that one now as, in all seriousness, I’ve come to see tenacity and grittiness as doubly indispensible skills for anyone venturing solo.

So what’s all this about dressing to die for? Well, the plan for the Krunch+Press “brand backstory” (don’t you love creatives and fancy marketing people and the language they all speak) is to use extra virgin olive oil

18 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

harvested from our family grove in Puglia, South Italy as the killer ingredient in a line of signature salad dressings that will be made fresh instore. So with this in mind I recently took myself over to experience first hand the harvest and olive oil production process. And quite an experience it turned out to be.

Early o’clock on a November Friday morning I found myself standing on terracotta red soil looking around at olive trees that had been in the missus’s family for centuries. And generally strutting around like I owned the place and pretending to be useful. I watch as vast swathes of green netting are

dragged by our hired workers (the operai) and laid carefully under each fruit-laden tree.

At this point the trattore squotitore thunders into action - basically a tractor with a huge claw-like hand that extends into the tree and shakes and vibrates what are often 150+ year old boughs with a force so powerful the very ground I stand on tremors. Olives (Nardó variety for afficionados) then rain down into the nets as these magnificent and stately trees are forced to yield their fruit, which is then scooped up into wooden buckets that have probably seen more harvests than the sum of my years.

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SANDWICH BAR DIARY

And then, lorry laden to the hilt with olives, we head to a local co-operative frantoio where the fruit is washed, crushed and pressed into wonderful, fruity and fresh liquid gold. I discover that small local mini factories like this stay open 24/7 during the olive harvest season November through to March and the extra virgin oil from this part of Italy has a nutty and fruity quality, unlike the more northern Tuscan varieties which tend to be lighted and softer.

The end product is quite exquisite and with an exceptionally low acidity level (0.2%) is a dream base ingredient for any

salad dressing.

But the fun was only just about to begin, with the last laugh most certainly, unquestionably, without-anyshadow-of doubt, on me.

TA-DAH! Feeling pretty good about myself and the morning’s work just done (which was a lie for a start, as I spent most of the time watching our hired operai work their butts off) my brother in law Sergio and I headed off to the local bar, as one does, for a much needed coffee and pastry.

And this is when it happened. “Can we have two, cornuti? were my fateful words pointing at the Gaggia espresso machine. At which point every local within earshot of my innocent request started to either snigger or guffaw in fits of belly laughter. But the bar waiter was not amused. Oh No, No. He was not a happy chappie. At this point I realised something had got seriously lost in translation, as instead of saying cornetti (=pastry) I’d used the word cornuti which has, well, a rather different meaning.

Cornuti literally means “horned” but in the vernacular the significance is rather more……delicate. I’d basically said to big bar person “Hey dude……can we have two of those……and by the way, your wife’s sleeping around you big loser!”).

TA..DURRR. I just thank my maker that a) my bro-inlaw is a fast talker and b) my English accent tempered the insult somewhat. Cue fast exit from bar.

Whilst this little episode won’t, I don’t think, ingratiate me with typical cold blooded reptilian London landlords I wonder, just wonder, if the family olive oil story might, shall we say, lubricate things a bit as the provenance is genuine and authentic. Even if I did nearly get my head knocked off securing the merchandise.

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 19

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Join us at AWARDS 2013 This year’s British Sandwich Industry Awards will be presented at a gala dinner at the Lancaster London Hotel, Hyde Park, London on Thursday 16th May Dancing and entertainment until 2am Raffle, draw and auction in support of Macmillan Cancer Support Contact Name ................................................................Business Name ....................................................................................................

Address ........................................................................................................................................................................................................ .........................................................................................................................................................Post Code ...........................................

Tel. No: .................................................................................... Fax No. .....................................................................................................

Please book: ..........................table(s) at the Sammies 2013 at £2250 + VAT per table ...........................place(s) at the Sammies 2013 at £260 + VAT per place Card Type: (e.g. Visa, Mastercard)................................................................. Card number: ......................................................................

(Please note: we cannot accept American Express)

3 digit security number: ........................ Expiry Date: ............................... Name on card: ........................................................................

Signed: ........................................................................................... Date ...........................................

Do you or your guests have any special dietary requirements?( If yes, please list) ................................................................................................................

Tables will be allocated on a strictly first-come basis from the front of the room to the back.

All bookings must be accompanied by the appropriate remittance. Cheques can be made out to either The British Sandwich Association or BSA. No refunds can be made if cancellations are made within 30 days of the event and any cancellations before this time will be subject to a 25% cancellation charge.

Please email your booking details to pam@jandmgroup.co.uk Or post to: BSA, Association House, 18c Moor Street, Chepstow NP16 5DB If you require further information on the Sammies Awards please telephone Pam on 01291 636341

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NEWS FOCUS

Chapati Man wins Morrisons wraps deal C

hris Rai, a former BSA Sandwich Designer of the Year Category Winner, has pulled off a major coup with the launch of a number of Chapati Man brand wrap products into Morrisons stores.

These include Chicken Tikka Masala, its award-winning Chicken Saag, and a Vegetable Samosa, with stores initially covering London and the south-east.

“We’re absolutely delighted,” said Chris. “We felt that there was a strong opportunity to reinvigorate the food-togo offering with an authentic, quality range of wraps that fill a gap in market.

They meet a number of consumer needs and bring excitement and interest into a sector that needs to stay agile.”

It’s the latest chapter in the story, an extraordinary one by anyone’s reckoning, which started when Chris Rai, a former civil servant, started taking left-over curry in a wrap to work.

Realising the potential of the authentic curry recipes he grew up with and are still being made by his mother Martha, the Chapati Man brand was created by husband and wife team, Chris and Andrea in 2007.

They started selling Spicy Indian Wraps at major events and festivals in the UK and their colourful trailer unit is now a mainstay at festivals, such as

Glastonbury, Bestival, Camp Bestival and the Lovebox Weekender.

In fact, Chapati Man was voted No.1 food caterer at Glastonbury Festival 2007 by Virtual Festivals.com – an outstanding achievement in their first year of trading.

With the booming success of the festival business and the creation of the Chapati Man brand, Chris and Andrea really thought they could see the brand and concept sitting on a retailer’s shelf – not an easy thing to do, but in early 2008 they started exploring these opportunities.

They struck a manufacturing deal with The Sandwich Factory Ltd (part of Cranswick PLC). This partnership has now produced a new range of Chapati Man products – not just wraps but Indian snacks, dips/chutneys and wrap kits!

In August 2010, Chapati Man appeared on national TV when Chris and Andrea made it through numerous auditions to pitch in front of the Dragons on the cult business programme, Dragons’ Den. There was also a priceless comment made by one of the Dragons, Peter Jones when he said ‘Your product is fantastic’!

Then Chapati Man’s chicken saag wrap, with fresh mint chutney and a cachumber salad, won a category at the British Sandwich Designer of the Year Finals 2011 - something Chris and Andrea are extremely proud of.

Chris and Andrea’s aim is now to make Chapati Man a household brand – nationwide. It looks like a unique, high quality product, strong branding and a customer base built from grass roots is still a winning formula. facebook.com/Chapatiman twitter@chapatiman

Chapati Man and music festivals Chris and Andrea were regular visitors at music festivals as punters for years and spotted a niche in the market. They realised times were changing and festival goers wanted something different, authentic and with more quality to it than burgers and chips – festival organisers knew this too and saw Chapati Man as a breath of fresh air.

The food was becoming just as important as the music.

The Chapati Man mission was to give festival-goers the choice of a unique, tasty and healthy option! Their purpose-built trailer, emblazoned with

their striking Indian elephant design has now become a festival landmark and focal point to meet, eat and get back to the entertainment refreshed and satisfied.

Amazingly, the brand was created while Chris and Andrea were in fulltime employment. Chris, a civil servant left after nine years service in April 2009 to fully concentrating on building the brand together with Andrea, a textile designer – now a full time mother to their three year old son, Cassius.

Trading at festivals had previously had meant them both taking all annual

leave to work on their mobile catering trailer unit during the festival season; working 18 hour days for five days (sometime six days!) and then returning to their jobs the following week – proper hard graft, as Chris calls it looking back!

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 21

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HYGIENE

Raynor Foods ‘gloves off’ Sandwich manufacturer Raynor Foods’ cameo appearance in the recent BBC’s Food Inspector’s Show sparked something of a controversy, viewers pointing out the lack of gloves on the production line. Tom Hollands, technical manager, here explains why they use a ‘gloves off’ approach

T

hank you to everybody who contacted us to say how interesting they found the short segment on sandwich making and food hygiene that the BBC put into their Protecting Britain segment on the Food Inspectors Show.

We have had a number of eagleeyed viewers contacting us to ask why the team working on the production line were not wearing gloves.

As the whole thrust of the programme was about hygiene and food safety, many viewers found the lack of gloves on the production line surprising.

Here at Raynors we have a ‘no gloves’ policy (unless you have a cut or a skin complaint such as eczema) for a very simple reason – hands are more hygenic than gloves!

It sounds counter-intuitive, we know, but there have been many studies that show that it is true.

Frequent and effective hand washing is a key part of our food safety regime, and the production team wash and sanitise their hands and the production line every time a new product is produced. This prevents cross contamination from bacteria but also allergens, such as milk or eggs.

Studies show that when somebody is wearing gloves, they can’t feel small pieces of food or sauce stuck on the gloves, and they don’t wash their hands in the gloves as effectively during changeover.

There is a psychological downside to wearing gloves – just because your hands feel clean inside the gloves, it doesn’t mean that the gloves are necessarily clean on the outside – and we know that people wash their gloved hands much less effectively than their naked hands.

We train all our staff in good handwashing techniques, making sure

22 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

areas that are often skimmed over (lower palm and the rims of the fingernails for instance) are not ignored. We also carry out frequent swab tests on their hands to assess their cleanliness and the effectiveness of their hand-washing technique on an ongoing basis.

If you want to see some of the studies that explain why handwashing is preferable to wearing gloves, type ‘wearing gloves leads to poor hand hygiene’ and have a browse of the reports that come up. It’s fascinating reading and has had a big impact on the health industry, as well as the food industry.

Right, I’m just off to wash my own hands…I’ve just spotted a report that says computer keyboards can be five times dirtier than the inside of a toilet!

Now I know why Raynors provide hand sanitiser on every desk for the office staff…

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PACKAGING

‘New and exciting’ IRIS Salad Range Anson, a leading UK provider of packaging to the foodservice market, is launching the new IRIS Salad Range, designed to sit within its premium salad packaging tier.

IRIS was inspired by “Steve’s Leaves”, and uses the natural shape and contour of a leaf as its inspiration.

The range will be available off the shelf from this month (March).

The Anson IRIS Range will become the flagship ‘contemporary’ salad range and is made in high clarity material for a striking, eye-catching high gloss finish. In today’s market every product, ingredient and brand has to compete for attention – IRIS gives you that visual edge to connect with consumers to create appetite appeal, says the company.

The IRIS range features a hinged lid with excellent closure and comes in

four sizes: 375cc, 500cc, 750cc and 1000cc - ideal for leaf, fruit and pasta salads. The pack also has the ability to separately accommodate a portion pot in the 500cc version.

Iris is the latest addition to the

Anson premium salad range, bolstering the already well known Twisty Bowl, Continental, Contour, Food Display, Square and Fresco ranges.

“Anson lead the way in sourcing UK post consumer rPET and manufacturing the highest quality sheet to ensure that all of their products meet the needs and demands of the environmentally aware consumer.”

The company is based in Cambridgeshire, with two manufacturing sites, having traded for over 40 years in the packaging industry.

It will continue to launch new and innovative packaging this year. Details will be revealed in Sandwich & Snack News. www.ansonpackaging.com Tel: 01353 742172 – sales@ansonpackaging.com

LINPAC Packaging launches Freshware range LINPAC Packaging is targeting the growing popularity and demand for chilled retail prepared and convenience foods by launching a new range of products for the sector.

The launch of the Freshware range will be the first to come out of its new Freshform division and marks the company’s entry into a new market for the first time. The move into chilled retail convenience will complement their existing operations within the meat, fish and poultry, bakery, fresh produce and foodservice sectors.

Retail convenience foods include chilled and deli foods designed to be eaten on the go or after minimal preparation.

Traditionally found in takeaway stores, sandwich shops and casual foodservice outlets, the market is now rapidly

expanding within supermarkets.

The range will comprise of packaging for prepared fruit and salads, dips, sandwich fillers, fresh pasta, pizza, prepared vegetables (e.g. stir-fry),

24 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

chilled bakery, cooked meats and prepared fish.

A series of product launches are set to take place during the coming year, including interlocking containers in various sizes which allow

consumers to pick and mix different food items to create their perfect meal. The solution is ideal for combining salads, pastas, cooked meats or fish, toppings and sauces.

The style is also suitable for creating a complete starter, main and dessert combination.

Joanna Stephenson, Vice President Innovation & Marketing, at LINPAC Packaging, said: “The chilled retail convenience market is worth €145 billion across Europe and has continued to grow at a steady rate throughout the recession when many other markets have stalled.

For this reason, the sector is highly competitive, but we have a wellestablished, trusted brand which will assist us in gaining a foothold in this market and for it to become one of our largest categories.”

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PACKAGING/L ABELLING

Sandwich labelling company wins £10,000 grant A Derbyshire firm has been awarded a £10,000 grant to help create a new accurate labelling system for sandwich shops, avoiding the damaging consequences of mislabelling.

Positive ID Labelling Systems, in Melbourne, has been given the cash by the Food and Drink iNet. The company already sells a range of sandwich label printers and software to allow companies to personalise and print their own labels.

It is now developing a system which will allow small sandwich manufacturers and sandwich bars to add nutritional data and allergy information to labels on each product.

Managing director John Mayers said: “The objective is to devise a computer-based reference that integrates with a spreadsheet to allow small businesses to accurately label nutritional and allergy data on their food and sandwich labels. This system will ensure correct ingredient, nutritional and allergy information is incorporated on food labelling. It will serve to protect consumers by providing accurate labels and protect firms from the potentially damaging consequences of mislabelling.”

Part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund, the Food and Drink iNet is managed by a consortium, led by the Food and Drink Forum and Nottingham Trent University, the University of Lincoln, and the University of Nottingham.

Positive ID will use its grant

Food and Drink iNet advisor Lisa Simpson and managing director of Positive ID Labelling Systems John Mayers

towards the £30,500 overall cost of the project. iNet director Richard Worrall said: "This is an excellent example of an established company using innovation to develop and grow, while at the same time filling what it sees is a gap in the market in the food and drink sector and benefiting a good number of smaller manufacturers."

Positive ID, which was launched in 1987, sells price guns, date coding guns, labelling guns and sandwich labelling systems. It currently employs 11 staff at its headquarters and hopes the new product it is developing will create another job within the next 12 months.

Yorkshire Provender Soup launches ‘revolutionary new packaging’ Yorkshire Provender has launched its range of six soups in a ‘revolutionary’ new 550ml ‘pouch in carton’ serving in 48 Waitrose stores in the chilled food section, with further stock roll outs being planned.

The company will also look at foodservice applications, depending on the results on the initial launch.

The soup ‘pouch in a carton’ is completely innovative in design, says the company, and leads the way in the category, giving a range of added benefits for both trade and consumer.

These include easier portability, reduced waste for retailers, microwave-friendly cartons with the cardboard keeping the pack relatively cool and easier to handle than pots, simple ‘snip, heat and serve‘ on-pack instructions and eco-friendly packaging, with over 80% less plastic used than the traditional pots.

Advantages to the retailer include shelves stay fuller for longer with SRP’s in units of five, the cartons are easier to stack and there are considerably reduced transport and storage costs, with five cartons taking up the same space as three pots.

GM Packaging secures major catering deal Sandwich industry supplier GM Packaging has secured a major deal to supply councils across the northeast with food packaging and catering disposables.

The company, a leading distributor of a wide range of packaging for the catering industry, has been awarded the North East Procurement Organisation (NEPO) framework agreement for the supply of catering disposables for the second

26 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

time, following a bidding process in November.

GM Packaging regained the contract after previously holding it for four years.

The two-year deal will see the firm, based at the Tyne Tunnel Trading Estate in North Shields, continue to provide NEPO members – which include local authorities, schools, colleges, charities and universities throughout the North

East region – with catering packaging and disposables, from coffee cups and food containers to tableware and hygiene products.

Graham Montague, the company’s managing director, said: “It is particularly rewarding to be awarded the contract for another two years.”

NEPO says the competitive pricing achieved through this framework means its members can expect to save more than £24,000 per year.

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To advertise call Paul Steer on 01291 636342 March 2013 27

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PACKAGING Personalised advice for Pro2Pac visitors

RAP launches new innovations at Pro2Pac RAP is launching a new look range of product innovations, including a rebranded RapTray ‘single serve’ range, said to be the world’s first hermetically sealed, modified atmosphere carton food tray.

Made of lightweight board and a film laminate, the packaging reduces the presence of residual oxygen to less than 1%, ensuring moisture is sealed in and air is sealed out. Benefits include increased food options, extended shelf life and improved freshness.

Speaking on the RapTray Julian Money, RAP Founding Director says: “RapTray with its hermetically sealed design and Modified Atmosphere capabilities, provides the absolute ultimate in terms of sealing in freshness and protecting from contamination. Nothing beats it for extended shelf life and improved food freshness – it’s perhaps the greatest innovation in food packaging of recent years.”

As well as using the Pro2Pac exhibition to showcase RapTray, the London-based company will be unveiling new AirRap and BagRap designs. AirRap is designed for hot ‘food to go’ products such as panini and savouries, including pasties and sausage rolls. It allows food to remain in the same packaging throughout its entire lifecycle – from manufacturer to cook-off in store to point of sale.

BagRap, a lightweight paper and film receptacle designed for specialty sandwiches, provides branding opportunities, with a bespoke window offering product visibility and can be

run on existing flow wrapping lines.

Julian Money adds: "With ‘single serve’ portion options growing in popularity, now is the ideal time for us to launch our new range specifically designed for this market. Our new products cater to demand, whilst easing any consumer environmental concerns. RapTray is widely recyclable, whilst BagRap and AirRap use paper sourced from sustainable forests, giving consumers green alternatives to the multitude of wasteful plastic food packaging available on the market.”

All of RAP’s new products – and some of their existing range including Freshpack and MA Carton Sandwich Wedge and RAP’s Classic HandRap board and paper/film receptacles for “food-to-go” – will be on show at the company’s Pro2Pac exhibition stand.

28 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

For the first time at Pro2Pac ExCel, London, 17th-20th March visitors will have access to personalised advice in the new One2One Experts feature.

Visitors can book free One2One appointments with respected professionals, as well as participate in interactive workshops for business advice and tips on key processing and packaging trends and challenges.

The One2One Expert sessions can be booked in advance of the show to enable visitors to meet privately with workshop speakers, as well as presenters from the Pro2Pac Live seminar theatre.

During these sessions, attendees can discuss issues affecting their businesses and receive valuable insights from the speakers in their fields of expertise. The One2One Experts include Matt Hindle at ADBA, Darren Foley at Pearlfisher, Leane Bramhall at Burts, Simon Oxley at Marks & Spencer, Alan Brown of Miller Graphics and Robert Herridge at Packology.

Alongside the One2One Experts, and in association with the Institute of Packaging Professionals (IoPP), hands-on workshops will cover diverse topics including social media in the packaging industry, developing stakeholder partnerships, creating stand-out packaging and sustainable solutions for the future.

Sustainability is a key focus area at this year’s show, as a result of looming environmental issues and calls for cleaner, greener processes.

During his ‘How Big is your Footprint’ workshop, Keith Ormrod, Ambassador Plastics & Packaging at the IoPP, will give tips on how to improve carbon footprints, reduce waste packaging and the way forward without incurring costs.

Visitors can also learn more about the social media revolution and how to maximise online channels during the ‘How Social Are You?’ workshop, delivered by Kevin Vyse at the IoPP, which will delve into the opportunities and concerns about using social media in the packaging industry.

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PACKAGING PROFILE

Café du Van: good name, good business Sussex-based entrepreneur Mark Reeves has built up a successful three-van quality sandwich business. Here he shares some of his experiences, including the development of his brand

A

t the close of 2010 Sussexbased entrepreneur Mark Reeves was already the owner of a very successful car cleaning business, when he began to hatch a plan for a mobile catering operation with a difference: a premium offering for local building sites.

Some two years down the road and Café du Van (as the business is now known) is very much in demand.

“I knew from the outset that I wanted to create a more premium offering than the stereotypical catering van - to be the best. And quality is really at the heart of that, from the ingredients we use to the vans we deliver in.

We make all of our sandwiches ourselves and we’re always introducing new ingredients and combinations, based on what our customers are asking for, because tastes have changed a lot - even in the time we’ve been up and

running. For example, I had a builder ask me for chicken tikka baguette the other day, which you just wouldn’t have found a few years back.

“I used my industry connections to purchase three vehicles, and to help get things off the ground I bought a book called ‘Start Up Your Own Sandwich Business’ which recommended getting in contact with Planglow for packaging and labelling, who we then saw at the Lunch Show.

We spoke to lots of companies at the show but it was Planglow that we ultimately went with, as they ‘got’ what we were about”.

“Both my wife and I really liked the styling of classic French cars, so that was our starting point for the look and feel; then together we came up with the name Café du Van. It was funny because we later noticed ‘Café du Vin’ features in a painting we’ve got in our kitchen. It’s of a French café scene looking inside out onto the road and the words are written in reverse across the windows.

Neither of us

30 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

remembered ever noticing it there before!

“Glo Creative - Planglow’s inhouse design agency – paid us a visit and then came back to us with four options and we combined the two designs we liked best, essentially taking the colours (green and brown) from one and the design of another to get the logo as it now stands. We’d already decided to use eco products as we source all our ingredients locally, so we thought it made sense to have the logo in green and brown to demonstrate that too.

“We’ve found Glo and Planglow’s service overall to be very good. Once, when our computer crashed, they arranged for next day delivery of their LabelLogic (labelling) software so we could get everything up and running again straight away. In fact, we even put our daughter (who works for a big name multinational electronics company) in touch with Planglow this summer when she was organising some corporate hospitality around the Games.

“We wanted to create a new label specifically for our premium sandwiches and baguettes and we’d seen some ‘handcrafted’ labels of Planglow’s that we really liked, so they were the starting point when we discussed new designs at the end of 2012.

“We’re really happy with the new label, which has been developed to work with our existing rectangular labels. They help to create a more premium feel and the retail price is

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PACKAGING PROFILE

about 20 per cent higher on these items due to the use of ingredients and overall presentation. We use Planglow’s Rosso and Ecoco packaging collections and put in an order for the new Gastro collection too at the end of last year.

“We do hot food too, which most of our competitors don’t offer - our real speciality is pies. You can’t find better. They’re not our most profitable item in terms of mark-up but they are certainly our signature dish; to me pie and mash really feels like the next big thing.

“I’ve got three vans at the moment and have always said I’d like to get

five on the road but I wouldn’t go any bigger than that. I’ve run my own (car cleaning) business for long enough now that I know what’s manageable and how I like things to work.

“We use Jiffy Tucks, which are effectively one third oven and two thirds fridge, so whether you go for something hot or something cold you know it’s going to be really fresh!

“The vans themselves play I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles (West Ham’s club anthem) so our customers know we’ve arrived on site. I’m a massive West Ham fan and chat to all the customers about football. regardless of what team they support because it’s one of those things that really brings everyone together.

“I think this all helps. as it’s important for people to know who we are and that they recognise us instantly. It’s about quality food and that’s what we’re known for - the quality speaks for itself. So much so, that we get calls now from all over builders letting us know where they’re going to be, so they can be sure we will be too.

“We set out to be the best, which means doing things properly and using quality ingredients and equipment; it’s why we have a spare van, so we never let anyone down.

“It’s certainly paid off because we’ve got building sites now where if we ever get stuck in traffic and end up being even a few minutes late, there will be a whole queue of people ready and waiting”.

Planglow adds Deep-Fill Heat Seal Wedge to its new deli-style collection Planglow has expanded its new Gastro range by adding a Heat Seal Wedge to the now 13 - piece collection.

Available flat-packed in boxes of just 500, the Gastro Heat Seal Wedge uses a striking chalk-onslate effect that demonstrates a quality ‘Gastro’ image while an eye-catching plant design states the handcrafted nature and eco credentials.

On the inside the Gastro Heat Seal Wedge has a rustic kraft inner and utilises an innovative bio-film that acts as a large viewing window and provides a barrier.

Fully certified to the European (EN13432) norms for compostable packaging, the film is certified as home compostable too and will biodegrade in a waste water environment – this means that you can dispose of it in your compost heap.

The Gastro Collection also includes deli-paper, wedge, snack cube, wrap, bloomer and salad packs, as well as bags, labels and stickers. Launched in December 2012, the deli-style aesthetics of Gastro have already proved popular with both caterers and consumers.

Rachael Sawtell, marketing director for Planglow explained: “Strong provenance and artisan methods have become increasingly popular – in terms of taste, sustainability and health – they are also significantly value-adding. We have developed the Gastro range with this very much in mind, highlighting the caterer’s own use of quality ingredients and preparations and helping to create an excellent presentation for fine foods.”

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PACKAGING New Fast Food Kraft range from Colpac INNOVATIVE food packaging solutions provider, Colpac, has added a new range to its popular Fast Food collections. The new natural Kraft range complements the top-selling Fish ’N’ Chips, Ssupa Snax and Smitten About Britain lines.

The Kraft range, which comprises six products – scoop, clamshell, box, tray, sleeve and cone – caters for all types of fast and take away food including fish

and chips, French fries, pies, hotdogs, hamburgers, popcorns and more.

Made of recycled quality Kraft board, the range is recyclable and biodegradable in line with Colpac’s green credentials. All items in the range are also suitable for own branding and personalisation.

Neil Goldman, Colpac’s Managing Director, says: “Launched this year, the Kraft range is already proving successful

both in the UK and in export markets due to its elegant simplicity and quality feel.” www.colpac.co.uk Tel: 01525 712 261.

Solo Cup's Soup Report NEW research into the UK’s soups market has revealed that traditional flavours such as Tomato and Carrot & Coriander still rank highly as consumers favourites, but more exotic recipes such as Butternut Squash and Spicy Moroccan are fast gaining ground on the number one position.

The 2013 Soup Report from Solo Cup Europe researched buying trends and flavour preferences among consumers within the UK’s ‘to go’ sector. Increasingly,

soup is perceived as an equally healthy alternative to the more traditional sandwich lunch – people are recognising the value of soup as a main meal on the move and as a good way of boosting their ‘five a day’, it says.

The survey showed that more exotic recipes based on fish and beetroot were least popular – and that customers were reluctant to experiment with new flavours.

However, says Rebecca Turner, Marketing Manager

32 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

for Solo Cup Europe, they can be tempted – especially if you offer small free tasting

pots at the point of purchase to encourage them to experiment without the fear of ‘making a mistake’.

“Customers are very positive about soup and want to see it featured on togo menus,” adds Rebecca.

“Operators can tempt them into regular purchase by varying the menu, offering free samples of new flavours and offering a good balance of popular soups that you know will appeal.”

“It’s also important to change your menu regularly as this will prevent flavour fatigue and sustain a daily interest in your soup offering.”

The Soup Report also reveals that the quality of the take away packaging is a critical factor in the decision to purchase. Hand comfort, a secure fitting lid and a rigid container that doesn’t sag were all ranked as ‘very important’ to consumers; the use of recyclable material was another important consideration.

“The Soup Report highlights that packaging performance is critical to take away soup,” adds Rebecca. “Poor packaging could adversely affect sales and consumer confidence.”

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SNACKS

‘The strawberries taste like strawberries…’

When a marathon-running duo couldn’t find the healthy snacks they were looking for, they decided to launch their own. Simon Ambrose investigates

W

e have a hard and fast policy at the International Sandwich & Snack News Offices of politely (most of the time!) declining the frequent offers of product samples from marketing and PR people.

It might sound surprising to anyone outside a magazine environment – ‘wow, free samples - great! – but as the saying goes, there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Product samples invariably come with strings attached and an expectation from ‘the other end’ that you’re then obliged to write something, no matter what. We much prefer to go out and visit companies or see them at shows, on the whole.

So I was all prepared to make my usual response when I had a call from Rick Wadsworth, one of the founders of Clearly Scrumptious, a very new company with a range of dried fruit snacks, and was gently persuaded to give their samples a try. When the box duly arrived, I have to confess that I was bowled over by the quality of both the product and the packing.

With healthy snacks so much on trend at the moment, this undoubtedly hits the spot, but with a number of existing dried fruit ranges already, was there any point in launching into an already crowded marketplace? The short answer is, yes! In taste terms alone, these are products with a real difference and the fact that discerning sandwich

retailers such as Birleys have already taken it on, probably says it all.

There are four products in the range at the moment, and although Rick later asked me which one I preferred, I’m hard-pressed to decide.

Strangely enough, when I’m sampling I was reminded of a line from the wonderful ‘Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (not the more recent pointless remake) when the children are invited to try the real-fruit tasting wallpaper.

Gene Wilder says “ The strawberries taste like strawberries and snozberries taste like snozberries’. And that sums up these products; the individual fruit packs: Apple, Cranberries, Strawberries, and most subtle of them all – the Golden Berries – really do taste like the real thing.

Talking to the guys – Rick is joined on the phone by cofounder James Feddo – and the story gets even more interesting. Both were keen runners who got to know each other during the Saunders Lakeland Mountain Marathon, in 2009 and came

to the conclusion during training that there was a gap in the market for really high quality and healthy dried fruit snack products with a range of taste and texture profiles, after trying everything available. They gave up their well-paid day jobs in 2011 on the strength of it and Clearly Scrumptious was born.

That was the start of a lengthy but ultimately successful search for dried fruit products around the world that really broke the mould, involving numerous samples – many of them disappointing - as well as essential market research in London.

They set themselves strict criteria: as well as great tastes, the products had to be completely natural, without the preservatives or additions – not an easy task. “We really has to spend a lot of time finding companies that we could work with to deliver the health and flavour benefits we wanted,” said Rick.

They were also looking for a real spectrum of products that gave them a range of taste ‘sensations,’ as they call it.

“One of the things we wanted to be able to deliver was a range of low calorie products that cater for all the sensations around snacking – sweet and soft, sour and chewy,” said James.

“The apples are fantastic as a crisp replacement, but they are air dried and there’s no oil use; the strawberries are really sweet, but it’s a natural sweetness with a ‘jammy’ quality; the golden berries are a superfood but they have a really citrus, tangy taste to them; and the cranberries are unusual in the market – most people add sugar to them or infuse them with a pineapple concentrate – we wanted cranberries that sat in the middle of the range that gave a chewy toffee, caramel, molasses taste.”

Meanwhile, the pair are now working on new additions, with the likelihood that this could develop into a substantial range as consumer demand for healthy snacks grows: no details are available yet, but snozberries are unlikely to be among them.

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New product showcase As well as over 1,200 exhibitors showcasing their latest products and innovations, IFE13 (17-20 March, ExCeL, London) will also be host to a mix of live events and attractions

I

FE13 will celebrate new product development this year with its award scheme Fresh Ideas. With one entry crowned the winner at the show, visitors will be able to explore the most innovative product launches on The Boulevard.

Alongside this, The Hub will house a comprehensive programme of seminars and presentations for visitors keen to gain valuable insights. This seminar theatre will see the sectors’ leading figures, including David Heath MP, Chair of the London Food Board Rosie Boycott, WRAP and the Faraday Centre for Retail Excellence, share their views on important factors shaping the future of the food & drink sector.

At New Products Live, visitors will have the opportunity to hear about the latest in product innovation. In association with Mintel, the seminars will offer trend forecasting and analysis, as well as

guided tastings so attendees can test products, whilst learning about changing consumer preferences and tastes.

Chef’s InspIratIon IFE13 will also play host to some of the UK’s most wellknown and highly regarded chefs, who will bring colour and vibrancy to the show during their live cooking demonstrations. In association with the Craft Guild of Chefs, chefs such as Will Torrent, Steve Munkley, Sophie Wright and Brian Mellor will show off their skills in The Skillery. They will be joined

by Stephen Scuffel, Mat Owens, Alyn Williams, Cyrus Todiwala, Ben Bartlett and Lee Maycock, who will also demonstrate culinary prowess to help improve the skills and profit margins of foodservice providers.

Visitors also have an additional chance to see chefs in action at the British

34 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

Regional Kitchen in the Speciality & Regional Food from Britain section of the show. This feature will give foodservice professionals the opportunity to watch demonstrations that celebrate regional produce and talent, which will, in turn, help inspire their product and service offering.

“The 2013 show will be a hive of activity with

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IFE visitors can target their visit: Speciality & Regional Food from Britain; Cheese and Dairy; Meat and Seafood; Bakery and Confectionery; Ingredients; Health and Wellbeing; Drinks; General Food and Walk the World.

The official country partner of IFE13 is Morocco, which will have its largest ever presence at the show, alongside close to 30 international and UK regional pavilions that will showcase new product innovation from around the world. Many countries are taking an expanded presence at IFE13 as they target the attractive UK market. This includes Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Austria, India, Taiwan, Sweden and South Korea.

In the Walk the World section of the show, hundreds of food and drink

suppliers from around the world will be displaying the best food and drink their country has to offer. food to go produCts Heartwarmer Foods is introducing premium-range gourmet smoothies to the healthy food-to-go sector.

The company is a startup by Pranav Bihari, a student at the University of Kent, and his partner Kaly Bihari.

Heartwarmer smoothies are a blend of fruits, glutenfree oats and spices and contain no added sugar or artificial ingredients. The smoothie range is available in three flavours: 'blackcurrant, oat and spice', 'raspberry, oat and spice', and 'chai spice, oat and ginger'. Packaged in recyclable glass bottles with a shelf life of six months, more than 97% of the

something on offer for all sections of the food and drink sector,” said Chris McCuin, Event Director, IFE. “We've got some high profile speakers on board, who will be presenting their thoughts on the industry, as well as some of the country's best and most innovative chefs. All this combined will make IFE a must-attend event for retail, foodservice, wholesale & distribution, import & export and manufacturing professionals.”

Broad But speCIalIsed IFE13 encompasses the entire food and drink industry, from niche products that cater for special dietary needs, to the trends currently making waves with consumers, such as ‘cleaner’ energy drinks, gourmet popcorn, biltong, beef jerky, free-from foods and coconut water. The show is split into nine easyto-navigate sections so

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IFE

smoothies' ingredients are sourced from British farms.

Pranav came upon the business idea during the course of his research on sustainable food consumption in Britain. He says: “I became aware that for people who were interested in eating sustainably, but had little time to prepare food themselves, there were few convenience food options available in the market that were healthy, tasty and not just locally made, but also prepared mostly from locally grown ingredients.

Since Kent is known for its fruit orchards and we love smoothies - they are a healthy and tasty anytimesnack - we set ourselves the challenge to come up with recipes that used at least 95% locally grown ingredients.'

Kaly adds: 'It was not at all easy. But in the end the flavours that we've come up with are really unique and we've received great feedback while testing our products at the local farmers’ markets. So we are excited now to share the products of our smoothie laboratory with a wider audience that is not only interested in exceptional taste and quality, but also has an ethical concern for sustainability and local provenance.”

Thirst Quenchers will be presenting their new range of Just Drink Aloe. The new range has been specially formulated to maintain their ethos of being Naturally Different and using natural ingredients.

Appy Food and Drinks Co. will showcase a brand new range of juice drinks.

It is said to be the first ever UK juice range to incorporate Nickelodeon characters, with three licenses appearing on the drinks packaging: SpongeBob SquarePants (Orange & Pineapple), Dora the Explorer (Tropical Multi Vit) and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (Apple and Blackcurrant). Three more flavors will be revealed in the Summer 2013.

Smoothies and Milkshakes are set to launch later in the year.

Low in fat, saturated fat, sugar, salt and calories, the range is said to be a healthier option than many other juices currently available. It contains no artificial preservatives and is said to be the first of its kind in Europe to use augmented reality packaging from Tetra Pack.

Bobby Patel, Co-Founder of Appy Food and Drinks, comments: “We are thrilled with this new range of juice drinks. The development of such a product is a real

36 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

breakthrough as we know how keen parents are to ensure that their children have healthier options which they will actually enjoy consuming.”

Ivory & Ledoux have added Canned Pink and Red Salmon in 213g & 418g sizes.

Its Tuna range consists of Chunks in Brine and Oil packed in Canned or Pouch format under the Fontinella or Sombrero labels, with own label Tuna also available.

Every size from retail 185g cans through to 3kg Pouch Tuna for sandwich manufacturers can be found at very competitive prices, says the company.

Kiril Mischeff source a range of tomato ingredients from approved suppliers world wide to service all sectors of the UK food chain. This includes Diced and Peeled Tomatoes, Aseptic Pack Tomatoes,

Tomato Paste, Sun Dried Tomatoes, Sun Dried Tomato Pate and Tomato Powder.

They also offer Canned and Pouch Pack Tuna, sourced from approved packers, for the sandwich industry and food manufacturers.

Savoury & Sweet, Midlands-based popcorn manufacturers, are launching The Simpson’s branded popcorn at IFE. The company, set up by its Kurt Hilder in 2011, has already launched a premium range of branded popcorn, Lord Poppington’s, as well as a range of products with Nickelodeon’s SpongeBob SquarePants, where they ventured into nuts and dried fruit as well as popcorn.

The Simpsons popcorn range is available in five flavours. Jam Donut Popcorn, Bolognese Popcorn and Cheesy Cheese Popcorn come in 15 gram bags. The

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Taste Sensation Take control of your fillings

• A fresh approach to sandwich fillings.

• Minimise cost, waste and chilled storage.

• Maximise flavour, multi use and customer feedback.

• Telephone or email for a free sample trial pack.

Email: fruishion@btinternet.com Telephone: 01425 674669 www.tastesensation.info

To advertise call Paul Steer on 01291 636342 March 2013 37

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IFE sharing packs come in two flavours: a Cinema Sweet Popcorn, available in a 150 gram bag, and a Sweet Paprika Popcorn that is available in a 125 gram bag.

The multipack of popcorn consists of 6 packs of 15gram bags in Jam Donut Popcorn, Bolognese Popcorn and Cheesy Cheese Popcorn flavours.

Diva Popcorn is a new healthy flavoured popcorn made from 100% wholegrain and is glutenfree and high in fibre.

To keep it as healthy as possible, the tasty British made crunchy snack is airpopped – rather than oilpopped – which means it has the lowest fat levels possible, it says.

Each single 21/23g bag contains about 100 calories and less than 0.4g saturated fat – making Diva Gourmet Popcorn ideal for guilt free grazing between meals or munched with a sandwich instead of crisps, it says.

The Diva range – inspired by ‘pop’-ular culture- is available in four flavours including: Sea Salt & Balsamic Vinegar; Camembert, Gouda & Brie; Rock Salt; and Sweet Chipotle Chilli.

Each savoury flavour is derived from real ingredients such as finely chopped sweet chipotle chilli and Modena Balsamic vinegar.

Diva stockists in the UK include Harrods, Harvey Nichols, Dobbies Garden Centres, Wholefoods and sandwich, farm and health shops.

Internationally, Diva Gourmet Popcorn is stocked in Denmark, Dubai, Kuwait, Canada, France, Norway, Taiwan, Holland, Japan and Austria.

Also being sampled for the first time will be Diva Spotlites –a low calorie range of crunchy, 100% natural cassava snacks.

Chrisfish Danmark A/S supplies fresh fish and brine products to fish wholesalers, salad/sandwich manufacturers and food service customers across Europe.

At its shrimp factory it has invested in modern industry production equipment, ensuring a high production capacity to meet customers’ growing demand for brine products. It has its own microbiological testing laboratory, where it carries out full inspections to verify the functionality of the HACCP system.

“Our products are available in a wide range of jars/buckets and the layout can be adjusted according to our customers’ individual requests. All our products comply with European requirements for food safety and are continually updated and improved.”

Products include crayfish tails, wild caught in the freshwaters of China. The product is suitable for salads and sandwiches as well as soups and pasta.

The shelf life of the product is 45 days from the shipment date.

Its coldwater prawns are wild caught shrimps from Canada, the USA or Iceland. The product is especially suitable for salads and sandwiches.

BFree has developed a bread recipe and composition that replaces the gluten and wheat with natural ingredients…

Products include Wow Real Bread, with No Wheat! and a Brown Seeded Loaf, made with Toasted Sunflower seeds and Golden Linseeds.

Browns Group subsidiary company Lions Speciality Foods is a salmon manufacturing site situated in Lanarkshire, Scotland, which sources farmed Atlantic salmon.

Its end products are

38 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

primarily bought by the sandwich industry, ready meal manufacturers and continental retailers, as well as independent wholesalers around the UK, it says.

“Our product list includes hot smoked salmon chunks, honey coated salmon chunks, as well as a range of cold smoked salmon sides and retail packs. Steam poached salmon is also available. We are particularly proud of our Scottish Smoked Salmon which has a distinctive quality and mixed hardwood smoked taste.”

Dan International (UK) Limited is the marketing company for Bertrams brand, a wide range of fruit juices and smoothies.

Established in 1995, the company has quickly made a name for itself as a pioneering and innovative provider of fruit juices and smoothies for the retail, independent, snack and catering markets. Its range of more than 20 traditional, exotic, organic and functional juices and smoothies, all are produced under Bertrams juices or Bertrams smoothie brands.

From the International Food Standard ( IFS ) accredited factory site in Germany, Dan International produces the Bertrams range of premium quality fruit juices and smoothies packed in one shot - 330ml, size, not using any colouring, preservatives or artificial flavourings.

The company specialises in the functional drinks market. Alongside its core range of traditional and exotic flavours is a innovative and unique wide range of functional drink products.

Dan International offers a wholesale delivery service to independent retailers and snack bars, and in London claims to have a penetration of nearly 75% amongst

independent coffee shops and sandwich bars.

Hazeldene Foods has become one of the leading salad processors in the UK, supplying prestigious names within high street food on the go retailers, sandwich manufacturers, quick service restaurants and selective retailers within the convenience and discounter sector.

“We are proud of our heritage and our agricultural roots, in fact we believe it gives us a distinct advantage and allows us to generate a seamless link from plant to plate with our strong supplier and grower relationships,” says the company. “We’re focused on developing what is at the root of our business – our raw material. By being innovative, getting in the field and growing new varieties, we aim to ‘put more flavour on the plate’.

Importers, distributors and exporters of a comprehensive range of Spanish ingredients. Iberico Foods offer bespoke solutions to soup, sandwich and recipe dish manufacturers, as well as supplying food service customers since 2007.

Products include: Chorizo, Spanish cheeses, Iberico ham and fresh Iberico meat, Serrano ham, pimenton, seafood.

Southover Foods’ will be showing a comprehensive range of products. This includes Grange Gammon, developed specifically to address the needs of caterers by delivering a low cost, high quality natural ham that meets Department of Health's low salt targets, providing a healthy, cost effective product suited to machine or hand slicing, and ensuring excellent portion control, it says.

The company will also be showing Tascas, baked soft Italian style bread pockets,

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FoodFinders “We specialise in the supply of Mayonnaise, Canned and Pouch Tuna for the Manufacturing and Wholesale trade. We can also supply all other canned or dried goods required for the Catering Industry. Whether it be based on price or quality, Food Finders will have the product for you.�

Tel: 0788 747 30 24 email: derek@food-finders.co.uk website: www.food-finders.co.uk

To advertise call Paul Steer on 01291 636342 March 2013 39

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IFE

treated to ensure easy splitting every time. They have less than 1% salt, they're GM free and preservative free and can be heated, grilled or just thawed and filled for that sandwich with a difference, says the company.

They come in four flavours - Red Onion, Caesar, Plain and Multigrain.

Yorkshire Crisps produce luxury hand cooked crisps with quality produce and specially selected varieties of potato and parsnips grown by local farmers.

Potatoes are delivered to the factory by tractor from farms just a few miles away. They are batch fried in pure sunflower oil and flavoured with only 100% natural ingredients – no MSG, preservatives, colourings or artificial flavours are used.

The company supplies farm shops, delis, coffee shops and sandwich bars.

There are eleven flavours in the range, presented in 100g drums for sharing between friends, plus a new ‘guest flavour’ – Sweet Cured Ham & Pickle – which comes in single 40g bags. Selected flavours from the main range are also available in single 40g bags, 150g large sharing bags and 500g re-sealable catering bags.

The Abergavenny Fine Food Co. is a manufacturer based in South Wales, producing a wide range of chilled and frozen specialty foods. Founded in 1981, the business is still 100% family owned and run.

Although dairy products such as goats cheese (Pant-Ys-Gawn Farm Welsh Goats Cheese) and flavoured cheeses (Tintern, Y-Fenni, Harlech & St. Illtyd) are still produced by

Abergavenny, its main business is now more focused on snack/finger foods covering categories such as oriental, Indian and traditional British.

Its strategy is to partner in innovative, functional and cost efficient product development leading to successful product launches.

Over the last two years Abergavenny have moved to a new site in Blaenavon which was also combined with significant upgrading of equipment, a new customer suite and development kitchen.

The company will be showing Taquitos (from the Spanish diminutive of taco) a Mexican dish, also very popular in Puerto Rico, consisting of a small rolled-up tortilla and some sort of filling, usually beef or chicken. The filled tortilla is crisp-fried. Corn (maize) tortillas are generally used to make Taquitos.

Taquitos most often contain beef or chicken, and sometimes include cheese, pork, potato, or vegetables. They are generally thin and tend to be about 6 inches (15 cm) long. Potatoes are usually involved in the breakfast form, which are thick and come with eggs.

Taquitos are usually served with a type of salsa and/or guacamole.

Orexis Fresh Foods’ primary focus is as a manufacture of Dips, influenced from a variety of ethnic backgrounds, with a predominantly Mediterranean feel. It also produces a number of Sauces, Salads, Sandwich Fillings, Tapenades and Olive blends. Launches at the show include: Tuna Mayonnaise and Three Cheese and Spring Onion sandwich fillings.

40 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

London Bio Packaging’s new greenline range for salad boxes and sandwich packs, offers both performance and eco innovation to conventional alternatives, says the company.

The greenline products are ecofriendly and high-quality packs, protecting the contents’ freshness, aspect and taste, due to their PLA lining and window, which helps extend shelf-life.

Two designs are available: a clear, elegant one aimed at promoting sustainability in a simple manner that rings true for all, and a printable kraft version.

The Hawkshead Relish Company was founded following the foot & mouth epidemic when Mark and Maria found their cafe devoid of customers and their livelihood threatened.

They looked to their skills and passions, creating a small range of high quality handmade Relishes, Pickles and Preserves and taking them to local shops. Within a few years they had won awards and the cafe was closed to make space for production, which today is housed in a16thC barn overlooking Esthwaite water, a mile from Hawkshead Village.

The range, which has expanded to almost 130 products, is still made by hand using traditional open pans and without any additives, preservatives or flavourings, and to date has secured over 45 national and international awards.

Rich Sauces is launching the new Alfee's range with 12 new products perfect for any business to rely on and grow with in these tough economic times.

“With the addition of Alfee's to the Rich Sauces family we can offer manufacturers, wholesalers, and stores mayo's, sauces, dressings, stocks, currys and ketchups to satisfy most business budgets,” says the company.

“We will be offering 20% discounts on selected lines at the show for new and existing distributors and direct customers.”

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PROFILE

Brilliant Brackenbury’s Going from maternity leave to opening up a London sandwich deli and now a second coffee shop, Sharon Isaac-Upton’s partnership venture has been a real success story, with great sandwiches and a thriving trade in soup

A

s is the case for many mums on maternity leave, the day comes when you have to consider returning to work. In 2010, two years after having her daughter, Sharon IsaacUpton reached this juncture, but was loath to return to her online marketing role. A new challenge beckoned.

With a keen interest in food and ingredients, she approached chef and friend of 20 years Tom Roche, and, pooling their expertise, Brackenburys sandwich delicatessen and coffee shop eventually became a reality.

How it came about is a story in itself!

Sharon tells how she once strolled through Hammersmith pushing her child in a pram. Eventually she came across this wonderful delicatessen. It sold amazing coffee, beautiful food and was an oasis of friendliness. But she could never quite recall exactly where it was. Many years later she found it. It was being advertised for sale and so, along with Tom Roche, she bought it.

The deli and coffee shop lies off the main drag in the heart of Brackenbury Village, a quiet residential area tucked away in bustling Hammersmith.

With very little passing trade, Sharon and Tom have had to work particularly hard to win each and every customer and ensure they come back.

“Brackenbury Village is home to a lot of media people who work from home, so there was huge potential there, but not in the same way as having a business on the busy High Street,” she said. “What is key to the deli’s success is

that we do not compromise on any of our ingredients; we have a large range of organic food, while everything is handmade in batches with nothing artificial.

“We also believe heavily in sourcing locally, wherever possible, and support many producers within five miles of the business, from Anna’s Pantry based in W12 and Bliss Cupcakes in North London to St John & Dolly Smith’s Pickles in Acton. We also buy our teas from Flint & Co., which is local to us and was founded by a vicar who couldn’t find the right tea. Customers love the story behind it.”

Brackenburys has a sandwich/salad counter with a wide range of hot and cold food, plus seating for 14-18 people.

The sandwiches are pre-made daily from artisan breads or can be made to order from a selection of classic fillings to gourmet fillings (fresh from the deli counter). Salads and quiches are also made daily.

“Our local baker makes pastries with

42 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

French flour and Charente butter so they are light and flaky, and they also make our artisan, multi-seeded and country breads, ‘real’ breads that are proofed for up to 36 hours. We did offer normal bread as a sandwich option when we first started out, but soon discovered that our customers preferred Real Bread, so now that’s all we do,” adds Sharon.

As well as healthy breakfasts such as organic porridge, granola and muesli and more indulgent breakfasts including smoked salmon with scrambled eggs and crispy bacon served with Brackenburys artisan toast, customers have a wide variety of hot lunches to choose from.

Alongside the rest of the food offer: paninis, jacket potatoes and organic meat, fish and vegetarian dishes such as cottage pie, fish pie and lasagne, Brackenburys also does a roaring trade on soups, all year round.

They’ve obviously done well: the business partners’ second venture, a stand-alone coffee shop, opened last year in London’s busy Askew Road, Soup-er success It’s a classic dilemma facing food business owners – do you make your own soup or not? Although, on paper, soup is a simple dish, it can be a complex, wide ranging and time

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PROFILE FRESHLY PREPARED SANDWICHES

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Cheddar cheese (pickle on request) Brie and sun-dried tomatoes Ham Crispy bacon

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Tuna mayonnaise

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Egg mayonnaise Smoked Salmon and cream cheese

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Chicken and pesto Houmous and roast vegetables

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Daily specials

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PANINIS / TOASTIES ■ ■

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Tuna melt Chicken, pesto and cheese

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Daily specials

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consuming dish to make, and Sharon and Tom opted to find a chilled, readymade solution that would not compromise their commitment to offering only the highest quality food.

Straightforward to warm up and serve, Love Soup from Redemption held the answer, with four distinct ranges and 31 varieties to choose from. Handmade in batches for a fresh, clean homemade taste, the soups warms the cockles of Brackenburys’ customers nicely.

With great combinations of ingredients, textures and flavours, from true winter warmers to light and fresh summer soups, the ranges fit all four seasons as well.

Extremely versatile, they can be served as a light snack or a chunky substantial meal, enabling caterers to explore more opportunities when planning their food offering. They also appeal to today’s more health-conscious customer, with some of the soups in the comprehensive Love Soup range offering three of the ‘five a day’ in one bowl.

Supplied in 4kg foodservice buckets, the Love Soup from Redemption range, ultimately offers caterers a more convenient alternative to kitchen-made without compromising a food offering.

Brackenburys has used Redemption soups from the outset, and, while the varieties offered are changed regularly, there is always a vegetarian and meat

option on the menu, from Carrot & Coriander and Pea & Ham to Mediterranean Tomato & Sweet Pepper and Chipotle Meatball.

“We mostly go for the mid-range soups, lighter ones in the summer and chunkier ones in the winter, Cock-a-leek for Burns Night, for example. We also like to dip into the more exotic varieties throughout the year, Malaysian Chicken being one of the most popular we’ve had,” said Sharon.

As well as Malaysian Chicken, Brackenburys has served up everything from Parsnip & Red Chilli to Petit Pois, Spinach & Kaffir Lime and Teriyaki Beef Ramen Noodle from the Love Soup range in the last two years, answering consumer demand for globally-inspired flavours.

Catering for vegetarian and Coeliacs is also key in today’s society.

Brackenburys, which prides itself on meeting special dietary requirements, has answered this demand by offering Love Soup’s vegetarian Minted Garden Pea, Healthy Vegetable, Tomato & Basil, and Creamy Potato & Double Gloucester, and gluten free varieties including Chickpea & Spinach and Leek & Potato.

“We love Redemption for the choice, allowing us to change the varieties regularly to keep customers interested, and get through a tub of both our meat

Ham and cheddar cheese Crispy bacon and cheddar cheese Roast vegetables and goat’s cheese

HOT SANDWICHES ■

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Crispy bacon and scrambled egg Hot crispy bacon Sausage sandwich with brown sauce

SALADS & DELI ITEMS ■ ■ ■ ■

Small leaf salad Small salad selection Large salad selection Salad: Daily specials

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Homemade quiche Spanish vegetable tortilla Handmade scotch eggs

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Sausage rolls

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and vegetarian option every day, more on Saturdays,” said Sharon. “And, from feedback we’ve had, customers love the homemade taste and vibrancy of the soups, while the fact that some are gluten free is a real selling point.

“In terms of profit, we sell the soup to take away at a very reasonable £4.15 with our artisan bread, £3.15 without, and still make a very healthy margin, helping us safeguard our business.”

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SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Sandwich salvation: offering new jobs for the longterm unemployed and homeless A number of sandwich and coffee chains are increasingly getting involved in helping long-term unemployed find work, as part of their corporate social responsibility platforms.

A

lthough the numbers of unemployed are going down in the UK currently, worrying numbers of young school leavers, ‘the lost generation,’ are increasingly left without a foothold on the ladder.

Long-term unemployed find it increasingly difficult to find work and the homeless are often caught up in a classic ‘Catch 22’, where they can’t get a job without an address and can’t get accommodation without a job. Then there’s those whose lives have taken a wrong turn and need a second chance.

Pret A Manger has been the major force behind the trend so far with its apprenticeship scheme through the Simon Hargraves Trust, offering up to 70 places a year to ex-offenders or the homeless.

Now Subway is following suit by joining forces with employment specialist Ingeus to recruit previously unemployed applicants for its Great Yarmouth and Gorleston branches, and the success of the partnership promises more jobs to follow.

Cynics might argue that it represents an easy way of pulling in recruits without advertising or hassle for relatively low-paid jobs, but as the majority of companies in the food to go sector are frequently receiving thousands of applications for just a handful of places, it’s clear that genuine social welfare concerns are at the heart of these policies.

For local workers Ian Wright, Michael Byrne, Andrew Silk and Nicola Boggis, it has meant a much-wished-for move from benefits into work with Subway.

Ian, 31 and from Gorleston, was unemployed for three years, despite having previous retail experience. With three young children to support he applied for ‘anything and everything’ in his search for work, but it wasn’t until Jobcentre Plus referred him to Ingeus that things began to change. Ingeus, which delivers the Government’s Department for Work and Pensions’ flagship Work Programme across East England, offers a free recruitment service to employers that matches motivated unemployed jobseekers to their specific recruitment requirements.

“I thought I’d tried everything and rewritten my CV every way possible, but once Ingeus began advising me I actually started being offered interviews,” said Ian. “They really put the effort into finding me vacancies, and being able to use the phones and postage facilities at the Ingeus branch helped enormously.”

Ian is already a trusted key-holder for Subway in Gorleston and works across all areas of the branch from food preparation and serving customers to cleaning and cashing up.

His colleague Michael Byrne is similarly invaluable at Subway in Great Yarmouth where his job – his first since leaving college two years ago – has enabled him to fund driving lessons.

44 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

Michael, 20 and from Newtown, received job preparation support and specialist food hygiene training from partners F1 Training before being recruited by Subway.

“I love my job because I meet lots of people and learn new skills,” said Michael. “I can finally afford to learn to drive, and I hope to work my way up the ladder at Subway with all the experience I’m gaining.”

Two of the new recruits, including Michael, have been supported into work via the Government’s Youth Contract Wage Incentive, which provides employers with a wage subsidy of up to £2,275 for employing long-term unemployed 18 to 24 year-olds currently on the Work Programme.

Manager of the two Subway stores, Rai Chakradhar, worked with employer partnership coordinator Matthew Stenning from Ingeus to recruit his new staff and was impressed with how prepared and appropriate for the roles the applicants were.

Although Subway franchisees operate independently, the expectation is that other franchisees will now follow suit.

Similarly, a Galashiels coffee shop has given jobs to ten previously long-term unemployed people after joining forces with Ingeus.

The new recruits have been given the life-changing opportunities by contract catering group Elior, which operates Fontanella and the staff café at Tesco on

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SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

Paton Street. It is now rolling the scheme out to other Elior sites in the area. It has also already seen one local resident not only get back into work, but promptly recruited to a supervisory position.

Sarah Logan, 29, from Galashiels, was unemployed for seven years after taking time out to nurse her thenseriously ill son. She was delighted to be offered a customer service role at Elior and has quickly progressed to become a supervisor in the Tesco staff café.

For many years however, Sarah struggled to even get a response to job applications, despite having a wealth of past work experience. “I applied for hundreds of jobs but got nowhere,” said Sarah.

“It all happened so quickly. It’s been totally life-changing getting back to work and I can’t believe I’ve been promoted already!”

Ingeus delivers the Government’s Work Programme across the East of England, sourcing local unemployed candidates for vacancies. Working with jobseekers to improve employability skills, and employers to deliver a fee-free, end-to-end recruitment service, it both recruits and helps retain staff for employers of all sizes and industries.

Meanwhile, Pret a Manger is hiring 70 new apprentices every year after a launch three years ago, recruiting from homeless, ex-offender and disadvantaged backgrounds.

Pret gives the apprentices £100 to buy

work clothes and pays for their travel to and from work, on top of their weekly wage.

Under the programme, the company trains the apprentices in their chosen field across different parts of the business from front-of-house shop floor work to IT with the guide of a mentor.

Nicki Fisher, head of sustainability at Pret, said: "It's hard enough for people from disadvantaged and troubled backgrounds to find work normally let alone in these difficult times so anything that can be done to alleviate their plight should be tried.

"This is about getting the homeless off the streets and giving ex-offenders a second chance. All the recruits start with a clean slate and are given every chance to build a career and rebuild their lives."

The Pret apprenticeship scheme was launched in 2008 and has an 88% success rate. The company currently works with nine charities and community projects to identify potential apprentices.

Each candidate is invited for an interview and placed in the business if successful after a three-month training scheme.

The plan runs alongside Pret's commitment to help the homeless by donating money raised from the sale of its Christmas sandwiches.

Sandwich independents are also getting in the act. A former Big Issue vendor who sold the magazine outside an Edinburgh city centre sandwich shop has now become its star employee.

Four months ago Peter Hart, 22, could regularly be found at his pitch outside the newly-opened Social Bite on Rose Street.

The cafe and takeaway, owned by Scottish Business Awards organiser Josh Littlejohn, is a socially-conscious enterprise that gives all its profits to charity.

According to the Edinburgh Evening News, when the staff began giving him free sandwiches at the end of the day, Peter offered to do any odd jobs that needed taken care of in return. And when a full-time position as a kitchen porter opened up, he was thrilled to be offered a chance to officially join the team.

Peter, who now lives in Wester Hailes, told the Evening News: “I can’t stress enough how grateful I am to Josh and to Alice Thompson, the manager of the shop, because I wouldn’t be here without them. The world really would be a better place if there were more people like them – no-one ever gave me a chance before they came along.

“I’ve been in care since I was three and once I turned 16 I broke all ties with the system and moved down to Southampton, where I was working odd jobs and living between a lot of different places, with no real support from anywhere. I ended up going to jail for possession and served 15 months.”

Josh Littlejohn, the driving force behind Social Bite, is probably better known around the Capital as the organiser of the Scottish Business Awards. After hearing about the Nobel Prize-winning work done by Bangladeshi banker Professor Muhammad Yunus, he made social business the major theme of the 2012 awards, inviting anti-poverty campaigner Bob Geldof to speak to the assembled heads of industry.

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 45

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SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

The Sandwich People can stand the heat Social enterprise schemes have been proliferating in the café sector for some time - now charities are getting involved in sandwich businesses to teach staff skills and achieve a degree of financial independence. We look here at one such sandwich catering scheme

A

t half-past seven in the morning in the kitchen, knives are spreading and slicing.

Scissors are cutting.

Orders are being checked and the fridge is filling up with ploughman’s sandwiches, coronation chicken, free range egg and cress, and brie and grape.

It’s frenetic. But the Sandwich People can stand the heat – which is why they are in the kitchen. They are preparing the ‘daily bread’ that will be delivered to employees in workplaces across the town. They are a successful enterprise; they are residents of Booth House, a Salvation Army Lifehouse for homeless people in Swindon.

‘We are geared towards getting people back into independent living and back into work,’ says Booth House centre manager Brian Gibbs. ‘We want to provide people who have become homeless with the opportunity to learn new skills or to relearn the skills they used in the past.”

Liz Osborne, Booth House business projects coordinator, recalls how she

walked round Swindon to identify a market for the new enterprise. Larger companies already had their own arrangements, so she began offering the sandwich-making service to smaller businesses.

The kitchen at the centre was refitted, and the environmental health service helped the staff – who lend a hand in the kitchen – and residents to learn about food safety. When he can take a break from the earlymorning hubbub, supervisor Sean describes how he became a resident at Booth House – and one of the Sandwich People. ‘‘Before I came to Booth House I was a team leader, but I’d never worked with food. I was in a warehouse for truck parts. Then I was made redundant. I went from taking home £1,600 a month to just £38 a week of benefits.

So my lifestyle changed totally. I got a bit depressed, was drinking a bit too much – not heavily, because I couldn’t afford it.

I didn’t have the money to stay where I was living. I ended up sofa surfing and

46 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

then came here.’

Sean has tried to use his time at Booth House well.

He has taken courses and gained qualifications. His experience with the Sandwich People has given him a taste for food work.

‘It sounds easy making a sandwich, but there is an art to it. And you have to train people up, especially in food hygiene. In the Sandwich People, everyone has the chance to do NVQ Level 2 in customer services, which I did, and I also took a Level 3 qualification in food safety, which is the management and supervisor level. When I leave Booth House, I’m looking to go into that environment. It’s not hugely paid, but I get quite a lot of job satisfaction out of it.

‘We have a good day in the Sandwich People. We feel we’ve accomplished something.’

Zoe goes out on one of the delivery rounds three times a week. She says she is trying to rebuild her life after leaving prison, and the Sandwich People and Booth House are assisting her.

‘Being here has helped me to integrate with people.

I was a young carer, looking after my dad, so I didn’t get

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SOCIAL ENTERPRISE

to socialise much. I’d just never been able to make or keep friends. After being isolated, this place has

helped me talk to new people and get over my fears.

‘I have also gained qualifications – I’ve just completed NVQ Level 2 for customer services, which has helped me learn more about how to talk to customers and deal with orders.

‘Working with the Sandwich People has also helped me with my maths, because I struggled with counting.

‘I’m hoping that all my skills help me to get a decent job. I’m looking at working on checkouts to begin with and then moving towards computer or reception work.’

Liz takes two other Sandwich People with her, Albert and Ron, to deliver buffet lunches. As she drives, she explains how sandwich sales among

businesses have declined in the tough economic times, so the Sandwich People have begun to provide these buffets as well.

Liz sees that there is a Christian flavour to the way the Sandwich People enterprise is run. ‘We work with clients and try to give them as much responsibility as we can. There are challenges, of course. Some people have a chaotic lifestyle and very limited experience of working, and they need to establish a routine.”

She sees the benefit of ‘meaningful activity’. People – whether homeless or not – who are made redundant can lose confidence and social skills quite quickly, particularly if they do not have ‘the safety net of family and friends’, she says.

‘What gets someone out of bed in the morning?

There are mornings when you don’t want to get up, but you do because you know that someone is relying on you or you have something that needs to be done. It is vital for us all to feel that we can offer something of value.

‘One team member who worked with the Sandwich People early on was in his mid-fifties and a recovering alcoholic. He had been on many programmes and projects but enjoyed coming into the kitchen here because it was “real”. He said: “It matters if I don’t get this bread buttered.” ‘Also we have had volunteers from a local business helping out on a Friday morning.

A resident will be showing an IT consultant how to make a sandwich or a salad. So how good does that make them feel!

‘Some of the Sandwich People have gone into catering, but it’s not necessarily the only route to take. Being one of the Sandwich People is about getting into the work routine and gaining confidence.’

It’s not just a case of jam tomorrow. Residents do move on to new accommodation and work.

A couple of months after he took time out of the kitchen to talk to me about his hopes, Sean is still one of those hard at work in the kitchen –but now he is there as a volunteer. He is getting closer to gaining work experience and he has already moved into his own property.

This article, written by Philip Halcrow, originally appeared in ‘The War Cry’ in. It is reproduced here with their kind permission.

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Concern over EC Inspection Charges AN EC proposal for government inspection services to fully recover their costs is causing major concern to many in the food industry.

Under the proposal to rationalise the provisions of 882/2004, the EC is suggesting that member states should be able to fully recover the costs of visits by EHOs etc. The only exception would be micro businesses – those with fewer than 10 employees.

It is suggested that in return for the fees businesses will get ‘better consultation on how to improve’ things. The EC expects the cost to be based around two visits a year.

While it will be up to individual states to decide whether or not to implement the rules when they come in play in approximately three years time, with budgets being cut everywhere there is likely to be considerable pressure to do so.

British Sandwich Week MAJOR plans are being developed to expand British Sandwich Week this year, with a substantial media campaign as well as in-store activity and even a world record attempt.

Details will be circulated to all members shortly.

As a result of these developments, the Sandwich of the Month campaign is likely to change in April and May so

BR

SANITISH WE DW EK ICH 12 MA th-18 Y 2 th 013

British Sandwich Industry Awards THE Sammies will this year be even bigger and better with greater emphasis on supporting the awards so that winners gain maximum value from their success. A much bigger media campaign has already started around the awards and changes are being made to the dinner to put greater emphasis on the

Government Consultations Labelling issues over Flour Fortification: There are concerns in the industry over the labelling implications if flour has to be listed on labels wherever it occurs in ingredients.

A Defra consultation on Bread and Flour fortification has potential labelling implications for the sandwich industry as it could result in the fortified ingredients of flour (calcium, iron etc) having to be declared rather than just the term ‘wheat flour’. With flour used not only in bread but also in other ingredients, this could lead to an unmanageable explosion in labelling information. The Association is considering the consultation and will

that it links into the programme better.

Consideration is also being given to an on-going campaign designed to boost sandwich sales and underpin market growth.

respond on behalf of the industry but members may also wish to add their voice to these concerns (please copy us in on your submissions).

Food Hygiene Rating Scheme: The Food Standards Agency has launched a consultation to assess the impact that the mandatory display of food hygiene ratings might have on businesses in Northern Ireland. The deadline for responses is April 26.

Although this consultation does not cover England, this is another step towards legislation being introduced across the rest of the UK. In Wales, the Welsh Assembly has voted unanimously in favour of mandatory display, which is expected to come into force later this year.

awards while still maintaining the fun of the party atmosphere.

The Association has also put a cap on the number of people able to attend the dinner– so early booking is more important than ever! Details of the awards and dinner can be found on the Association’s website at www.sandwich.org.uk

BRC Labelling Consultation The British Retail Consortium has issued a consultation on Front of Pack Nutritional Labelling as part of a project it is undertaking with the Food & Drink Federation on behalf of the four UK Governments.

The project is designed to look at how nutritional labelling might be produced to comply with EU Regulation 1169/2011 on the provision of food information to consumers (EU FIC) as well as the UK Health Ministers’ stated preference for a hybrid FoP scheme, combining red, amber, green colours with %Guideline Daily Amounts/Reference Intakes.

BSA to draw up new labelling guidelines The Association is planning to set up a sub-committee to redraft sandwich labelling guidelines in advance of the new EC Food Information Regulations coming into effect next

48 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

year. This follows the recent Technical Forum meeting at Byotrol’s offices in Daresbury when Stephen Pugh from Defra (Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs)

answered questions from members on the new regulations.

Anyone interested in being involved in this should contact jim@sandwich.org.uk

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Paperless Due Diligence System THE Association is talking to a company that has developed a system that allows those with more than one site to maintain due diligence records centrally without the need for paper.

The system, which has been developed with the Centre of Excellence for Mobile Applications and Solutions (CEMAS), is based around mobile technology. By transferring paper forms to a tablet format, records are automatically sent to a central location where they can be analysed and recorded for due diligence purposes, thus giving remote managers much

greater control over multiple sites.

The system can incorporate all traditional paper systems, from temperature records to employee attendance records.

Subject to member interest, the Association might consider setting up a standard set of record forms on the system which could be easily adapted to individual businesses. It is keen to get some feedback on the level of interest and has invited the company to present the concept to the next Technical Group meeting in April 17th at Tri-Star, Enfield.

Campden BRI Update: LISTERIA continues to be a thorn in the side of food manufacturers. Its ability to survive and grow at refrigeration temperatures means that particular care needs to be taken to reduce its occurrence in the food manufacturing area and, ultimately, foods. On Friday May 17, Campden is organizing a seminar to highlight new and current thinking in controlling this pathogen, in particular looking at the subject from the perspective of susceptible foods (especially ready-to-

eat chilled) and the factory environment. For further information contact contact d.davies@campden.co.uk New speakers added to Sustainable Wheat Future Prospects Seminar: Two new speakers have been added to this programme Bert Strubbe from DSM will be presenting ‘Global bread making practices’ and Dr Lutz Popper from Muehlenchemie will be presenting, ‘Asian market needs’. The seminar takes place at Campden on April 11.

Take part in a TV series for business advice Award winning independent TV production company Twofour Broadcast is also looking for businesses to take part in a new television series in which a specialist advisor will give guidance to businesses worried about their future. If you feel your business would benefit from a fresh pair of eyes under the glare of TV cameras you can find out more by contacting Naomi on 0207 438 1851 or emailing her at business@twofour.co.uk

Food Standards Agency Ecoli 157 Review: The Food Standards Agency is launching a review of its guidance on E.coli O157 produced in response to the serious outbreaks of E. coli O157 food poisoning in Scotland in 1996 and Wales in 2005, and the recommendations of Professor Hugh Pennington’s Inquiry report into the 2005 outbreak.

Since then concerns have been raised about the use of separate

complex equipment, such as vacuum packing machines, slicers, and mincers for raw and ready-to-eat foods - one of the key crosscontamination control measures highlighted in the guidance. As a result the FSA is now going to commission an independent research body to test alternative controls to crosscontamination with a view to amending the guidance.

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SUPPLIER PROFILE

No more soggy sandwiches for independent sandwich bars Nunhems is targeting sandwich bar and café independents with its Chef´s tomato Intense™. Simon Ambrose investigates

T

he first time I heard about the innovative Intense™ tomato from Nunhems, I have to admit I was a little sceptical.

A tomato you could slice without leakage and perfect for use in sandwiches without the bread going soggy? That has a good taste profile and an attractive deep red colour?

Where the pulp in the centre stayed intact after cutting, avoiding the usual waste involved in manufacturing sandwiches? It also keeps well and has a better shelf-life than the average tomato. It all sounded just too good to be true.

But remarkably, it’s all absolutely 100% correct, with its advantages increasingly recognized by the sandwich trade. In fact, two major national sandwich manufacturers are now using Intense™, as well as regional manufacturer Raynor Foods.

Raynors incidentally has been one of its most passionate advocates, winning the

Technical Excellence Award at the Sammies Awards last year for its adoption of the tomato, and the company expounded its merits recently on Channel 4’s television programme ‘Food Unwrapped.’

“Since moving to the Intense™ tomato, ‘soggy sandwich’ complaints have disappeared,” says Tanya Everest-Ring, Raynor Foods’ marketing manager. “It is an incredibly tasty tomato and our customers love it.”

It’s such an amazing development that the inevitable question has to be asked: is this a genetically modified product?

The short answer is no, absolutely not: Intense™ was developed during many years of selective plant breeding. The plant’s non-leak properties are the result of a cell structure that allows it to retain a significant amount of moisture. In other words, there’s nothing remotely ‘Frankenstein-like’ about this.

So, job done? Well, no. The company is now gearing up to take its message to independent

50 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

sandwich bars and cafés around the country, which could benefit from its advantages in the same way that manufacturers have.

“We are planning to find a wholesaler or distributor to take the Intense™ tomato, or possibly a pre-sliced version, to the independents,” says Erik Bongers, Nunhems Produce Chain Specialist.

“We are certain there will be a big market there, because no-one wants soggy sandwiches and certainly independents don’t want to have any waste.”

The company is also targeting the foodservice side of the industry, where chefs can use the tomato to make dishes with better results than with a normal tomato. That’s why the product was rebranded as ‘The Chef’s Tomato.’ There is also considerable potential for the company in the supermarket sector with the non-leak tomato targeted as an ‘at home’ cooking and sandwich

ingredient. In fact, it already has a limited presence currently in selected Tesco stores.

These are indeed exciting times for the company.

Nunhems has been working with Fortuna Frutos UK to handle its UK supplies and the final word goes to executive Chris Forsey.

“We have been supplying the main sandwich manufacturers in the UK for 5 years with Intense™ tomatoes.

It’s a great solution for our customers because the good colour, high dry matter and perfect sliceability make it a perfect product for the sandwich industry.”

S&SN_144_March13_p50-51_Layout 1 05/03/2013 12:57 Page 51

Supplying Ingredients to the Sandwich and Salad Industry Fresh Chilled Eggs and Bacon Delivered Nationwide in Pallet Quantities Boiled eggs, liquid egg, egg powders, omelettes and scrambled eggs Naturally smoked, sweet-cured, cooked, streaky bacon rashers in hygienic MAP trays.

Low salt options available.

Tel. 01568 610270 Fax. 01568 610934 Email. info@henrysonfoods.co.uk www.henrysonfoods.co.uk

To advertise call Paul Steer on 01291 636342 March 2013 51

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COMMENT

We need to bridge the

innovation gap In order for the food industry to continue to drive innovation and add texture, flavour, colour, provenance and authenticity to their foods, we have to go beyond just selling the product and focus on ensuring that ultimately the end consumer pays for this innovation, says Leatham’s sales and marketing director Clive Moxham

T

he slow pace of innovation in some parts of the food industry is a recurring theme that will not lose its importance as competition and the fight for differentiation between companies and brands continues.

With the Grocer’s top product survey showing a 45% downturn in new innovation launches last year, it looks like this debate is set to continue this year.

Nonetheless, whilst it is often too easy to point the finger accusing brands and food businesses of playing it safe, there is a need to acknowledge the role that the lack of customer support [retailers, ready meal manufacturers and the end consumer] plays in providing a limited incentive for business to innovate.

Innovation when successful can generate new consumers, markets and create value in a competitive arena.

However, in a financial crisis where there is a marked dichotomy between price and the need for value for money, it is critical to ensure that we get it right and that we are bringing products that will affect real change if we want to drive significant commercial growth.

It is essential for brands to identify new product development programmes and plans if they are going to discover new channels and gain substantial differentiation. It is also essential to further fine-tune our understanding of our customers as an industry.

By taking this approach it will allow us to develop new thinking which will in turn result in the launch of new and innovative products that are in line with customer needs.

In fact at Leathams we are looking at recruiting a Food Innovations Manager whose sole role will be to coordinate all our innovation into well

52 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

planned and profitable launches.

Nonetheless, whilst it sounds straightforward on paper, the pitfalls can be quite substantial as innovation is a costly process. In many instances and for some SME’s, the cost versus benefit analysis can make them err on the speculative in terms of return, and this is primarily because whilst customers welcome and in many cases demand innovation they are not willing to pay for it and often expect an innovative food at a mainstream price.

I believe that it is this lack of commitment by the customer across the entire food industry that has contributed to our innovation slowdown and must be addressed as a matter of urgency.

In the last few years Leathams have successfully introduced a number of innovative products to market such as our Merchant Gourmet® Ready to Eat pulse and grain range, Roquito® peppers, Baby SunBlush® plum tomatoes as well as IQF pasta, brie and Buffalo Mozzarella.

Some of these products now make it possible for manufacturers to work with products that traditionally were not accessible and have introduced new customers to new foods.

However, whilst these have been a success, the story across the board is not always a positive one, and whilst it is easy to say that innovation should lead the way in the food industry, the temptation to remain cautious, particularly in this economic climate is high. When you look at the risk versus reward equation associated with

S&SN_144_March13_p52-53_Layout 1 05/03/2013 12:58 Page 53

COMMENT “We are looking at recruiting a Food Innovations Manager whose sole role will be to co-ordinate all our innovation into well planned and profitable launches”

innovation, it is easy to see why SME’s may not see innovation as a key revenue generator that will help them deliver the required profit at the end of the year.

Also when discussions are held around innovation there is a tendency

to focus on the introduction of new foods, yet less attention is paid to the opportunities that can come available through the fine-tuning of existing products.

One of Leatham’s most successful examples of this thinking can be seen through our Merchant Gourmet® Ready to eat grains and pulses pouches, which are nutritiously difficult to cook and quite time consuming. We targeted a demographic that wanted grains and pulses but who did not have the knowledge or the time to prepare them and we provided them with a healthy ready to eat option. As a result our entire ready to eat range has experienced 104% YOY sales growth in both the Retail Grocery and the Foodservice marketplaces.

There is an abundance of untapped

potential, but in order for the industry to continue to drive innovation and add texture, flavour, colour, provenance and authenticity to their foods, we have to go beyond just selling the product and focus on ensuring that the end consumer pays for this innovation.

It is not until we bridge that gap between the need for innovation and the willingness to pay the price that we will see a change. Until that dichotomy is addressed the food industry will continue to see businesses investing less time in innovation and more time focusing on value engineering a product to cheapen it as they feel this will generate more a short term benefit to their business. This, however, in my view, is not the way forward if we want a vibrant and exciting food industry.

✃

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S&SN_144_March13_p54-55_Layout 1 05/03/2013 12:59 Page 54

FOOD TESTING

ALS supports customers during ‘testing times’ ALS is working closely with manufacturers and processors in the food industry to help restore consumer trust and integrity in the wake of the ‘Horsegate’ crisis

T

he past few weeks have been dominated by arguably the biggest food scare since the illegal dyes crisis in 2005; namely ‘Horsegate’.

Newspaper column inches and TV news bulletins have been filled with a constant stream of reports about contaminated food and enforced product withdrawals. This has led to an unprecedented demand for meat speciation testing particularly horse meat – as manufacturers strive to protect the integrity of their supply chain and restore consumer confidence.

As one of the UK’s leading food testing laboratories, ALS have been swift to respond to the needs of their customers by offering a comprehensive meat speciation testing service. This service, employing ELISA methodology, includes a raw horse meat speciation test (with detection limits of 1%) as well as a ‘4-meat screen’ covering cattle, pig, sheep and poultry (with detection limits of 1-2%). Reflecting the urgency of the situation, ALS are able to offer customers a fast-track 2 day service on request as an alternative to their standard 5-day service.

PCR testing is also available through ALS’s partner labs if required.

Sales & Marketing Director, Nigel Richards comments: “The current issue surrounding meat speciation highlights the integral role

that analytical testing plays in verifying product integrity and upholding food safety standards. We recognise the immense pressure that some of our customers are under at present and are working hard to ensure that testing is completed as quickly and effectively as possible.”

Working across a spectrum of sectors including chilled and ambient, ALS offers a wide range of food testing, including microbiological, chemical and nutritional, pesticides and agrochemicals, contaminants, vitamins and additives and allergens.

A modern fleet of refrigerated collection vehicles is used to maintain sample integrity and following testing, results are available for customers to access via their secure web-based portal

54 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

‘EOS’ - see the inset section for more details. “The integrity of our test results is absolutely paramount,” adds Richards. “We sell reassurance.”

The company has undergone some significant changes in recent years, starting in 2009 with the launch of a new company and customer strategy and the recruitment of new senior managers into the organisation.

“The emphasis of the business became about better communication, putting the customer first, achieving consistency across all our

laboratory sites and introducing an industryleading IT platform for our customers,” says Managing Director Mark Wood.

Then in April 2012, the Eclipse Scientific Group, as it was previously known, was bought by ALS Limited, one of the world’s largest and most diversified testing service providers with 350 sites in 55 countries and around 13,000 employees.

Client retention is a priority and ALS has a dedicated Customer Service Team, who phone customers every week as part of an ongoing feedback survey. As Anna Nicholls, ALS’s Customer Service Manager says, “It’s our early warning system. Between January and December 2012, we had 285 individual responses and 98.5% rated our overall service as ‘Good’, ‘Very Good or ‘Excellent’. We want to keep our service at that level.”

Turnover from the five UK sites has increased strongly in recent years and plans are already in place to support further growth with a multimillion pound expansion plan for their Chatteris site later this year. The company also has a sister operation in Ireland and is accredited by UKAS and INAB and by major retailers including Tesco and Marks & Spencer.

Their customer base is diverse but includes major blue-chip operations in the manufacture and supply of sandwiches and as well as

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FOOD TESTING other chilled foods sectors.

“The food testing market is very competitive,” Nigel Richards acknowledges. “Our customers are under constant pressure to cut costs and it’s thereby vital that we deliver consistent value for money whilst ensuring that food safety is never compromised.”

This was a driving force behind ALS’s launch of a new consultancy service last July, with a team of BRC qualified auditors on hand to visit customers to offer advice and training and help them troubleshoot, interpret test results and prepare for audits.

“It’s proving very successful,” says Richards.

“Rather than simply taking a sample, analysing it and giving them a result, it’s now about providing a broader level of support. In 2013, organisations such as ours have to offer more than just a test result.”

EOS: industry leading customer portal EOS is the industry leading customer portal from ALS. Built on state of the art technology, it delivers an unparalleled, feature rich experience with unprecedented performance.

Users are able to quickly and easily register samples, access results and monitor trends with just a few clicks. Through the unique design and architecture, EOS not only exceeds today's demands but also provides a safe, secure platform to deliver tomorrow's, says the company.

Benefits Having timely access to accurate result information is no longer enough.

Customers need a solution that efficiently manages the whole process from scheduling and registering sample information through to results analysis, trending and customer reporting, all in a single location.

EOS users are provided with access to all of the information they need to drive their testing business, from any location and securely.

Users can not only consolidate all historical testing information, but can achieve measurable efficiency gains through business process improvements enabled by the EOS platform, adds the company. Examples include electronic registration, systems integration, online

‘paperless’ certificate library, electronic invoicing, one click reporting, automatic trend analysis, immediate OOS notifications via email, and more.

Online Registration • A fast and fool-proof way of registering samples - two click registration • Rapid shelf life registration • Print labels to attach to your samples for full traceability • Full visibility of registration information; who, what, when.

• Configurable input screens, aligned to your needs • Batch registration using templates

Test with confidence.

Trust in ALS. Food safety has never been such a high priority so why take risks with testing?

Find out why so many manufacturers entrust their work to ALS. ■ Unrivalled range of analytical tests and services ■ New in-house meat speciation testing service (including raw horse meat)

■ Uncompromising quality standards and unbeatable service ■ Modern, well equipped UKAS-accredited laboratories ■ Comprehensive nationwide collection service

■ Industry-leading web-based portal ‘EOS’ – now with over 3,000 registered users

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 55

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NEW PRODUCTS

New staff coffee shop for Glasgow City Chambers QUALITY Equipment Distributors (QED), based in Glasgow, is a leading UK designer and supplier of modular bar, coffee shop and food service equipment, with a large selection of contemporary and classic module styles for catering and retail environments.

The company was recently appointed to supply a new coffee shop display counter and back bar system for the staff relaxation area in Glasgow City Chambers.

In the very heart of Glasgow, the City Chambers is one of the city’s most important and prestigious buildings. A grand and imposing edifice overlooking George Square, the City Chambers is an impressive

symbol of Glasgow’s political strength and historical wealth. Completed in 1888, for over a hundred years, it has been the headquarters of successive councils serving the City of Glasgow.

The coffee shop system was commissioned by Encore

Hospitality Services, part of the Cordia Group, in partnership with Glasgow City Council. They selected QED’s Italian style ‘Zen’ range, an ultra-contemporary design in contrast with the traditional surroundings of City Chambers.

The system comprises modular bars and counters in a mirrored finish, together with a drop-in refrigerated serve-over counter and matching back bar shelving and storage. The scheme was installed by QED’s own shopfitting team, and is already proving to be very popular with staff and visitors Commenting on the installation, Ian Boardley of Encore Hospitality Services said: ‘We have worked with QED on a number of projects in Glasgow. Their coffee shop systems are both stylish and practical and their design and installation service is very professional.’

Tel/Fax: 0141 779 9503 www.qualityequipment.co.uk

Snowbird rolls out international meatballs

Give your disposables a branded look without actually branding FOOD packaging distributor Café Connections is drawing together ranges of colour co-ordinated products that will help customers give real strength to their logo/house colour – without the outlay or quantity commitment of individual branding. They are all available off the shelf for next working day delivery.

Green not your colour? Let them know what is, as new products and colours are being added all the time. info@cafeconnections.co.uk

56 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

SNOWBIRD foods has added more international appeal to its award-winning range of frozen and fully cooked meatballs with the introduction of two new flavours, redolent of Iberia and the Americas.

Spain’s most famous cheese – Manchego – has been finely grated and blended with beef and pork.

That mix is flavoured with onion, garlic, salt, parsley, smoked paprika and black pepper to produce a round shaped product which is oven cooked and available in sizes from 10g upwards.

Also weighing in at 10g or upwards is the Devilishly Spiced Chilli Meatball, a round, oven cooked and flash fried pork product which is flavoured with peppers, onion, black pepper, fennel, salt, brown sugar, basil, garlic, nutmeg and thyme.

“These hugely complex recipes proved necessary to deliver the exciting tastes we were looking for,” said Snowbird sales director Roy Anderson. “They had to be of the very highest quality to earn

a place in our range of meatballs,” he added.

The established selection includes, Italian, French, Chinese Chicken, Moroccan Turkey, Moroccan, Australian Kangaroo, Indian Spiced Lamb, American Smoky BBQ Pork, Greek, Italian, Red Pepper & Pork and nearer, to home, Faggots in Dark Brown Gravy.

All Snowbird meat balls are available in 2 x 6kg inners to a unit.

Tel: 020 8805 9222. www.snowbirdfoods.co.uk

S&SN_144_March13_p56-59_Layout 1 05/03/2013 13:26 Page 57

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Contact us for details of your nearest wholesaler Tel: 01603 756202

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www.quickfill.co.uk

To advertise call Paul Steer on 01291 636342 March 2013 57

S&SN_144_March13_p56-59_Layout 1 05/03/2013 13:26 Page 58

NEW PRODUCTS

NXL partner with National Flexible on Midland Pie Products revamp WITH solid roots nourished by 50 years of baking tradition, Midland Pie Products felt that a brand revamp and packaging makeover would help to encourage a new growth surge and expand their consumer base.

They commissioned packaging design specialists NXL Design to drive and deliver the project, tasking them with creating a brand identity that communicated a sense of both quality and tradition.

The packaging artwork was developed in keeping with a theme that is relevant to the brand name, incorporating a distinctive blue colour scheme that can be traced back to the origins of the brand.

Each SKU is identifiable with a unique colour band running across the packaging, keeping the overall design consistent across the range.

During the development process, NXL used their technical expertise with flexible packaging formats to reduce the size of each pack within the range, significantly lowering the overall packaging costs.

Phil Parkinson, head of NXL Design, said: “We have a wealth of experience working on projects and campaigns with UK FMCG companies, both large and small. We use that experience to help them bring brands

Magrini launch Breeze High Chair

and products to market efficiently and cost effectively.”

NXL’s packaging partner National Flexible supplied the printed film for the range as part of a continuous process, seamlessly transferring the project from the creative stages through to the delivery of film to the customer.

This is the latest in a long line of collaborations between NXL Design and National Flexible, increasing speed-to-market and reducing costs.

Tel: 01274 685566 www.nxldesign.co.uk

THE Breeze high chair is the latest addition to the Magrini range of commercial childcare products.

This stylish, light-weight chair combines classic good looks with the durability of HDPE material.

The high chairs stack up to eight high for easy storage and the frontload stacking design eliminates the need for up and over lifting. The Breeze high chair pushes up to the table to enable your smallest guests to join the meal as well as conserving valuable aisle space.

“At Magrini safety is our main concern and the Breeze features a permanent T-bar for intrinsic safety as well as an adjustable, instantrelease buckle,” says the company.

The chair is designed and manufactured in the U.K. and is available in a choice of colours. www.magrini.co.uk

Electronic Temperature Instruments launches Gourmet Folding Probe thermometer THE water resistant Gourmet folding probe thermometer is an easy to use instrument, ideal for monitoring cooking, cooling and food holding temperatures as part of HACCP and health and safety procedures.

The unit measures temperature over the range of -39.9 to 149.9 °C with a 0.1 °C or °F resolution and incorporates two push buttons, on/off and hold (display hold).

The Gourmet's 3 volt lithium battery will allow up to 3000 hours continuous use or, if used two hours a day, seven days a week, a minimum of ten years. Each unit incorporates a stainless steel, food penetration probe (Ø3.5 x 110 mm)

58 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

that conveniently folds back into the side of the instrument when not in use, rotating through 180 degrees, allowing the user to store or transport the thermometer safely.

The Gourmet is available in six

colours, ideal for many different food applications. These colourcoded thermometers can form an essential part of HACCP or Due Diligence procedures, being used for different food types or preparation areas, reducing the risk of cross contamination.

The Gourmet features a CalCheck 0 °C test function. The CalCheck is activated by pressing both the 'on/off' and 'hold' buttons simultaneously, at the time of switching the unit on. This feature allows users to verify the accuracy of their thermometer on a regular basis, without the need for additional equipment.

Tel: 01903 202151

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CRISPS

Pipers Crisps voted Best Brand PIPERS Crisps has been voted ‘Best Brand’ in a recent survey of British producers.

The Lincolnshire-based crisp maker topped the ‘Crisps and Snacks’ section, as voted for by retailers themselves.

Pipers’ gourmet crisps are now available in around 5000 outlets across the UK. “Despite the recession we’ve had an excellent twelve months, growing our sales by 31% over the previous year,” says Managing Director Alex Albone.

“It’s been a particularly busy time for us. At the start of the year we updated our brand to more accurately reflect our core values and send a clearer message to our customers. We also designed new, eye-catching packaging which has been very well received by retailers. Finally, towards the end of the year, we introduced our new Chorizo flavour which is already selling well. We’re very proud to have won the ‘Best Brand’ accolade - it shows that we’re working hard doing the right things, which is really valued by our customers,” he adds.

Pipers’ production facility is now running 24 hours a day to cope with demand, and the company is looking to recruit more people to join their 48strong staff. “ We put our success down to a couple of key factors,” says Alex.

“First, we won’t sell our crisps through the major supermarket chains which

ensures our independent retailers can offer a real point of difference at a sensible margin. And second, we make our own crisps in our own production facility. Surprisingly, a few brands do not actually make their own crisps and for us this is an important difference.

It shows we know what we’re doing and that we’re passionate about taste, product quality, freshness and shelf life

- vital ingredients for our success,” he adds.

The Pipers Crisps’ range includes: Kirkby Malham Chorizo; Lye Cross Cheddar and Onion; Burrow Hill Cider Vinegar and Sea Salt; Karnataka Black Pepper and Sea Salt; Anglesey Sea Salt; Wissington Spicy Tomato; Biggleswade Sweet Chilli; and Unsalted. Pack sizes are 40g or sharing bags of 150g.

What a

Corking idea!

Corkers, the most recent crisp brand arrival on the market, claims to be the first to produce a 20g bag of premium quality crisps. Unlike other snacks that can boast fewer than 100 calories, it has all the indulgent flavour of a bag of crisps but is portion controlled, says the company.

Anyone searching for a snack of less than 100 calories is presented with a list of snacks that would curb

60 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

any appetite, such as: a handful of miniature fat-free pretzel twists with 2 tablespoons mustard; a piece string cheese; 1 crisp rice cereal bar; a dry crumpet (hold the topping!) or a hard-boiled egg!

The 20g bags are available in three flavours: Sea Salt (Gold Taste Award); Sea Salt and Cider Vinegar

as well as Red Leicester and Caramelised Onion.

They are 100% British, contain no artificial or MSG products and the flavours are made using only natural British produce.

S&SN_144_March13_p60-61_Layout 1 05/03/2013 13:01 Page 61

CRISPS

Burts Chips shakes up the snack sector with fresh new look ARTISAN, premium crisp brand Burts Chips has unveiled a new look across its range of hand cooked, award-winning potato chips.

To build on its success within the competitive and fast moving snacks sector, the Devon based company has revamped the brand, following in-depth consumer panels at various locations across the UK, including its Devon factory.

The updated brand will be communicated across its packaging, website, social media channels and in-store POS. The new packaging, which features a figure wearing an apron with the Burts logo in its centre, with its hands positioned proudly on the sides of the packet represents the brand’s hand-crafted, artisan credentials and a personal touch, which the company has become well known for.

The unique design has also been created to ensure strong shelf stand out, enhanced by the range of bright, eye-catching colours, which allows consumers to identify the seven different flavours available; Sea Salt, Vintage Cheddar & Spring Onion, Sea Salt & Malted

Vinegar, Sea Salt & Crushed Peppercorns, Pesto, Firecracker Lobster and Thai Sweet Chilli.

The white square, which has featured on the Burts Chips packaging since the brand first launched in 1994, remains as well as its traditional matte finish, to appeal to Burts’ consumers.

The name of the person that hand cooked each pack is clearly displayed, as well as the name of the field the potatoes came from, as a mark of provenance and pride in the products. Its British credentials are also communicated via a new strapline: “Burts, British Potato Chips Hand Cooked

With Care”.

In line with the fact that consumers are increasingly seeking out natural snack options, Burts now displays a number of free from messages front of pack, including free from artificial flavours, colourings, gluten and MSG. A brand known for its innovation, Burts Chips have included a QR code on each pack, directing consumers to the new interactive Burts Chips website and a launch competition to win one of 1,000 Burts Chips aprons, as modelled on the front of each packet of its crunchy potato chips.

Leane Bramhall, Marketing Director at Burts Chips, said: “We’re very excited to be launching the new Burts Chips brand. The packaging boldly reinforces our core values, but in a fresh, fun and modern way, which we’re confident will appeal to consumers. We want to strengthen our onshelf presence, engage further with our consumers and create wider appeal.

Flavour innovation also remains key, so retailers should keep their eyes peeled for exciting new flavours from Burts in the coming months.”

Pret withdraws ‘Virgin Mary’ crisp brand following complaints Pret A Manger has withdrawn its new "Virgin Mary" brand of crisps after religious complaints.

The launch of the spicy tomato crisps - based on the non-alcoholic version of a Bloody Mary cocktail - prompted a barrage of complaints, including some from Catholic groups.

A company spokesman said it had

noted the' "strength of feeling" and withdrawn the product to avoid offence.

"We are extremely sorry that the crisp name that we had selected has offended you. This wasn't our intention.

After receiving a number of comments similar to yours, Clive (Pret's CEO) has taken your advice and decided to remove all of the crisps from

our shops...

"We will be donating the unsold crisps to homeless charities that we support across the country."

The Reverend Nick Donnelly, deacon of the Diocese of Lancaster and author of Protect the Pope website, was among those who complained to Pret A Manger.

www.sandwich.org.uk March 2013 61

S&SN_144_March13_p62-65_Layout 1 05/03/2013 16:23 Page 62

DAY IN THE LIFE OF...

In the kitchen with Electrolux Professional Category Manager Claire Morton Claire Morton is a Category Manager at Electrolux Professional, manufacturers of complete kitchen solutions for professional caterers. Taking in every stage of the customer journey from initial product demonstration to after-sale training support, her role is specifically focused on light catering equipment such as mixers, slicers and panini grills - particularly suited to sandwich operators and the food-to-go sector. This is her day...

7:00am An early start but I wouldn’t have it any other way. I live in Northamptonshire and with customers across the UK I’m often travelling long distances across the country.

Today I’m heading for London but not before I’ve done my morning tasks.

Once I’ve checked my emails, got my route planned and fed Matilda (the most attractive cat in the world), I set off for the M1 around 8.00am with Chris Evans on Radio 2 to keep me company.

9:20am I spend a lot of time on the road so I often use it as a good opportunity to make some phone calls from the car – with a hands-free kit of course.

Today I spend 20 minutes or so catching up with RH Hall, the UK's largest independent catering equipment supplier and the exclusive dealer for Electrolux Professional’s award-winning HSG high-speed Panini Grill – which means we work very closely with the team there.

HSG is one of our stand-out innovations and has proved very popular with sandwich operators of all sizes because it serves hot, crisp-to-the-bite paninis in less than 30 seconds. When you consider how many paninis even a small-medium sized retailer sells in an average lunch time sales period, you can easily calculate the time-saving and queue-busting potential.

It is important for equipment manufacturers to build a strong network of dealers in order to make products available when and where customers

want them. RH Hall is one of our biggest partners and I’ll often meet with them, along with other online and offline equipment suppliers, to make sure they are in a position to talk about our latest products and the benefits they can offer to their own customers.

10:00am By mid morning I have reached my first destination of the day, Nisbits Catering Equipment on Shaftesbury Avenue another of our distribution partners.

Nisbits has a fantastic showroom which showcases a wide range of catering

62 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

equipment and I’m here to deliver some new literature for Electrolux Professional’s dynamic prep equipment, including slicers, blenders and mixers. It’s a good chance to talk the team through some of our most recent innovations, including new stainless steel cutting discs on our vegetable prep machines, which means the whole product can now be put through the dishwasher.

For Nisbits this can be a huge selling point over other equipment manufacturers, so I leave them with some flyers and banners which highlight the improvements. We often support dealers

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S&SN_144_March13_p62-65_Layout 1 05/03/2013 16:23 Page 64

and catering equipment suppliers with professional product literature like this and it’s not unusual for me to drop in to replenish stocks and maintain relationships.

12:00pm Next I travel back up to North London to meet with a fantastic chain of Mexican food-to-go outlets called Chilango, which is already winning accolades for its tasty food and eye-catching branding. It’s also a great chance for me to grab some lunch!

I meet Laura Abbott first, our National Account Manager who specialises in the QSR sector, and the both of us head to Chilango in Islington to meet Luis Castro, Head of Quality. We have a great relationship with Luis and the Chilango team after they took a range of Electrolux Professional products on trial and they were so impressed they kitted out the kitchens at all four branches.

They now use our combi ovens, fryers, griddles and humidity controlled hot cupboards along with dynamic prep equipment and peelers to create a range of gourmet burritos and tacos, available to eat-in or takeaway.

Since our service technicians first installed and commissioned the equipment, we have maintained that relationship to make sure Luis and his staff get the most out of their equipment.

Today, I’m here to help install a new recipe on the air-o-steam Combi Oven, which has a touch-screen panel with the capacity for up to 1,000 pre-programmed recipes. It means Chilango can ensure consistency and quality across every outlet whoever is operating the equipment.

I use the visit as an opportunity to sit down with Luis, talk him some of the latest Electrolux Professional innovations and check if there’s anything else he needs from us. I think it’s important to have a relationship with customers that goes beyond the working confinements of the kitchen and meeting likeable characters like Luis is one of the most enjoyable parts of my job.

corner to a hotel so I can log-on in time for a scheduled conference call with Electrolux Professional’s Product Development team based in Italy.

As a global leader in the manufacture of innovative kitchen solutions, Electrolux Professional has the highest R&D investment in our industry and holds more than 200 exclusive patents directly aimed at making our customers’ life easier.

Today is a chance to learn more from my Italian colleagues about a brand new hood-type dishwasher which is due to be launched in the UK early this year. We work closely with our international colleagues when we launch a major new product of this kind and it’s a fantastic product with efficiency and cost-saving benefits, which I’m sure will be popular with the UK market.

The calls lasts around one hour with plenty of questions asked by colleagues from across the world before we are left with a document to digest. It will be exciting to see the hood-type for myself when the first models arrive in the UK. 4.30pm After catching up on a few emails it’s time to head back to Northamponshire.

No two days are the same in my job but I love the variety and the opportunity to meet so many different people, from customers to equipment suppliers, food producers to chefs.

Today I’m home by 6:15pm so I can check emails one last time and check tomorrow’s schedule before I prepare dinner – using Electrolux Professional’s dynamic prep equipment of course.

2:30pm After one of Chilango’s signature veggie burritos for lunch, I head around the

64 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

Telephone: 0844 375 3444 Website: www.electroluxprofessional.co.uk

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ADVICE

Lessons from the software industry The evolution of the computer software industry offers some useful lessons for small businesses, says Graeme Simpson, managing director of Butterware UK, an online ordering software business for sandwich shops

T

he software industry is still relatively new, yet due to its fast pace, it has developed at an incredible rate.

The dotcom bubble of the earlier 2000s gave the software industry a bad name and caused many within the industry to take a hard look at how they approached their work.

Such a bad name in fact that many regular businesses thought that it would mean an end to the Internet. HMV, for example, chose to ignore online retail as they believed it didn’t have a future.

Perhaps they are now regretting that decision.

There will always be a few rotten apples but the vast majority of companies from the software industry has learned from their mistakes and taken steps to change. Not only has this helped to re-establish trust, but also give back a little self-respect. Following this learning experience, painful and otherwise, what can the software industry now teach regular small businesses?

The following are concepts that have arisen from or been adopted by the software industry but that are applicable to all business, large and small.

Agility I studied what is now considered a traditional Computer Science degree.

While it may sound silly to use the word traditional when referring to computers, you may be surprised to hear that despite the famous fastchanging world of IT, the underlying principles remain largely static. One thing that has been rudely turned on its head however is project management.

Early software project management principles were adopted from other engineering fields such as civil engineering. The same project management steps that would be taken for building a bridge were applied directly to software development.

The ‘waterfall method’ was typically used, where project management stages flowed downwards from one to the next. The assumption, just like civil engineering, was that once each stage was completed, it was difficult and unnecessary to move back again. You wouldn’t wait until the bridge was almost

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finished to change your mind and make it a little higher in the middle? While this may be sensible when bridge building - with software, it just doesn’t quite work as well.

Software projects frequently end up with significant changes once they are underway. Once the customer begins to see the product taking shape, new ideas are thrown into the mix. It’s the nature of software just as it’s often the case in real life.

Nowadays ‘Agile’ project management methods accept and plan for these changes, rather than pretend it won’t happen.

You may find your projects are the same, with things changing and evolving.

Remember, a plan is just that, an idea of how you would like things to go and doesn’t have to be rigidly adhered to. If you can accept this before you start, you’re halfway to dealing with unexpected changes when they arrive.

‘Good enough’ Computer Scientists as a group are probably overly represented by perfectionists compared to the rest of the world, despite what you might think from the amount of bugs that end up in live software. Partly this is because it’s easy to get drawn into writing the perfect code, tuned and

honed for maximum performance and flexibility.

But this can lead to missed milestones and later other sections being rushed to meet deadlines.

Programmers often have to be taught to stop when it’s ‘good enough’.

Remember, like computer code, sometimes ‘good enough’ is ok. Test what you’re doing (even if only in your head) against the requirements you have. If you’ve already done enough, then stop. If later your ‘good enough’ no longer meets the requirements, don’t worry.

If your requirements change later, then later is the time to consider them.

Work is something you do, not somewhere you go Do you ever have one of those days where you simply have to get things done? Perhaps just before you go away on holiday. If you’re lucky, suddenly the mind is focused and you manage to get everything done, without rushing and with productivity turned up to maximum. Why don’t you work that way every day?

Many software development companies have given up setting working hours. Given that

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ADVICE We save time and money overall by farming out jobs which would take too much time away from where we should be concentrating our efforts.

many employees now work remotely it’s very difficult to police anyway. By agreeing reasonable goals and focusing on targets rather than time, companies have found that productivity and employee satisfaction have both risen. While it may be difficult for you to work this way, particularly with set opening hours for your customers, you can still think about what is you’re paying your employees for.

Independent doesn’t mean being on your own While a great many of the readers of this publication probably fit into the category of independent, that doesn’t mean you have to do everything on your own. Unless you’re very talented, you’re unlikely to have the all the skills needed to run every aspect of your business. It’s important to acknowledge both your strengths and your weaknesses. If you hate numbers, why struggle trying to balance the books?

Getting someone to help with such tasks is the smart thing to do as you can concentrate on those which you’re better at. We take this approach ourselves by buying cloud services where possible to run parts of our business even though we could bring them in-house.

Do less better Rather than try to offer a wide range of products or services, just offer a few. By concentrating your efforts instead of spreading them out, you’ll be able to do a much better job and the results will be of a much higher standard. Websites have fallen foul of this many times as their creators try to be all things to all men. The most successful ones instead offer a simple premise and do it very well.

Features and complexity can always be added later.

For a food business, this can also have the advantage of cutting wastage as you won’t have to carry as much stock and worry about things going unsold.

in their field. But that doesn’t make them software designers. A good software engineer will listen and then determine the best course of action. And sometimes that means not saying ‘Yes’ to a customer’s request. Don’t just say ‘No’ of course, once you take the time to explain why, most people will be receptive and happy that you’ve thought the problem through. If you’ve got a good idea, have confidence in it and enlighten your customers.

Sell and teach Many small technology companies give away their secrets all the time. Not the great big secrets, but the little ones that help to oil the cogs. By teaching the rest of the world how they work, they earn kudos and respect that they couldn’t get in any other way. It’s how a lot of open source

software starts off too.

Some tech companies go further and expand their services to include workshops and seminars to give more hands-on instruction in the way they work.

Don’t be afraid to give away your little secrets. If you use your own magical chutney recipe then why not sell it by the jar. If you have enough good recipes, sell the recipe book! If you are lucky enough to have specially sourced ingredients, you could put them on sale too. You can be confident that you’ll still be able to make coffee with your beans better than anyone else and people will be impressed with your openness. Bookings at restaurants like Wagamama or Jamie Oliver haven’t suffered due to accompanying book sales. www.butterware.co.uk

Be your product When you’re contributing to a program with 50,000 lines of code in it, it’s easy to think that no-one will know about or notice your work. Programmers are encouraged to ‘sign’ their work by leaving details of their authorship at the top of each file. By taking ownership of the file, the programmer is taking ownership of the problems it solves and is more likely to take pride in their work.

Do you think your preparation team would pour more love into what they were doing if they wrote on each box who made each sandwich? (Take care with this though as it shouldn’t be thought of as a blame system.)

The customer isn’t always right When designing software, you listen to your customers because they’re the experts

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BSA MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE 2013 The following are elected members of the Management Committee of the British Sandwich Association:

PICTURE COURTESY OF FRIDAYS

BSA Committee

ChAIrMAN Andrew Sherick (Marks & Spencer) VICE-ChAIrMAN David Jones (SSP) ThE COMMITTEE Felicity Aylward (BP) – Ex-Chair Andy Valentine (Ginsters) – van sales Paul Morgan (Sainsbury’s) – multiple retailer Yseult Caroff-Richeux (Waitrose) – multiple retailer Ben Smeal (Food Partners) – producer Andrew Pocock (Impress Sandwiches) producer Sally Gabbitas (Tri-Star) – supplier Camilla Deane (Bel UK) – supplier

Upholding quality standards in sandwich making and retailing Our aims As the voice of the British Sandwich industry,

Georg Buhrkohl (Subway) – sandwich bar chain

the primary aims of the British Sandwich

Anita Kinsey (Pret a Manger) – sandwich bar chain

Association are:

Graeme Matthews (Rachel’s of Windsor) – independent sandwich bar Kevin Mayes (The Real Sandwich Company) – independent sandwich bar Andrew Hesketh (Greggs) – retail baker Joe Street (Fine Lady) – baker SECrETArIAT JIM WInSHIP - Director

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▲ To safeguard the integrity of the sandwich industry by setting minimum standards for sandwich making. ▲ To encourage excellence and innovation in sandwich making. ▲ To provide a source of information for the industry. ▲ To promote the consumption of sandwiches. ▲ To provide a collective voice for all those involved in the making, distribution and retailing of sandwiches and to represent the views of the industry.

www.sandwich.org.uk

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BSA Manufacturers & Distributors ANChOr CATErING LIMITEd Kent Office: Unit 2, Wotton Trading Estate, Wotton Road Ashford, TN23 6LL London Office: Global House, 21 Lombard Road SW19 3TZ Contact: Mark Leigh Tel: 01233 665533 Fax: 01233 665588 Mobile: 07966 664 408 mail@anchorcatering.co.uk www.anchorcatering.co.uk

FOOd PArTNErS FrEShwAy ChILLEd hEAThrOw LTd FOOdS Galleymead Road, Stafford Court, Stafford Colnbrook, Road, Wolverhampton Slough SL3 0EN WV10 7EL Contact: Elie Haddad Contact: Mr Alan Wright Tel: 08450 549948 Tel: 01902 783666 sales@foodpartners.co.uk Fax: 01902 781141 www.foodpartnersgroup.co.uk info@freshwayfoods.co.uk FOOd PArTNErS

IMPrESS SANdwIChES (The Good Food Company) Units 4-5a, Horton Road Industrial Estate, Horton Road, West Drayton Middlesex, UB7 8JL Contact: Andrew Pocock Tel: 01895 440123 Fax: 01895 441123 andrew@impress-sandwiches.com www.impress-sandwiches.com

SOLwAy FOOdS LTd 3 Godwin Road, Earlstrees Ind. Estate, Corby, Northants NN17 4DS Contact: Richard Simpson Tel: 01536 464 400

Fax: 01536 409 050 kILMArNOCk LTd GINSTErS LTd richard.simpson@northernfoods.com Rowallan Business Park, 83 Tavistock Rd, www.solway.com MELTON FOOdS Southcraig Avenue, Callington Cornwall 3 Samworth Way, Kilmarnock, PL17 7XG TASTIES OF Leicester Road, Melton KA3 6BQ Contact: Danielle Coleman ChESTEr LTd Mowbray, Contact: Sheila Young Tel: 01579 386 200 Prince William Avenue, BrAdGATE BAkEry Tel: 08450 549948 Leicestershire LE13 1GA Fax: 01579 386 240 Beaumont Leys, Sandycroft, sales@foodpartners.co.uk danielle.colman@ginsters.co.uk Contact: Clare Rowlands Leicester, LE4 1WX www.foodpartnersgroup.co.uk Flintshire, Tel: 01664 484400 GrEENCOrE Contact: Clare Keers Fax: 01664 484401 CH5 2QZ FOOd PArTNErS LTd SANdwIChES Tel: 0116 2361100 clare.rowlands@meltonfoods.co.uk Contact: Richard Brown (LONdON) PArk rOyAL Fax: 0116 2361101 Lords House, Willen Field Rd, Tel: 01244 533 888 ON A rOLL clare.keers@bradgate-bakery.co.uk 665 North Circular Rd, Park Royal, SANdwICh COMPANy Fax: 01244 533 404 London BuCkINGhAM London NW10 7AQ Unit 2 Easter Park, Barton enquiries@tasties.co.uk NW2 7AX FOOdS LTd Contact: Clare Rees Road, www.tasties.co.uk Contact: Olatunde Wimblington Drive, Tel: 0208 956 6000 Riverside Park Industrial Ray-Odekeye Redmoor, Fax: 0208 956 6060 ThE SANdwICh Estate, Tel: 0208 208 6120 clare.rees@greencore.com Milton Keynes MK6 4AH FACTOry Middlesbrough TS2 1RY Fax: 0208 830 7137 www.greencore.com Contact: Mark Keating Contact: James Stoddart Carlyon Rd Ind. Est, olatunde.ray-odekeye@foodpartners.co.uk Tel: 01908 838900 GrEENCOrE Tel: 01642 707090 www.foodpartnersgroup.co.u Atherstone, Fax: 01908 838920 SANdwIChES – sourcedm.com Fax: 01642 243858 Warwickshire mark_keating@buckfoods.co.uk MANTON wOOd jstoddart@onarollsandwich.co.uk www.buckinghamfoods.co.uk CV9 1LQ Manton Wood www.onarollsandwich.co.uk Enterprise Zone, Contact: Gill Pendergrast BuCkINGhAM rAyNOr FOOdS Retford Road, FOOd PArTNErS LTd Tel: 01827 719 100 FOOdS LTd Farrow Road, Widford Manton, (MIddLESBrOuGh) Magnus, Ninian Way, Fax: 01827 719 101 Worksop, Notts, Industrial Estate, Chelmsford, 13-15 Drake Court, Tame Valley Industrial gill.pendergrast@tsfl.co.uk S80 2RS Essex CM1 3TH Riverside Business Park, Estate, www.thesandwichfactory.ltd.uk Contact: Middlesbrough Contact: Heather Raynor Tamworth, Staffordshire Andrew Wilcox-Jones TS2 1RS Tel: 01245 353249 B77 5BY Tel: 01909 512600 Contact: Sarah Winter Fax: 01245 347889 Contact: Sue Facer Fax: 01909 512708 Tel: 01642 230316 sales@sandwiches.uk.net Tel: 01827 252629 www.greencore.com Fax: 01642 230093 www.sandwiches.uk.net www.buckinghamfoods.co.uk ThE SOhO freddie.spence@foodpartners.co.uk GrEENCOrE SANdwICh COMPANy S&L CATErING dAILy BrEAd www.foodpartnersgroup.co.uk SANdwIChES – Units N and P, Shaw Unit 414b Union Walk, Unit 23 Britannia Estate, BrOMLEy By BOw FrEShwAyS (kErry Business Park, Silver Leagrave Road, Luton Hackney, Prologis Park, FOOdS) Street, Huddersfield, LU3 1RJ Twelvetrees Crescent, London E2 8HP IDA Industrial Park, HD5 9AE Contact: Sales London E3 3JG Poppintree, Finglas, Contact: Daniel Silverston Contact: Simon Shaw (020 7498 0494) Tel: 0207 536 8000 Dublin, Ireland Tel: 0203 058 1245 Tel: 01484 304 401 Tel: 01582 401177 Fax: 0207 536 0790 Contact: Thomas Kiely Fax: 0207 789 1166 Fax: 01484 304 402 Fax: 01582 453557 Contact: Richard Esau Tel: 00353 18648000 simon.shaw@slcatering.co.uk dan@sohosandwich.co.uk munch@dailybread.ltd.uk richard.esau@greencore.com Fax: 00353 18644033 www.slcatering.com www.greencore.com www.sohosandwich.co.uk www.freshways.ie www.dailybread.ltd.uk

The British Sandwich Quality Promise The sandwich manufacturers and distributors listed below support The British Sandwich Association Code of Practice as The Minimum Standard for Sandwich Making and are subject to regular independent audits. Copies of BSA Audits are available, on request, to buyers (subject to agreement of manufacturers) by calling us on 01291 636338

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BSA Suppliers Index 2 SISTErS FOOd GrOuP dAILy BrEAd FrETwELL dOwNING GrOTE COMPANy hOSPITALITy Leechmere Industrial Estate, Wrexham Technology Park, Unit 23, Britannia Estate, Toll Bar Road, Sunderland, Wrexham LL13 7YP Leagrave Road, Luton LU3 1RJ 1st Floor, Unit 1 Hawke Street Business Park, Hawke Street, Tyne & Wear SR2 9TE Contact: Paul Jones Contact: Sales Sheffield S9 2SU CATErErS ChOICE LTd Contact: Bill Anderson Tel: 01978 362243 (0207 498 0494) Contact: Andrew Pond Parkdale House, 1 Longbow Tel: 0191 521 3323 Fax: 01978 362255 Tel: 01582 401177 Tel: 01142 816060 Close, Pennine Business Park Fax: 0191 521 0652 sales@intl.grotecompany.com Fax: 01582 453557 Fax: 07802 465976 Bradley, Huddersfield HD2 1GQ bill.anderson@2sfg.com www.grotecompany.com munch@dailybread.ltd.uk andrew.pond@fdhospitality.com Contact: Sarah Booth www.2sistersfoodgroup.com hAzELdENE FOOdS LTd www.fdhospitality.com Tel 01484 532666 www.dailybread.ltd.uk ALS FOOd & Fax 01484 532700 Walthew House Lane dEIGhTON PhArMACEuTICAL sarah@catererschoice.co.uk Martland Park, MANuFACTurING (uk) Tappers Building www.catererschoice.co.uk Wigan WN5 0LB LTd Sands Mill, Huddersfield Road Contact: Claire Gregory Gibson Street, Leeds Road, Mirfield, West Yorkshire FOOd NETwOrk LTd Tel: 01942 219910 WF14 9DQ Bradford, West Yorkshire Keepers Cottage, Fax: 01942 219940 Contact: Nigel Richards Chrishall Grange, BD3 9TR www.hazeldene.co.uk Tel: 01924 499776 Heydon, Royston, Contact: Andy Hamilton claire.gregory@hazeldene.co.uk ChEESE CELLAr SG8 7NT Fax: 01924 499731 Tel: 01274 668771 44-54 Stewarts Road JIFFy TruCkS LTd Contact: Peter McDermott nigel.richards@alsglobal.com Fax: 01274 665214 London SW8 4DF Tel: 01763 837 000 26 Jubilee Way, Shipley sales@deightonmanufacturing.co.uk Contact: Tina Alemao Fax: 01763 838 280 West Yorkshire BD18 1QG www.deightonmanufacturing.co.uk Tel: 0207 8196045 peter@food-network.com Tel: 01274 596000 Fax: 0207 8196027 www.food-network.com dISCOVEry FOOdS LTd. Contact: John Kennerly Tina.alemao@cheesecellar.co.u FOOdSErVICE CENTrE Nimbus House, john@jiffytrucks.co.uk k Cheddar Business Park, Maidstone Road, Milton www.jiffytrucks.co.uk BEACON FOOdS www.cheesecellar.co.uk Wedmore Road, Keynes, Buckinghamshire Accreditation body: BSA Unit 3-4, JOhN wEST FOOdS LTd Cheddar, Somerset MK10 0BD Beacon Enterprise Park, Lancaster House, Tithe Barn ChILTErN BAkErIES LTd BS27 3EB Warren Road, Brecon Contact: Rob Barzda Southam Road, Banbury, Street, Liverpool, L2 2GA Contact: James Simpson LD3 8BT Oxfordshire OX16 2RE Tel: 01908 933000 Contact: Paul Kent Tel: 01934 745600 Contact: Lynne Skyrme Contact: Claire Marshall Fax: 01908 933074 Tel: 0151 243 6200 Fax: 01934 745631 Tel: 01295 227600 Tel: 01874 622577 Fax: 0151 236 5465 rbarzda@discoveryfoods.co.uk james@thefscgroup.com Fax: 01295 271430 Fax: 01874 622123 www.foodservicecentre.co.uk paul.kent@mwbrands.com www.discoveryfoods.co.uk lynne@beaconfoods.co.uk claire.marshall@flbltd.co.uk FrEShCuT FOOdS LTd JOSEPh hELEr LTd Accreditation body: BSA www.beaconfoods.co.uk 14-16 Lilac Grove, Laurels Farm, Hatherton, CJ’S SPECIALIST BEL uk LTd Beeston, Nottingham Nantwich, Cheshire CW5 7PE VEhICLES LTd Suite 1, 2nd Floor NG9 1PA Contact: John Chattel Moat Farm, Chelmsford 160 London Road, Contact: Sales Road, Old Rawreth, Essex Tel: 01270 841500 Tel: 01159 227 222 Sevenoaks, Kent SS11 8SJ Fax: 01270 841381 ENGLISh PrOVENdEr Fax: 01159 227 255 TN13 1BT Contact: Chris Lynch johnc@joseph-heler.co.uk CO. LTd sales@freshcut.biz Contact: Camilla Deane Tel: 01268 733422 www.joseph-heler.co.uk Buckner Croke Way, www.freshcutfoods.co.uk Tel: 0333 900 2020 chris.cjs@live.co.uk New Greenham Park, kOOkABurrA Fax: 01732 467596 FrIdAyS www.sandwich-van.co.uk Thatcham, Berks, RG19 6HA, 3 Armstrong Road, N.E.Ind.Est, Chequer Tree Farm, cdeane@groupe-bel.com Benenden Rd, Cranbrook, Peterlee, Co. Durham SR8 5AE Contact: David Barker www.bel-foodservice.co.uk Kent TN17 3PN Contact: Samantha Henderson Accreditation body: ISO Tel: 01635 528800 Contact: Pat Dunne Tel: 0191 518 4000 Fax: 01635 528855 BuNzL CATErING Tel: 01580 710200 Fax: 0191 518 4226 david.barker@englishprovender.com COLPAC LTd SuPPLIES Fax: 01580 713512 shenderson@kookaburra-uk.com Enterprise Way, Maulden Road, Epsom Chase, 1 Hook Road, www.englishprovender.com pd@fridays.co.uk Flitwick, Bedfordshire MK45 5BW BRC Grade A www.kookaburra-uk.com Epsom, Surrey KT19 8TY www.fridays.co.uk Contact: Rebecca Beattie Contact: Steve Dring Accreditation body: BSA FrESh-PAk ChILLEd Tel: 01525 712261 Tel: 01372 734293 FOOdS Fax: 01525 718205 steve.dring@bunzl.co.uk rebecca.beattie@colpac.co.uk 21/22 Kernan Drive, ByOTrOL TEChNOLOGy LTd. www.colpac.co.uk Loughborough, LEAThAMS LTd Vanguard House CP FOOdS Leicestershire 227-255 Ilderton Road, Keckwick Lane, GIErLINGEr hOLdING Avon House, Hartlebury Trading LE11 5JT London, SE15 1NS Daresbury WA4 4AB GBMh Estate, Hartlebury, Worcestershire Contact: Matthew Clarke Contact: Des Hillier Ciontact: Gary Hilton Dosza Gyorg, UT123, Tamasi DY10 4JB Tel: 01509 233327 Tel: 0207 635 4000 Tel: 01925 742000 7090, Hungary Contact: Fernando Torronteguy Fax: 01509 224568 Fax: 0207 635 4017 Fax: 01925 742029 Tel: 01386 421708/07515 422454 Tel: 01299 253131 matthew.clarke@fresh-pak.co.uk ns@gierlinger-holding.com des.hillier@leathams.co.uk ghilton@byotrol.com Fax: 07834 529473 fernandot@cpfoods.co.uk Contact: Nigel Spragg www.leathams.co.uk www.fresh-pak.co.uk www.byotrol.com

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BSA Suppliers Index PIquANT LTd Willenhall Lane, Bloxwich, Walsall, W.Midlands WS3 2XN Contact: Julie Smith Tel: 01922 711116 Fax: 01922 473240 salesinfo@piquant.co.uk www.piquant.co.uk Accreditation body: BSA

TMI FOOdS Lodge Way, Lodge Farm Ind. Est, Northampton NN5 7US MArTIN MAThEw & CO. LTd wESTBrIdGE FOOdS Contact: Ian Ritchie 50A St Andrews Street, Polonia House, Enigma Tel: 01604 583421 Hertford SG14 1JA Commercial Centre, Fax: 01604 587392 Contact : Malcolm Smith Sandy’s Road, Malvern, info@tmifoods.co.uk Tel: 01992 641641 Worcestershire WR14 1JJ www.tmifoods.co.uk Fax: 01992 210177/210178 Accreditation body: BSA Contact: Graham Kingston malcolmsmith@martinmathew.co.uk TOTAL FOOdSErVICE Tel: 01684 581800 www.martinmathew.co.uk SOLuTIONS LTd. Fax: 01684 893917 PIrOTO LABELLING LTd. SOuThOVEr FOOd Ribble Valley Enterprise Park, enquiries@westbridge-foods.co.uk 9 Pondwood Close, Moulton COMPANy LIMITEd North Road, www.westbridge-foods.co.uk Park Industrial Estate, Unit 4, Grange Industrial Barrow, Clitheroe Northampton NN3 6RT Estate, BB7 9QZ Contact: Lisa Hyland Albion Street, Tel: 01254 828 330 Tel: 01604 646600 Southwick,Brighton Fax: 01254 823996 zwANENBErG FOOd MILk LINk LIMITEd Fax: 01604 492 090 BN42 4EN sales@totalfoodservice.co.uk uk LTd 3120 Great Western Court Contact: Niall Singers www.totalfoodservice.co.uk l.hyland@piroto-labelling.com (Puredrive Fine Foods/ Hunts Ground Road, Tel: 01273 596830 www.piroto-labelling.com Taste Original) TrI-STAr PACkAGING Stoke, Gifford, Fax: 01273 596 839 SuPPLIES LTd 36ACauseway Road, Bristol BS34 8HP niall@southoverfoods.com PLANETE PAIN Tri-Star House, Unit 4, The Earlstrees Industrial Estate, www.southoverfoods.com Contact: Sandie Belton 2A des Belles Ouvrieres, Arena,, Mollison Avenue, Corby, Northamptonshire, Tel: 0870 2408341 ST NEOTS PACkAGING LTd. 25410, Saint Vit, France Enfield, Middlesex EN3 7NL NN17 4DU Fax: 01454 252300 7 Howard Road, St Neots, Contact: Sharon Jones Contact: Kevin Curran Contact: Martin Burdekin Cambridgeshire PE19 8ET Sandie.belton@cheese.co.uk Tel: 07528 844633 Tel: 0208 4439100 Contact: Rikki Collis Tel: 01536 463000 www.milklink.com sharonjones@planetepain.com Fax: 0208 4439101 Tel: 01480 476161 Fax: 01536 463085 www.planetepain.com info@tri-star.co.uk Fax: 01480 471989 martinb@puredrive.co.uk PLANGLOw LTd rikki@stneotspack.co.uk www.tri-star.co.uk King’s House, www.fastfoodpackaging.com LINkEd Bond Street, ASSOCIATION TEChNOMIC INC. Bristol BS1 3AE Knowledge Center LOCAL AuThOrITy MISSION FOOdS EurOPE LTd Contact: Rachael Sawtell 300 S Riverside Plaza, Suite CATErING ASSOCIATIONS 5th Floor West, The Mille, Tel: 0117 317 8600 1200, Chicago, Illinois LACA Administration 1000 Great West Road, Fax: 0117 317 8639 IL 60606 Bourne House, Brentford, Middlesex info@planglow.com Contact: Patrick Noone uNIVErSAL MEATS (uk) LTd Horsell Park,Woking, TW8 9HH Tel: +01 205 991 1234 www.planglow.com Hall Place, Sevenoaks, Surrey GU21 4LY Contact: Sarah Murphy rANk hOVIS Fax: +01 205 980 3770 Kent TN15 OLG pnoone@technomic.com Tel: 01483766777 Tel: 0208 380 1100 Contact: Alan Burke The Lord Rank Centre, Web: www.technomic.com Fax: 01483751991 Fax: 02476 676560 Tel: 01732 760760 Lincoln Road, admin@laca.co.uk team@missionfoodservice.co.uk High Wycombe ThE CONTACT GrILL Fax: 01732 760780 COMPANy info@universalmeats.com www.missionfoodservice.co.uk HP12 3QS CONSuLTANT Regus House, 400 Thames www.universalmeats.com Contact: Sara Reid PArrIPAk FOOd LTd. Valley Park Drive, INTErNATIONAL MASTEr Tel: 0870 728 1111 VANESSA hOSPITALITy Empire Way, Gretna, Reading, Berkshire sara.reid@premierfoods.co.uk ChEF & AuThOr SErVICES LTd. DG16 5BN RG6 1PT www.rankhovis.com Vanessa Hospitality Services Tom Bridge Contact: Liam Byrne Contact: Clive England Ltd. Unit 14C Juno Enterprise, 21 Blackhorse Avenue, Tel: 01461 337 239 Tel: 01189 653535 Juno Way, South Bermondsey, Blackrod Village, Bolton Fax: 01461 338436 Fax: 01189 694366 London SE14 5RW BL6 5HE c.england@contactgrillcompany.co.uk liam.byrne@parripak.co.uk Contact: Adeleke Adedoja Tel: 07889111256 www.ancient-recipes.co.uk ThE INGrEdIENTS Tel: 07939 966419 SAM BrOwNE FOOdS tom.bridge@cookerydetective.com FACTOry PETTIGrEwS adeleke@alaleke.com Kelleythorpe, Ind.Estate, www.btinternet.com/~tom.bridge/ Unit 2-3 Hamilton Road Pinnaclehill, Kelso, Driffield, East VION SNOwBIrd FOOdS LTd Ind Estate, Roxboroughshire Yorkshire, Wharf Road, Ponders End, 160 Hamilton Road, Scotland TD5 8DW YO25 9DJ. Enfield, Middlesex EN3 4TD London SE27 9SF Contact: Peter Brookes Contact: Phillipa Kendrick Contact: Roy Anderson Tel: 0208 670 6701 Tel: 01573 224 234 Tel: 01377 241238 Tel: 0208 805 9222 Fax: 0208 670 9676 Fax: 01573 223 717 Fax: 01377 241271 Fax: 0208 804 9303 Contact: Tim Marcuson sales@pettigrews.com pkendrick@sambrownefoods.co.uk roy.anderson@vionfood.com tim@theingredientsfactory.com www.pettigrews.com www.theingredientsfactory.com www.snowbirdfoods.co.uk www.sambrownefoods.co.uk

SUPPLIERS

SOuThErN SALAdS LIMITEd Units 1 & 2 Cannon Bridge Cannon Lane, Tonbridge, Kent TN1 9RP Contact: Mr Ray Boakes Tel: 01732 362444 Fax: 01732 361919 ray@southernsalads.co.uk www.southernsalads.com

These suppliers are members of The British Sandwich Association and subject to its rules, codes of conduct and accreditation. While the Association cannot guarantee the products supplied by those listed, it does make every effort to ensure that the companies are reputable and offer quality products and services.

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BSA Product Index The Contact Grill Company CP Foods Ltd. The English Provender Co AdVISOry & Kookaburra CONSuLTANCy SErVICES The Ingredients Factory Conveyors Plastic Leathams Total Foodservice Ltd. Factory Deighton Manufacturing Tri-Star Packaging Supplies Sam Browne Foods Grote Company Grote Company Ltd. Relishes Southover Food Company Ltd. Planete Pain Beacon Foods Cutting Equipment Sandwich Packs TMI Foods The Foodservice Centre Leathams Grote Company Colpac Ltd. Universal Meats Parripak Foods Food Safety St Neots Packaging Ltd. Westbridge Foods Ltd. Mobile Catering Vehicles Pettigrews ALS Food & Pharmaceutical Tri-Star Packaging Supplies Zwanenberg Food UK Ltd CJ’s Specialist Vehicles Ltd. Southover Food Company Ltd Intertek Stoke Ltd. Jiffy Trucks Ltd. Continental The Cheese Cellar Food Industry PASTA Leathams Labelling Systems & Barcoding The English Provender Co Technomic Inc. Caterers Choice Southover Food Company Ltd. Planglow Ltd. The Ingredients Factory Food Network Market Research Duck Total Foodservice Ltd. Sandwich Making Machinery Freshcut Foods Ltd Technomic Inc. 2 Sisters Food Group Deighton Manufacturing Pickles Leathams CP Foods Retail Grote Company Food Network Martin Mathew & Co Ltd. Food Network Fretwell Downing Hospitality Leathams FISh PrOduCTS Southover Food Company Ltd Sam Browne Foods The Foodservice Centre Parripak Foods Anchovies Universal Meats Pettigrews BAkEry PrOduCTS Martin Mathew & Co Ltd. Westbridge Foods Ltd. SANdwICh FILLINGS Southover Food Company Ltd Morning Goods (rEAdy PrEPArEd) Ham Prawns The English Provender Co Chiltern Bakeries Food Network CP Foods Fresh Fillings The Ingredients Factory Patisserie Leathams Southover Food Company Ltd. 2 Sisters Food Group Total Foodservice Ltd. Chiltern Bakeries Martin Mathew & Co Ltd. Beacon Foods Salmon Salsa Total Foodservice Ltd Southover Food Company Ltd. Daily Bread Caterers Choice Beacon Foods Freshcut Foods Ltd Viennoiserie Lamb Food Network Discovery Foods Planete Pain Fresh-Pak Chilled Foods Sam Browne Foods John West Foods Ltd drESSINGS, SAuCES ANd Fridays Leathams Tortilla & Wraps Marinated Meats MAyONNAISE Southover Food Company Ltd. Martin Matthew & Co Ltd. Discovery Foods Food Network The Cheese Cellar Southover Food Company Ltd. Mission Foods Dips Kookaburra Beacon Foods Frozen Fillings Sardines Meatballs BrEAd & rOLLS 2 Sisters Food Group Discovery Foods Martin Matthew & Co Ltd. Food Network Fresh Beacon Foods Fresh-Pak Chilled Foods Zwanenberg Food UK Ltd. Tuna Chiltern Bakeries The English Provender Co Caterers Choice SOuPS Pork Total Foodservice Ltd. The Ingredients Factory Food Network Leathams Food Network Speciality Mayonnaise John West Foods Ltd. Southover Food Company Ltd Leathams Discovery Foods Martin Matthew & Co Ltd. Caterers Choice Sam Browne Foods VEGETABLES & hErBS Mission Foods Southover Food Company Ltd. Fresh-Pak Chilled Foods Southover Food Company Planete Pain Canned Vegetables Universal Meats Fridays TMI Foods Total Foodservice Ltd. Food Network Piquant Zwanenberg Food UK Ltd FruIT Total Foodservice Ltd. Bread Making Ingredients The Cheese Cellar Sausages Canned Fruit Beacon Foods The English Provender Co Chargrilled Vegetables Food Network Total Foodservice Ltd. Rank Hovis Total Foodservice Ltd. Beacon Foods Fridays The Cheese Cellar General Food Network Leathams Mustards Total Foodservice Ltd. Beacon Foods Freshcut Foods Ltd. Southover Food Company Southover Food Company Ltd. Food Network Leathams Vion Snowbird Foods BuTTEr & SPrEAdS Total Foodservice Ltd. Southern Salads Zwanenberg Food UK Ltd Herbs & Spices Butter Sauces & Ketchups The Ingredients Factory Beacon Foods Turkey Southover Food Company Ltd. Beacon Foods Guacamole Discovery Foods 2 Sisters Food Group Caterers Choice Spreads Discovery Foods Total Foodservice Ltd. Kookaburra Discovery Foods Milk Link Leathams Leathams Jalapenos Piquant The Cheese Cellar Sam Browne Foods Pineapple Beacon Foods Southover Food Company Ltd. Spreads (olive) Southover Food Company Beacon Foods Discovery Foods The English Provender Co Leathams Westbridge Foods Ltd. Food Network Food Network The Ingredients Factory Caterers Choice ChEESE & dAIry Total Foodservice Ltd. LABELS SALAd Freshcut Foods Ltd PrOduCTS Bunzl Catering Supplies Freshcut Foods Ltd. drINkS Martin Mathew & Co Bel UK Ltd. Piroto Labelling Ltd. Hazeldene Foods Caterers Choice Ltd. Juices Planglow Ltd. MEALS Southern Salads Ltd. Joseph Heler Ltd. Caterers Choice Salad (prepared) OILS Ready Prepared Leathams Leathams Freshcut Foods Ltd Vanessa Hospitality Services Ltd. Martin Mathew & Co Ltd. Milk Link Ltd. Southover Food Company Ltd. Southover Food Company Ltd Total Foodservice Ltd. Southover Food Company Ltd. Total Foodservice Ltd. MEAT PrOduCTS Southern Salads Ltd. The Cheese Cellar OrGANIC PrOduCTS Bacon EGGS & EGG PrOduCTS Sundried Tomatoes Total Foodservice Ltd. Beacon Foods Food Network Beacon Foods Eggs (hard boiled) Fridays Sour Cream Gierlinger GbmH Leathams Plc Fresh-Pak Chilled Foods Leathams Discovery Food Leathams Martin Matthew & Co Ltd. Fridays Southover Food Company Ltd. TMI Foods CLEANING MATErIALS Southover Food Company Ltd. The English Provender Co Ltd. Sweetcorn Bunzl Catering Supplies Beef Beacon Foods Egg Products PACkAGING Byotrol Food Network Caterers Choice Fresh-Pak Chilled Foods Total Foodservice Ltd. Leathams Cardboard Food Network Fridays Sam Browne Foods Colpac Ltd. Martin Mathew & Co Ltd. ChuTNEyS & rELIShES Leathams Southover Food Company Ltd. St Neots Packaging Ltd. Universal Meats Southover Food Company Ltd. Chutneys Universal Meats Disposable Beacon Foods Tomatoes Zwanenberg Food UK Ltd EquIPMENT & VEhICLES Bunzl Catering Supplies Beacon Foods Food Network Canned Meat Buttering Machinery Colpac Ltd. Leathams Caterers Choice Total Foodservice Ltd. Deighton Manufacturing St Neots Packaging Ltd. Parripak Foods Food Network Grote Company Pettigrews Martin Mathew & Co Ltd. Chicken Food wraps Contact Grills Tri-Star Packaging Supplies 2 Sisters Food Group Southern Salads Ltd. Southover Food Company Ltd.

72 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

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International Sandwich Manufacturers

NOrdIC LuNCh AB Box 5924 Majorstua 0308 Oslo, Norway Tel: 0047 23 33 44 34 Fax: 0047 23 33 44 34 k.brandmo@nordiclunch.com Contact: Kjetil Brand

ALIMENTOS dAILy FrESh S.A. Avendia El Parque 423 El Quillay 573 Pasque Industrial Valle Grande, Lampa, Santiago, Chile Tel: 56-2-4119100 Fax: 56-2-4119101 Contact: Javier Urruticoechea Email: jurruticoechea@dailyfresh.cl BELL AG SIGMA BAkErIES Rupperswilerstrasse 5 PO Box 56567 5503 Schafisheim 3308 Limassol, Cyprus Switzerland Contact: Georgios Georgiou Tel: 0041 62 885 95 55 Tel: +357 25 878678 Tel: 0041 62 885 95 66 Fax: +357 25 346131 baenzigerm@bell.ch info@sigmabakeries.com www.bell.ch www.sigmabakeries.com Contact: Markus Banziger SNACk SuPPOrT FrES CO SrLA Am Schwimmbad 5, SOCIO uNICO Via Don Bosco N.2 67722 Winnweiler, Germany 43029 Traversetolo, Contact: Karin Halm Parma, Italy Tel: 0049 6302 9819780 Tel: 0039 0521 842 611 Fax: 0049 6302 98197822 Fax: 0039 0521 844 141 info@superweck.de Contact: Alessandro Bettini Accreditation body: BSA, IFS

SuBwAy Chaston House, Mill Court, Hinton Way, Great Shelford, Cambridgeshire CB22 5LD Contact: Frederick De Luca Tel: 01223 550820 www.subway.co.uk

Product Listing BAkEry INSErTS Sigma Bakeries Ltd BrEAd Sigma Bakeries Ltd FACTOry dESIGN Alimentos Daily Fresh OrGANIC PrOduCTS Sigma Bakeries Ltd SANdwIChES Fres Co Nordic Lunch AB Subway Snack Support SANdwICh FILLINGS (prepared) Sigma Bakeries Ltd SPECIALITy BrEAdS Sigma Bakeries Ltd

New Members

PLANETE PAIN Some years ago Planete Pain evolved from a traditional local bakery near the city of Besancon in Eastern France to a modern company dealing on a global basis. The old bakery supplied 10 of their own shops and made deliveries to the local restaurants and institutional outlets within the immediate area.

In the 1990’s the business moved into new, purpose-built premises and was able to expand the business into new markets in the frozen food market. One of the nearest large potential markets was Germany. Another factory was acquired in the town of Audincourt near to the German border to supply the buoyant new market.

Today Planete Pain operates from two factories, both of which are fully BRC and IFS Level 6 approved and work to full HACCP standard. The company supplies 24 countries throughout Europe and the rest of the world.

The success of the company has been based on offering quality and consistency of products, which the Foodservice and Retail Market demand, together with a service second to none.

Planete Pain is innovative with new and existing products and works closely with its customers to produce bespoke products aimed at specific sectors of market.

Apart from producing a full range of part-baked baguettes and

Panini, the company has developed its own Super Sandwich Range with 9 different varieties to meet the requirement of the market and suit the different tastes of the consumer.

The company has been involved in the UK Market for 15 years and has a very substantial business base, where its name is recognised and is synonymous with the quality associated with French bread.

Planete Pain is keen to develop working relationships with UK sandwich producers where we can offer a full range of frozen part-baked sandwich products, in addition to selected frozen fullybaked ranges.

S&SN_144_March13_p68-76_Layout 1 05/03/2013 13:02 Page 74

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Tel: 01603 721804 and www.fda-packaging.com 74 March 2013 SANDWICH & SNACK NEWS

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