FFD September 2014

LET’S STICK TOGETHER 12

DELI OF THE MONTH 88

SARAH PETTEGREE 16

James Lowman on the common ground occupied by c-stores and delis

Veteran Chiswick deli owner Dan Mortimer on 25 years in the business

‘I don't like pseudo independent brands in delis. Consumers hate being duped.’

September 2014 · Vol 15 Issue 8

KEEPING ‘SPECIALITY’ SPECIAL IS THE FINE FOOD SECTOR SELLING ITS SOUL?

We ask Guy Tullberg, Paul Hargreaves, Claire Martinsen, Sarah Pettegree, David Greenman and more – pages 16-18

T ES G G BI SUE !

R UR IS VE O E CHEF’S SELECTION 85 Japanese-influenced MasterChef finalist Andrew Kojima on brown rice crackers, rice mirin and Rannoch Smokery’s smoked duck breast

YOUR 32-PAGE OLYMPIA GUIDE STARTS ON PAGE 41

7–9 September

TOP 50 FOODS 21 Discover the 50 top-scoring food & drink products among the 10,000 entries judged in Great Taste 2014

NEWS CHEESEWIRE CHARCUTERIE CONFECTIONERY LUNCH! PREVIEW SHELF TALK DELI OF THE MONTH

4 33 39 75 81 83 88

New crispbread varieties from Peter’s Yard

The bakery team at Peter’s Yard has created two delicious new sourdough recipes to add to their existing range of awardwinning crispbread.

The Spelt and Fig crispbread is the perfect partner for blue cheese and Seeded Wholegrain complements a hard cheese such as a mature Cheddar.

Together with the Original recipe, this range is simply the perfect host for cheese.

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www.petersyard.com September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

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What’s new this month: Crisps. Apart from Anglesey Sea Salt, not one is named on pack or on their website.

Smoke and mirrors? Perhaps all you need these days is to film BOB FARRAND famous foodies chatting to artisan producers of cheddar or sun-dried tomatoes or Balsamic vinegar and we’re convinced we’re eating While sharing a cheese board authentic, artisan food. with Blur bassist and cheese At least it’s British. Walkers aficionado Alex James a year or so is part of PepsiCo, a giant US back, he described a competent multinational corporation massbut uninspiring cheese as ‘a bit producing many of the world’s Coldplay.’ Devoted Coldplay fans largest food and drink brands, but its apart, we all understand his line of crisps are made in British factories. thinking – little to dislike but nothing But claiming it uses Wiltshire to quicken the pulse. cured ham doesn’t guarantee Last month I was mainly eating authenticity, as these days most crisps. Not any old crisps, but Wiltshire ham is fast-cured pork Walkers Market Deli Chips and from animals fed high-protein diets frankly, they’re ‘a bit Coldplay’ too. and fit for slaughter in four months.

On second thoughts, maybe they’re The Cornish not. Coldplay make mature cheddar little pretense of The Cornish mature seasoning used their music being cheddar seasoning might have anything other might have started life started life in a than what it is, in a tiny artisan dairy, tiny artisan dairy whereas Market Deli Chips from or maybe it’s a product or maybe it’s the product of Dairy Walkers aspire of Dairy Crest’s giant Crest’s giant to be something Davidstow factory cheese factory at they’re not.

Davidstow. Either TV commercials way they’re not telling, so the story and on-pack tasting notes urge us lacks credibility. to ‘discover the authentic flavours Proof as ever is in the eating, of Europe’s finest markets and delis’, so Mrs F bought six bags of Market with ingredients like Aceto Balsamico Deli Chips for £12.00 from Waitrose. di Modena PGI, Wiltshire cured ham, Neither of us got Wiltshire ham or Cornish mature cheddar and grilled farmhouse chutney but we both Spanish Chorizo. detected dry, stale notes suggesting There’s even a series of short rind from cheese stored in a fridge films sponsored by Walkers on for a fortnight too long.

YouTube featuring chef Tom Aikens Not sure how proud that makes and food writer Xanthe Clay Cornwall feel. I’m listening to interviewing artisan producers about Coldplay. the provenance of their foods.

My problem is, neither the videos nor the packaging reveal if Bob Farrand is publisher of the producers interviewed actually Fine Food Digest and chairman make the ingredients in Market Deli of the Guild of Fine Food

Opinion

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EDITORIAL

GENERAL ENQUIRIES

editorial@finefoodworld.co.uk

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

Editor: Mick Whitworth Assistant editor: Michael Lane Art director: Mark Windsor Editorial production: Richard Charnley Contributors: Nick Baines, Anne Bruce, Clare Hargreaves, Patrick McGuigan, Isabelle Plasschaert, Lynda Searby

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

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

Printed by: Blackmore, Dorset, UK © Great Taste Publications Ltd and The Guild of Fine Food Ltd 2014. Reproduction of whole or part of this magazine without the publisher’s prior permission is prohibited. The opinions expressed in articles and advertisements are not necessarily those of the editor or publisher. The publisher cannot accept responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts, photographs or illustrations.

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

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Editor’s choice

Selected by Mick Whitworth

Matcha Super Power green tea drink Teapigs www.teapigs.co.ukk

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Why, you ask, has he picked a Teapigs product when, in the very same magazine, he bemoans the hijacking of ‘speciality’ food and drink by corporates? Well, people may be horrified or completely unfazed by the fact this quirky little brand is owned by Tata, the company behind the not-so-quirky Tetley. But the fact is, Teapigs products are good, they’re premium and they sell, and even the most principled fine food shop needs a few big names on the shelf.

Plus, matcha is still a high-ranking ‘superfood’ and at an RRP of £1.89 this is an affordable way to feel the benefit.

As assistant editor Michael Lane says: “People love Teapigs – and this is Teapigs to take away.”

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p85 www.ffdonline.co.uk Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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fine food news Industry’s largest show sees big increase in exhibitors but retailers want more innovative products

Producer numbers on the up but sector seeks better NPD

By PATRICK McGUIGAN

As the organisers of this month’s Speciality & Fine Food Fair report a big increase in new exhibitors, independent retailers say there is still a lack of innovation in the sector.

There has been a 14% increase in exhibitor numbers at this year’s Fair compared to 2013, with 52% of stands showcasing their products at Olympia for the first time. But fine food retailers contacted by FFD this month said they were frustrated by a general lack of genuine new product development (NPD) with too many companies merely extending and repositioning existing lines or launching products This year, the Speciality & Fine Food Fair has reported a 14% increase in that were ultimately aimed at the exhibitors, 52% of which are attending for the first time supermarkets.

“There seem to be very few new products,” said Justin Tunstall of and the positioning of it rather than producers with the imagination to the Town Mill Cheesemonger in Lyme genuine innovation,” she said. She think of new products” said Hugo Regis. “They love the enthusiasm cited examples such as Rubies in the Hercod of Cornwall deli Relish Food and evangelism that we give their Rubble preserves, made with produce & Drink. “Most are trying to do a products, but ultimately all too often that would otherwise be discarded, modern twist on the old things, we're a high maintenance stepping and Ten Acre Crisps, which are but rather than producing a greatstone en route to high-volume, lowpositioned as gluten-free and kosher. tasting, high-quality product they’re margin multiple listings.”

The recession has played its part relying on slick design and attentionThe big retailers also do a much in stifling innovation, but retailers grabbing PR.” better job of working with small told FFD they felt the supermarkets Soraya Gadelrab, event director producers to launch their own were also having more of an for the Fair, said there were speciality products, said Simon influence. innovative products at the show, but Johnson of Simons Quality Butchers “Very few producers focus on agreed that many exhibitors were in Lincolnshire. the indie market when considering repositioning lines.

“It's increasingly difficult to find “There have genuinely new products for the indie Wholesalers need to been definite trends market as the major multiples skew think differently and steer their NPD to emulate the values and in previous years, clear of the same items but this year we've appeal of an indie retailer,” he said. found it's more “As the consumer buys into these the large multiples stock about the story pseudo-artisan products, this takes behind a product the focus away from the need for Ludo Piot, Epicerie Ludo

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Five products to watch out for at SFFF Lobster bisque flavoured chocolates from Maxwells Chocolates.

Jamrock's Jamaican Pepper Jelly, made with scotch bonnet peppers.

Packs of grow-you-own mushrooms by Gumelo.

Cocktail preserves from Hawkshead Relish including Mojito Marmalade and Bloody Mary Chutney

Raw Organic Virgin Coconut Oil from Chi Drinks can be used for frying baking and as a moisturiser.

genuinely new products 'earning their stripes' in the indie sector.”

Ludo Piot of Epicerie Ludo in Manchester said wholesalers also stymied innovation. “Smaller producers sometimes struggle to sell new products to the big distributors who are far too demanding on price and quantities, and don't want to take risks with new lines. Wholesalers need to think differently and steer clear of the same items the large multiples stock.”

The retailer’s view: ‘Me-too versions of existing lines don’t drive growth’ We are 10-15 years ❛behind the multiples in the chilled sector, especially pre-packaged goods, and sadly this is what is driving consumer spending. A trip to M&S or Waitrose demonstrates this. The prime retailing area is all chilled and overwhelmingly it is prepriced, pre-packaged.

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Nick Hempleman, Sussex Produce Company, Steyning

be difficult for ❛smallIt must producers who come up with a great idea and product only to see it copied by businesses with larger marketing and PR budgets.

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

Many producers still view retail as one amorphous channel rather than understanding that what’s right for a supermarket is not right for a deli.

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David Greenman, Arch House Deli, Bristol

are areas where ❛weThere are swamped with local options: micro brewery bottled ales, jams and chutneys, bakery. This can be an issue as there isn’t always enough sales to give each business a decent share. Then you have areas where we have no local supply and limited national independent options.

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Caroline Dinham, Cranstons Food Hall, Penrith

is very difficult to ❛getItgenuinely original products specifically for the independent market.

The supermarkets pounce on any new ideas and then fiddle around with them until they have put together something that is really not like the original but with the same connotations.

these don't really drive growth. In fact, many of these products simply extend a range. Too big a range makes it difficult for a customer to choose and they often walk away with nothing.

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Michael Dale, Umami Deli, Wantage, Oxon

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Patricia Michelson, La Fromagerie, London

There is lots of ❛innovation in the sector but most of it comes from single new products, variants of existing products or 'me too' versions and

companies in ❛thisFood sector often have limited resources – this includes manpower and time for NPD. Sometimes NPD takes a back seat, which it shouldn’t. It’s important to innovate and offer your customers something new.

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Ros Windsor, Paxton & Whitfield Follow us on

@ffdonline

Food group sees more sources of finance available to SMEs

By PATRICK McGUIGAN

Speciality food and drink production is becoming an increasingly attractive sector for investors as food companies look to expand beyond their local markets That's the view of John Sheaves, CEO of regional food group Taste of the West, which is helping small food and drink firms access finance for growth from the banks, grant schemes and crowd-funding.

He told FFD that NatWest, in particular, had recently put a “new focus” on SME food and drink manufacturing because of the sector's growing maturity and growth potential. The bank has been working with Taste of the West to get a better understanding of the sector and where producers fit into the supply chain.

“The whole phenomenon of 'buy local' has been working for 20-odd years and it's been very successful,” he said. “The proposition has matured, especially in the West Country. We've got artisan producers who are able to supply national and international markets, and to do that you need some pretty phenomenal growth plans and investment.

“In order to fuel the next stage of growth, the stronger, branded companies need to invest and that's where the banks are coming in.”

Taste of the West is also helping members apply for grant funding under the sixth round of the Regional Growth Scheme, which closes at the end of this month, while Sheaves said companies were also finding success through crowd-funding sites like CrowdCube.

“There's a perception out there that because of the recession

IN BRIEF l The trend for home baking could be starting to cool despite the new series of The Great British Bake Off now being in full swing.

New research from Mintel found that while 85% of UK adults baked at home in 2013, the figure has dropped to 77% in 2014. Although 80% of Brits baked from scratch in 2013, in 2014 this has dropped to 73%. Sales of home baking products are expected to fall by 2% to £1.76 billion in 2014.

l Colston Bassett Stilton was named Supreme Champion at the International Cheese Awards in Nantwich, Cheshire. The cheese was also awarded Supreme Champion at the Great Yorkshire Show earlier this year and was named Best British Cheese in 2013 at the World Cheese Awards.

Banks like NatWest are now more willing to lend to small food businesses, according to Taste of the West’s John Sheaves (right)

the banks have cried away and that government grants have all disappeared. But that's not quite true,” he said. “If you can build your case and put it to the bank in a comprehensive way you're probably

going to win out. If you can also look at other mechanisms like grant funding and crowd-funding then you're going to have a very strong proposition.” www.tasteofthewest.co.uk

Banks could be obliged to help small firms turned down for loans UK banks will be forced to help SMEs find alternative sources of capital if they turn them down for loans, under proposed government legislation.

The new rules, outlined by Chancellor George Osborne last month and set to be introduced in the autumn, will require the big banks to ask companies that have been rejected for loans whether they would like their applications referred to challenger banks and alternative lenders.

“So often a small business will be suitable for finance,” said Osborne, “but 70% only approach one bank and nearly 40% give up at the first attempt. Meaning many businesses just don’t get the finance they need.

“No more. This legislation will bring a whole wave of new lenders much closer to the small businesses they serve.”

l Waitrose will open its first railway-based store at London King’s Cross station. The Little Waitrose branch will feature a bakeoff area, and expects to sell hot foods such as wraps and pastries.

The opening will complement a 21,000 sq ft Waitrose supermarket and 3,000 sq ft cookery school, which is being built close to the station. The school will offer paidfor courses from bread making to Michelin star cookery, as well as free sessions for schools.

l A new Cotswolds spirits company has started taking orders for its single malt whisky after it opened a £4 million distillery in Stourton.

Cotswolds Distillery has been founded by Daniel Szor and will also make a dry gin, a rye whiskey and liqueurs. The gin will be launched this month and the whisky will be sold from September 2017 after three years of ageing.

l Belfast’s Suki Teahouse has set up what it claims is Ireland’s first tea academy as part of a £250,000 expansion. It will allow delis and chefs to learn more about the company’s 45-strong line-up of teas, through a series of courses, as well as develop their own bespoke blends. Suki has also added new blending and packaging equipment.

Yorks farm shop gets on its bike A farm shop in North Yorkshire has taken diversification to energetic new levels after leasing space to a local company that specialises in services for

Graeme Thompson says cycling is a good fit with his farm shop

cyclists, triathletes and swimmers.

The business, which gives professional advice to sports enthusiasts and sells and repairs bicycles, is located on the first floor and aims to attract business from people using the lake and cycling routes at nearby Ellerton Park.

Graeme Thompson, owner of Lakeside, said: “With increased participation in cycling following the Olympics together with the visit of the Tour De France in Yorkshire this year, the addition of Triology Multisport Solutions is exciting and fits in well with the facilities and activities here.”

The deal between the two companies was negotiated by Neil Stevenson of Darlington firm Latimer Hinks Solicitors. www.thelakesidefarmshop.co.uk

l Neal’s Yard Dairy has spearheaded NORTHERN EXPOSURE: Around 100 buyers attended the first Showcasing Scotland event in Dunblane to meet more than 80 of the country's best food and drink producers. The Scotland Food & Drink event took place over two days and included meet-the-buyer sessions, visits, networking, and a mini-conference on the Scottish food and drink industry. Delegates were treated to a cookery demonstration by chef ambassador Nick Nairn and a dinner featuring Scottish produce.

a crowd-funding campaign to finance a ground-breaking guide to raw milk microbiology, which will help artisan cheese-makers produce safer and better cheese. The bid for funds – which was due to close soon after FFD went to press – aims to raise £12,000 via Kickstarter to pay for a professional translation of the Raw Milk Microflora guide, which was written by a team of scientists in France and has already been published in French.

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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fine food news IN BRIEF

Local botanicals star in Scots gin

l Northern Ireland rapeseed oil

By MICK WHITWORTH

brand Broighter Gold has gone on sale in one of Europe’s historic shopping centres. The deal to supply La Grande Epicerie de Paris – part of Le Bon Marché Rive Gauche, the world’s first department store – is the firm’s first export order.

The most northerly gin distillery on mainland Britain was due to come on stream this month following the installation of a new still.

Martin and Claire Murray (pictured right), the husband and wife team behind Dunnet Bay Distillers in Caithness, have already tested the first batches of Rock Rose gin, and full production was due to be underway in time for micro-distillery’s launch as FFD went to press.

Martin Murray said: “We aim to make about 700 bottles in every batch, producing about 10,000 bottles a year. The first batch sold out by pre-orders within 48 hours and the second batch is expected to be released in early September.”

l Demijohn, the ‘liquid deli’ chain with stores in Scotland and England, has launched what it claims is the first British limoncello. Made by Hilary Blackford in Gloucestershire from vodka and Italian lemons, the liqueur has been introduced at Demijohn’s Glasgow outlet.

l Michelin-star chef Tom Aikens is the latest culinary star to be recruited as Chef of the Season in Harrods’ food halls. Aikens starts a four-month stint as featured chef on November 6, when a range of dishes-to-go “inspired by his love of comfort food-style cooking” go on sale in a dedicated section of the traiteur counter. Harrods says the selection will include “Classic Christmas” dishes until the New Year, then switch to “warming winter starters, mains and puddings”.

Claire Murray has been working with experts in the region to source local flavouring ingredients, and the gin’s recipe includes Rhodiola Rosea, a rock rose found on the cliffs of Caithness, along with “a blend of local and traditional botanicals”.

Her husband, a process engineer working in the oil and gas sector, is studying for a PhD in brewing and distillation at Heriot Watt University.

His research has fed into the product development process for Dunnet Bay Distillers, which is to receive £83,990 in support from Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) over the next three years.

Laura Gunn, account manager from HIE, said: “We are very excited about having the most northerly

www.rockrosegin.co.uk

New EU allergen rules are ‘a sledgehammer to crack a nut’ 14 allergens. Those who do not comply will face fines in excess of £1,000.

“I would say this seems something of a sledgehammer to crack a nut, but then I would of course need to add a legal disclaimer about what sort of nut I was talking about,” said Hempleman.

“The casualty here will, as ever, be the small operator who is serving ‘real’ food, not out of a packet as the FSA booklet seems to take for granted.”

Hempleman added that those cafés and delis changing their menus daily and seasonally would

find it particularly tough to comply.

The EU’s list includes eggs, molluscs, celery, milk, fish, peanuts, soya and gluten.

Earlier this year Lyndsey McManus, deputy CEO of Allergy UK told FFD that there were a number of ways cafés could comply with the rules.

“Whether you put information on the menu, on a poster or in a database that can be referenced by staff and conveyed verbally, allergen information must be clear and easy to access for consumers,” she said.

For more details about changes to the law visit: www.food.gov.uk/

more ambient now. We had a cheese counter offering northern English farmhouse cheeses, but that never really took off. Even with tastings we didn’t have the turnover on the counter to justify it. Now we still stock Barbara Rumsby Silver Yard Café Deli, Orton many of the same lines but in smaller, pre-packed portions.

Knowing what will sell has been setting. The extra space allowed us to I knew where I wanted to open up – a learning curve and it changes all the have a deli alongside the café. in the village of Orton, Cumbria, which time. Some lines sell well for a while I had to apply for planning is located between the Yorkshire Dales then not at all. Tourists like the focus change of use, which was granted in and the Lake District National Park and on local produce, buying presents November 2012. Building work started has a small, but growing, visitor base. to take home or treats to try. Local in January 2013, and we opened just I made an offer on premises that customers, on had previously been a tea room and I do a monthly rota but some days we the other hand, left my job as a university academic are looking in December 2011. The purchase fell end up over-staffed and others under for something through and I was left raring to go but different but not necessarily local, so in time for the Easter trade, in March. with no premises. Eventually I found we’ve widened our sourcing to include Despite opening in a snowstorm, we alternative premises at Silver Yard. I’d products from across the UK. had a busy opening weekend, and that not looked at them initially because The amount of stock in the deli carried on through the Easter holidays. they had been built as light industrial/ has increased in the 18 months since My vision was to offer fresh, workshop units, but in fact they were we opened. I seriously under-estimated local produce in both the deli and a much better proposition than the tea how much it would cost to stock the café. We’ve shifted from this in that room, providing a much larger area shelves. I brought in extra shelving we’re doing less fresh produce and and a blank canvas in an attractive

and display space for Christmas and that has stayed. Having more stock and a less linear layout means there’s more interest for customers. We’ve also increased our free-from stock and made it much more prominent.

When planning I imagined turnover would be equally split between the deli and café, but the café is much more important – accounting for 70% of turnover – and most deli customers come for the café and pick up something on their way out.

Deli sales are up 40% and turnover is up 10-15% on last year.

Still, trade is variable day on day and week on week, so staffing schedules are difficult. I do a monthly rota but some days we end up over-staffed and others under. I employ four parttime staff plus I work full-time in the business. The level of commitment is huge. Running your own business is a 24-hour job you can’t switch off from.

l Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC) – Meat Promotion Wales – launches a £500,000 trade and consumer marketing campaign for Welsh lamb this September under the catchline ‘Not All Lamb Is Created Equal’. Online and offline advertising, PR and social media activity will highlight the quality of lamb born and raised in Wales, emphasising its provenance and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status. The campaign runs until next summer.

A Sussex retailer and café owner has slammed forthcoming EU regulations on labelling of allergens, claiming they will make life more difficult for smaller operators serving “real” food.

Nick Hempleman of the Sussex Produce Company told FFD that the rules, which come into force in December, were at odds with the Government’s promise to cut back on red tape.

Under the regulations outlined in a booklet from the Food Standards Agency, caterers must be able to provide customers with detailed information about whether dishes contain any of the EU’s Top

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

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distillery in mainland Scotland opening in Caithness. “Martin and Claire have put a huge amount of time and effort into ensuring the product they are creating is of an extremely high quality, and we look forward to working with them in the months and years to come as they take the product into markets at home and abroad.”

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

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science/allergy-intolerance/label

Interview by LYNDA SEARBY

Follow us on

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Vol.15 Issue 8 路 September 2014

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

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fine food news new openings

Opening or expanding a shop? Email details to editorial@finefoodworld.co.uk

Olives Et Al unveils retail concept for garden centres

At a glance l While it is Olives Et Al’s third deli, Loaf & Larder is a new concept developed by the Dorset-based producer specifically with garden centres in mind, to be rolled out across other sites.

l The shop carries the full Olives Et Al range plus wellknown speciality brands like Tracklements, Luscombe, The Bay Tree and Lyme Bay Winery.

l It also has a number of locally sourced products including meat from Pipers Farm and Griffiths Butchers, bread from Hobbs House Bakery, Cheddar Ales and Chew Moo’s ice cream

The first Loaf & Larder has been opened on a 1,150 sq ft site at Cheddar Garden Centre in Somerset

“local for local’s sake”.

A trio of distributors – Cotswold Fayre, The Bay Tree and Blakemore Fine Foods – supplies the bulk of Loaf & Larder’s grocery range.

However, the shop also sources directly from producers like Tracklements and Lyme Bay Winery as well as listing the full range of olives, sauces and snacks from its parent company.

The cheese counter is a mixture of artisan products, like Ford Farm Cave-Aged cheddar, Bath Soft and Appleby’s Double Gloucester, as well

Dorset-based Olives Et Al has opened a new concession deli concept, Loaf & Larder, in Cheddar Garden Centre in North Somerset.

The producer, which already runs two delis in its native county, has designed and created the Loaf & Larder concept specifically with garden centres in mind.

While other sites are yet to be confirmed, Olives Et Al’s head of retail, Rupert Morris, told FFD the format would be similar elsewhere, although future outlets were

expected to be in larger premises.

Morris added that the 1,150 sq ft Cheddar site reflected the company’s vision of “a restaurant without covers”, referencing a number of products being produced in-house.

These include breads, salads, hot pies, cakes and individual quiches in a signature square style.

In total, nearly 40 products are made or prepared on-site while local brands on the shelves include Hobbs House Bakery, Cheddar Ales and Chew Moo’s Ice Cream, although Morris said that the range was not

Newton Farm Shop

Humble By Nature Penalt, Monmouthshire

By MICHAEL LANE

Newton St Loe, Nr Bath

Converting an old milking parlour has allowed Newton Farm Shop to double in size. The 900 sq ft parlour has been transformed into a 35-seater café area with a service kitchen and bar and an Aga demonstration kitchen. All of the furniture, fittings and tableware in the new section have been created from ‘upcycled’ and recycled items. The space previously occupied by both the farm shop and café has made way for a new food emporium offering a broad range of local artisan products, which can be sampled with a glass of wine in a new grazing area. www.newtonfarmfoods.co.uk

Broadcaster Kate Humble, of Springwatch fame, has opened a café and shop on her Monmouthshire farm, Humble By Nature.

The shop, which was opened with help of pupils from the local Trellech Primary school, will stock lines from local suppliers and artisan producers across South Wales and

the West. The farm will be supplying its own meat and eggs while its recently launched Aquaponics solar greenhouse will provide herbs, fruit and vegetables for sale.

The new outlet will initially be open three days a week on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, 10am-4pm. www.humblebynature.com

as more mainstream selections.

“Garden centre visitors tend to have a wide variety of needs and Loaf & Larder aims to cater for everyone,” said Morris. “There are the occasional visitors who come in for a cup of coffee and a wander round as well as the local regulars for whom the full deli range has clear appeal. It really is something for everyone.”

He added: “It’s challenging in limited space but judging by the feedback so far I feel we have the right range, although we’ll be constantly refining it as the seasons change.”

Morris said a lot of categories featured several products to offer “good, better, best” pricing tiers. www.olivesetal.co.uk/our-delis/loafand-larder/

Yorkshire Ales

Snaith, East Yorkshire The beer wholesaler and retailer has extended its flagship store to add another 20 sq m of space for beer and food from its home county.

Among the producers now on board are Staal Smokehouse, Yorkshire Rapeseed Oil, preserve-maker Bracken Hill Fine Foods, Boozy infusions and Masons Yorkshire Gin. It has also added a café area serving coffee and Yorkshire Tea from Taylors of Harrogate, a range of snacks and salads supplied by fellow retailer The Pig’s Pantry and cheeses supplied by Mollie Sharp’s in nearby Selby. www.yorkshireales.co.uk

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

9

Liberty Process Food Process Solutions for Specialist Food Producers

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September 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8

A promotional feature for Discover the Origin

Discover the origin of fine European products Visitors to the Speciality & Fine Food Fair can learn more about five fine protected products with PDO status at Stand 784.

D

iscover the Origin is an established European Union campaign designed to raise awareness around five fine foods and wines with Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status: Douro Wines, Bourgogne Wines, Port, Parma Ham and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese.

The European Union’s PDO scheme protects the heritage, character and traditions of these precious products, whilst Discover the Origin celebrates their provenance and quality by educating trade professionals about their production, history and the best ways to present them to customers.

Conscious consumers are hungrier than ever for products with real provenance: the tale behind a product’s journey from vines or Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) status is awarded to foods from specific geographic areas which adhere to rigorous production standards. It's an indication of quality and origin of traditional products. Furthermore the PDO labeling helps consumers to identify a genuine product with geographical appellations protected against imitations and usurpations..

fields through to the glass or bowl they’re served in. Discover the Origin has championed these wonderful delights, raising the profile of the regions they herald from and showing that each one is a delicious culinary experience and can be used in any meal, season by season, at any time of day.

Take Port, which is produced in Portugal’s Douro Valley - the oldest demarcated and regulated wine region in the world - in a variety of styles from Rosé to Ruby and Tawny. Some quintas (or estates) still embrace the traditional process of crushing grapes by feet in a lagar, a square granite tank. In the region, locals enjoy the refreshing flavours

of a chilled White Port and Tonic on sunny afternoons, and at dinner, a red Douro Wine - produced in the same region as Port, using the same grapes - is the drink of choice to accompany well-seasoned grilled meats.

It’s little known that Parma Ham is made from just four essential ingredients: Italian pigs, salt, air and time. By law, only hams from pigs raised and cured in the hills around Parma, Italy, become Parma Hams.

Quality Parma Ham remains a favourite in the UK as customers are flooded with inspiration from TV chefs and cookery blogs, creating innovative recipes such as red prawn wrapped in Parma Ham with grilled watermelon.

The Discover the Origin team will be at stand 784 at this year’s Speciality & Fine Food Fair, London, from Sunday 7th to Tuesday 9th September, with mouth-watering samples to try.

Speak to the campaign’s experts to hear more about the products. Learn about the history and characteristics of Bourgogne Wines, famous the world over for their local ‘savoirfaire’, and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese, made using age-old techniques handed down for more than eight centuries.

Like Discover the Origin on Facebook and follow them on Twitter @DiscoverOrigin

FREE Discover the Origin masterclasses at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair …with Saturday Kitchen Live wine expert and Restaurant magazine wine editor Jane Parkinson Where? The Fine Food Forum When? Monday 8th & Tuesday 9th September Time? 9.45am until 10.45am

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

11

fine food news

Strength in numbers Interview

As the Guild of Fine Food taps into the lobbying power of the Association of Convenience Stores, ACS chief executive James Lowman tells MICK WHITWORTH why delis and c-stores will find much ‘shared space’ around key business issues

James Lowman, pictured outside the Palace of Westminster, says lobbying government is the ‘bread-andbutter’ work of the ACS

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

I

t might seem an odd pairing: a 1,300-member group of highend foodies and a 33,500-strong body of mainstream, open-all-hours corner shops, forecourt stores and Spar-style symbol outlets.

But three months ago, retailers and producers on the Guild of Fine Food’s trade-led steering committee voted to take ‘affinity membership’ of the Association of Convenience Stores, and according to ACS chief executive James Lowman it’s a tieup that makes a lot of sense for both parties.

For the ACS, whose single biggest activity is lobbying government on behalf of small, independent retailers, the addition of hundreds of delis and farm shops to the stores it represents can only bring more power to its elbow.

“We’ve always believed diversity of membership is a strength, not a problem,” says chief executive James Lowman.

“Whether you’re a Spar, a Londis, an independent petrol forecourt or a deli, you’re concerned about business rates, the planning regime, employment law, energy costs, the minimum wage. These things affect all retail businesses.

“So the issues facing one of my typical members are the same issues facing the Guild’s – there’s a lot of shared space – and by working together we can have a more powerful voice.”

The Guild has around 650 delis, farm shops and food halls on its paid-up member list. Affinity membership does not make those shops part of the ACS, but it means the Guild as an organisation can access most of ACS services on their behalf.

The ACS is focused on three activities – lobbying, business advice and networking – but the first of those is its biggest strength, and four of its 12 head office staff work in public affairs.

When I meet Lowman for a quick interview over lunch in Smith Square, a few hundred yards from the Palace of Westminster, he is accompanied by recently recruited public affairs assistant Sophie Mew. They are on their way to a meeting at BIS – the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. “I’m going to talk about their strategy for retail, and where small stores fit into that,” says Lowman, “and that’s the bread-and-butter of what we do.”

If having “a voice in Government” is at the core, information also flows back to retailers. “Sophie spends a lot of time monitoring what’s happening in Parliament, in the EU, what local government is saying and what other trade associations are doing.

So that early warning will be very useful to the Guild in knowing

what’s coming down the track.”

According to Lowman, relations between Government and smaller enterprises have changed since the recession, with both the former Labour administration and now the Tories starting to take more interest in the sector. “I think they had taken small businesses for granted,” he says, “and now they take it more seriously.”

The last few years have seen a sharp public debate about the state of Britain’s high streets, with the appointment of Mary Portas to make recommendations on the future of town centre shopping. With the derisory level of government funding given to the so-called ‘Portas Pilot’ towns and the failure of some of those towns to show any real turnaround, the TV shopping guru has become an easy target for ridicule. But Lowman says her core ideas – which included turning high streets into

don’t give favourable rates to outof-town warehouses serving online shopping. “The business rates on an Amazon distribution centre will be much less per square metre than the rates on a high street deli,” Lowman says. This needs to be looked at again – not to be “punitive”, but to be fair.

Similar arguments apply to one of the high street independent’s biggest bugbears: parking. Councils are under pressure to make town centre car parks pay their way, he says, while out-of-town supermarket car parks attract lower business rates.

He is similarly dubious about the current planning regime. “The Government has a ‘town centre first’ planning policy, but threequarters of development is taking place out of town, so it’s clearly not working, is it?”

The Conservative administration “intuitively” sees tight planning

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The Government has a ‘town centre first’ planning policy, but three-quarters of development is out of town, so it’s clearly not working.

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destinations and community hubs, with landlords, councils, businesses and the community working together to drive through a shared “vision” – were sound.

“I think Mary Portas has taken an unreasonable level of personal abuse,” he says. “Her report made some very reasonable recommendations and set a framework for discussion and helping high streets develop.”

The ACS fully backs ideas such as ‘town teams’, run jointly by businesses, community leaders and the public sector, to create a workable future for their high streets and make them pleasant places to hang out.

However, Lowman says that while the Government had put a lot of work into encouraging such local initiatives, it has fallen short on actions to help businesses directly.

“There’s a more positive feeling about high streets and small businesses, but the question is how that translates into policies on longterm issues like rates and planning.”

There is a question-mark over business rates, he says, both in terms of how they are calculated and who they hit hardest. Lowman seems to see the current business rates system, based on the potential rental value of a property, as the ‘least worst’ option. Alternatives tend to be more complicated and less fair, he says. But if you want to support the high street, you surely

restrictions as stifling growth, he says, but the current lax system encourages speculators to gamble on the future value of out-oftown sites, rather than investing in urban areas. “A large number of successful out-of-town applications are not actually built – there’s a huge amount of speculation – so that’s not encouraging economic growth. It’s a brake on growth.”

So planning and business rates are key lobbying points for the ACS. Another, given the nature of

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Are you passionate about food – or passionate about business?

Guild of Fine Food members interested in learning from the c-store sector can now access study tours, networking events, and ‘business dating’ opportunities run by the ACS. “There's always something to learn from retailers in other fields,”says James Lowman. “The lines between them are blurring.”

Two years ago, the ACS took members on a study tour to Georgie Mason’s Gonalston Farm Shop in Nottinghamshire, and Lowman says: “Our guys learned a huge amount from what Georgie is doing. It’s not all applicable, but there are always nuggets there, always opportunities.”

It's a bit of a generalisation but c-stores tend to be strong on systems for merchandising, pricing and promotions, while delis and farm shops are stronger on product knowledge and communicating that to customers.

“Fine food retailers generally get into the business because they are passionate about food. C-store owners are more likely to be business people that love the business of retailing,”says Lowman. most ACS stores, is alcohol policy: licensing, under-age drinking, and so on. That might not chime with too many Guild members, but the third major lobbying point – employment legislation – certainly will.

“For small, owner-operator businesses there’s a big question about when to employ people outside the family,” says Lowman.

“It’s a huge leap, and I don’t think Government understands that. A third of convenience store owners only employ family, so we see retailers facing this dilemma all the time.”

It’s partly the sheer bureaucracy surrounding employment, he says.

It’s one thing working long hours on staff training or planning your range; it’s another to put it into form-filling.

But cost is the bigger issue, centering on the National Minimum Wage. “There’s a big movement to increase the Mimimum Wage, and our retailers would say: ‘We’d love to pay people more but the

Whether you’re a Spar, a Londis, a petrol forecourt or a deli, you’re concerned about business rates, the planning regime, employment law and the Minimum Wage. These things affect all retail businesses.

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economics mean it’s not possible.’”

The ACS gives evidence to the Low Pay Commission every year, and runs focus groups to gather research data. But Lowman says it is getting harder to argue the case for pay restraint because “all sides seem to be talking up wages”.

“Over half of [independent] retailers, when we ask what hours they work, are not earning the Minimum Wage themselves.” He recognises owner-managers are in a very different position to low-paid employees, but nonetheless says: “The entrepreneur running a small business is not an infinite resource.

They can’t work unlimited hours.”

Interestingly, Lowman admits that, contrary to the argument often put forward by trade organisations, a rise in the Minimum Wage does not lead to instant disaster. “People don’t shut down shops right away. We may have overplayed that card with Government. But the owners tend to work more hours themselves, they delay investment decisions and they don’t replace staff when they leave.”

Findings like these are backed up by a number of research projects that, since 2012, have become a regular part of the ACS’s work, including a quarterly attitudes survey (how retailers feel about their business prospects; what they see as barriers to growth; etc) and an annual Community Barometer, asking shop owners, councils and consumers what they think about the shopping environment in their area. It all adds credibility, says Lowman, when the ACS is arguing the small shop owner’s case with Government.

“We learned fairly quickly,” he says, “that just turning up with a beautifully crafted argument is not enough. You need hard data.”

In more senses than one, there is strength in numbers. www.acs.org.uk www.finefoodworld.co.uk

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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VE NE C gi Ol G N W ng ym o U da pia od E: y: Lo Fo N nd od ov o , em n be r1 4 BB

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Guild of Fine Food · Guild House · 23b Kingsmead Business Park · Shaftesbury Road · Gillingham · Dorset SP8 5FB · UK · +44 (0)1747 825200

Vol.15 Issue 8 路 September 2014

15

fine food news Analysis

Big retail buyers exploiting the marketing power of ‘local’ and ‘artisan’ food.

Slick ‘speciality’ brands popping up fully formed thanks to deep-pocketed investors. ‘Farm’ shops miles from the nearest farm. Signs of a healthy market – or a speciality sector that’s losing its identity? To mark the annual gathering of the clans at Olympia, FFD editor MICK WHITWORTH put the question to top speciality suppliers and retailers.

Special forces E

arly August, and I’m soaking up the sun in the outdoor café of an iconic London food store.

A short walk from Sloane Square, Partridges is a Royal Warrant holder and the archetypal high-class provisioner, stocking everything from American pancake syrup to New Zealand beechwood honeydew honey.

I’m with Guy Tullberg, MD of another archetypal fine food business, the savoury preserves maker Tracklements, and we’re meeting over tea and cake to discuss whether the speciality sector is in danger of losing its soul.

Tracklements has been making mustards, chutneys and savoury jellies since it was started by Guy’s father William in 1970. It has 41 employees, says Tullberg. That means Tracklements has added just one employee, give or take, for every year it has traded. “A speciality business can only grow at a certain rate,” he tells me.

Tracklements has only ever been “gently ambitious , with the emphasis on gentle”. Despite moving to factory-scale premises a few years back, it is still only to be found in one major multiple and still makes its preserves in the same small-batch kettles.

Tullberg has never ruled out selling to supermarkets – even Tesco – but he says the issue is largely academic, because most massmarket stores won’t pay his prices, and he won’t compromise quality.

“We’ve always said we’ll sell to anyone who joins our party. But that means at our price – and that keeps the market at a certain level.”

He adds: “If you are taking good raw materials and doing something good with them, then you should be at or around a price point, and it’s very hard to break out of that.”

Which makes it all the more interesting, not just that price-driven supermarkets show such a keen interest in speciality food but that other mainstream buyers are now sniffing round the sector. Do they really see high-cost, small-batch products as viable long-term? Will they demand a lowering of price and quality in return for the promise of volume sales? Or are they just spying

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

for foods that their bulk private-label manufacturers can copy and churn out more cheaply?

At this month’s Speciality & Fine Food Fair (SFFF), British Airways and Virgin Trains are to hold meetthe-buyer sessions for exhibitors, in conjunction with the company now handling their food supply chain: logistics services giant DHL. According to SFFF show director Soraya Gadelrab (interviewed on p41) the three organisations are looking for “quintessentially British products with good back-stories”.

But, surely, passing on the back-stories of small producers is the domain of knowledgeable, service-led delis and farm shops, not corporates?

We’ve all seen those appealing images of smiling, ruddy-cheeked farmers used in point-of-sale by supermarkets to stress their closeness to the soil. Laughable, isn’t it? What about Pepsico-owned Walkers, which has just launched Market Deli Chips, claiming all sorts of associations with speciality food businesses? Again, we could shrug it off, but if every mainstream food business begins tapping the back-stories of “artisan” producers for marketing purposes, doesn’t it devalue the currency for real speciality stores?

It’s not just supermarkets and catering giants invading our patch.

Big money is creeping into the supply side too. Gadelrab tells me the new exhibitors popping up at SFFF these days are a mix of old-style, family-run artisan firms, scraping up the pennies to fund their first big show, and sophisticated, well-financed, marketing-savvy startups. It’s clear some have bought a fully-formed brand image from a London agency and are ready to exploit it to the full.

Google one recent start-up exhibiting at SFFF this month and alongside all its Facebook and Twitter activity you’ll find trade press stories about its use of branding agency Big Fish (Dorset Cereals, Clipper Tea, Abel & Cole, Tyrrells) and its appointment of Brazen PR to promote the brand’s launch, not just in the UK but globally.

Of course, we should applaud successful start-ups. It’s flattering to

our sector that canny investors see it as the place to be, and well-heeled speciality brands like Teapigs (see my Editor’s Choice, p3) can be better earners for independents than £15 bottles of single-estate olive oil.

But if everyone is using the same stories and language – increasingly on products that fall short of the truly ‘finest’ – couldn’t it undermine the market for real specialist stores and make life untenable for tiny producers already struggling to win viable sales volumes?

Last month I threw these questions out to a cross-section of producers, retailers and wholesalers.

You can read their responses here.

For Guy Tullberg, the market has always been in “flux”. But while times are tougher for conventional high street retailers – “More and more delis are opening cafés; shelf-space is probably declining” – opportunities in foodservice have

increased exponentially. “When I started it was mainly delis and oldfashioned grocers, so you had to spread the net wide,” he says. “If I was starting today I’d see multiple opportunities – it’s just different.”

For the independent retailer, it has always been about “reinvention”. “If you were a grocer in 1977 and the first supermarket opened on your street, you had to make a shift. You either matched them on price or you had to find a way to differentiate.”

Tullberg recalls a conversation with Jamie Montgomery, the revered Somerset farmhouse cheddar maker.

“Jamie said to me once, ‘I just want to keep making my cheese a little bit better every day’.

“The commercial producer will always make things a little bit cheaper and a little bit worse. So whether you’re a producer or retailer, you have to keep raising the bar.”

Edward Berry

Sarah Pettegree

There are fewer and fewer words that people like us can use to describe authenticity of provenance.

‘Local’, ‘home-made’, ‘handmade’ – what do they mean now?

Our patch is being muddied by people who use nomenclature that gives a warm, cosy feeling but doesn’t mean anything.

The supermarkets talk a lot about ‘British’ product – well, Britain is a big country with plenty of very large producers.

Most of the people selling hand-reared meat or producing on a genuinely small scale are going to be a bit more expensive and, in reality, the number of shoppers genuinely interested in provenance is quite small. So you are asking them to pay a bit more for something they’ve seen in the supermarkets, and that they think was just as good because they’ve been told that it is.

I’m committed permanently to the independent sector. I’ve tested my thinking on this ever since we started making pork pies in 2007 and I’m still happy with that business strategy.

I prefer working with “real” people who treat us fairly and in many cases become friends. There’s more than enough growth potential, especially within larger delis and the pub sector, and I don’t want huge step changes in the volume we make.

The disbenefits of dealing with supermarkets remain an effective deterrent. The horrors of delivering into depots to their schedules, and the massive fines imposed if delivery slots are missed, are scary enough to be off-putting.

We have been approached by a pseudo-independent – a local Dobbies – and initially didn’t realise they were part of Tesco. As soon as I did, I explained my strategy and politely said I wouldn’t be supplying them.

I have a lot of loyalty from my deli customers. It would have been unethical to work with a business competing with them with all the resources of a multi-billion-pound operation.

Our end consumers expect a level of ethics from us too. Through social media we have a lot of contact with the people who eat our pies.

They are interested in us as a brand that ploughs a different path.

I’m also aware that if we were in supermarkets many of our best retail customers would no longer stock us. Mind you, I’m also aware of a few delis who say they de-list anything sold in, say, Waitrose but aren’t absolutely consistent on some of the big selling brands. It feels a bit wrong from my angle, but I also want independents to stay in business so I try to be understanding when they do what they have to do.

As a consumer, I don’t like seeing pseudo independent brands in delis. And consumers hate being duped. If I mention on Twitter that Teapigs, for example, aren’t the cute little business you imagine, but are part of the Tata Group that also own Tetleys, people are genuinely upset and cross. They bought the tea because it’s nice and attractively branded but they also thought they were buying a story, and feel let down when they find they were wrong.

Having said that, there are almost daily ethical grey areas for us too. We have just started supplying the coffee shop at Waterstones in Norwich with pork pies. The shop manager is a nice guy and a huge Brays Cottage fan, but should I be trading with a book chain which competes with independents, even if they don’t have a coffee shop? It’s complicated trying to work out where the parameters should be set.

Managing director, Ludlow Food Centre, Shropshire

www.ludlowfoodcentre.co.uk

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’Local’, ‘home-made’, ‘hand-made’ – what do they mean now?

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Owner, Brays Cottage Pork Pies, Norfolk

www.perfectpie.co.uk

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Our end consumers expect a level of ethics from us too. They are interested in us as a brand that ploughs a different path.

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Stefano Cuomo Partner, Macknade Fine Foods, Kent

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If you are taking good raw materials and doing something good with them, then you should be at or around a price point, and it’s very hard to break out of that.

Guy Tullberg

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Is the speciality sector losing its identity? No. What’s occurring is that the sector is finally being valued for what it is, and developing a clear offer. Gone are the days of just placing premium stock in a contrived space and calling it ‘speciality’. The supermarkets now realise this.

True speciality is about the experience as much as the product, starting at the point of production and continuing through retail to consumption. It’s about adding value at each point, not cutting costs.

Personal engagement and the ability to tell stories and talk about provenance are part of a specialist skill set that is far more available to independents.

If the corporates are jumping on our products, we should see it as a marketing tool to get the masses through our doors. For a lot of people there’s still a perceived snobbery about what we sell, which has to be breached. If the same products are seen in supermarkets I believe people will become more comfortable about crossing our threshold, and then they’ll find that independents are a lot more fun to shop with. If that leads to more transactions and a higher spend with us, it’s happy days for the whole sector.

Unless the supermarkets are discounting, I don’t think they can be

much more than competitive with us on price, so it’s down to producers to make sure discounting is limited.

And with the internet scooping up so much of our lives, the emotive, tactile experience offered by sincere independents really starts to mean something. Corporates can try to ape that, but the opportunity is all ours, not theirs. www.macknade.com

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With the internet scooping up so much of our lives, the emotive, tactile experience offered by sincere independents really starts to mean something

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Anthony Cude Food hall manager, Bakers & Larners, Norfolk

As soon as consumers see a product on the supermarket shelf it’s classed as mainstream. It’s a constant battle to find the next innovative food before the supermarkets catch on.

As long as we have small producers coming up with these ideas we will survive. As soon as it stops we may be in trouble.

The corporates aren’t interested in taste or quality. Their only concern is profit margin and the volume they can move through. This confuses customers who cannot understand why, let’s say, a supermarket ownbrand marmalade is less than half the price of one purchased from an independent. If we explain that ours is hand-made by a small producer more concerned with quality rather than quantity, more often than not the customer will purchase it. That is a service the major retailers do not and will never be able to provide.

Suppliers will be constantly tempted by the lure of a supermarket listing. I remember when Kettle Chips came to the market, selling direct or through family-run local wholesalers.

After the independent sector had done all the groundwork, they succumbed to the supermarkets.

Then Tyrrells arrived. A familyrun farming business, a four-case minimum order, next-day delivery and no hassle or price worries, because the supermarkets hadn't seen them yet. But ultimately they went the same way as Kettle and are regularly in the supermarkets at discounted prices – although, to be fair, Tyrrell's haven't forgotten us and still service the independent sector well.

Yes, independents still need to stock products such as Kettle, Tyrrells, Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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fine food news Green & Blacks but we also need specialist products that consumers can only find here. This is proven by the amount of people who come in clutching a recipe book or a list of ingredients that they’ve seen their favourite TV chef using. They come to us because they know they can get the product and the advice to go with it, rather than the blank expression when they ask in a major retailer for star anise or ras el hanout.

Paul Hargreaves

Managing director, Cotswold Fayre, Reading, Berkshire

While consumers are much more savvy now than when I started Cotswold Fayre 15 years ago, I do feel the vast majority still choose largely on whether a product looks good and tastes good. Only a minority are looking for provenance. Whether this a reflection on our sector’s marketing ability or on our culture, I don’t know!

Having said that, I do think there’s a danger in ‘speciality’ brands being created by big investors. So many products that land on our doorstep – around 20 new brands a week – are not made by the brand-owners. Wherever possible, we prefer to prioritise brands that are actually making the products themselves, rather than just dealing with a branding or marketing company.

There is nothing better that telling a story of genuine food people making genuine food products themselves. Too many of these quirky stories are marketing spin, and I think consumers are intelligent enough to see what’s real and what isn’t. There is no better example than the nonsense that was spouted by Tetley about its artisan brand Teapigs.

Independents can maintain a point of difference firstly by ensuring the majority of their brands aren’t sold in Tesco and the like, and that the few that may be are not sold at vastly reduced prices in the multiples. More importantly, they have the trump card in keeping producers and consumers close to each other through tastings, their own knowledge of the products and higher service levels.

But there has to be a balance. Apart from their own produce and cheese counters, you will probably find that the largest cash margins for a speciality food retailer will be on the more well-known brands. I do think that independents are less inclined to cut off their nose to spite their face these days if one of these brands goes into the multiples. They will keep it until the sales drop, which can be a lag of a year or two And limited exposure in bigger outlets can be beneficial. Consumers are in a different mode when in a speciality store. They are rarely shopping from a list and are often “impulse buying”. A higher profile for a brand in larger retailers or caterers can have a positive knock-on effect for the speciality retailer.

www.bakersandlarners.co.uk

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Suppliers will be constantly tempted by the lure of a supermarket listing

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Claire Martinsen

Founder, Breckland Orchard, Norfolk

I think we need to take it as a huge compliment that supermarkets and other corporates are interested in speciality and fine food. It’s no surprise – we’re a dynamic sector. It might also be down to all the recent food scandals, which mean the supermarkets are looking to improve their image through products with authenticity and provenance.

It’s going to be harder for suppliers to ignore the lure of the multiples and the volumes they can offer. But there will always be a core like us that will continue to focus on independents.

There used to be a clear divide between corporate suppliers and the smaller artisan brands. That has been muddied by the emergence of a third category of supplier – one with significant financial backing and a clear vision of exit for profit.

Tiny start-ups can’t really compete with businesses that have a large bank of cash at the outset. The ability to invest heavily in marketing, distribution and staff puts them at a significant advantage.

On a plus side, though, it does raise the game for the whole supply base in terms of marketing and branding. I just hope that farm shops and deli buyers are able to differentiate between someone who has put everything on the line to create a new business, and those where the risk is being taken by a business angel or corporate investor.

I started Breckland Orchard because I wanted a family company I could own and run for many years.

I’ve never had a penny of outside investment and I plough my profits back into the business. I’m in this for the long term, and that means I’m able to do the things I want – like not

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

www.cotswold-fayre.co.uk

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We prioritise brands that are actually making the products themselves, rather than just dealing with a marketing company

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supply the supermarkets – rather than answering to an external funder. That feels like a good place to be. www.brecklandorchard.co.uk

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Tiny start-ups can’t really compete with businesses that have a large bank of cash at the outset

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Iain Hemming

Owner, Thyme & Tides Deli, Stockbridge, Hants

I’ve lost count of the times I’ve spent huge amounts of energy building sales with exciting, small independent brands only to see them appear on the multiples’ shelves. In many cases these key, previously ‘indie’-led brands are being retailed close to or below

my purchase price. I will not reduce my margins to compete.

In the past I’ve tried mostly in vain to convince them to give me some exclusivity within a three or four mile radius so Thyme & Tides can continue to grow sales. But since being listed with the multiples, my sales of Peter’s Yard have halved, I’ve delisted Kabuto noodles, and Summerdown Mints and Olives Et Al barely sell. The latter haven’t been delisted because I cannot find a replacement – yet.

What do I do when a product goes to the ‘dark side’, such as Waitrose, Budgens or the Co-op – all our arch multiple competitors?

The norm is to continue stocking them but watching sales wane away. I believe the trick is to find an embryonic producer – one that’s not in the multiples – to replace the line that’s gone bad and then be prepared to do the same again and again.

We recently launched 10 ownbranded Thyme & Tides products that will never be seen in a chain unless I own it!

If a producer is tempted to go the Waitrose route, why don’t they launch a range of flavours exclusive to multiples while keeping their core established independent lines live to us? A foot in both camps perhaps.

Independents cannot afford to be lazy on sourcing. You snooze, you lose! We need to search out the niche producers, then bend over backwards to work with them, even when the logistics seem unevenly loaded in their favour. If they’re really good you might get two or three years trading with them before they sell their souls. www.thymeandtidesdeli.co.uk

❛

We recently launched 10 own-branded products that will never be seen in a chain unless I own it!

❜

David Greenman

Co-owner, Arch House Deli Clifton, Bristol

It might be a bit strong to say our sector is being ‘pillaged’ by big business, but it’s certainly an issue.

Corporates building brands with instant ‘heritage’ are a blight on our industry and do cause confusion.

The products that have been most successful for us long-term have come from foodies who’re passionate and focused on their products.

There’s always a danger their enthusiasm clouds their judgment on the commercial viability. But when they get the balance right then they do well in our sector. We’re happy to work with them through tastings, PR and promotions in store and they are equally as supportive of us.

One thing that frustrates me is when producers fail to understand why we don’t take products that are heavily stocked in supermarkets.

Or where we drop them when they appear in Waitrose, having previously only sold in delis and farm shops.

It’s their choice to go that direction, which is absolutely fine – it's just the way they are affronted by our decision to drop them. The fact that they charge supermarkets much less and that it undermines our image doesn’t appear to factor in their thought processes. www.archhousedeli.com

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It frustrates me when producers fail to understand why we don’t take products that are heavily stocked in supermarkets

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Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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September 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8

great taste 2014 As FFD went to press, the Guild of Fine Food revealed the 3,300 products that have made it through this year’s Great Taste judging process to earn one of 2014’s coveted blackand-gold logos. Of these, just 153 took the top three-star award, and the highest scoring products from this elite group have once again been assembled into the Top 50 Foods in Britain – a key plank of the Guild’s PR campaign behind the awards. With the Supreme Champion set to be announced on September 8, we asked top Great Taste judging co-ordinator NICK BAINES to reflect on the cream of this year’s crop.

Nifty fifty I

’ve been judging and coordinating at the Great Taste awards for several years now. The ‘judging season’, as I like to call it, stretches out a little bit further each year.

More food and drink, more judging days, more inches on the waist. But, what can I say? I’m a hungry young chap and I relish it.

Having coordinated in excess of 30 days again this year – working with a team of judges to collate their feedback to the producers and join in their decision-making – it’s been great to see some of those foods that got us hot under the collar in the judging room make it onto this list of Top 50 Foods.

I noticed there was a lot of very good quality meat entered this year, as you will too on the following pages. I do love a bit of pork belly and thankfully there were some amazing samples that came through, not to mention the barrage of award-winning bacons, sausages, lamb joints and steaks.

There was a noticeable uplift in marshmallows this year too and a great

UIG LODGE SMOKED SALMON www.uiglodge.co.uk

For two years running this smoked salmon from Uig Lodge has placed in the Top 50 Foods. “So, so fresh and leaves an oceanic flavour in the mouth” said our experts who were won over by this hand-sliced side of salmon. “Lingering length from the smoke, which has been done very carefully and is in perfect balance with the cure and natural salmon flavours.”

diversity of honeys that are vibrant, floral and distinctive.

Ice creams and sorbets continue to be innovative and playful in their flavour combinations and there are many I have my eye out for in the shops.

What always puts the Top 50 into perspective for me is that it represents the best 0.5% of foods entered.

For farm shop and deli owners, it

not only provides a go-to list of the best products, but serves as a great marketing tool for them to use too.

I know that by making it to this list, the foods are faultless and there’s no possible way to make them better.

It’s kind of like the ultimate fantasy football team, but with food. And it’s all available for me to go out and buy, just as soon as I shift my ‘judging season’ weight.

Gigot Leg of Lamb – Bone In

ANNANWATER This slow-grown lamb is reared on hillsides, feeding on a wide range of upland herbs and grasses. Our panel of expert food judges enjoyed the rich, fresh flavour and succulent texture of the meat. Judges branded it “simply gorgeous”.

SCOTLAND

Smoked Salmon

The Top 50 represents just 0.5% of the 10,000 entries judged this year

Jaffys Mallaig Kippers J LAWRIE & SONS www.jaffys.co.uk

These plump smoked herrings come from the last remaining kipper yard in Mallaig. Pickled in a secret brine before being slowly smoked over oak shavings from sherry casks, these kippers bowled over our judges who loved the buttery, moist texture of the fish and praised the gentle, but lingering smoke flavours.

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

21

great taste 2014 LONDON

Yummyto Japanese Style Soy Sauce SEEWOO FOODS www.seewoo.com

“There’s a really special fermented element and beautiful aromatics,” said judges of this traditionally brewed Japanese-style soy sauce. Our panel enjoyed the deep complexity it delivered and found the balance of saltiness to be spot-on. “It has a glossy, vibrant colour and the flavour is long lasting.

Excellent as a condiment or in cooking.”

Raspberry Sorbet

SNOWFLAKE LUXURY GELATO www.snowflakegelato.co.uk

“The flavour they’ve managed to get from the raspberries is incredibly intense,” remarked judges of Snowflake Luxury Gelato’s raspberry sorbet, which has been made using spring water, grape sugar and a minimum of 70% fresh raspberries. Our panel found the consistency and colour to be beautiful and loved the smooth luxurious texture of the sorbet.

Cazcabel Honey Tequila

Lapsang Souchong

PROOF DRINKS

SILVER LANTERN TEA www.silverlanterntea. co.uk

Black tea from Fujian Province in eastern China has been dried over pinewood fires to produce this Lapsang Souchong from Silver Lantern. Judges said the tea had a clean smoky taste with a creamy wood flavour and deemed this tea “well-balanced with some sweetness in the finish”.

Basil & Chilli Gelato

www.proofdrinks.com

Lidgate’s Dry Cured Iberico Streaky Bacon C LIDGATE

www.lidgates.com

From west London’s Lidgate’s Butchers comes this sweet Iberico streaky bacon. Our panel found the meat to have remarkable depth of flavour and commended the thick-cut slices. “The fat literally melts in the mouth and we love the way the flavours develop,” remarked judges. “The sweet, nutty notes of the Iberico pork have great length of flavour.”

LA GELATIERA

www.lagelatiera.co.uk

This is the second year in a row that La Gelatiera’s innovatively flavoured gelatos have ranked in our Top 50 Foods. This year it was their fresh basil and Calabrian chilli number that stole the hearts of judges, who were impressed with the freshness of the basil and warming level of heat of the chilli.

African Queen 70%

DEMARQUETTE FINE CHOCOLATES www.demarquette.co.uk

The ganache for Demarquette’s African Queen is made from Ivory Coast cocoa and hints of Malagasy vanilla, layered on a base of hazelnut praline.

“A very high quality chocolate with a really stunning flavour,” said the judges, who enjoyed the great contrast between the smooth ganache and crunch of the praline.

“Gorgeous textures and flavours,” they added.

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

Produced from sun-baked agave in the Jalisco region of Mexico, this honey tequila has a natural citrus note that emerges during distillation. “The floral honey explodes in the mouth,” said judges, who praised the spirit’s smoothness, lack of burn and the hint of smoke in the finish.

Handmade Sea Salted Caramel CUTTER & SQUIDGE

www.cutterandsquidge.com

This salted caramel from Cutter & Squidge is made using Maldon sea salt, English butter and organic double cream.

Judges said it has a fantastic consistency and loved the silky, creamy butterscotch flavours it delivered. The balance of sea salt was deemed perfect and cut through the sweetness wonderfully.

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great taste 2014 Raw Organic Wild Rata Honey WEDDERSPOON ORGANIC www.wedderspoon.co.uk

Blackcurrant with Juniper Dark Truffle WHITE RABBIT CHOCOLATIERS www.whiterabbitchocolate.co.uk

White Rabbit Chocolatiers has a slew of Great Taste awards to its name and this year it adds its outstanding blackcurrant dark chocolate truffles infused with juniper.

Judges said the truffles had a “delicious blackcurrant flavour and lovely texture”, and went on to say the chocolate shell was well tempered and the filling “intense and creamy”.

Steak & Stilton Pie WILLIAM DYER

www.williamdyerbutchers.co.uk

“A very handsome pie with a robust filling,” said our judges of this steak & stilton number from William Dyer Butchers of Hampshire and Surrey. “The beef is gloriously tender and the flavour combination wonderful.” Our panel also said the pie was generously filled and applauded the buttery puff pastry.

Golden Raspberry & Apache Chilli Vinegar WOMERSLEY FRUIT & HERB VINEGARS www.womersleyfoods. com

Aged Goat Gouda

RIBBLESDALE CHEESE www.ribblesdalecheese.wordpress.com

This goat gouda is made in North Yorkshire and aged for six months before release. This cheese caused quite a commotion, exciting judges with its consistent, creamy texture and the salty, matured finish it left on the palate. “An amazing aroma and a flavour to awaken the taste buds,” said our panel who deemed it a “very special cheese”.

Dry Cured Back Bacon

METCALFE’S BEEF & PORK www.metcalfes-butchers.co.uk

Every judging table that tried this bacon was unanimous about the salt level and texture of the meat being absolutely perfect. Our experts said the natural sweetness of the pork came through wonderfully and that there was just the right amount of fat to each rasher.

Womersley has made this outstanding vinegar by hand, using fresh Scottish golden raspberries and British apache chillies.

Judges enjoyed the beautiful balance of fruit sweetness, vinegar acidity and the building warmth from the chillies. “A marvelous and complex vinegar,” they said. “An innovative product that works really well.”

Wild rata trees native to New Zealand’s South Island deliver a slight pine note to this floral honey. Judges were enamoured, declaring it “an utterly gorgeous honey”, following up with: “This honey tastes amazing!”

It was the smooth, velvety texture and clean, sweet, floral flavours that melt away beautifully that captivated our panel.

Intensely Buttermint R TWINING & COMPANY

www.twinings.com

Twinings’ Intensely Buttermint is a herbal infusion of fresh peppermint leaves blended with aromatic vanilla. “The flavour is so original,” said judges. “Just two ingredients in perfect harmony.”

This infusion has a wonderful aroma and delivers butterscotch flavours with a refreshing hit of mint.

Tortas De Aciete

Chaucers Camembert

www.delicioso.co.uk

www.cheesemakersofcanterbury.co.uk

These traditional sugared olive oil biscuits are handmade in Seville with extra virgin olive oil, sesame seeds and aniseed.

Previously awarded three stars back in 2010, judges liked the lingering aftertaste and said they have a good snap with a lovely flaky texture. Judges went on to praise the excellent balance between salt, sesame and aniseed flavours.

Handmade in Kent using pasteurised cows’ milk, this pretty little cheese is aged for three to six weeks. Our Great Taste experts commended its richness and perfect balance of acidity. “This beautiful cheese delivers a creamy texture and a fresh but deep flavour that goes on long into the finish,” said judges.

“Applause all round.”

DELICIOSO

SOUTH EAST

NORTH

CHEESEMAKERS OF CANTERBURY

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

25

Join the Guild of Fine Food for a night when the stars are out…

THE GREAT TASTE GOLDEN FORK AWARDS The most delicious night on the calendar, the most anticipated results in fine food, climaxing in the crowning of the Great Taste Supreme Champion 2014 Monday September 8 2014 at The Royal Garden Hotel, Kensington, London.

Drinks Reception, followed by Dinner and Presentations.

Join us in the company of leading chefs, food writers, top retailers and the very best food & drink producers for the biggest night of the year.

With drinks – mingle with awardwinning producers and retailers and chat with like-minded food industry folk as you enjoy a Great Taste cocktail.

With dinner – Four superb courses, beginning at 7.30pm, created

by Royal Garden Hotel chef, Steve

Munkley using some of the 2014 Great Taste award-winning foods to create a magnificent menu of mouthwatering morsels.

With wine – fine wines, chosen

by The Guild of Fine Food and served with each course along with the story of the 2014 Great Taste journey. BBC Radio’s favourite foodie, Nigel Barden will host the announcement of this year’s Golden Fork trophy winners.

With coffee – Tension will mount as the evening comes to a close and the moment when the supreme jury of judges reveals its choice for the Great Taste Supreme Champion 2014.

Lives will change after the evening’s announcements… come and enjoy being part of this celebration.

Reserve your tickets today, and hurry as places are in demand and strictly limited.

To avoid any disappointment, please contact charlie.westcar@finefoodworld.co.uk or call the Guild of Fine Food on 01747 825200.

great taste 2014 HANNAN MEATS

www.hannanmeats.com

Dry-aged for a whopping 40 days, this tagliata is a handsome piece of meat that packs huge depth of flavour. “The most gloriously beautiful joint of beef we have seen in a while,” said our Great Taste panel. “The fat is amazing.”

Moyallon 3 Sweet Bacon Ribs HANNAN MEATS

www.hannanmeats.com

NORTHERN IRELAND

Himalayan Salt-Aged Tagliata

Peter Hannan has worked his meaty magic on these bacon ribs, which are cured to a traditional recipe and then sweetened in a sugar pit for 10 days. Our Great Taste experts loved the contrast in textures between the crisp edge, soft fat and succulent meat, finding the strong sweet and salty flavours to be in tune and perfectly balanced.

Himalayan Salt-Aged Fillet Steak

Himalayan Salt-Aged Rib of Beef

HANNAN MEATS

HANNAN MEATS

www.hannanmeats.com

A very special fillet steak that is dry-aged on the bone. Hats off to another exemplary piece of meat from Peter Hannan and his salt-ageing chamber.

Judges said the steak carries a wonderfully balanced flavour and delivers a great aftertaste.

www.hannanmeats.com

“Pure beef genius,” said our Great Taste experts of Hannan’s rib of beef that has been dryaged in a salt chamber for a minimum of 28 days. “Melts in the mouth,” said judges who went on to applaud the flavoursome fat and tender texture of the meat.

Himalayan Salt-Aged Rib Chop HANNAN MEATS

www.hannanmeats.com

Apple Loves Mint SUKI TEAHOUSE www.suki-tea.com

Suki Tea’s Apple Loves Mint is a robust blend that includes peppermint leaves, baby rose buds, chunks of papaya and apple. Judges declared it “a very well-executed blend that is well balanced”. They went on to say that the blend delivers very pronounced flavours without coming across too sweet.

The 12ft high solid wall of handcut Himalayan salt bricks in Hannan Meats’ dry ageing chamber is fast becoming something of legend. “A fabulous, juicy rib chop,” said our judges. “This has so much flavour and the fat is like butter. It is everything you would hope for and more.”

Venison Loin

BARONSCOURT ESTATE

Strawberry Ice Cream

MAUDS ICE CREAMS www.mauds.com

Since 1982, Mauds has been churning ice cream to its own recipe in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland. Its strawberry ice cream has a fabulously honest quality to it, say judges who enjoyed the velvety, creamy texture and the visible pieces of fruit within. “Tastes so natural and fresh,” said judges. “We just want to eat more of it.”

www.barons-court.com

This venison loin comes from wild sika deer that roam Northern Ireland’s Baronscourt Estate. Our panel of Great Taste experts said this lean joint of venison is tender, moist and carries great gamey flavours, without being too overpowering. “It has great character,” remarked judges.

“The meat has impressive, long lasting flavours.”

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

27

SOUTH WEST

great taste 2014 Keltic Gold

Oak Matured Vintage Cider

WHALESBOROUGH CHEESE www.whalesboroughcheese.co.uk

SHEPPY’S CIDER

“We think this is an outstanding washed-rind cheese,” said our experts when judging this pasteurised cows’ cheese, which is washed and scrubbed with cider three times a week during its aging. “The texture is stunning and the flavour is delicious,” continued judges. “Creamy, tangy, with clear notes of apple. A superbly made cheese.”

www. sheppyscider. com

Saddleback Pork Belly PIPERS FARM

www.pipersfarm.com

The pork belly from Piper Farms’ slow-grown saddleback pigs is hung on the bone for three weeks. Our panel said it was outstanding in every way, commending the pork belly’s perfect crackling, its wonderfully sweet depth of flavour and a remarkable melt in the mouth quality.

Made using apples from a single harvest at Three Bridges Farm, this cider from Sheppy’s has a lingering oak characteristic that goes on long into the finish.

Judges loved the mixture of apples used and the deep complex flavours this sparkling cider delivers.

Our judges were very impressed with the appearance of this handsome piece of belly pork from Cornwall’s Primrose Herd. With its layers of tender meat, fat and crackling, this belly pork from a heritage breed of pig enthralled the judges. “Lovely glazed crackling and sweet, moist meat,” said our panel. “The fat is creamy, light and full of flavour.”

WALES

Made using historic Gloucestershire Blaisdon red plums from the Forest of Dean, this jam impressed judges with its deep, dark flavours and perfect level of acidity. “A well-made jam with distinct, pronounced plum flavours,” said judges.

“Lovely balance of flavour. Vibrant and really juicy.”

www. patchworkpate.co.uk

Made using chickpeas, sun-dried tomatoes, pine nuts and basil, this product is described as “a Mediterranean taste bomb” by its producers and our panel concur heartily. “Plenty of flavour and a lovely rustic texture,” said judges. “The flavours come through in layers.

Wonderful.”

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

DAWN MEATS

www.dawnmeats.com

This pasture-fed Irish lamb is hand-trimmed to allow maximum meat coverage.

Judges found the lamb very fresh and bright, saying the lamb was well trimmed, moist and carved very, very well. Our panel said it was “beautifully flavoured, tender lamb with fat to die for.”

www.nobo.ie

Judges were hugely impressed with this dairy-free ice cream made from avocado, coconut milk and honey. Flavoured with fresh lemon juice and Madagascan vanilla bean extract, this ice cream is wonderfully creamy and smooth. “The lemon and coconut balance so well,” said our panel.

“A really clever product and all judges enjoyed the flavours.”

www.primroseherd.co.uk

www.theartisankitchen. co.uk

Natures Meadow French Dressed Lamb Rack

NOBÓ

PRIMROSE HERD

THE ARTISAN KITCHEN

THE PATCHWORK TRADITIONAL FOOD COMPANY

Nobó Frozen Goodness: Fresh Lemon

Gloucester Old Spot Belly Pork

Blaisdon Red Plum Jam

Red Pesto Paté

IRELAND

Easy Thai Green Curry Paste THE COCONUT KITCHEN

Irish Atlantic Sea Salt with Dill Pollen IRISH ATLANTIC SALT www.irishatlanticsalt.ie

Michael and Aileen O’Neill have infused their Atlantic sea salt – Produced in West Cork using sustainable methods – with dill pollen.

Judges said it is one of the best flavoured salts they have ever tasted and that the balance between the salt and dill is superb. “An outstanding salt with fabulously textured flakes,” they added.

Beef Dripping

www.thecoconutkitchen.co.uk

JAMES WHELAN BUTCHERS

Our judges said this was a very wellrounded product and loved the “great umami hit of fish sauce that has been balanced against the other flavours very well”. This spicy curry paste also includes a fragrant lemongrass backbone and vibrancy from basil and lemon. “It has a good deep flavour profile,” said our panel, who enjoyed the late chilli heat.

www.jameswhelanbutchers.com

This rendered beef suet is from Angus and Hereford beef and was an absolute showstopper.

Our Great Taste experts fell in love with the clarity of flavour to this dripping and deemed it perfection for roasting, baking and spreading.

“Tremendous, deep beefy flavours,” exclaimed judges. “Blew us all away.”

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September 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8

Email: sales@bespoke-foods.co.uk

Web: www.bespoke-foods.co.uk

great taste 2014 Whole Hot Smoked Salmon

EXTREMADURAN WAREHOUSE

STEFAN PÅLSSON

www.stefanpalssonab.se

Scandinavians know a thing or two about smoking salmon and this one has been hot smoked whole in Sweden by the team at Stefan Pålsson. “A most majestic beast,” said one judge of our panel.

“Wonderfully moist salmon and perfectly seasoned. It falls off the bone in the most beautiful way.”

www.extremaduran.com

Produced using the pasteurised milk from Retinta goats and aged for 40 days, Viejo Maestro impressed our Great Taste experts with its fresh grassiness and complex goats’ milk flavour. “There’s a lot of length and depth,” remarked judges, who commended the rich, creamy texture of the cheese, crowning it “an excellent product”.

Ellopia Thyme Honey ELLOPIA GREEK FOODS

www. ellopiagreekfoods.com

The wild thyme growing on the rocky northern shores of Andros in Greece has brought a pronounced floral quality to this honey.

“It has a real purity,” said our judges, who thought the deep, golden honey had a wonderful length of flavour and a bright intensity of thyme.

75% Forastero Cocoa – Brazil AKESSON’S ORGANIC

BRINDISA

“Great looking bar that melts wonderfully in the mouth. Delivers very dark and interesting flavours that linger,” said judges of this bar, which is produced with cocoa from Akesson’s own estate.

The cocoa is roasted to enhance natural coffee notes which judges, found come through clearly and last into the finish.

www.brindisa.com

“We love the fermented grassy notes,” said judges of this Azeitao cheese which is made using raw sheep’s milk. This DOP cheese is produced in the south of Portugal

by Victor Fernandes and carries a unique mix of sour, salty and spicy flavours. “It’s firm, yet runny,” continued judges, “and the complexity of flavour is stunning.”

This ham comes from pure-bred Iberian pigs that are raised on a diet of Spanish acorns. “Sweet caramel notes layer with dark, aged ham and a nuttiness that lasts long into the finish,” said judges who applauded the ham’s deep red colour, which is marbled with silky white fat.

REDHILL FARM FREE RANGE PORK

Brock Hall Farm is no newcomer to our Top 50 Foods having placed a cheese in the list just last year. For 2014 it triumphs with this semi hard goat cheese Joie de Chevre.

Our panel of experts loved the richness and fresh goats’ milk flavours this cheese delivers and praised the nutty, lingering finish.

Chase Raspberry Liqueur

Gooseberry & Limoncello ALDER TREE

CHASE DISTILLERY

www.alder-tree.co.uk

www.redhillfarm.com

www.chasedistillery.co.uk

Redhill Farm’s loin of pork comes from free-range Duroc cross pigs raised in the heart of Lincolnshire.

“Great aroma and beautiful marbling of fat right the way through the centre,” said our Great Taste experts who also applauded the meat’s clean depth of flavour and silky, sweet fat.

The team at Chase have made this delicious raspberry liqueur using their English potato vodka and fresh rhubarb. It has a wonderful blushing colour and a pleasant, well-balanced nose.

Judges declared it outstanding, saying it was “almost too easy to drink, we were reaching for more.”

Alder Tree has a long list of Great Taste awards to its name and has been making its unique cream ice in Suffolk since 2007. This gooseberry & limoncello flavour is “smooth with a great tang”, said judges. They added: “Light but intensely flavoured.

The fruit and lemon sang together beautifully.”

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

MIDLANDS & EAST ANGLIA

Free Range Loin of Pork

www.brockhallfarm.com

Queijo de Azeitao DOP www.victorfernandes.lda.pt

www.jamonesjuanpedrodomecq.com

BROCK HALL FARM DAIRY

This vinegar is made using Moscatel de Alejandria grapes before being cask-aged for six years.

Judges found the vinegar to have astonishing complexity both on the aroma and the palate, its flavours hanging around in the mouth for a good while after tasting. “A delightful explosion of developing flavours,” said judges. “It’s sharp, it’s sweet, it’s warm, it’s exciting!”

VICTOR FERNANDES QUEIJARIA ARTESANAL

JUAN PEDRO DOMECQ

Joie de Chevre

Casta Diva Moscatel Vinegar

www.akessons-organic.com

Jamon de Bellota 100% Iberico Pata Negra

WORLD FLAVOURS

Viejo Maestro

31

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8 1 SIAL14_FineFoodDigest_204x141.5_UK.indd

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cheesewire Unsung heroes Hidden gems from British producers

news & views from the cheese counter

Reblochon looks to grow UK sales with PR drive

Lord London In a nutshell: A semi-soft bloomy-rinded cheese made with pasteurised cows’ milk by Sussexbased Alsop and Walker. The bellshaped cheese weighs 500-600g and is matured for five weeks.

Flavour and texture: A cross between a Camembert and a Brie, the cheese is quite firm when young with distinct citrus notes, becoming softer and creamier as it gets older.

History: Arthur Alsop and Nicholas Walker have been making cheese since 2008 and are well known for Mayfield – a Swiss-style cheese named after the village where they are based. Lord London was launched to coincide with the London Olympics and was served as part of the Royal Wedding breakfast at the Goring Hotel. The shape is achieved with moulds usually used for a Spanish cheese called Tetilla (which translates as ‘little breast’).

The company sells it on its Borough Market stall at around £25/kg.

Cheese Care: It has a shelf life of two months and should be stored in the same way as other soft and semi-soft cheeses. Most retailers sell the cheese whole or in halves.

Why stock it: No other British cheese has quite the same shape.

Made within a 50-mile radius of the capital, this could be classed as a ‘local’ product by London retailers.

Perfect partners: Alsop pairs it with Prosecco or a chilled Beaujolais.

He also likes to serve it sliced over salad leaves with toasted almonds and a simple vinaigrette. “I sometimes use it to make the sauce for cauliflower cheese,” he added.

Where to buy: Cheese Cellar, Rowcliffes or direct: www.alsopandwalker.co.uk.

FFD features a different ‘unsung hero’ from Specialist Cheesemakers’ Association members each month. To get involved, contact: patrick.mcguigan@finefoodworld.co.uk

The French trade body is hoping to convince Brits that there’s more to its alpine cheese than tartiflette

By MICHAEL LANE

The trade association representing Reblochon de Savoie AOP (Appellation d'Origine Protégée) has launched its first PR campaign in the UK as it looks to boost awareness and sales of the protected French cheese.

The Syndicat Interprofessionel du Reblochon will be looking to promote the unpasteurised semihard cows’ milk cheese through press coverage as well as TV and radio campaigns, which will run until the end of the year.

The campaign, which will be run by London-based Westbury Communications, will aim to highlight the cheese’s various sweet and savoury culinary uses – in addition to the well-known alpine dish of tartiflette – as well as highlighting the variations in the cheese due to the seasons and

production method.

According to market research carried out by the Syndicat, even though the British public is familiar with tartiflette, few associate Reblochon with the dish.

The research revealed that the increasing trend of buying British and wariness of foreign language packaging could be some of the barriers to raising sales of the cheese. It also identified some 1,500 speciality cheese retailers and online sales as areas for potential growth.

One of the first cheeses to be granted protected status in France, Reblochon de Savoie was first awarded Appellation d'Origine Controlee in 1958 and was granted EU-protected AOP status in 1996.

It is made using unpasteurised milk from indigenous breeds of cows – Abondance, Tarentaise and Montbéliarde – across the Haute-

Savoie and Val d’Arly regions.

Two varieties are produced under the rules of the AOP. Reblochon de Savoie Fermier is made twice a day by one of 135 farm producers using the milk from a single herd while Reblochon de Savoie is made using mixed milk in a dairy.

During 2013-2014, 17,000 tons of the cheese was produced of which 17% was the fermier variety.

“We are looking forward to our first marketing foray into the UK and to raising awareness of the provenance and quality of Reblochon de Savoie,” said Syndicat Interprofessionel du Reblochon MD Lucile Marton. “We hope that the media and consumers alike will be pleasantly surprised by the versatility of this cheese and the truly creative ways with which it can be used in cooking.”

New study calls on cheese-makers to deliver more salt reductions Consensus Action on Salt & Health (CASH) has said some cheese-makers are not doing enough to reduce salt levels and claimed that some products are saltier than seawater.

The health-lobbying group published a paper in the British Medical Journal last month, calling on the Government to get tougher on cheese “unnecessarily loaded with salt”.

On average, the study found that halloumi and imported blue cheeses (2.71g/100g) contained the highest amounts of salt – more than seawater – while cottage cheese (0.55g/100g) contained the lowest amount.

CASH said that the Department of Health must force the food

industry to sign up to new stricter salt reduction targets. It said evidence showed that cheeses given previous targets by the Food Standards Agency had shown improvements, chiefly supermarkets’ own brands rather than branded cheese.

While the report clearly targets so-called “big brands”, both trade bodies and smaller cheese-makers were quick to fight their corner in the national press.

Both Billy Kevan of Colston Bassett Stilton and Sarah Hampton of goats’ cheese specialist Brock Hall Farm told the Guardian that salt is integral to the structure of cheese and not just its flavour. www.actiononsalt.org.uk

VAYA CON QUESO: World Cheese Awards supreme judge Carlos Yescas has expanded his specialist Mexican cheese distribution business, Lactography, with the addition of its first shop.

QuesoStore has opened in Mexico City’s new Mercado Roma and is the first outlet of its kind in the country. It will stock artisan and farmstead cheeses from Mexico, and Yescas, who runs Lactography with his sister Georgina, hopes to introduce artisan products from Canada and the USA within the next year.

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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Hard pressed but highly praised

Interview

Bill Oglethorpe’s Bermondsey Hard Pressed has just received the highest accolade his fellow specialist cheese-makers can bestow. PATRICK McGUIGAN met him at his London base.

T

he James Aldridge Memorial Trophy doesn’t get the same level of publicity as the big international cheese awards, but for many cheese-makers it is the ultimate accolade. Named after the legendary affineur and serial creator of new cheeses, the award is organised by the Specialist Cheesemakers’ Association to recognise the best raw milk cheese of the year, with entries nominated and judged by its members.

This year’s winner was Bermondsey Hard Pressed – an Alpine-style cows’ milk cheese made under a railway arch in South East London by Kappacasein.

“Everything I’ve been trying to do came together in that one cheese,” says owner Bill Oglethorpe. “The award is nice because it’s an acknowledgement and reassurance from other cheese people that we are doing something right.”

There’s a pleasingly circular plot to the story, in that Oglethorpe actually met Aldridge several times before he died and there are definite parallels between the two men.

Like Aldridge (who also worked as a scaffolder and mechanic), Oglethorpe has led an interesting life. He was raised in Zambia, studied agriculture in Switzerland and made goats’ cheese in Provence, before settling at Neal’s Yard Dairy in the early ’90s. Over a 14 year period he worked in the shop, running the maturing rooms and helped develop Jamie Montgomery’s famous raclette-style cheese Ogleshield (which is partly named after him.)

Oglethorpe also has an entrepreneurial streak that Aldridge would have related to. He set up Kappacasein while he was still at Neal’s Yard, selling raclette and toasted cheese sandwiches from a stall at Borough market. It became so successful that he went it alone six years ago and today the business sells a tidal wave of melted cheese at the weekends, with visitors wolfing down around 800 toasties and the same number of raclette over three days at £5 a pop.

Oglethorpe has also turned urban cheese-maker, collecting raw organic milk from a farm in Kent and turning it into Bermondsey

Bill Oglethorpe with his James Aldridge Memorial Trophy winner: ‘Everything I’ve been trying to do came together in that one cheese’

I like to think for myself rather than follow a ❛recipe exactly. You have to look, smell, taste and trust your instincts. ❜ Hard Pressed, Bermondsey Frier (a halloumi-style cheese) and new washed rind cheeses Bis and Tito.

Yoghurt, butter and cream are also new additions to the range, which is sold from the production unit in Bermondsey on Saturday mornings and to Neal’s Yard’s wholesale arm.

It’s an unusual business model, which reflects the owner’s restless and enquiring mind. The way the cheese is made is equally idiosyncratic. Oglethorpe does not buy in starter cultures, but makes his own – something that is almost unheard of in British cheese-making.

In the same way that sourdough bread uses a ‘mother dough’, he uses his own mother starters made by incubating some of the

previous week’s milk at different temperatures before freezing it and using it to start the next batch.

“I was advised not to do it, but I wanted everything to be connected – the starter, the milk and the cheese – so I consulted with the SCA who gave me a lot of helpful advice,” he says.

“It’s tested every three months and I also conduct my own tests.

The stronger bacteria win out over time so you have in many ways quite a simple starter, which allows the natural bacteria in the milk to express itself.”

The cheese is made in a 100-year-old copper vat, bought in Switzerland, which is heated by a gas burner to mimic the wood fires

that were used in Alpine chalets.

Oglethorpe also cuts the curd by hand using a traditional tool called a ‘harp’ and scoops up the curds from the whey in pieces of cloth.

“You get more options when you cut curds by hand – you can go slower, faster, harder or softer, depending on how the curds feel,” he says. “Ivan Larcher [the cheese consultant] once told me that ‘the clock does not make the cheese’, which is true. I like to think for myself rather than follow a recipe exactly. You have to look, smell, taste and trust your instincts.”

Quite where the business goes next is not clear. Oglethorpe was recently approached by a Japanese retailer who wanted to recreate his cheese toastie stall in Tokyo, but he is sceptical that it will work in such a different setting. He is also reluctant to start dealing with other wholesalers or sell his cheese direct because of the extra layer of management that would need.

“I’ve been thinking about how a business runs a lot recently.

There’s a style that comes from the person that starts it, but to maintain that style the person has to have a lot of charisma and be very persuasive. The bigger you get the more charisma and persuasion you need. If you don’t have those management skills then the style gets diluted and goes off on all sorts of tangents. That’s the main obstacle we have.”

Oglethorpe’s previous history suggests it won’t be too long before he comes up with an original idea to solve the problem. Maybe he can take inspiration from his kindred spirit James Aldridge and the award named after him. www.kappacasein.com

Bermondsey Hard Pressed is made in a 100-year-old Swiss copper vat and cut and strained with traditional tools Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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Me and my cheese counter This month we talk to Michael Dale of Umami Deli in Wantage.

“Y

ou really need to enjoy dealing with people to make a success of running a deli,” says former logistics consultant, Michael Dale. “The great joy of a good deli is talking to real people.” It is three years since he and partner, Annette Holliday experienced what he refers to as their ‘sod-it’ moment – that point in both their lives when they realised it was time to do what they really wanted to do.

They researched well, taking nine months to locate a former electrical shop in the South Oxfordshire town of Wantage with the right potential in terms of space, location and footfall.

Their professional background dictated branding the new store would be crucial to creating the right image and a smart London design agency designed their striking logo and clean image.

They booked onto several training courses, including those run by the Guild and by September 2011, the former 1200sq.ft electrical store had been transformed into a light, airy deli with 20 covers for snacks and lunches. But it’s the cheese counter that inspires Michael most and the area that has undergone most change in almost three years of trading.

“I started with around 20 cheeses which has grown to between 50 to 60 at any one time out of a range of 80,” he recalls, “and the increase has

come from a better understanding of the world of cheese. I learnt that selling food, cheese in particular, involves talking and understanding the language of taste.

When describing cheese flavours, Michael uses phrases such as ‘a flinty edge’ or ‘ lovely long finish with a touch of acidity’ which he believes helps draw customers into to his world. “People buy sweet cheeses because they’ve only tasted Seriously Strong and other supermarket cheddars,” he says. “But if you let them taste really good cheeses, those made properly, you give them a completely different level of flavours.

He believes much modern, fast-made cheeses deliver strong but short-lived flavours. “When they ask for a strong cheddar, their point of reference is supermarket cheddar so I’ll cut a taster of Montgomery or Barbers’ 1833 or sometimes even Single Gloucester from Charles Martell. If it’s a touch of sweetness they're after I’ll offer the sweet nuttiness of a caveaged Le Gruyère or

the surprisingly gentle Thomas Hoe Red Leicester. These last two aren’t full-on strong but deliver intensely complex flavours and I simply stand and watch the beaming smiles spread across their faces as they taste.”

Michael continues to widen his cheese knowledge – a visit to Spanish speciality importer Brindisa uncovered proper Manchego, “not that young pasteurised stuff sold in supermarkets.” He deliberately chops and changes the selection.

“For a while, I stocked a beautiful Manchego rolled in rosemary – it was gorgeous and I was getting through around 2 kilo each weekend. I dropped it for a month and people came in asking for it so back it came.”

The counter is some 4m in length but cheese generally accounts for just half, the rest is charcuterie and salad goods. “You can’t sell cheese if it’s wrapped up,” Michael insists, “and you need to have a few surprises and be prepared to invest in tasters if you want to sell.”

“I offer them my ‘seriously’ strong Spanish blue cheese, Tresviso and as they’re tasting, produce a couple of Chatos dried Muscatel Le Gruyère AOP’s Helen Daysh comments Michael clearly realizes the benefits of a professional image coupled with cheese knowledge and cheese quality.

Mix the three together and the result will always be happy customers and a busy shop

grapes I keep in a box behind the counter. I suggest they taste ‘one of these little jewels’ at the same time it works a treat” With such a clearly defined approach to working the counter, the usual accompaniments are close at hand. “I have a fig and almond cake I cut into 100g slices and sell for £3.50. Customers love it and we get good margin.” His fruit jellies from Hawkshead and Fine Cheese Company sit alongside crackers from Peter’s Yard and Fine Cheese. “I’ve also got some superb Spanish ship’s biscuits or marineras from Daveiga which give me a real point of difference – so much so, customers bring their friends in just to taste what we have to offer.

Michael sells a lot of Lincolnshire Poacher, Montgomery cheddar, Colston Bassett (‘it has a gorgeous metallic twang’), Le Gruyère (‘cave-aged gives real depth') and Quicke’s hard goats’ cheese. “I like to confound customers who tell me they don’t like goats’ cheese – I say taste this and of course there’s no goatiness until the finish. Even then, it’s so gentle.”

When asked which cheeses failed to work for him, he is resolute.

“Without naming names, it only happens if I go down market. It’s a fact of life that for very little more money. I can offer better value and better quality cheeses. My customers are happy to go along with me – they accept my recommendations.

“We even get staff from the cheese counter at the local Waitrose in here,” he adds, “I stock cheeses they don’t sell.”

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

cut & dried

making more of british & continental charcuterie

Spanish-made snack charcuterie to launch in UK this month

By MICK WHITWORTH

The couple behind niche charcuterie importer Konect Distribution are launching the UK’s first air-dried snack ham product after teaming up with major Spanish charcuterie producer Espuña.

Marcus Mitchell and Annabel Spink have set up The Snack Ham Co as a standalone company to exploit the potential for a range of ambient meat snacks, starting with two styles of air-dried ham – Original and spicier Chorizo flavour – as well as a snacking chorizo.

The latter, to be marketed at Snack Sticks in the UK, has already won an award in the international Product of the Year scheme and all three products have been “tried and tested” in Continental markets.

Mitchell and Spink have formed a joint venture with Espuña, based in Olot, which has factories in Spain and Argentina producing around 7,500 tonnes of Serrano ham and other charcuterie in numerous formats. Its biggest export market is France, where it is market leader in Spanish charcuterie, with Portugal and Britain its next biggest customers.

The Snack Sticks are made with a novel seaweed-based coating,

The air-dried ham and chorizo snacks have been tested on the Continent but rebranded for the UK

developed by scientists working for Espuña, which doesn’t leave the same residue in the mouth as the typical synthetic or natural gut casing. “This is a first in the world of charcuterie,” Mitchell told FFD. The recipes of the original Spanish products have also been tweaked to suit UK palates.

The products were previewed at June’s Harrogate Speciality Food Show, where Mitchell said he and Spink had “a really good show”, but packaging had not then been finalised. The brand will be given a full-scale launch at the Lunch! trade show later this month (see preview – p81) and limited samples will be available on Marcus Carter’s Artisan Food Club stand at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair.

“We’ve got a few products going through Marcus to specific

clients,” Mitchell said, “He’s a nice guy and a really hard worker, and of course he’s ex-Patchwork Paté so he knows the market. But we are really at SFFF to support Hider Foods, who will be the distributor to delis and farm shops.”

The Snack Ham Co has struck an exclusive distribution deal “on

Partners Annabel Spink and Marcus Mitchell have offered Hider Foods exclusive distribution in the speciality sector

a handshake” with Hider within the speciality sector, but Mitchell says the products will suit a wider audience, including convenience stores and petrol forecourts. Here the relatively soft-eating products will be pushed as a high-protein, low-carb range particularly suitable for active, outdoor enthusiasts seeking a more palatable alternative to jerky and biltong.

The air-dried ham packs will have a trade price of around £1.38 for 30g (RRP £1.99) while the Snack Sticks will cost 80p for 6 sticks in a 26g pack (RRP £1.20).

Other products already in development include curry-flavoured salami sticks, to be launched next year. www.snackham.com www.hiderfoods.co.uk www.espuna.co.uk

Serious Pig rolls out loose salami format

By MICK WHITWORTH

Snacking salami brand Serious Pig has launched a branded “retail ready” box of 25 unpackaged salamis ready to serve straight from the counter.

Company founder George Rice said the novel format had already been trialled in retail and was now being rolled out nationally “for customers who’d prefer to offer our salamis alongside the rest of their charcuterie”.

“Initial interest and uptake has been excellent and we see this becoming a large part of our business,” he said, “especially as more and more customers recognise the quality of British charcuterie.”

Rice said a stack of loose salamis had strong visual appeal, adding: “The costs saved by not packing

each individual salami is passed on, reducing the price by 25%, which increases the rate of sale.”

The lid of the bespoke box display box folds back to show the Serious Pig brand and Great Taste award logo.

Each box of 25 salamis is delivered in a “protected atmosphere” outer bag with a

minimum of three months ambient shelf life unopened.

Once opened, Rice says the salamis are best sold from a chiller cabinet, giving a shelf life of around 10 days, but can also be sold from the counter-top.

A box of 25x28g salamis wholesales at £20.00 (80p each or £25.57/kg) and each salami has an RRP of £1.30.

Both the classic and chilli & paprika flavours are available in the new box format.

Founded in 2009, Serious Pig was one of the first new-wave British charcuterie makers. Its individually packed snacking salamis are stocked at Selfridges, Fortnum & Mason, Harvey Nichols, Jamie Oliver’s Recipease, Fodder and farm shops, delis and gastro pubs nationwide.

PREMIUM PAIRING: The new catalogue from Oxfordshire-based Spanish foods importer Delicioso, launching at this month‘s Speciality & Fine Food Fair, includes a premium charcuterie double-pack that looks particularly suitable for the gifting market. It brings together an Iberico de Bellota chorizo and a salami, both made with meat from freerange acorn-fed pigs. Made by a family-run artisan-scale business in western Spain’s Extremadura region, the sausages are vacuum-packed and presented in a smart corrugated pack, tied with rustic string. They’re described as “high quality and very tasty” by Delicioso’s Kate ShirleyQuirk, who adds: “They’d be perfect for foodie gifts and hampers.”

www.seriouspig.co.uk

www.delicioso.co.uk

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

show preview

Over 700 exhibitors at bigger-than-ever Olympia trade fair With the nation’s biggest fine food fair breaking all its own records this year, MICK WHITWORTH gets the inside info from show director Soraya Gadelrab. Our stand-by-stand A-Z listing starts on page 47, while LYNDA SEARBY previews the Speciality Chocolate Fair on page 69.

I

t may be moving into a different hall of London’s Olympia complex next year for “a bit of a facelift”, but the biggest speciality food show in Britain is proving it still has legs after returning to its pre-recession scale last year.

The 2014 Speciality & Fine Food Fair (SFFF) – running in the now familiar Grand Hall from September 7-9 before shifting to the National Hall next year – will boast an 18% increase in floorspace and 14% more exhibitors than in 2013.

“It’s a huge increase for us year on year,” says show director Soraya Gadelrab of organiser Fresh Montgomery, who describes the scale of interest from exhibitors this year as “ridiculous” – in a good way, obviously.

Around 520 companies and producer

groups have taken stands, while a further 190 or so are sharing space with other firms, putting the total number of exhibitors at just over 700.

Twenty-two nations are represented, from Jordan to Sri Lanka, with overseas exhibitors filling a quarter of the Grand Hall. And several of those countries will be taking more space than ever before.

“We’ve got more metreage from the established national exhibitors, like the Portuguese and the Spanish,” Gadelrab tells FFD, adding: “I think some of these countries have been a bit slower coming out of recession than us, and are seeing the UK as an attractive market.

“There are three Italian regions represented

Show director Soraya Gadelrab says 52% of exhibitors are first-timers to the show.

‘That’s big news, because visitors are always saying they want new, exciting products’

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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show preview this year – Tuscany, Parma and Piemonte – where there were two last year. And the US has taken two pavilions: we’ve got Virginia here as a region for the first time, as well as the usual Specialty Food Association, which makes me wonder whether the US is seeing this as more of a key market.”

In another interesting change, Japan has taken two large pavilions at Olympia for 2014 to highlight two of its signature products: wagu beef and the fermented rice drink sake.

“They’re hoping to make sake more of a ‘drink of choice’ here in the UK,” says Gadelrab.

‘That doesn’t mean ‘mainstream’, because it will always be high-end, but at the moment it’s not something that people here would walk into a bar and order.”

Closer to home, Invest Northern Ireland is taking its own stand this year, specifically to promote the region’s recent Great Taste award successes (including successive Supreme Champion titles in 2011 and 2012) after sharing space with Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board, in recent years. And while, in these more careful times, Scotland no longer blockbooks its own big pavilion, membership body Scotland Food & Drink has this year bought its own stand in the Scottish section assembled

by Gadelrab and her team, to capitalise on current interest in all things north of the border. “2015 is the Year of Food & Drink in Scotland,” Gadelrab points out, “and with the Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup this year, food has been a big part of that.”

Even the Speciality Chocolate Fair, the show-within-a-show bolted on to the SFFF in 2008, has seen a 7% increase in space booked and a 25% uplift in the number of companies taking part – including more British chocolatiers this year.

Perhaps the only real negative in recent years has been the loss of English regional food group stands, which used to be such a dominant feature of all UK trade shows but which largely fizzled out as Government funding disappeared. Of the three still standing at last year’s fair, HEFF, the West Midlands food

Where and when Grand Hall Olympia Exhibition Centre Hammersmith Road London W14 8UX Sunday September 7 – 10am to 5.30pm Monday September 8 – 9.30am to 5pm Tuesday September 9 – 9.30am to 5.pm

group, has recently closed its doors, while Select Lincolnshire, although still active, is not taking part. Which leaves just Taste of the West – perhaps the only former government-backed group to successfully move to a commercial model – as the only one to block-book a large area of the show and sell it on to members. So anyone looking for West Country food won’t be short of options.

And any worries that the loss of statesubsidised food groups would mean fewer interesting little exhibitors for retailers to see at SFFF appear to have been unfounded. When FFD spoke to Gadelrab a few weeks before the show, around 130 of the 700 exhibitors had booked as part of the show’s Small Producer Village – a section of lower-cost stands for small, first- and second-time exhibitors, which always yields a few interesting discoveries for retail buyers.

In fact, 52% of exhibitors at this year’s fair are newcomers, compared with 42% last year. “That’s big news for us,” says the

show director, “because visitors are always saying that what the want to see are ‘new, exciting products’.

“Sometimes, if the percentage of new exhibitors it so high, you worry that you are losing a lot of the old guys. But the show has grown, so this is actually about adding people, not losing people.”

It’s not all about tiny start-ups, either, says Gadelrab. “We have seem more companies coming into the marketplace – both little, artisan, ‘handmade’ producers and the bigger, better funded speciality firms that perhaps have a bit more money and business acumen behind them and can see an opportunity in this sector.”

As FFD reports on pages 16-18 of this issue, the lines between speciality and mainstream are becoming increasingly blurred, with wellheeled entrepreneurs creating faux “artisan” brands and more corporate retailers and caterers looking to enhance the “speciality” image of their mainstream food offer.

British Airways and Virgin Trains have each recently appointed DHL to handle their food supply chain from procurement through to delivery, and the three companies will

❛

Twenty-two nations are represented, from Jordan to Sri Lanka, with overseas exhibitors filling a quarter of the Grand Hall

❜

Global reach Twenty-two countries are represented at this year’s SFFF. • Australia • Belgium • Bulgaria • Canada • Denmark • Estonia • France • Germany • Greece • Hungary • India • Ireland • Italy • Japan • Jordan • Luxembourg • Netherland • Portugal • South Africa • Spain • Sri Lanka • United States Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

43

show preview be running a meet-the-buyer programme at Olympia, creating potentially lucrative opportunities for some of Gadelrab’s exhibitors.

“Both British Airways and Virgin Trains are looking for quintessentially British products with good back-stories,” she says. “Exhibitors can apply to take part, they submit product samples and details of the stories behind them, and BA, Virgin and DHL will request meetings with the ones that interest them most.”

It’s one of several initiatives to add value for exhibitors this year. Another – which has already taken place – was a pre-show Exhibitor Enhancement Day, designed, says Gadelrab, to “help both new and returning exhibitors make the most out of being here”. It included advice sessions from Marcus Carter of the Artisan Food Club on the do’s and don’t of exhibiting and from Clare Downes of Monkhouse Marketing on achieving maximum exposure through PR, marketing and social media.

Selfridges cheese & deli buyer Adrian Boswell also ran a session for exhibitors on what top buyers are looking for – which again meant a good, marketable back-story as well as a great product. “I think producers are realising they have to go one step further now,” says Gadelrab.

Along with its core audience of buyers from delis, farm shops, food halls, cafés and restaurants, SFFF’s visitor base now spans everything from those BA and Virgin Trains buyers to the major supermarkets. According to Gadelrab, the old distinctions between what consumers buy in a deli, a farm shop or Tesco are getting blurred, and many exhibitors at SFFF are now finding ways to appeal to more than one market – like the health food sector.

“There’s massive crossover between health food and speciality food, and you can’t draw a line,” she says. “We’ve always had those health food buyers, but in recent years they’ve seen this as more of a market for them, so it’s about educating producers that they can sell themselves in that way.

“There’s no reason why you can’t be ‘speciality and healthfood’ or ‘speciality and mainstream’. You don’t have to pigeonhole yourself.”

• Register free to attend via the show website: www.specialityandfinefoodfairs.co.uk

SPECIAL FEATURES AT THIS YEAR’S SFFF Speciality Chocolate Live Watch and learn from top pastry chefs and chocolatiers, including executive pastry chef Martin Chiffers.

The Art of Belgian Chocolate In the Pillar Hall (adjoining Olympia’s Grand Hall) on Monday September 8, 14 exclusive Belgian chocolate producers will be showcasing their products. During the one-day event, Belgian chocolatier Peter Messely will demonstrate some “‘innovative and indulgent” combinations of chocolate with typical Belgian products, including Kriek, Gueze and Trappist beers and Speculoos caramel biscuits.

Fine Food Forum Live cookery demonstrations from leading chefs including Rachel Green, Steve Walpole, Dipna Anand and Hulya Erdin.

Small Business Forum Seminars and talks from industry experts, including Harrods director of food & beverage Bruce Langlands.

Business Mentoring Centre A chance to seek one-to-one practical business advice from Small Business Forum speakers.

44

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

Great Taste Deli For the second year running, three-star winners from Great Taste 2014 will again be showcased in a special Great Taste Deli (stand 910), adjacent to the Guild of Fine Food and FFD stand.

Bigger and better than last year, it will include tastings of awardwinning products every day, and on Tuesday September 9 the Guild expects to offer a special tasting of the 2014 Great Taste Supreme Champion, which will be announced at the Great Taste dinner the previous evening.

Products will be displayed on the new Brix modular shelving system from WBC. www.finefoodworld.co.uk

Made with Burrow Hill Cider Vinegar.

We source great flavour partners...

42

September

Winners of 20 Gold Great Taste Awards since 2007 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8

www.piperscrisps.com @Piperscrisps Piperscrisps

Voted for by the readers of Fine Food Digest

n on air e m us o nd d F Co sit Lo Foo vi at d 4 ine an 64 F nd y & sta alit i ec

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Servicing the art of Gastronomy

Charcuterie ~ Cheeses ~ Fresh Pasta ~ Antipasti ~ Seafood ~ Cakes ~ Oils ~ Vinegars 46

September 路 Vol.15 Food Digest July2014 Ad AW.indd 1

Issue 8

31/05/2012 12:16

shelftalk show preview

products, packaging & promotions

Who’s at Olympia this year?

Guild of Fine Food members in bold

900 Olive Oil...............................................V27 A&F Gelati Italiani.......................................403 Aceites Elizondo.........................................V15 Acetomodena Societa Agricola................ 530G Adelphi Coldstream....................................760 Aduna......................................................V114 African Volcano..........................................V56 Agenzia Di Promozione Economica Della Toscana.......................................................620 Aggelos Doukas & Panayiotis Doukas.........487 Alara Wholefoods.....................................1119 Alivini Company.......................................1048 Almuegaarden Sweets and Confectionery...249 Altiplans...................................................1013 Aman Prana................................................932 Amari in Carmignana di Amari Lorella & Mariella......................................................620 Amber Rose Tea Company..........................358 American Food Wholesalers......................1090 Angelic Gluten Free....................................430 Appetitus..................................................1059 Argentine...................................................854 Art Of Mallow............................................V90 Artisan Baker............................................V112 Artisan Bakery..........................................1072

Artisan Food Club.....................................V123 Artisan Kitchen............................... V125 ASA Supply...............................................1099 Ashridge Cider.................................. 834 Atkins and Potts............................. 1192 Atlantica (UK)...........................................1060 Authentic American Food Company...........961 Avlaki Superb Organic Olive Oils.... 241 Azienda Agricola Candiloro Vincenzo.......V101 Azienda Agricola Coppini Arte Olearia .......630 Azienda Agricola Il Cavallino di Salvadori Romania.....................................................620 Azienda Agricola Podere Gremigneto di Perini Luigi...........................................................620 Azienda Agricola Rita Salvadori...................620 Bag N Box Man..........................................143 Baghis di Pellizzari Fabio.............................V46 Baked In............................................. V52 Bay Tree Food Company................... 643 Belinda Clark Gourmet Confectioner..........V50 Bellota.............................................. V104 Belvoir Fruit Farms........................... 677 Bennett Opie..............................................939 Bespoke Foods.................................. 548 Better Bakes...............................................V30 Bicobel........................................................484 Biddenden Vineyards..................................440

New to the show in... …SAUCES

Otófé Tomatie Sauce “Speciality & Fine Food Fair is the premier exhibition for a premium product. There's no better way to do business face-to-face with buyers from independent retailers, food halls, delis, restaurants, hotels, coffee shops, cafés and farm shops,” said Otófé Tomatie, founder of the eponymous sauce company, when asked why she had decided to take space at the show.

The first-time exhibitor is bringing an African flavour to the event, with a theme song, film and signature dish – Anunérué – to promote its cooking sauce.

Made according to a traditional African recipe passed from Otófé’s grandmother, the sauce is intended as a base for authentic African dishes without the hidden salt and sugar of many other sauces. www.otofe.com

Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

47

Spe

ciali

ty Find & Fin us a e Fo t sta o nd n d Fair o.1 080 2014

New Gift Ideas

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530g Acetomodena Le Mesurier 530h La Mare Wine Est. Meat Makers Whittard of Chelsea 530i Little Mill Co. Oxford Dry Lucia Maria Melchiori Wild At Heart

Stand 434a 434b 434c 434d 434d

Birchall Tea Brew Tea Co. Perry Court Farm Filbert’s Fine Foods Sacla UK

430a 430b 430c 430d 430e

Serious Pig Caymanas T’OLIS Bim’s Kitchen Pulsin

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Pink’s Angelic Gluten Free Cotswold Fayre Devilishly Delicious

420a 420b 420c 420d 420e

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420f Coco Pzazz 420g Biscottea Biscoffee 420h Cotswold Fayre

420h

Cotswold Fayre Pavilion 420, 430, 434, 530 & 534 | Speciality & Fine Food Fair, 7-9 September | London Olympia

Contact us: 03452 606060 | sales@cotswold-fayre.co.uk | www.cotswold-fayre.co.uk 48

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

shelftalk show preview New to the show in... …SNACKS Hectares Glasgow-based crisp company Hectares is cashing in on the rising popularity of the sweet potato, which is held by many in higher health esteem than its white cousin.

“People are trying to avoid white carbs and eating sweet potatoes instead, as they are higher in fibre and make you feel fuller for longer,” explains former accountant and Hectares founder Kevin Harvie.

Some 60,000 bags of sweet potato crisps have already been sold under the brand since it launched in February, and the crisps are stocked by the likes of Harvey Nichols, Whole Foods, BP and BrewDog. Hectares hopes to “pick up more independent deli and farm shop accounts across the UK” at the show. www.hectares-sweetpotatocrisps.co.uk

products, packaging & promotions Big Banana Bread Co..................................776 Bim’s Kitchen.................................... 430 Bio-tiful Dairy.................................... V98 Bis*Bas.......................................................V23 Biscottea.................................................. 420G Biscuit Butter..............................................V87 Blackacre Farm Eggs......................... 834 Bobo..........................................................V65 Bonnie Yau’s Food Products............. 448 Bord Bia (Irish Food Board)..................615, 613 Bramley Mount Fruit Drying..................... 434C Bread Du Jour.................................. 1146 Bread Tree................................................V130 Breckland Orchard.......................... 1158 Brennan and Brown.................................. 740c Brit-Phil Enterprise........................... 879 British Cassis..................................... V35 Brown Bag Crisps.......................................251 Burren Smokehouse......................... 613 Buttermilk Confections...............................834 Byron Bay Cookie Co................................1185 Bysel...........................................................256 C Carnevale....................................... 970 Cafedirect................................................. 420E Cafes Henri.................................................707 Cambridge Muffin Company......................V42 Cambrook Foods............................... 341 Capreolus Fine Foods..................................848

Capsicana Chilli Co...................................V100 Casa Lucena - Portugal...............................344 Cawston Vale.............................................985 Caymanas Rum Cakes................................430 CB Italia......................................................895 Ceipiemonte SCPA......................................895 Ceylon Tearooms......................................V116 Chameleon Foods.......................................997 Chapmans Finest Fishcakes.............. 234 Chase Distillery.........................................1034 Chegworth Valley Juices................ 1140 Chesil Smokery...........................................V78 Chi Drinks...................................................988 Chiaverini Distribuzione..............................620 Cho Gazpacho............................................502 Chocolate Bite............................................V34 Chocolate Fusion.............................. 298 Choi Time Teas................................ 1148 Chosan.....................................................V122 Chunk of Devon.............................. 1191 Cibo London...............................................401 Cibosano....................................................644 Cibus Terrae................................................530 Cloud 9 Kettle Popcorn..............................V89 Cocofina...................................................1085 Coconut Chilli........................................... 848c Comptoir Gourmand................................1025 Conscious Foods.......................................1114

Visit us on Stand 1129

www.deliciousontap.co.uk 0203 397 4701 sales@deliciousontap.co.uk Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

49

SOME MASTERPIECES

From www.uncleroys.co.uk

MORE THAN 350 OF OUR EXCITING PRODUCTS will be on show at SFFF 2014 - STAND 507

01582 590999 www.westphalia.co.uk • Family company established 1977 • BRC certified at the highest level • Over 1000 products • Specialists in quality cooked meats and continental charcuterie • Full range of British and continental cheeses also supplied • Vast selection for the deli counter and retail packs for the chilled cabinet • FREE delivery anywhere in England & Wales (Ts & Cs apply) 50

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

shelftalk show preview

products, packaging & promotions

New to the show in... …CHUTNEYS

Rubies in the Rubble The sight of decent but discarded veg at New Covent Garden Market inspired Jenny Dawson to start a preserves business with a difference – all of Rubies in the Rubble’s jams, chutneys and pickles are made from surplus fruit and vegetables.

“We work directly with farmers and growers who have big supermarket contracts. We buy the wonky, out-of-spec fruit and vegetables that would otherwise be discarded,” explains Alicia Dawson, Jenny’s business partner.

Harvey Nichols, Selfridges and Fortnum & Mason have all bought into the concept, and the company’s aim in exhibiting at the show is to find new retail customers outside of London. www.rubiesintherubble.com

Cortijo Spiritu Santo Extra Virgin Olive Oil...V72 Cookie Crumbles..........................................V8 Cotswold Fayre.... 430, 434, 534, 530, 420 Cool Chile Co.............................................937 Cottage Delight................................ 545 Coppola Foods...........................................856 Cruzilles............................................. 609 Cornish Charcuterie.................................. 848e CSY Retail Systems.....................................876 Corretto Suite socio unico..........................V69 CRUZILLES-MENDIANTS-ANNONCE-GB-100x141,5_Mise en page 1 07/08/14 16:53 Page1 Cullisse Highland Rapeseed Oil....... 417 Corte Diletto...............................................979

Authentic Creation by Cruzilles

Davoise.....................................................609B Delcof.........................................................791 Deli-cious Oils & Vinegars.............. 1129 Delicandi Food..........................................V101 Delicioso UK...................................... 669 Deliwraps.......................................... 775 Dhaniya.............................................. V73 Dibal UK...................................................1011 Discover the Origin.....................................784 Districts of Italy................................ 933 Diverse Fine Food........................................245 Divine Deli Supplies...................................1172 Dolcemente................................................156 Dolcezze Savini...........................................620 Dolciaria Fraccaro Spumadoro.....................V61 Don Gastronom..........................................V77 Donatantonio.................................... 454 Drink Me Chai (Tea UK Ltd)..................... 534A Drury Tea & Coffee Company.......... 981 East Lothian Food and Drink.......................699 Easy Bean.......................................... 420 EDM France................................................V49 Edwards cordial........................................V110 Elsinore Foods...........................................1041 Emily Fruit Crisps......................................1082

Photo Luc Jennepin

The finest authentic ingredients Italy’s twenty regions have to offer

An innovative idea based on the classic French chocolate bonbon, the Mendiant.

Delicious Mendiants by Cruzilles: pear, apricot or raspberry, they are topped with a candied cherry, candied orange strip and candied fruit dice.

Come and discover it right now !

Meet us at the Specialty and Fine Food Fair, stand 609A!

C R U Z I L L E S , F L AV O U R S O F E X P E RT I S E

Building on the success of our existing regional Italian ingredients range, we will be showcasing 16 new delicious line extensions – sweet and savoury – at The Speciality Fine Food Fair.

Please do drop by and visit us at Stand Number 454.

We’d love to know what you think!

Or contact us at sales@lupetta.co.uk or 020 8236 2222 Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

51

BE7621_Range Rover Trade Ad Design_PR03.pdf

Our summer competition is proving popular...

1

04/08/2014

12:55

See us at SFFF 2014 on Stand Number 677.

We’ve already given away our first Land Rover and there’s one more left to win.

Our lovely promotional bottles are flying off the shelves, so stock up on our delicious Elderflower, Raspberry & Lemon and Ginger Cordials and give your customers a chance to win.

To take a look at the full range of our lovely drinks, visit: www.belvoirfruitfarms.co.uk

Roasting Kits Sensational Sunday roasts made simple Call us on 01672 556109 to find out more

www.pottspartnership.co.uk

Cottage Delight FFD September Ad_Cottage Delight FFD February Ad 07/08/2014 17:14 Pag

Celebrating 40 years

of dedication to quality and taste

Visit us on Stand No. 545 to sample our new and award winning range.

T: 01538 382020

sales@cottagedelight.co.uk

A family company passionate about good food.

52

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

show preview New to the show in... …ICE CREAM Corte Diletto New gelato brand Coppa della Maga is not yet present in the UK, but hopes it soon will be.

“That's the reason for coming to the show – to find potential partners for the UK market,” says Kalina Halatcheva, managing director of the brand’s Bulgarian owner, Corte Diletto.

Coppa della Maga is the first Italian style gelato to be sweetened with ‘natural’ sugar substitute stevia. Despite its lower calorie count, the ice cream is still indulgent, thanks to ingredients such as cream, butter, rose petals, Bourbon vanilla from Madagascar, Piemonte hazelnuts and bergamot oil from Italy, and cacao from Brazil and Africa. www.CoppaDellaMaga.com

Emmetts of Peasenhall..............................V128 Empire Foodbrokers....................................960 English Tea Shop (UK).................................594 EqualiTea..................................................1160 Eteaket.......................................................V91 Everest Salts................................................V59 FA Corporate..............................................817 Fairfields Farm Crisps....................... 446 Fallani Caramelle dal 1926..........................299 Farrington Oils................................ 1134 Fattoria Buca Nuova....................................620 FDL Packaging Group...............................1186 Fenton Farm Eggs........................... V119 FIAB Exterior................ 94, 895, 811, 901, 187 Fifth Dimension Chocolates............. 192 Filberts Fine Foods.........................434D Finca La Pontezuela....................................V37 Fine Cheese Co...........................................558 Fine Confectionery Company.......... 469 Fine Food Digest............................... 908 Fine Oils and Ingredients...............................V9 First Quality Foods......................................240 Flamigni......................................................356 Food Sellers....................................... 995 Foraging Fox...............................................V39 Forno Pasticceria di Fabbri e Mignani..........V21 Fosters Traditional Foods................. 687 Fratelli Camisa............................................886

French Comte.............................................340 French Dressing Co........................... 137 Fresh Erics Cake Co..................................1073 Fresh Pasta Company....................... 757 Friary Vintners.............................................740 Frobishers........................................534D Fromagerie P.Jacquin...................................707 Frozen Fruit Company...............................V134 Fruidoraix....................................................675 Fruit Gourmet.............................................707 Fudge Kitchen................................... 151 Furniss Biscuits.......................................... 834a Gadsby............................................... 667 Gal Capo di Leuca Gruppo di Azione Locale del Capo di S. Maria di Leuca...................1062 Galvanina...................................................434 George Skoulikas........................................697 Gigi il Salumificio......................................1120 Godminster Vintage......................... 834 Goldcraft....................................................971 Golden Nectar Co.......................................458 Good Heavens............................................531 Gorgeous Food Company............... 1049 Gourmandise Piquante...............................V92

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

53

t us 9 a sit 66 y & Vi nd ialit air F sta pec od on e S Fo th ine F

We take every care to bring you our award winning cold pressed rapeseed oil, with half the saturated fat of olive oil and rich in Omega 3.

What’s more, our full range of mayonnaise, dressings and infused oil use only the finest ingredients with no additives!

For a delicious range of award-winning artisan Spanish foods, call now for our new catalogue!

Tel: 01933 622809 www.farrington-oils.co.uk

UK-wide delivery with no minimum order

Speciality Importer of the Year 2008 01865 340055/341564 | info@delicioso.co.uk | www.delicioso.co.uk

Sweet. Heat.

And passion.

Introducing new Passionate Ginger Beer.

We’ve added a new drink to our popular range of ginger beers.

Like all our drinks it’s made with passion, but this time it contains 6% organic passionfruit juice. This gives us the perfect blend of sweet to match the heat of the freshly milled root ginger we use in all our ginger beers.

Call or email for a sample pack today.

01364 64 30 36 passionate@luscombe.co.uk

The best goes in a Luscombe bottle 54

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

www.luscombe.co.uk

shelftalk show preview

products, packaging & promotions

New to the show in... …TEA

Tea Huggers This new whole-leaf and herbal tea company, started six months ago by Esther Thompson, has discovered an appetite for blends that address particular lifestyle needs.

The launch range features seven wellbeing blends, from ‘Good Morning’, to kick-start the day, to ‘Good Night’, said to soothe you to sleep, as well as blends for detoxing, relaxing, fighting flu and boosting the immune system.

The concept is going down well with retailers and tea drinkers in and around London, where Tea Huggers has 45 stockists. The next step is to establish more widespread distribution.

“I want to reach out to delis, farm shops and bigger retailers and convert those contacts into listings,” says Thompson. www.teahuggers.co.uk

Gourmet Chocolate Pizza Co......................187 Gozzi Srl.....................................................620 Gran Luchito.................................................V3 Granbys Drinks Company................ V60 Granny Cool...............................................V12 Grannys Secret.................................. 835 Great Glen Charcuterie..................... 419

Great Taste Deli................................. 910 Greekbrothers.............................................V74 Green Saffron........................................... 534F Greenfield Bio Plantations.........................1180 Grumpy Mule.................................... 758 Guidetti Fine Foods.......................... 638 Guild of Fine Food............................ 908

Gum Tree Apiary.........................................155 HACCP-UK...............................................1110 Hampex Kft................................................458 Hasslachers Hot Chocolate............................V1 Hawkshead Relish Company............ 926 HB Ingredients.................................. 462 Hebridean Sea Salt......................................513 Hectares Sweet Potato Crisps.....................V93 HF Chocolates............................................686 Hi-Ts Fudge.................................................V25 Hider Food Imports........................... 930 Hifas Da Terra.............................................560 Hip Pops...................................................1052 House of the Rising Bun.............................848 Hungarian Investment And Trade Agency...458 Hydropac....................................................412 I Love Italia...............................................1030 ICO Catering..............................................V75 Il Trullo Dei Sapori.....................................V102 Imporient UK...................................434A Industrias Del Bierzo.................................1145 Infinity Brands (Keep Calm and Carry On Beverage Company) .................................1045 Inka Snacks.................................................538 InkREADible Labels......................... 1142

HEAVEN

VANILLA BEAN

MARSHMALLOWS Available from:

Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

55

Have a Berry Christmas!

Handmade in Devon.

Game and Redcurrant Turkey and Cranberry

56

September 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8

shelftalk show preview New to the show in... …CAKES

Caymanas Rum Cakes This newcomer is exhibiting at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair under the Cotswold Fayre umbrella after clinching a deal with the distributor earlier this year.

Its cakes were created by ‘rumelier’ Jonathan McCulloch, who was raised in the Caribbean, but on returning to the UK couldn’t find an authentic rum cake in which he could actually taste the rum.

Mellow and moist with a light texture, the cakes can be eaten on their own or warmed as a dessert with ice-cream, fruit, cream or crème fraiche. They come in golden mellow, ginger and chocolate flavours, and at the show, a new toffee flavour is making its debut. www.caymanasrumcakes.co.uk

products, packaging & promotions INOVCluster - Associaçao do Cluster AgroIndustrial do Centro....................................709 Inspirational Foods......................................352 Interprofession de Gruyère............. 253 Inverawe Smokehouses................... 413 Invest Northern Ireland...............................959 Irish Cheese Direct......................................615 Island Bakery Organics................................423 Isle of Skye Sea Salt Company....................425 Italian Business Center Di Cristina Di Lorio..503 Italy bureau.itby SULCISDRONE...................993 Ivy Bell Baking Kits......................................V70 Jackpots Crisps...........................................342 JaLe Kft......................................................458 James White Drinks.......................... 350 JAMROCK...................................................V43 Japan At UK...............................694, 690, 580 Jelly Bean Factory........................................615 Jerky Shack.................................................V63 Jetro...................................903, 901, 906, 701 Jimmys Iced Coffee.....................................534 JM Posner.................................................1108 Joe & Seph’s Gourmet Popcorn....... 931 Joes Tea Company....................................1037 Jose Gourmet/100MistÇrios......................1042 JS Organic................................................V129 JustIngredients..........................................1071 Kandula Tea Company..............................1063

Kankun-Rolomex Food Manufacturer....... 420D Karaway Bakery..........................................402 Karila..........................................................V41 Karimix UK...................................... 1033 Kazzen......................................................V103 Kekes Foods...............................................420 Killeen Farmhouse Cheese..........................615 Kinsale Farm...............................................349 Kohlico Brands UK....................................1079 Kombucha..................................................615 Koppert Cress.............................................444 Koyu Matcha Green Tea.............................585 Kwans Kitchen............................................526 L’Oasi di Comino........................................157 La Credenza...............................................862 La Giardiniera di Morgan............................V86 La Mare Wine Estate................................ 530H La Panzanella..............................................913 La Tua Pasta....................................... 833 L’ailOlive............................................ 351 Lakeland Computers......................... 825 Lakeview Computers................................1193 Lakrids........................................................474 Laverstoke Park Farm........................... 0

Award Winning Preserves to Popcorn Party Packs & Stunning Gift Boxes.

Discover the full range at...

Stand 926 015394 36614 • info@hawksheadrelish.com • hawksheadrelish.com

015394 36614 • info@hawksheadrelish.com • hawksheadrelish.com Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

57

y 4 s lit 01 t u ia 2 si ec ir Vi Sp Fa 33 d 0 e th oo 1 at e F and n t Fi s

&

Indulge this Christmas‌

Undeniably handmade quiches, cakes, puddings and pies Winner of 10 Great Taste Awards since 2010 Call Holly today on 01837 53601 or email mail@okemoor.co.uk Browse our stunning new website: www.okemoor.co.uk Follow us on Twitter @okemoor Visit us at Pinterest.com/okemoor

Healthy, Handmade Italian Sauces

3 bottle 80482 Karimix ad 100x141.5 OUTLINED.indd 1

Perfect with pasta or ideal for the experimental foodie in a rush!

Free from additives and preservatives.

Suitable for vegans/gluten free/low calorie*/no added sugar** *excluding Sugo **contains naturally occurring sugars (excluding Tomato & Rocket)

www.pastamore.co.uk Available now from Blas ar Fwyd Tel.: +44 (0) 1492 640215 Email: criw@blasarfwyd.com Or contact Richard for further details Richard@pastamore.co.uk 58

September 2014 ¡ Vol.15 Issue 8

13/03/2014 16:52

shelftalk show preview

products, packaging & promotions

New to the show in... …SOFT DRINKS

Edward’s Cordial Edward’s Cordial has only been going for 10 months, but has already stirred up consumer interest in its cold-pressed juice cordials.

The fledgling fruit cordials business was given the opportunity to showcase its drinks at the BBC Good Food Show after being awarded a Producers’ Bursary Award.

Now it hopes to boost its trade presence through the Speciality & Fine Food Fair, and founder Edward Stone says he has already set up several meetings with buyers at the show.

The Suffolk producer makes all of its own cordials from fruit and herbs that are locally sourced where possible, and doesn’t add any water, resulting in a very high fruit content. www.edwardscordial.co.uk

Lawncourt Harvest (Munchy Seeds).943 Le Benefique...............................................V33 Le Mesuriers............................................ 530A Leporati Prosciutti Langhirano.....................630 Les Vergers de la Chapelle..........................609 Link Print & Packaging................................783 Linkshelving................................................259 Little and Cull................................... 764

Little Mill Company.................................... 530I Little Pasta Organics..................................V108 Little Turban..............................................1084 Littles........................................................ 534E Lodge Farm Kitchen.......................... 237 Lomond Fine Foods...................................1135 London Arts UK........................................V138 London Jam................................................V71

it lity 41 ste cia 4 Ta spe tand the n s at w o o sh

You Can’t Beat a British Berry

LOrchidee Specials......................................238 Love Kombucha..........................................V53 Luscombe Organic Drinks................ 313 Lyme Bay Winery................................ V5 M.C.M. Carni.............................................V19 Macphie of Glenbervie............................... 430I Mallow & Marsh.........................................V95 Maloe.........................................................V47 Maltby & Greek........................................V124 Maltras International...................................936 Manfood....................................................V97 Mara Seaweed............................................V55 Mariscal & Sarroca......................................301 Marketing Solutions........................................0 Marybelle Dairy...........................................V96 McLarens Pure & Natural............................771 Meat Makers - UAB Kontikis.....................530B Med Food Wholesales Ltd...........................671 Merangz............................................. V17 Mercury Design & Marketing......................642 Metro Drinks..................................... 441 Metropolitan Tea Company.........................250 Mileeven Fine Foods...................................615 Mirabilia Organic Olive Leaf Tea..................V54 Mistry and Co.............................................V82

Lyme Bay Winery

Showcasing new products at Speciality & Fine Food Fair 2014 • New eclectic range of Collectors Liqueurs • New range of delicious Meads • Visit stand V5 to sample them and meet our friendly sales team who can advise on the best-selling range for you Call us for advice on your Winter & Christmas orders.

New Folkington’s Juices, The Workshop, Endlewick House, Arlington, East Sussex BN26 6RU 01323 485602, info@folkingtons.com, www.folkingtons.com

The Lyme Bay Winery, Shute, Axminster, Devon EX13 7PW Tel 01297 551 355 · sales@lymebaywinery.co.uk Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

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Deliciously healthy snacks thoughtfully crafted using nutritious organic wholefoods

GO AHEAD,THINK BEOND!

WINNERS OF 50 GREAT TASTE AWARDS

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Amazingly healthy ingredients

KIDS! GREAT FOR UTEN FREE WHEAT & GL

All the beond organic bars are now available through our specialty distributor, Cotswold Fayre

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Pulsin The Fine Food Shop Catalogue advert.indd 1

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Balkan Black Locust Low GI honey 100% pure cold pressed artisan honey, scores 32 on the Glycemix index This low GI rating can contribute to more stable blood sugar levels Perfect sugar substitute and an ideal sweatner for tea and coffee ME

60

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

COME AND SEE OUR BIG BOLD CHANGE ON STAND 512 – SPECIALITY & FINE FOOD FAIR

www.shortbreadhouse.com

Contact: info@shortbreadhouse.com or tel: 0131 555 5212

shelftalk show preview New to the show in... …YOGURTS Yokel Yogurt Like any producer of chilled, short-life products, one of the biggest challenges facing Yokel Yogurt as it grows is distribution, and owner Tom Ley is hoping the Speciality & Fine Food Fair will provide some solutions.

“We started on a very local level, but now we’re getting larger we’ve got a couple of regional distributors on board.

We hope to enter into dialogue with more retailers and distributors,” says Ley. With its Greek style yogurts, Yokel believes it has something unique. “All other fruit yogurts are either full of flavourings, emulsifiers etc or are farmhouse yogurts in which the sugar kills the taste of the fruit.

Sweetening with grape juice amplifies the fruit flavours rather than detracting from them.” www.yokelyogurt.co.uk

products, packaging & promotions Modet IMD...............................................1162 Molino Pasini..............................................V45 Mortons Traditional Taste................ V13 Mr Fitzpatricks............................................972 Mr Trotter / Raygray Snacks........................823 Mrs Middletons Oil......................... V136 My Cup of Tea..............................................V7 NatashaS Living Foods................................615 Natural Balance Foods................................975 Neptune Tea.............................................V132 New English Teas Ltd................................1016 New York Delhi...........................................338 Newgrange Gold........................................615 Niks Tea......................................................V99 Nila Holden.................................................V85 Nim’s Fruit Crisps.............................. V80 Nono Sentido - Alimentacao e Bem Estar....V58 Nudge Drinks............................................V121 Oaxaco Taste..................................... 588 Olive Branch...................................... 133 Olives Et Al...................................... 740e Onizz Limited..............................................921 Ooo Divine.................................................V32 Open Retail Solutions..................................998 Origin Coffee............................................1032 Original Drinks & Food Co..........................334 Original Egg Company................................V40 Otofe Tomatie Sauce...................................782

Brand new ranges

Oxford Dry-Elgin Beverages.........................530 Palacios de los Olivos ...............................V117 Parma Alimentare.......................................630 Patrizia GmbH............................................406 Paxton & Whitfield........................... 848 Pentic............................................... 1112 Pilton Cider.................................................V57 Pinks................................................. 430F Pip Organic.................................................962 Pipers Crisps...................................... 762 Pistachos Ecologicos Ibericos.......................V36 Planet Organic..........................................1081 Plum Perfection Cake Company.... V127 Podere Cadassa di al Vedel.........................630 Portlebay Popcorn.......................................689 Pots&Co.....................................................858 Potted Game Company..............................994 Potts Partnership.........................................145 Previns...................................................... 534c Primera Technology Europe.........................348 Primrose’s Kitchen.......................... V109 Prince & Sons Tea Company......................V115 Production Luxinox.....................................255 Products from Spain.................................1017

Half Fruit & Half Veg Deliciously Raw al Less than 10% natur occurring sugars *

New Cheese Straws made with Scottish speciality cheeses

New Cocktail Oatcakes: Smoked Butter and Walnut

**

New Stornoway Butter Shortbread: Chocolate Chip and Lemon & Poppy Seed

www.stagbakeries.co.uk

* per 100mls

Sample them all at Speciality & Fine Food Fair – stand 610 ** Beetroot, Pomegranate & Carrot / Carrot, Mango & Parsnip

Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

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Lo nd S on ee Sp us ec on ial st ity an & d6 Fin 15 e F at oo d Fa ir

o V a n s isi Fi t Sp tan t us ne ec d Fo ial 24 od ity 5 Fa & ir

Award Winning Burren Smoked Irish Organic Salmon.

Supplying Speciality Food Shops Worldwide.

Burren Smoked Irish Organic Salmon with seaweed

Burren Smoked Irish Organic Salmon with seaweed

Burren Hot Smoked Irish Organic Salmon with Honey, Lemon & Dill

Honey infused Burren Smoked Irish Organic Salmon

Burren Hot Smoked Irish Organic Salmon

www.burrensmokehouse.ie

T: + 353 65 7074432 M: +353 87 822 4173 F: +353 65 7074303

Importers & Manufacturers of Mediterranean Specialities.

Our Brands

Head Office 0208 965 6528 www.medfoodwholesale.com 62

September 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8

shelftalk show preview New to the show in... …SMOOTHIES Nudge Drinks Entrepreneur Jack Cookson has taken inspiration from Down Under to create frozen fruit smoothies that are easy and quick to prepare.

The smoothies, which literally consist of blended, frozen fruit, come in boxes of individual pouches. “Consumers can just keep a box in the freezer, then when they want a smoothie, they just blend the contents of the sachet with some apple juice or milk. Because the fruit is frozen, they don’t have to add ice,” explains Cookson.

He is excited about the prospect of exhibiting at a show that he says “is a perfect fit with our product” and hopes will provide a platform for Nudge Drinks to add more names to its list of stockists, which currently includes 20 outlets in Essex and Suffolk.

Pronto Mama.............................................899 Pulsin..........................................................434 Qcumber....................................................877 Queijaria Artesanal do Ilídio........................408 Rani Mix.....................................................V68 Raylex.........................................................870 Rebel Kitchen...........................................V131 Redemption Food Co................................1137 Regional Co................................................V67 Remeo Gelato.............................................875 Retail Computer Solutions........................1029 Rod & Bens.................................................934 Rosebud Preserves.......................... 1150 Rouzaire.....................................................707 Rubies in the Rubble...................................V24 Rude Health..................................... 1133 Rural Foodies..............................................420 Sacla UK................................................... 434E Salento Fine Italian Food...........................1189 Salty Dog Crisps........................ 691, 597 Salumificio f.lli Lombardi.............................620 Samways Fine Foods........................ 772 Sapphire Brands..........................................347 Sarl Guerlais.............................................609B Sarrions....................................................V113 Scarlett And Mustard..................... V106 Scott Farms International............................974 Seggiano - Peregrine Trading.......... 882

Sensible Dave.................................... V84 Serious Pig............................................... 430A Sharing the Best.........................................153 Sheep Print.................................................980 Sheppys Cider................................... 442 Shortbread House Of Edinburgh..... 512 Silagum......................................................154 Simply Ice Cream............................ 1152 Sipsmith Independent Spirits.....................1092 Smith Wilkinson..........................................V10 SNAK Srl.....................................................620 Solleys Farms Ice Cream Ltd......................1074 Sopexa ..............................................707, 609 Sopronto....................................................V28 South Devon Chilli Farm................ 848b Speciality Food Association.........................248 Speciality Food Traders................................600 Spicentice........................................ 1040 Sri Tea.........................................................V66 Stag Bakeries.................................... 610 Sticky Fingers............................................1008 Stoats Porridge Bars....................................520 Stokes Sauces.................................... 883 Subhi Jabri & Sons......................................506

S st ee an u d so V1 n 04

www. nudgedrinks. co.uk

products, packaging & promotions

Bellota is an importer of the finest specialist foods from Spain. We source products from artisans who still use time-honoured methods, with the great attention to detail that is often lost with mass-production.

By sourcing direct from the producers we can verify the quality and provenance of our produce.

We specialise in cured meats, particularly Jamón Ibérico de Bellota and Jamón Serrano from Trevelez, but over the years we’ve added world award winning cheeses, cooking chorizo, organic olive oils, sherry vinegars, olives, pickles and seafood from the Atlantic Galician coast.

To request a wholesale brochure please contact us on the details below.

info@bellota.co.uk Tel: 01621 770 132

Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

63

Winner of 19 Great Taste Awards

It’s back...

Choi Time, Award Winning Chinese speciality teas that unfurl and blossom in your cup. Hailed as “the Dom Perignon of the tea world” by the Sunday Times Style Magazine.

SEGGIANO Chestnut Panettone Back due to popular demand! Fabiano Flamini has recently moved his micro bakery to the Italian Alps, where the conditions are ideal for his mother yeast to rise the panettone naturally, and thus avoiding the need for industrial baking aids.

He makes his unique chestnut panettone in daily batches of 82, in a wood powered stove, using traditional candied chestnuts & free range eggs. It’s difficult to get more hand crafted than that!

orders@seggiano.com

0207 272 5588

When it comes to exceptional cheddar, the old ways are still the best.

Our award-winning, traditional truckles are wrapped in muslin and allowed to breathe as they slowly mature, resulting in a creamy complex flavour with a long finish.

Stuff of legend

Gold winners at

B 20

Home Farm . Newton St Cyres . Devon . www.quickes.co.uk .quickes.co.uk

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

B ES

S

British Cheese Awards (Best Cheddar, Best Goats Cheese, Best Export Cheese & Best Traditional Cheese) World Cheese Awards, Great Taste Awards, Nantwich, Royal Bath & West EES ISH CH E AWARD Great Yorkshire, Devon County Show, Taste of the West and Frome RIT 12

T OF CATEGORY

Phone: 0845 0533269 Email: wholesale@choitime.com Visit: choitime.co.uk

shelftalk show preview

products, packaging & promotions

New to the show in... …CONFECTIONERY Belinda Clark With a distributor deal with Diverse Fine Food in the bag, shelf-life testing complete and smart new packaging to unveil, confectioner Belinda Clark is ready to grasp whatever opportunities the Speciality & Fine Food Fair throws her way.

“We’re ready to attract more customers and distributors and to look at exporting,” says Clark, who, just two years ago, was a project manager at Southampton City Council.

Now she’s a full-time marshmallow maker and her creations, made from real fruit purées, are a far cry from the ubiquitous pink and white variety found on supermarket shelves.

She is bringing Halloween themed toffee apple marshmallow and jars of vanilla, passion fruit and raspberry flavoured spreadable marshmallow cream to the show for visitors to sample. www.belindaclark.co.uk

Suki Teahouse................................. 1058 Sweetpea Pantry.......................................V105 Tanara Giancarlo.........................................630 Tarbal Food.................................................353 Tartufi Jimmy............................................1014 Taste Direct...............................................1061 Taste of Sicily..............................................258 Taste of the West....... 848, 834, 740, 633, 637 Taste the View............................................613 Taylor Davis.................................................819

Tea House.................................................1056 Tea Huggers................................................V94 Tea People......................................... V51 Teapigs............................................... 542 Ten Acre Crisps.................................. 992 Tentazioni UK.............................................984 Terra Rossa Jordan.......................... 1117 Tesouka Ltd................................................V81 That Hungry Chef.....................................V107 Threesixty Design........................................881

TICCuk.......................................................V83 Tideford Organics............................. 740 TOLIS-Roig-Ribera.......................................430 Tom’s Pies.......................................... 764 Tracklement Co................................. 633 Treflach Farm............................................1156 Trotters Independent Condiments...............147 Truffle Hunter...........................................1038 Truly Simple Foods Limited..........................V64 Tudor Tea and Coffee.................................631 Txogitxu S.L. / Don Bocarte.........................599 Tyrrells Potato Crisps...................................233 UCCI...........................................................343 Uncle Roy’s Comestible Concoctions...507 Une Normande a Londres Ltd.....................925 Union Hand Roasted.......................420A Urney Chocolates.......................................613 Usk River............................................ V62 Valentine Foods..........................................990 Vallebona Ltd..............................................601 Valsana.......................................................537 Vanillabazaar.com.......................................V31 Vegesentials (UK)........................................698 Villa DellOmbrellino....................................620

easy Utterly delicious, ith w ng ti to use and burs urs, vo fla y fresh and zing d an t ee a range of sw r fo gs in savour y offer e im lt ever y mea – just add food!

“We were blown away...!”

Fortnum & Mason

Come and see us on Stand V106

www.scarlettandmustard.co.uk Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

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se d e e ea an th in 08 Pl e t F V m a & d co us ity tan e l s se ia r, ec fai Sp d o Fo

ANOTHER GREAT BRITISH CLASSIC Liven up your lunch with a little crunch.

Corkers Crisps are grown, picked and packed on our family farm in the beautiful Fens of Cambridgeshire. We hand cook our crisps in sunflower oil to ensure the perfect curl and crunch.

Wholesalers: Tree of Life, Diverse Fine Foods, Love4Local, Shepcote

www.corkerscrisps.co.uk Naturally different, our new range of 100% fruit juices, preserves & nectars - childhood flavours. Strong memories of these flavours to make someone turn a leaf and start a business! Have you heard of Ayvar -smoky roasted sweet red pepper spread/mezze..?

A NATUROPATHIC DIET

These completely natural, traditional juices & preserves are prepared according to time honoured recipes using the best ingredients without compromise. Not your average fruit juice nor preserve with sugar added, but something very, very different. Better still there are no artificial additives or preservatives.

Because our juices and preserves are so special, they come in very attractive and distinctive packaging, so good in fact that even that was a ‘World Star’ winner in 2013.’

Come & taste for Free at SFFF Stand 835 & Ideal Home Show at Christmas Stand 2F51

Award winning natural & delicious products made with love in Dorset Call us today on: 01454 540045 e: snezana@grannyssecret.co.uk w: www.grannyssecret.co.uk

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

Come and see us at Stand V109 at Speciality Fine Food Fair 2014 primroseskitchen.com @PrimroseKit Primrose’s Kitchen

shelftalk show preview

products, packaging & promotions

New to the show in... …CAKES

Ivy Bell Baking Kits For Verity Gaughan, founder of Manchester-based Ivy Bell Baking Kits, the timing of the Speciality & Fine Food Show couldn’t be better.

“My initial orders will start to go into Booths and to Cotswold Fayre customers in October, plus I have just won an award which gives me a unit in Trafford Park so I can increase my capacity,” says Gaughan.

A professional pastry chef, she had no problems putting together her ‘bake in the box’ baking kits, which “allow everyone to bake a great homemade loaf cake”. She is showing her kits for lemon loaf with a crunchy drizzle, triple chocolate loaf, jewelled Christmas loaf and triple chocolate Yuletide cake. www.ivybellbakingkits.com

Village Workshop.....................................1138 VINCENZO................................................1018 Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services....................................1057 W4 Distribution..........................................909 Walkers Shortbread.......................... 612

Walnut Tree................................................141 Warner Edwards Distillery............... 887 WBC.................................................... 410 We Love Jelly..............................................V48 Welsh Government.............................625, 723 Whittard of Chelsea........................ 530C

Whole Leaf Tea Company T/A Brew Tea Company....................................................434 Wild About Honey....................................V111 Wild At Heart........................................... 530F Wiltshire Bacon Company...........................848 Winter Flora Ltd..........................................242 Wood and Slate..........................................V88 Woodalls............................................ 450 Woodcock Smokery.......................... 613 Wooden Spoon Preserving Co....... 1080 World’s Best Curry Powder Project..............V38 Yi................................................................514 Yokel........................................................V118 Yosis Bagels................................................V14 Your Piece Baking Co (Edinburgh) .V11 Yunay Trade & Exports................................982 Zarotti.........................................................630 Zesty Food..................................................596 Exhibitor listings supplied by Fresh Montgomery and correct at time of going to press

+44 (0) 1494 530182 www.hydropac.co.uk sales@hydropac.co.uk

Visit us on stand 412 at Olympia Manufacturers of insulated shipping boxe s

a nd

ice p acks

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• 100% recyclable environmentally friendly materials • Designed for all your cold chain requirements, mail order and carry home water/gel ice packs

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Insulated boxes Insulated carrier bags

Keep it cool, keep it with Hyd ropa Buy online at www.hydropac.co.uk c!

Vol.13Vol.15 Issue 1Issue · January-February 8 · September 2014 2012

67

S Orefrigerant R B A - F R Epads EZE Sorba-Freeze Ltd, Unit 5, Girdleness Trading Estate, Girdleness Road, Aberdeen AB1 8DG, Scotland Tel 01224 894417 Email info@sorbafreeze.com www.sorbafreeze.com

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It’s often been said that it’s the little things in life that make a big difference, and we couldn’t agree more. From a secret family recipe, our award winning dressings are lovingly made and it’s our commitment to detail such as the use of extra virgin olive oil that ensures the perfect blend and perfect taste for each and every one of our numbered dressings.

To find out more about our Dressing Collection please contact us at e: sales@fdc-online.com or t: 020 8747 4089

68

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

show preview

Raising the bar A microcosm of the flourishing artisan chocolate scene, the Speciality Chocolate Fair – a show-within-a-show at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair – is a hotbed of trends and inspiration, writes LYNDA SEARBY

T

he part of the market that is growing is quality, real chocolate, and it’s growing in double-digit figures, year on year – even the high percentage, punchy stuff,” says Marc Demarquette, founder of Demarquette Fine Chocolates. “Gone are the days of strawberry creams and dark chocolate that is nasty and bitter.

All of my peers are saying the same thing.”

Indeed, two of his ‘peers’ – Paul A Young, founder of the eponymous chocolate shop chain and a trailblazer of the British artisan chocolate scene, and renowned pastry chef Martin Chiffers – agree the speciality chocolate sector is going from strength to strength.

“The UK’s appetite for artisan chocolate is growing,” says Chiffers.

“High quality chocolate is an affordable luxury and the population is becoming more educated on the taste and health benefits. This is evidenced by the number of new artisan chocolatiers emerging on the market.”

And if trade in Paul A Young’s four London stores is anything to go by, business is definitely booming for hand-crafted products.

“Judging by how busy our

business is right now in the middle of a hot summer, yes, customers are loving the individuality of style, flavour combinations, textures and creativity,” Young says.

All three industry luminaries will be taking to the Speciality Chocolate Live stage at this year’s Speciality Chocolate Fair.

This show-within-a-show, which this year features over 70 exhibitors, is a showcase of luxury and gourmet chocolate as well as a forum for

❛

Producers are drilling down to plantation level and looking at the bean varieties used.

This trend, from the wine world, is trickling into chocolate.

❜

Marc Demarquette

education and inspiration.

According to Demarquette, the biggest and most enduring flavour trend in speciality chocolate remains salted caramel. It has usurped traditional British flavours like peppermint cream and rose & violet and will be the best-seller, he says, for many artisan makers.

“Salted caramel is a product that hit our scene less than 10 years ago and is now a staple of any gourmet range.”

In general though, he says chocolate producers are reining it Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

69

Fo Sp u S od ec s a ee Fa iali t th ir ty e –s & ta Fin nd e 81 9

Luxur y and Traditional Christmas Puddings made on the Isle of Man

Taylor Davis IN CONTAINERS ...not EXPERTISE just ANY packaging company!

BERRIES

ISLE OF MAN

Highest Awarded Christmas Puddings at The Great Taste Awards 2012 & 2013

Proudly serving the UK food industry with premium packaging since 1977!

Place your order now at sales@taylor-davis.co.uk or on 01373 864324

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

Wholesale Enquiries: 01624 838384 | Email: info@berries.co.im

Shop Online: www.berries.co.im

show preview

in on the flavour front rather than going for ever wilder and wackier flavours.

“There was a time when chilli and Marmite were in, and a couple of years ago fennel pollen was all the rage, but now we’re retiring back into our comfort zone and focusing on the balance between the chocolate and the flavours.

Rather than the chocolate being the vehicle for packing a chilli punch, the chocolate and ingredients are equals.”

That said, there are still discernible new flavour trends, and Demarquette has clocked a penchant for all things British.

“Producers are flying the Union Jack in their choice of ingredients, whether sourcing the finest fruit or extraordinary mint or revitalising products that were in vogue 10-15 years ago, such as the cobnut.”

The hazelnut-like cobnut, he says, became a popular ingredient after Hurstwood Farm's cold-pressed cobnut oil was named Supreme Champion in the 2010 Great Taste Awards.

Chiffers too has observed a throwback to classic dishes and ingredients, saying: “The trend I see most is that old dishes are being

reinvented and given a facelift. Éclairs and choux are back in fashion; freeze dried fruit powders and pieces are being added to bars and chocolates.”

Provenance continues to be important, both from a local and global perspective.

“Across the industry, a story helps: where the chocolate is from, who grew the beans, the origins and character of the chocolate,” says Young. “Are local ingredients used in the fillings? This is huge, especially when using seasonal ingredients.”

According to Chiffers, increasingly, cocoa beans are being appraised in the same way as wine grapes, with specific flavours and characteristics being attributed to origins and plantations.

Demarquette agrees, saying direct sourcing has become far more common: “There was a time when chocolate producers simply sourced cocoa from the top five producing countries, but now they are drilling down to plantation level and looking at the bean varieties used.

This trend, from the wine world, is trickling into the chocolate world.”

While cocoa origins remain largely the same year-in, year-out, Demarquette notes that there are some emerging origins.

“Vietnam, Cambodia and Burma are ones to watch.

Marou is using Vietnamese

cocoa beans with extraordinary results.”

Another interesting development is unfolding in Australia, where Daintree Estates is working to put Australian cocoa on the map. Chocolate made from the cocoa is on sale in several countries, and Demarquette thinks it will only

❛

High quality chocolate is an affordable luxury and the population is becoming more educated on the taste and health benefits.

Martin Chiffers

❜

be a matter of time before it is present in the UK. Whatever your view on raw chocolate, there’s no denying it is one of the foods of the moment.

It’s also one that Demarquette believes is here for the duration, to the extent that he predicts it will ultimately force the re-categorisation of chocolate in the UK. “There was a time when people bought raw chocolate on principle.

Now producers are coming up with some really great tasting raw chocolate products. Raw chocolate is part of the chocolate scene and those doing good work will be here to stay,” he says. www.demarquette.co.uk www.martinchiffers.com www.paulayoung.co.uk

Who’s at the Speciality Chocolate Fair?

Guild of Fine Food members in bold Amelia Rope Chocolate..............................374 B Chocolates..............................................188 Baru............................................................574 Benjamin Chocolatier......................173 Bonieri............................471 Brocks Chocs.................371 Choc Affair....................260 Choc Chick Raw ............369 Chocolate Fusion...... 298 Chocolate Libertine...........183 Chocolate Society...............263 Choctails..................................190 Classic Fine Foods UK..............676 Cocoapolis (PSF Division).172 Comptoir du Cacao...............282 Creme D’Or..........................381 Devnaa................................562 Divine Chocolate......... 475 Duke of Delhi....................296

Ellies Chocolates.........................................181 Fine Confectionery Company.......... 469 Fine Truffle..................................................575 Grown Up Chocolate Company....... 388 Hans Sloane................................................680 HB Ingredients.................................. 462 Holdsworth Chocolates.................... 276 House of Dorchester......................... 362 House Of Sarunds.......................................656 Jaz & Jules..................................................169 Just Aromatic Cocoa...................................180 Kaoka UK...................................................486 Lauden Chocolate.......................................572 Lets Chocolaat............................................678 Madame Oiseau Fine Chocolates.... 161 Madecasse..................................................470 Marimba.....................................................262 Maxim’s de Paris.........................................660 Maxwells Chocolates..................................473 Melrose and Morgan..................................571

Menakao....................................................185 Middletown Hill................................ 176 Miele Brisi...................................................174 Minted in England .....................................275 Mood Foods ..............................................478 Nisi Dominus..............................................573 Ooh! CHOCOLATA ....................................460 Pandora Bell...............................................280 Peano.........................................................174 Pimlico Confectioners.................................288 Prestat................................................ 380 RJF Farhi ....................................................261 Rococo Chocolates.....................................370 Simply Cocoa..............................................186 SugarSin.....................................................482 Urban Village Chocolates................. 272 Viaggio in Italia...........................................171 Wellness Cacao..........................................279 Exhibitor listings supplied by Fresh Montgomery and correct at time of going to press

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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ed ’s e y. ur TV in i at C rt am . ith wa Fe BB Ma ts, J gue te w ng on mes for Vo ola a lo Ja om e & oc es in e C zin Ch go m ga rk tle Ho ma e da a lit ns r, te ou In flav ull af

Raw Chocolate Redefined

Ethically sourced in Peru & minimally processed in Wales at low temperatures with un-roasted Cacao to maintain antioxidants and nutritional benefits without compromising on texture or flavour.

• Stone ground, single origin raw chocolate • Traditionally hand crafted from bean to bar • Award winning recipe using all natural ingredients • Free from dairy, gluten, palm oil & soya • Hand wrapped using all recyclable packaging

Signature Bar 80%

Call or email Pablo for wholesale information: pablo@forevercacao.co.uk | 07971 287766

Scan for Fosters Product Directory

Product

Director

y

Call our friendly customer service team for more details or visit our website.

Fosters Traditional Foods Ltd, Great Bowden Road, Market Harborough, LE16 7DE | Tel: 01858 438000 www.fosters-foods.co.uk

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

A promotional feature for the Guild of Fine Food

September’s exclusive Guild member promotions BRT INDUSTRY

IN A PICKLE FOOD CO

TRAYBAKES

The Bishop’s Reserve of Truffles for the Industry (BRT Industry) supplies all species of fresh truffles and many truffle products, such as Black Summer and Black Winter Truffles in jars, Extra Virgin Olive Oils with Truffles, Truffle-Infused Balsamic Vinegars, Cheese (raw sheep’s milk) with Truffles, Truffle Whim, Truffle Delights, Rice with Truffles and more. All fresh truffles are delivered as soon as possible. BRT’s fastest delivery time, from the dog’s first sniff in Italy to the kitchen of a London Michelinstarred restaurant, was just under 23 hours. All truffles are packed in a unique way to ensure no damage in transport due to excess moisture.

THE DEAL: Enter code “guild20” on the checkout at www.brtindustry.co.uk for 20% off all products online. Expires November 30 2014.

AVAILABILITY: Nationwide CONTACT: Vicky on 020 8582 8490 or sales@brtindustry.co.uk

In a Pickle food Co has created a new range of eight sweet preserves in 340g jars. The In a Jam range includes a “fragrant” soft set Strawberry Preserve, Rockin’ Raspberry Jam (“the essence of summer in a jar”) and Merry Berry, a three-berry jam. The range also includes a fine cut English Breakfast Marmalade, the “dark and delicious” Thick Cut Seville Marmalade, Orange & Ginger Marmalade and the three-fruit St Clements Marmalade, featuring lemon, orange and grapefruit. Completing the line-up is a “zesty and sweet” Lemon Curd. Each jar has a wholesale price of £2.45 and an RRP of £3.75.

THE DEAL: Buy 5 cases (6 or 12 jars) of jam or marmalade and get a free case of Lemon Curd. 1 free case per customer while stocks last. Offer ends September 15 2014.

AVAILABILITY: Mainland UK. Free delivery for orders of over £90.

CONTACT: Stephanie Anderson on 01225 722255 or sales@inapicklefoodco.co.uk

Traybakes makes all of its ambient products by hand in the Lake District.

It supplies shelf-ready cartons of 12 individually wrapped slices, with a 14week shelf life, for retailers to merchandise as an impulse ‘grab and go’ purchase.

Flavours include Cranberry & Caramel All Butter Flapjack and Belgian Chocolate Biscuit Tiffin. Traybakes says these lines could potentially offer retailers a good profit margin. The full product range and pricing for this special introductory offer are available upon request.

Please quote code ‘FF14’.

THE DEAL: Buy 4 cartons of 12 Individually Wrapped Slices and get 1 carton free. Introductory Offer. One per business. Please quote code ‘FF14’ when ordering.

AVAILABILITY: Nationwide. Delivery costs £5.

CONTACT: Judith Keating on 01768 899888 or marketing@traybakes.com

HB INGREDIENTS Distributor HB Ingredients is the sole agent for the Chocolat Madagascar range, a brand of chocolate that is made in Madagascar from the country’s own cocoa. The fine ”Fino de Aroma” cocoa, used in the line-up of 85g retail bars, grows in the shade of the Sambirano organic rainforest. The range includes 100%, 85% 70% and 65% dark chocolate, a unique 50% milk and 34% white that uses undeodorised cocoa butter to offer a cocoa taste.

THE DEAL: 20% discount on these products for a 4 week period AVAILABILITY: Nationwide, orders under £200 incur a £10 delivery charge but are free over this value CONTACT: Customer Service Team on 0844 32 44 499 or sales@hbingredients.co.uk

THE CHRISTMAS CAKES CO Winner of a Great Taste Award in 2012, The Christmas Cakes Co’s Classic Iced Cake is a “tall, rich, dark cake” filled with candied orange and lemon peels, raisins, sultanas, currants and cherries soaked in French brandy with almonds as well as molasses sugar and West Indian spices.

The producer incorporates as much air as possible in its mixture to create a lighter cake but adds cognac to ensure a 12-month shelf life. Each cake is topped with almond marzipan and fondant icing.

Fruit-only cakes are available for those with allergies. A percentage of each cake sale goes to Help For Heroes.

THE DEAL: Buy 4x700g cakes, get 1 free (£20) for orders before October 25 2014 AVAILABILITY: Nationwide CONTACT: Rebecca Stephenson on 07785 572004 or sales@thechristmascakescompany.com

BEAU FLAVOURS Beau Flavours produces highly specialised, concentrated flavourings, which can be added to a host of cakes and desserts. Each variety contains natural flavourings and comes in 40ml bottles. The company says its products are engineered from building blocks of small units of flavours or extracts, which are carefully put together to form a specific profile. Every product has been developed for a consistent flavour that withstands baking temperatures.

THE DEAL: Buy 4 bottles of 40ml flavourings and receive 5 until October 5 2014 AVAILABILITY: Nationwide, no minimum required.

CONTACT: 01844 202166 or beauproducts@btconnect.com

PROMOTION SUMMARY

All offers valid until the end of this month and available to Guild retail members only

COMPANY

DEAL

TEL

EMAIL

BEAU FLAVOURS

Buy 4 bottles of 40ml flavourings and receive 5

01844 202166

beauproducts@btconnect.com

BRT INDUSTRY

20% off all products online. Enter code “guild20”

020 8582 8490

sales@brtindustry.co.uk

CHRISTMAS CAKE CO Buy 4x700g cakes, get 1 free

07785 572004

sales@thechristmascakescompany.com

HB INGREDIENTS

0844 32 44 499 sales@hbingredients.co.uk

20% discount on Chocolat Madagascar range

IN A PICKLE FOOD CO Buy 5 cases (6 or 12 jars) of In a Jam-branded jam or

marmalade and get a free case of Lemon Curd

01225 722255

sales@inapicklefoodco.co.uk

TRAYBAKES

01768 899888

marketing@traybakes.com

Buy 4 cartons of 12 Individually Wrapped Slices and get 1 carton free. Quote “FF14”. One free case per business

RETAILERS: To take advantage of these promotions, you have to be a retail member of the Guild of Fine Food. For more information or to join, contact karen.price@finefoodworld.co.uk SUPPLIERS: You must be a producer member of the Guild to promote your latest offers on this page. If you’re already signed up and interested in booking a slot, contact sally.coley@finefoodworld.co.uk

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

73

old all es. tsw e & ck ng Co yr sto ra Fa ys n’s wa he m itc Sa t’s K n Ke

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

www.jaffys.co.uk 01687 46 22 22

product update

confectionery

Hot chocolates LYNDA SEARBY luxuriates in the latest speciality chocolate and confectionery launches

York-based Choc Affair, whose Fairtrade chocolate creations come in all shapes and sizes from wellies to letters and lollies, has added a fairy tale cottage (RRP £19.99 for 690g) to its range.

The Artisan Baker has introduced four new truffle flavours – sea salt caramel, raspberry & coconut, milk chocolate praline and chocolate orange (RRP £10 for eight truffles).

The brainchild of pastry chef Ori Hellerstein, the business has been crafting artisan bread, cakes and confectionery in the Cotswolds since 2012. www.theartisanbaker.co.uk

Divine Chocolate has created a Fairtrade dark chocolate bar with a tropical twist by adding real pieces of mango and coconut to 70% dark chocolate (RRP of £2.19 for 100g).

The chocolate company – which is 45% owned by cocoa farmers – has also tracked down Fairtrade almonds from Pakistan which it is using in its new 38% milk chocolate with whole almonds bar (RRP £2.19 for 100g).

www.choc-affair.com

Brindisa is importing three new chocolate bars from El Canario in Ávila, Spain: a dark bar, a milk bar and a ‘”creamy and silky” bar with olive oil. The distributor has carried El Canario’s products for many years. The owner of Chocolates El Canario, Julián Sánchez García, selects all his own chocolate and grinds and roasts it himself. www. brindisa.com

The Raw Chocolate Co has treated its bars to a new look after gaining Fairtrade Foundation and Soil Association certification.

With an RRP of £0.99 for 22g and £1.99 for 44g, its raw chocolate is claimed to be gram for gram the lowest priced on the market. The bars are available in Vanoffe (vanilla & lucuma), Vanoffe dark (vanilla & lucuma but with 55% cacoa solids), pitch dark (72% cacao), goji orange, mint with xylitol (70% cacao, sugar free) and orange with xylitol (70% cacao, sugar free).

www. divinechocolate. com/uk

www.therawchocolatecompany.com

Colchester-based Maxwells Chocolates has taken inspiration from the dessert menu to create the New York cheesecake chocolate cup. The individual chocolates, made with a minimum of 60% base dark chocolate, come in boxes of six or 12, with respective RRPs of £7.95 and £14.95.

In a Spanish take on the southern French marron glacé, chestnuts from Galicia are candied and glazed with a hint of vanilla, then dipped in dark chocolate. Bombón Glacé are available from Delicioso UK in two sizes: a 150g jar containing eight bombón (trade price £8.99) and an 86g jar containing four (trade price £5.99).

Scottish bean-to-bar chocolate maker iQ Chocolate is tapping into the beauty foods trend with the launch of a new raw chocolate bar with organic, wild sea buckthorn. The BeautiQ bar is packed with vitamins and minerals believed to nurture skin, hair, eyes and teeth from the inside out. The producer has also launched a ginger and ginseng bar named YogiQ, aimed at yogis and fitness fans and said to support muscle function and energy release. www.iqchoc.com

Following the success last Christmas of its chocolate coated figs, this year Spanish importer El Olivo will offer retailers chocolate-coated cherries and oranges too (prices and packs sizes to be confirmed). The originals are presented in a canister containing 12 figs, with a trade price of £4.75. www.elolivo-olive-oil.com

Top sellers…

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milk ck’s organic Green & Bla r chocolate ba ns e fig bombo ale chocolat Rabitos Roy tish berries Brodies Scot white ck’s organic Green & Bla r chocolate ba mpany milk Chocolate Co The Wicked ttons chocolate bu

www.delicioso. co.uk

www.maxwellschocolates.co.uk

Oialla, the Danish chocolate brand conceived by chocolatier Rasmus Bo Bojesen and made from wild Amazonian Beniano beans, is being presented in retail carton format for the first time. Each variety (46%, 72% and 82%) is available in a gift box containing nine chocolates, plus there is an assortment box that contains all three varieties. RRP is around £13. www.oialla.com

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product update Experimentation by chocolatier Amelia Rope has resulted in four new chocolate bars in the last 12 months. In the dark raspberry edition 01 75%, dark Tanzanian couverture is scattered with freezedried raspberries; dark sea salt edition 02 75% blends the same couverture with Maldon sea salt crystals; white edition 04 combines white chocolate with freeze-dried cherries and Sri Lankan toasted coconut flakes; and white edition 05 uses the same white chocolate and coconut flakes, but blended with Maldon sea salt. The RRP is £6 for 100g. www.ameliarope.com

confectionery

After a six month exclusive deal with Harrods, Turin chocolate label Bonieri is now targeting the wider independent trade with its gianduiotti, cremini and products based on gianduja hazelnut praline. It has also added three new lines to its collection. Bella Box Gianduja (440g, trade £18.80, RRP £39.95) is a selection box containing gianduja products such as the triple layered cremino and the delice – in which a whole Piemonte hazelnut is surrounded by gianduja and coated in chocolate. Bella Box Cremini (150g) showcases the cremino, which comprises two layers of gianduja and a middle layer of pure hazelnut cream while the Bella Box Gemme (150g) contains eight hazelnut, almond and pistachio pralines topped with a whole nut.

Both have a trade price of £8.50 and an RRP of £17.95.

Top sellers…

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1 salted Chocolat No Artisan du caramels ts e assortmen box chocolat Prestat jewel es in a tin ocolate leav Amatller ch milk ice dark and El Barco Del rs chocolate ba chocolate ates Belgian Royal Chocol thins

www.bonieri.com

‘Fair for Life’ Madagascan chocolate brand Madécasse has launched a salted almond bar in which dark chocolate made with one of Madagascar’s rare heirloom cocoa varieties is sprinkled with roasted almond nibs and sea salt.

RRP is £2.993.29 for 75g. www.madecasse.com

Forever Cacao has built on the success of its signature 80% chocolate bar with the introduction of a 72% bar and an 80% bar with roasted Ashaninka coffee grown in the same part of the Peruvian Amazon as the heirloom cacao beans used to make the chocolate.

RRP is £5.50 for a 40g bar. www.forevercacao.co.uk

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

James Chocolates has released a raft of goodies for Christmas, including a handdecorated fairy tale candy cottage (300g, RRP £15) and a 120g pack of mini mince pie pralines (RRP £6), which features both winter nutmeg pralines and caramelised clementine truffles.

In addition, Sweetie Trees – available in milk and white chocolate – are pitched as the perfect stocking fillers (30g, RRP £2.50), and to decorate the real tree, there are two individually boxed 40g hollow chocolate baubles dusted with edible gold or silver lustre. Both the milk chocolate honeycomb bauble and the dark chocolate bauble with popping candy have an RRP of £2.75.

Too big to perch on the branches is the James Chocolates giant robin. Standing 42cm high and weighing a plump 2.5kg (RRP £80), the chocolate bird is designed as a gift or a centrepiece for a Christmas display. www.jameschocolates.co.uk

Swiss chocolatier Favarger has launched a new heritage range to reflect its 200-year history. Its nostalgic branding features images of the children of the founding family and an original Favarger logo. Available from UK agent Middletown Hill, the range includes 100g bars (RRP £3.49) and 12.5g mini tablets in milk, milk hazelnut, milk cocoa nibs and dark varieties, a 200g presentation tin containing 16 mini tablets (RRP £10.99) and a 230g tin of dark chocolate shavings for creating a warming drink. www.middletownhill.co.uk

A puff of fresh air UK consumers seem to be going all soft and fluffy over marshmallows as the gourmet trend from the USA continues to sweep the country.

Barú is tapping into the trend with a new range of bars. Marshmallow Cloud is layered with either sea salt caramel, chai latte, crunchy cashew or peppermint fudge and coated with milk or dark Belgian chocolate.

Presented in an 18-bar counter display box, all four varieties have an RRP of £1.75.

New startup Mallow & Marsh hit the market last November with a line of ‘grab and go’ marshmallows. The business, founded by Harriot Pleydell-Bouverie, is positioning its products as a handy treat that also happens to be virtually fat-free. Its launch range

comprises peppermint & dark chocolate, vanilla, coconut, raspberry and cappuccino. RRP is £2.85 for 38g. www.baru.be www.mallowandmarsh.com

The taste of pure English mint revived for the 21st century

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For more about our award-winning Black Mitcham peppermint chocolates and tea: visit www.summerdownmint.com Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

product update Brother and sister team Duke of Delhi has taken its signature Bombay mix and translated it into chocolate bar format. The Delhi bars, which combine flavours such as cardamom, vanilla, toasted coconut and cinnamon with crunchy inclusions, launched last December and within four weeks, over 2,000 had been sold. There are five varieties: milk chocolate & orange; milk chocolate & Indian cinnamon; dark chocolate & toasted coconut; dark chocolate & lime; milk chocolate, cardamom & vanilla and the dark chocolate Delhi mix bar.

Each 80g bar has an RRP of £3 and a trade price of £1.70.

confectionery

Since moving into a purpose-built unit on a local fruit farm in Sudborne last year, Suffolk’s B Chocolates hasn’t looked back. Its chocolates, which are made with honey from its own hives, are now stocked in La Fromagerie in Marylebone and The Hive Honey Shop in Wandsworth as well as eight shops in Suffolk, and the producer has developed two new products: a truffle made with bee pollen and chocolate honeycomb thins. Boxes of 15 have a trade price of £7.50 plus VAT and RRP of £14. www.bchocolates.co.uk

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With health evidence stacking up for dark chocolate, a growing number of companies are marrying chocolate with so called superfoods to make bars that are changing perceptions of chocolate as an unhealthy vice. This strategy has been adopted by Norfolk’s Doisy & Dam, which, since launching eight months ago, has built up a customer base of 70 stores in London and will soon be on shelves in Planet Organic. Its bars come in four varieties: goji & orange; maca, vanilla & cacao nibs; mulberries, chia seeds & spirulina; and ginger, chilli flakes & hemp seed. Each 100g bar has an RRP of £3.70-90 and a trade cost of £2.40-2.60, while 40g bars have an RRP of £1.65 (trade cost 95p). www.doisyanddam.com

Ethical brand Seed and Bean has redesigned its packaging and introduced three new bars (85g, RRP from £2.29): fine dark ginger, creamy white raspberry & vanilla and rich milk Cornish sea salt & West Indian lime. All its bars are organic, Fairtrade and wrapped in compostable wrappers made from Cumbrian eucalyptus leaves. www.seedandbean.co.uk

Rococo Chocolates has developed the ideal gift for would-be chocolatiers: a hamper containing everything the aspiring chocolatier needs to get started, including Mastering the art of chocolate by the company’s founder Chantal Coady, a branded apron, equipment such as a chocolate frame, probe thermometer, and a piping tube and bags, and nibs, Valrhona cocoa powder and chocolate. The hamper has an RRP of £195. www.rococochocolates.com

Hello Chocolate! has created The Golf Collection to tie in with the Ryder Cup. This box of chocolates contains The Putt (a butterscotch ganache), The Hole in One (a Champagne packed ganache with Scottish strawberry syrup), and The 19th Hole (an Aberlour whisky truffle). www.hello-chocolate.co.uk

Chococo’s Christmas collection has a gift for every price point. For stocking fillers and novelty gifts there are reindeer lollies (small £1.75, 25g; large £2.95, 50g), chocolate baubles (£3.50, 50g), a camper van (£2.95, 65g), festive bars (£5.50, 125g), small and large snowmen (£5.00 for 100g or £75 for 3kg), angels (£2.50, 50g), reindeer (£2.95, 65g), and Christmas trees (£8.50, 125g). Sharing gifts include a cocoa pod cracker (£17.50, 350g) packed full of festive chocolates, and the Christmas tree Purbeck marble cake (£29.95, 900g), a tree-shaped cake filled with dark chocolate, rich tea biscuits, raisins and dried cherries. A selection of Chococo’s Christmas range is also available presented in a hamper (RRP £50), while customers wanting to spend more can buy a giant Auberge du Chocolat says hamper (£95). Seasonal selection its plain and milk chocolate boxes (from £8.95 for a box of nine Christmas bars with orange chocolates) round off the collection, peel, cranberries and walnuts and new inclusions for this year are coupled with cinnamon and black garlic and kumquat chocolates. cloves, encapsulate the taste of Christmas. The Buckinghamshire family business has also developed a white Christmas bar topped with ginger & apricot with ginger spice running through it. The trade price is £1.75 + VAT, and the RRP is £2.95-£3.50. There is no delivery charge on orders of £150 or over.

www.chococo.co.uk

www.aubergechocolat.co.uk

Fudge Kitchen has three new DIY kits with an RRP of £22. The Kids in the Kitchen, Jingle Fudge and Gourmet Chef kits contain thermometer, apron, spatulas and ingredients to make up to 1kg of fudge. Also new from Fudge Kitchen is sweet & salty liquorice slim slide fudge. This sextet of three sweet and three salty cubes of fudge has an RRP of £8. www.fudgekitchen.co.uk

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MELTON MOWBRAY FOOD FESTIVAL 80

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

(East Midlands Food Festival) www.meltonmowbrayfoodfestival.co.uk

show preview Inspiration to go ANNE BRUCE looks ahead to the food-to-go trade show’s seventh outing What’s new at the exhibition?

New British “water-enhancer” brand Enhance Drinks will be at the show showcasing its pocket-sized concentrated squash packs. The Enhance range includes Orange & Passion Fruit, Lemon & Lime, Strawberry & Kiwi, and Apple & Blackcurrant variants, at one calorie a squeeze.

Northern Ireland’s Around Noon Sandwiches will be bringing its new Artic Deli launch to the show – a premium range of frozen, filled hot deli items, including croque monsieurs, paninis, wraps and burritos.

Sansu Drinks says it is the first company to create drinks using the Far Eastern grapefruit-sized citrus fruit Yuzu. It will be promoting its Yuzu range at Lunch! Drinks are available in Yuzu & Strawberry, Yuzu & Pear and Yuzu & Blueberry flavours.

W

ith 300 exhibitors and a range of food experts set to give keynote speeches, the lunch! show in London next month promises to be a gotta-go for anyone who offers food-to-go.

Exhibitors lined up for the seventh annual show include food and drink producers, from large manufacturers to small start-ups, as well as packaging and equipment suppliers.

Some of the new faces at lunch! for 2014 are Orchard House Foods, Coburg Coffee Company, Mexicana Cheese, Geeta's Foods, eco-friendly tableware supplier Little Cherry, Bib and Spoon (offering freshly made baby food-to-go), EPOSability, KMERA (creator of OOb – the first brand to provide pearl tea in a ready-to-go format in the UK); and Irish doughnut company Krüst Bakery.

Innovative products being launched at lunch! include the Snack Ham Company’s Snack Ham – a new meat snack made from 100% air dried pork ham. High in protein, and under 70 calories, it is available in Original and Chorizo flavours.

And Sansu Drinks, which says it is the first company to create drinks using the Far Eastern grapefruitsized citrus fruit Yuzu, will be bringing its range to the show.

Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of restaurant chain Leon and a founding director of the Sustainable Restaurant Association; Steve Flanagan, UK marketing and category director at Starbucks; and Sarah Doyle, brand director at EAT are three keynote speakers confirmed to appear at the show.

Wendy Duncan, R&D deploy manager at Unilever Food Solutions, will also be giving an “all you need to know” update on allergens legislation.

Show features include the Working lunch! a Keynote Theatre, an Innovation Challenge Live, Innovation Challenge Showcase, and the British Smoothie Championships.

For anyone operating a deli, café or sandwich bar, or considering diversifying, the lunch! menu promises plenty of market insights and inspiration. www.lunchshow.co.uk

NEED TO KNOW Venue Business Design Centre, 52 Upper Street, Islington, London N1 0QH When?

Tuesday September 23, 10am-5pm & Wednesday September 24, 10am-5pm How do I get there?

The Business Design Centre is within walking distance of Angel tube station and a few minutes by road from Kings Cross and Euston railway stations. It is serviced by numerous bus routes and is outside the London’s congestion charge zone. On-site parking can be pre-booked.

How do I register?

Tickets for this trade-only show are free. Visitors should register in advance online at www.lunchshow.co.uk.

Sass is a new addition to the UK’s drink market from start-up The Sassy Drinks Co. Made with a blend of pure apple, passion fruit, grape and blood orange juice combined with seven botanicals, it can be drunk alone or as a tropical mixer for cocktails.

GrantCaffè is introducing its premium range of Dutch artisan roasted coffee blends to the UK market. Fully-automated table-top bean-2-cup espresso machines, designed for smaller retail outlets, are also available.

Tri-Star Packaging’s new innovations on show at Lunch! include ‘curvy’ deli pots range Tri-Pot and Handle-It, an ingenious one-fingered drinks carrier designed by packaging designer Alison Bateman.

Family-run Brighton-based tea company Balcony Tea is bringing a taste of the Mediterranean to lunch!, with its new range of artisan teas and herbal infusions such as Hibiscus and Thyme Chai.

Wholesale sushi supplier Tanpopo Japanese Foods has added several new additions to its range, including grilled Salmon and Miso Ramen Noodle Soup and, a new vegetarian option, Bamboo & Shitake Mushroom Tom Yum. Following a rebrand, lunch! visitors will be the first to see Tom’s Pies new look and individual pie packaging. New lines include Beef Madras Pie and a range of mini pies: Chicken & Herb, Steak & Ale, and Chicken & Ham. Already big in Ireland, the Krüst-Cronut will be launched at Lunch! by Dublin-based retailer and wholesaler Krüst Bakery. The product is its take on New York chef Dominique Ansel’s famous croissant-doughnut fusion.

Since launching in February, moist Get Fruity bars from Get Fruity have been popular in their home county of Cornwall. Bars are available in three flavours, strawberry, apricot, orange and ginger and mixed berry. They combine fruit with British wholegrain oats.

Eco packaging and labelling expert Planglow has launched a new Gastro standard-fill sandwich wedge for 2014. The slim-line pack is made for trimmer servings and has been developed for ‘healthy choice’ and ‘value’ options.

Vita Coco Coconut Water has extended its core 330ml range with a lemonade variant. Vita Coco Lemonade (made from 100% natural coconut water mixed with fresh tasting lemon fruit purée) contains less sugar than other leading UK chilled still lemonades, the company says.

Chutneys to marinades company Karimix will be promoting its new South-East Asian winter warmers range at Lunch! These include kaffir red and miso soups, lemon chipotle and orange Dijon dressings.

Alan Nuttall will be showcasing its Flexeserve Intelligent Chassis Counter System, which can adapt to meet changing requirements. Its unique series of flexible link and lock modular counters can link up multiple modules, with heated, chilled or ambient Flexeserve drop-in displays.

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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Let’s do lunch!

The industry’s award-winning trade show for food-to-go

23-24 September 2014 Business Design Centre | London

“lunch! was so useful! So much more targeted than the other trade shows.

We’ll definitely be back!”

KEIRON MURPHY, INCREDIBLY FED

EXHIBITION

NEWS AWARDS WINNER

82

Winner of Best Trade Show 2013

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

Register for your FREE trade ticket at www.lunchshow.co.uk quoting priority code LUNFF5

shelf talk

products, promotions & people

Redesign for Rosebud as it prepares to bloom nationally

By MICHAEL LANE

Rather than sitting back and celebrating its 25th anniversary, Rosebud Preserves is using the milestone to launch a major brand overhaul with a view to becoming a national player.

The Yorkshire-based producer – a supplier of both private label and its own brand to independent retailers – has a new look website, redesigned labels and a number of new products in the pipeline.

Given the number of changes being made at the business, owner and founder Elspeth Biltoft told FFD she wanted to grow the brand “gently” but hoped to become one of the top five producers in the speciality preserves category.

Having cut down its private label work, Rosebud will focus on growing its own brand beyond its home county and current listings in London, as well as targeting growth in the foodservice sector.

Biltoft said the rebrand has been designed to reflect “a whole new vision” for the company, which produces both sweet and savoury lines.

“In an industry that has been flooded with start-ups we need to do what we can to strengthen our position,” she said. “This says to our existing customers that we still put quality on a pedestal.”

Aduna launches African superleaf Africa-inspired health brand Aduna has launched a new powder made from the leaves of the continent’s so-called “miracle tree”, moringa.

Said to be one of the world’s most nutrient-dense superfoods, moringa contains 25% protein and 13 vitamins and minerals at recommended daily allowance levels.

The powder, which is also high in antioxidants, is available loose in 100g and 200g tubes as well as 275g pouches (RRP £7.99, £12.99 and £13.99 respectively). It also comes in packs of 15x4.5g sachets (RRP £14.99).

Aduna recommends using the “earthy, spinach-y” powder in salads, soups and smoothies. www.aduna.com

Founder Elspeth Biltoft says the new labels are part of a “whole new vision” for Rosebud Preserves

As well as thicker paper and a change of font, the new labels also include a more detailed description of the product and serving suggestions. They are currently being rolled out across the range.

“We’re engaging with the customer and telling them as much as we can without being pretentious,” said Biltoft, adding that the intention was to promote the range as store cupboard ingredients as well as condiments.

She said the company’s website, due to launch as FFD went to press, would feature around 20 recipe ideas using Rosebud products. The site, 18 months in development, will also include details of products’ fruit and

sugar content while reinforcing the message about Rosebud’s all-natural ingredients.

As well as labels and marketing, Biltoft said that she is working with her team – particularly chef John Barley, hired last year to help with production, and sales and marketing manager Mark Alderson, who joined the business three years ago – to streamline the company’s range.

“We are trying everything, being very brutal,” she said. “You need a limited range on the shelf because you can’t let quantity run away with quality.”

Despite this paring down of the nearly 70-strong line-up, Rosebud has launched several new lines with

What’s new To mark its 25th anniversary, Rosebud Preserves has teamed up with fellow Yorkshire business Ampleforth Abbey to create three lines made with the latter’s beer, cider and cider brandy.

Beer fruit chutney – a combination of the Abbey’s beer, plums, dried fruits and allspice – comes in 198g jars, while Seville orange & cider marmalade comes in a 227g jar. Both have an RRP of £3.40.

Completing the trio is brandy & pear jam, which comes in 227g jars (RRP £3.90).

Another collaboration, with long-time private label customer Black Sheep Brewery, has also seen the release of a Great Yorkshire Pickle made with the brewery’s Black Sheep Ale, and Rosebud also plans to start selling honey.

The next products to arrive will be a range of three fruit cheeses – damson, quince and Bramley apple & cider – which are expected in the autumn.

more to come later this year (see box).

Rosebud’s most recent turnover was £550,000, with sales split 50:50 between branded lines and private label sales. It also exports its preserves to America, via distributor Belgravia Imports. US customers include Whole Foods Market and Dean & DeLuca. www.rosebudpreserves.co.uk

Folkington’s unveils British berry juice blend

By MICHAEL LANE

Sussex-based brand Folkington’s Juices is adding a new blend made from British-grown raspberries, strawberries and blackcurrants.

The all-natural Best of British Summer Berries drink, which contains only pure juices and no-added sugar, is the latest of Folkington’s creations to be produced using home-grown fruit.

The blackcurrant variety used is the Pixley Noir, grown by Edward

Thompson in Herefordshire.

The new drink will be available from October, in cases of 12x250ml bottles for around £9.50 (RRP £1.40 per bottle), to independent retailers as well as restaurants, pubs and hotels.

“We made 38 versions of this new drink until I was finally happy with it and satisfied that we had something that was going to measure up against the quality and uniqueness of the rest of our range,” said founder Paul Bendit.

“We reckon that you can’t beat British grown summer fruits so that’s exactly what we’ve used.”

Distributors include Hider, Holleys Fine Foods, Shire Foods, Mintons, Samways and The Cress Co but the drinks will be available in September on an exclusive promotion with Cotswold Fayre, which will see £1 from each cases donated to the Bala Orphanage in Kenya.

HAVE YOUR SAY: Donatantonio will preview 18 potential new products under its recently launched Lupetta brand at this month’s Speciality & Food Fair. The final line up of products to be launched will then be decided based on feedback received. The preview products will include four high-protein, bronze die pasta varieties, a selection of sweet and savoury marmalades, cantuccini biscuits and taralli breads. Lupetta will be exhibiting at stand 454. www.donatantonio.com

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

83

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No compromise on quality 84

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Top chefs tell CLARE HARGREAVES their deli essentials

New Teapigs drinks offer popular matcha on-the-go

By MICHAEL LANE

Teapigs has branched out beyond it range of tea bags by developing a range of three soft drinks made using its matcha green tea powder.

The Super Power Green Tea range comes in three varieties – elderflower, apple and grapefruit – and is packaged in resealable 330ml Tetra Paks (RRP £1.89), which are ambient but designed for the chiller cabinet.

Each carton contains fresh fruit juice and natural spring water mixed with 1g of the powder, which is made in Japan solely from ground green tea leaves and is said to contain 15 times the nutritional value of regular green tea. The drinks contain no added sugar and 32 calories per

100ml.

Given its health-enhancing properties, Teapigs said the drink can be deployed as “a mid-work pick-me-up, daily health kick or preworkout energy boost”.

Teapigs’ tea taster Louise Cheadle said the new range was developed given the popularity of the company’s pure matcha powder (in 30g and 80g tins).

“Since launching our powder in 2008, it has been flying off the shelves, with sales increasing every year,” she said. “With the trend showing no sign of abating, we have now created our green tea drink to make it even easier for everyone to get their daily matcha dose on-the-go.” www.teapigs.co.uk

LOVE IN SPOONFULS: Producing handmade Italians sauces since 2012, Pastamoré is now looking go national. The company currently supplies farm shops and delis in South Wales but is now offering its four-strong range to retailers UK-wide. The traditional, smooth Sugo, tomato & orange, tomato, white wine & chilli and tomato & rocket sauces all come in 350ml tubs. Suitable for vegans and gluten-free, they can all be used with pasta or as bases for other dishes.They are available direct or from distributor Blas Ar Fwyd. www.pastamore.co.uk

Mendip Moments invents ice cream cupcakes

By MICHAEL LANE

Whoever declared the cupcake trend dead forgot to tell Mendip Moments, because the Somerset-based producer has reinvented the popular treat by making it entirely from ice cream.

It makes its “dense, creamy” cupcake base using its own ice cream before dipping them in chocolate and “icing” them with a semifreddo mousse.

It has developed the product in four flavours: Chocolate Velvet, Strawberry Spring, Amaretto Machiatto and Lemon Lust. Each cupcake has a wholesale price of £2.40+VAT. “We are always looking for creative and original ways to use our ice cream, extending beyond the traditional idea of three scoops in a

CHEF’S SELECTION

bowl,” said Mendip Moments director Rob Lunnon. “These ice cream cupcakes fit the bill perfectly. There are various adaptations of cupcakes available at the moment but, as far as we are aware, these are the first ice cream versions.”

All of Mendip Moments’ ice cream is made using milk and cream from the family farm’s herd of Holstein cows. www.mendipmoments.co.uk

Andrew Kojima Chef & 2012 MasterChef finalist www.kojcooks.co.uk

Andrew Kojima worked as a financial analyst before competing in MasterChef 2012 in which he got through to the finals. Half Japanese, he is familiar with Japanese cooking which he learned through helping his mother in the kitchen as a child. He now works as a freelance chef and teaches cookery in the Cotswolds where he lives.

Rannoch smokery smoked duck breast www.rannochsmokery.co.uk

I usually cure my own meat and fish but Rannoch Smokery smokes its duck breasts so well, I leave it to the experts. The duck breasts are cured with garlic, coriander and thyme, then smoked and roasted over oak. The result is an amazingly soft and moist texture – not dry and rubbery as they can be sometimes. I love using them for sushi. I recently cooked a dinner at Westonbirt School, at which I served duck sushi with celeri remoulade as a canapé, and it went down a treat.

Meridian crunchy hazelnut butter www.meridianfoods.co.uk

Meridian makes some superb nut butters and this is probably my favourite. Again, it’s so pure, and the flavour is so good. It saves you all the trouble of making your own and, given the amount of nuts that go into it, it’s great value too. I buy it from my fantastic local butcher in Malmesbury. There’s no rubbish in it and it’s amazingly versatile so there are heaps of things you can do with it. I use it to make a hazelnut panna cotta or hazelnut tuiles, and I’ve also made my own Nutellastyle chocolate spread.

Clearspring organic Japanese brown rice crackers – black sesame www.clearspring.co.uk

I’ve eaten rice crackers since I was two or three years old. They’re deliciously crunchy and have a nice soya sauce coating so we always used to fight over them.

These Clearspring ones are a refined version of what we ate, and like all Clearspring’s products they’re totally pure: just brown rice, black sesame seeds, naturally aged tamari soya sauce, that’s it – no added sugar or gluten. Clearspring do a white sesame version too.

Being gluten-free, the crackers are a great standby for gluten-free clients. They’re good on their own, but they’re also perfect for canapés, topped with puréed soya beans. The crackers are so healthy I don’t know why they’re not more popular. I buy them in boxes of 30 x 40g packets.

Clearspring Japanese rice mirin 150cl bottle www.clearspring .co.uk

Mirin – a naturally sweet rice wine with a light, syrupy texture – is something I’ve always known about but others are often not familiar with it. It gives a subtle sweetness and depth to a dish.

The Clearspring mirin is far superior to others on the market which often contain sugar and preservatives and taste synthetic.

I use the Clearspring mirin in stir fries, such as beef and ginger, to achieve the classic combo of sweet and savoury.

It really lifts it. I also use it for marinades and teriyaki sauce.

Tracklements sweet mustard ketchup www.tracklements.co.uk

This is something I always make sure I have in my cupboard. With its strong yet sweet piquancy it’s perfect in any sandwich with ham in it. I made a mayonnaise with it to go on a steak tartare which worked well, and I use it in potato salads too. The mustard ketchup is quite liquid which means it soaks into the bread. It reminds me of my dad’s packed lunch sandwiches – mustard on one side, ketchup on the other, ham in the middle!

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

85

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86

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

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what’s new

Vegetarian approval

Organic flours

www.norfolkpunch. com

NORFOLK PUNCH

DOVES FARM FOODS www.dovesfarm.co.uk

The specialist flour mill has added two more organic varieties to its heritage range.

Wholemeal emmer flour (1kg, RRP £3.25) is milled from what is believed to be one of the oldest cultivated grains, dating back 20,000 years. The producer says its “slightly sweet and creamy flavour” works well in cookies and cakes as well as bread. It has also introduced an organic white rye flour (1kg, RRP £1.65), which is naturally low in gluten and said to be easier to knead than traditional dark rye dough. Doves Farm recommends using the flour for rye bread as well as pancakes, scones and biscuits.

Pear & ginger tea NOVUS TEA

www.novustea.co.uk

Having already claimed a Great Taste award during its development in 2012, Novus’s white pear & ginger tea is now available in both pyramid bags and loose-leaf. This silver needle white tea, from Fujian in China, is hand-plucked (two leaves and a new bud) on only two mornings per year, so there are very limited quantities available worldwide. Described as a “perfect afternoon tea”, the blend is also said to boast a higher proportion of antioxidants and polyphenols than green or black teas.

the Nettlecombe Estate back to life, Secret Orchard cider is now available to the trade. Founders Joe Heley and Todd Studley say they have created a “clean, crisp cider with a gentle sparkle and a refreshing finish”. Just five miles inland from the west Somerset coast, the estate’s orchards are home to several traditional varieties of apple and sloped for a sunny aspect. Bottles are available direct from the producer.

Cucumber and mint drink QCUMBER

www.q-cumber. co.uk

Following the success of its first creation, the adult soft drink producer has added a new flavour to its line-up.

Qcumber has taken its original recipe – made from sparkling water and cucumber essence – and added garden mint to create the new variety, which comes in 330ml glass bottles. Both the Qcumber products, which can be drunk on their own or used as mixers, are made from 100% natural ingredients and are free from artificial sweeteners, colours, preservatives and flavourings.

West coast, while Mark Hix’s celeriac & apple soup features only English apples. Italian chef Aldo Zilli completes the line-up with a Tuscan bean soup, produced using organic sun-ripened Italian tomatoes, chickpeas, haricot beans and fresh vegetables from Riverford Organic Farms. All three come in 600g pots (RRP £3.49).

Blended whisky

SPENCERFIELD SPIRIT CO Joining Spencerfield’s stable of blended whiskies – including the original Sheep Dip – the Sheep Dip Islay malt whisky is a unique blend of several single malt whiskies, all of them distilled and matured on the southernmost Hebridean Island of Islay. The blend is smoky on the nose and it offers flavours of iodine, seaweed and salt derived from an ageing process carried out close to the Atlantic ocean. Cases of 6x70cl bottles are available at an introductory price of £115+VAT.

Double-lidded hampers GADSBY

www.gadsby.co.uk

Display and packaging specialist Gadsby has added to its range of wicker hampers with a new double-lidded version in time for Christmas. The Somerset business’s handmade wicker hampers all feature strong wicker handles and real leather straps. Trade prices for the range start at £4.24. The company will be exibiting its full range – including natural slate products and cardboard hamper – on stand 667 at the Speciality & Fine Food Fair.

Following its recent re-launch by new owners Herbal Fusions, Norfolk Punch has now gained an official seal of approval from the Vegetarian Society. The all-natural, non-alcoholic herbal drink is still made to an original 13th century monastic recipe using 30 different herbs, berries and spices.

Norfolk Punch (700ml, RRP £6.99) can be drunk hot or chilled.

Cups and clutches BEYOND THE BEAN

www.beyondthebean.com

Beyond the Bean’s has developed a range of Masquerade coffee clutches that can be slipped over any 12oz or 16oz single-walled cups. The six designs include superheroes, a panda, a cat or even a classic masquerade option. The clutches, which can be cut out to make masks, are all 100% recyclable and come in mixed cases of 1,000 units.The company has also got new Ripple double-walled cups, made with paperboard from sustainable forests, in 8oz and12 oz sixes (500 cups per case). Decorated with an exclusive hand-drawn design, these cups are designed to keep drinks hotter for longer.

Celebrity Soups

TIDEFORD ORGANICS www.tidefordorganics.com

Exmoor cider

SECRET ORCHARD CIDER www.secretorchardcider.co.uk

After several years coaxing some disused orchards on

The Devon-based producer has teamed up with three celebrity chefs to develop recipes for a range of organic, gluten-free soups.

Mitch Tonks’ smoked haddock chowder with organic leeks & peas is made using naturally smoked haddock caught off the South Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

87

shelf talk Dan Mortimer’s shop is less than 400 sq ft in size but is regularly voted one of the country’s top food shops

Knack, luck and a bit of guts Deli of the Month INTERVIEW BY MICHAEL LANE

Mortimer & Bennett has been a fixture on West London’s foodie map for a quarter of a century, owing its long life to the owner’s keen eye for a product

88

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8

W

est London isn’t short of a foodie “institution” or two but they tend to be slightly larger than this month’s subject. Nevertheless, Mortimer & Bennett is worthy of the distinguished title.

It may boast just 400 sq ft of retail space but the shop and its unpretentious frontage have been a permanent fixture on Turnham Green Terrace for nearly a quarter of a century.

Even now, in its 25th year of trading, the shop regularly appears in national newspaper lists of the country’s top places to buy food.

“We’re a really small shop with a small selling area but for some reason we’re well-known,” says founder Dan Mortimer, with a degree of disbelief. “It’s fantastic, but you can’t swing a cat in here.”

Even if he can’t fathom out his shop’s fame, Mortimer has a simple explanation for its longevity.

“It’s the three Ls: location, location, location,” he says. “It wouldn’t work if we weren’t opposite the butcher and near a fishmonger and a nice chocolate shop. It’s one-stop shopping.”

As well as the aforementioned

independents, the strip of road that connects Turnham Green tube station with Chiswick High Road is packed with places to eat, grab a coffee and buy clothes. Even midmorning on a Tuesday, the street is awash with people, and brands like White Stuff, JoJo Maman Bebe and Oliver Bonas belie the aspirational and wealthy nature of the area’s population.

There’s always been lot of money in the area and footfall has always been strong, even in 1990 when Mortimer and former business partner Diane Bennett stood at either end of street, before they moved in, tallying passers-by with clickers, like doormen.

Still, it is not quite the gravy train it first appears to be.

“It’s always been a nice little village-y street,” says Mortimer.

“Luckily, because the shops are so small it’s managed to retain its shopkeeper mentality. A few chains have moved in, sadly, but everyone in the street’s struggling now.”

While customer numbers and spend have been increasing in the last six months, Mortimer says recent economic slumps have been a tough thing to trade through,

even in affluent Chiswick.“Basically, because it’s a very localised shop with no tourists or passer-by trade, we rely very much on our regulars,” he explains. “And they were spending £2 instead of £5.

When you have 500-600 customers a week that three quid difference is quite a lot money for a little shop.”

Recessions are nothing new for Mortimer. He worked through several during a career in the fashion industry, including those of the mid-’70s and the Three-Day Week, but it was a downturn in his own fortunes that prompted his switch to shop-keeping.

After being made redundant on Christmas Eve 1989, he hatched a plan to open a deli with friend Diane Bennett, who sold her share of the business to Mortimer 10 years later due to her husband’s ill health.

Mortimer freely admits that the pair were “green” when they started but they had the presence of mind to seek inspiration in the right places.

“I went with my little tape recorder around Fortnum’s and various places, picking up something and checking where it was from and talking into my recorder,” he recalls.

products, promotions & people “The security guard at Fortnum’s kicked me out. That was one lesson learned.”

They also tried the more traditional routes, like visiting trade shows such as SIAL in Paris, but whatever method he has used over the years to search for stock, Mortimer admits he is lucky enough to have a “good eye” for a product.

While having a restaurateur for a father and taking full advantage of foreign business trips (“I’m not really that into clubbing so I used to go out and eat.”) undoubtedly helped, Mortimer has developed his own unique formula for finding a good seller.

“It’s partly knack, partly luck and partly a bit of guts.”

The result in-store is a range that boasts deli standards, up-andcoming producers and quite a few lines you’re unlikely to see in other delis.

His cheese counter, which accounts for around 40% of the shop’s £500,000-plus turnover, is a particular case in point. Customers can choose classics like Brie de Meaux and Montgomery’s cheddar, opt for modern British cheeses like Tunworth and White Lake Cheese’s Rachel or walk away with something unpronounceable like Sounal de Hyelzas (sheep’s milk, Vacherinstyle) or the alpine Toggenburger Nidelchäs from a small Swiss farmhouse maker.

Mortimer is confident that you won’t find about half a dozen of his lesser-known cheeses elsewhere, because he imports them exclusively himself. In fact, all of the French cheese is bought to order by a broker, based near Paris, who collects it from the makers, consolidates it and delivers it to the shop.

Mortimer imports lines in a number of categories and is even the exclusive UK agent for a couple of brands, including Bonnat single origin chocolate and preserves from La Trinquelinette from France.

While he wholesales a good deal of the products he imports himself (his turnover from this is nearly £250,000, on top of the shop’s takings), Mortimer prefers to deal direct when it comes to buying other things for the shop.

“There’s this myth created by wholesalers,” he says. “They say to retailers ‘You can’t get it in yourself – it’s far too complicated’. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do. You don’t have to buy big minimums like they say you do. I often buy £200£300 worth of stuff.”

He is particularly circumspect when it comes to the larger speciality wholesalers, partly because of the margins they add and partly because their catalogues are too accessible to other retailers.

“They’ve got very nice products

to have a 40-50% margin and, of course, space is at a premium. And some.

With rent around the £700 mark, a “ridiculous” £1,000 in monthly business rates, as well as energy costs and staff wages, Mortimer estimates that it costs him £400 each day before he has even opened the shop. “That means you’ve got to do at least £800 a day which, touch wood, seems to be ok,” he says.

“Even bread, which is the hardest thing to buy, has to pay its way.”

Sometimes, he concedes, his heart gets in the way of de-listing struggling lines but Mortimer receives a gentle telling off from the longest serving of his staff if something isn’t shifting.

Ben Cooper, who has worked in the shop for a decade, and the other members of a “great team” have allowed Mortimer to take a bit more of a “back seat role”.

Not only does this ease the burden of stock control and buying but it also helps him deal with a changing customer base.

There are still the husbands who always spend more at the weekends when their wives aren’t watching, the little old lady who comes in regularly for a single slice of ham and a chat and the late Richard t Briers regularly popped by for a t e n Ben MortimerC& baguette. But Mortimer has noticed S K MUST-STO a fundamental shift in his clientele. paté “When we first opened it was Patchwork ho what I call the old middle class ac zp ga Brindisa money, with a nice big house, but granola tt ne en B Mor timer & rry now a lot of them have downsized inette raspbe La Trinquel and all the new blood’s moved in s m ja t co and apri but there’s no loyalty,” he with nanny, 4x4 and school fees of quito drop says. “They’ll just flood £20,000 a pop,” he says. “Spend Leathams ro peppers the market.” goes way down at the beginning Mortimer would much of the term and I put that down to k Roast Ham ol ff Su rm Lane Fa rather talk about one those fees.” es (Paris) of his latest additions: Mortimer certainly finds the Goose rillett e ss ou m t smoke trou rm the table of English new breed harder to deal with.

Fa sh Fi Mere

by Tracie heritage fruit sourced from Shortly before FFD arrived he Cakes baked Brogdale Farm in Kent had a particularly stroppy lady Misiewicz – home of the National of leisure storm out because a erry Cream yb ta ee Tr Alder Fruit Collection – and wild delivery of scotch eggs had not Ice Scottish mushrooms on the arrived from Hereford in time for ke La te hi s’ cheese (W pavement outside the shop. her lunch guests. But he says he Rachel goat “That’s what I call food,” is naturally more “grumpy and Cheeses) ) ry ai D se (Dunlop ee ch he says. “That’s an amazing cynical” after 25 years behind s’ at go Bonnet acher table of English fruit. People the counter.

Po re hi ns ol Vintage Linc who want to do this normally Although he isn’t quite de Meaux go to bloody New Covent ready to call it quits, Mortimer Dongé Brie eeses) Garden and just pick what accepts he will have to hang ampshire Ch Tunwor th (H looks nice.” up the apron eventually. “I Parma ham For him, the products and don’t want to do this forever. cakes how they are sourced are what I’ve got my bus pass. It’s about Macleans Oat e ng ra t for Cheese as define not just his own but all To time I left.”

Co se Fine Chee delis.

Before he gets on board, “There are very few does he have any pearls of what I call real delis, selling wisdom for aspiring deli available upon request rather than ingredients,” he says. “They’re owners? emblazoned on a board. “We hate all coffee shops with a couple of “It may sound silly but I making sandwiches,” he whispers. shelves of deli items.” do what I’m doing here and we get Skipping the standard margin At Mortimer & Bennett, you on with it,” he says. “You don’t get earners that most speciality food can’t order a latte (coffee is available rich owning a deli but you eat well retailers rely on means Mortimer has in beans and ground formats on out-of-date food.” to make what he’s got work for him. only) and sandwiches are only He looks for each and every product www.mortimerandbennett.com Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

89

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• food processing machinery

0 1 9 2 0

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

• bottles & jars

• labelling

• food processing machinery



Built in Britain

• ingredients

01761 470523 F: 01761 471018 E: info@zumozest.com w: www.zumozest.com

T:

Packaging Ltd

The heart of UK food manufacturing

4 8 4 0 5 0

                

• labelling

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

• labelling

Crestchem

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

Food Division - suppliers of

LABELLING MACHINES

PECTIN CITRIC ACID GUMS SORBATES LACTOSE & more

.

MECNOSUD MIXERS A guarded success...

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

• bottles & jars

Consistent & quick label application for a wide range of bottles, jars or containers. .

Bottle fillers & cappers also available.

Contact: LORETTA ATKINS loretta@crestchem.co.uk T: 01494 434660 - F: 01494 434990 www.crestchem.co.uk

Tel: 01404 892100 Email: sales@vigoltd.com www.vigoltd.com • ingredients

• ingredients

• labelling

HS HS French Flint Ltd. FF Speciality Glassware, for the more discerning producer.

Weighing Labelling Epos

Fabrications for the food industry Stainless Steel & Aluminium Fabrications Tables • Sinks • Racks • Trolleys Bespoke Fabrications • Ware Washing Contact:

John Armstrong on either

07825 44 44 03 or 01909 519098 Unit 4G, The Leathermarket, Weston Street, London SE1 3ER Tel: 020 7407 3200 Fax: 020 7237 9093 www.FrenchFlint.com

90

e-mail: john@jkstainlesssolutions.co.uk www.jkstainlesssolutions.co.uk

JEROS UK Ltd 1302-887677 www.jeros.co.uk

☎

Model D955

September 2014 · Vol.15 Issue 8 JEROS UK 47x60.indd 1

12.1” Full Touch

7” Hybrid Price

DIBAL UK Limited W: www.dibal.com E: info@dibal.co.uk T: 020 8892 9465

13/08/14 16.24

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

• labelling

• labelling

• labelling

• refrigeration

“We can help you label every step of the way, manually, semi and fully automatically” Label Solutions That Add Value and Boost Brand Impact Proudly supplying British made packaging equipment and labelling machines for 50 years 1964-2014

Premium label suppliers to: Langham Wine Estate Olives Et Al Fortnum and Mason Get in touch Amberley Adhesive Labels Ltd tel: 01258 455772 email: sales@amberley.net www.amberley.net

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

Visit us at the NEC Packaging Innovations on 25-26 February 2015 (stand H20)

• packaging

DELI-GHT FOR FINE FOOD MANUFACTURERS THE ELF BRINGS AFFORDABLE LABELLING TECHNOLOGY

• Digital short run labels • Inkjet printing • Hot foiling and domed labels • bar coding, variable data and consecutive numbering • Reeled/laminated/sheeted • High volume plain labels (We have turret winding capacity) • High volume printed labels upto 8 colours In addition with in-house design and plate making we can offer unrivalled service and response to meet your needs

Advanced Dynamics Ltd T +44 (0)1274 731222 E info@advanceddynamics.co.uk Visit www.advanceddynamics.co.uk • packaging

• training

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

Tamper evident & film sealable plastic food packaging Reliable leadtimes and service – sensible minimum order size Sizes available from 30ml to 5000ml – transparent products in stock Visit www.innavisions.com or call us for a brochure

Top quality HACCP, food safety and auditing training courses delivered online or at our dedicated training facility.

T: 01756 700802 www.vwa.co.uk

TEL: 01886 832283 EMAIL: nick.wild@innavisions.com

• packaging

RetailReady

RetailReady is a two day course that will steer you through the minefield of opening and running a fine food store.

The course is designed to equip managers of prospective, new or developing delis and farm shops with the business essentials of fine food and drink retailing.

The next course takes place on October 21-22 2014.

• ingredients Inkreadible Labels Ad artwork - 10.7.14

47.25x60mm - CH6020

• packaging

Visit www.finefoodworld.co.uk/ retailready for more details and an application form.

Call us to find out more on 01747 825200.

VERNER WHEELOCK ASSOCIATES

Vol.15 Issue 8 · September 2014

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September 2014 路 Vol.15 Issue 8