Notcutts order for Anila's Authentic Sauces

Premium curry sauce producer Anila’s Authentic Sauces has won an order to directly supply 13 stores in the Notcutts garden centre group.

The outlets are each taking a selection of 13 curry sauces, chutneys and pickles.

Anila Vaghela, who runs Anila’s Authentic Sauces, said: “We are very pleased to be directly supplying Notcutts with our award-winning products to add to the ranges in their food halls. It means our customers have more places from which to buy their favourite curry sauces, chutneys and pickles.”

Anila, who is this year celebrating 20 years in the business after selling her first jar of homemade curry sauce at a fair in Weybridge, Surrey, in March 1992, produces eight varieties of curry sauce and 16 types of a mix of pickles, chutneys and dips. The firm supplies hundreds of outlets that include garden centres, delis, farm shops, gift shops and also health stores. It also sells direct to the public at farmers’ markets and at food shows and festivals as well as online via www.anilassauces.com

Anila’s Authentic Sauces is supplying to Notcutts branches in Bagshot, Cheshire, Pontefract, Nottingham, Worksop, Norwich, Cambridge, Manchester, Maidstone, Staines, Oxford, St Albans and Peterborough.

Anila’s sauces are based on a traditional family recipe, made from the freshest ingredients in small batches. They are free from artificial colours, additives and preservatives, and are sugar, dairy and gluten free, and contain no onion or garlic. Using 23 different spices, the sauces have a homemade quality just like “Mum makes”.

Based in Walton-on-Thames, with a unit in Hounslow, Anila’s Authentic Sauces has won 11 Great Taste Awards from the Guild of Fine Food for its products. Its Goan Green Curry Sauce was named Best Vegan Product in The Veggie Awards 2011 by Cook Vegetarian! magazine, with the judges saying: “Not only one of the best vegan curry sauces we’ve ever tried but one of the best curry sauces available. Its complexity of flavours makes its taste truly sensational.”

In 2009 Anila’s Spicy Korma Curry Sauce scooped a “Free From” Food Award.

Visit www.anilassauces.com for more information and booking.

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New salted caramel flavoured coffee launched by Cherizena

Coffee specialist Cherizena is launching a new salted caramel flavoured coffee.

Combining the rich flavour of caramel with a zingy twist of salt, Cherizena’s salted caramel flavoured coffee is perfect for hot drinks as well as cold frappés.

It is the latest in a range of more than 20 flavoured coffees produced by Cherizena, which also offers around 30 single-origin coffees and blends via mail order from www.cherizena.co.uk

“Salted caramel coffee is now very popular in America and we’re delighted that we are now adding our own version to Cherizena’s range of flavoured and speciality coffees,” said Kate Jones, who runs the family-owned Leicestershire-based firm.

"Flavoured coffees are increasing in popularity, especially among young coffee drinkers, and our latest one tastes great and has a wonderful aroma.”

Just like all of the coffees in Cherizena’s flavoured range, the salted caramel flavour contains no syrups and no coatings.

Cherizena, based near Melton Mowbray, is a leading UK specialist producer of coffee and sources premium, rare and speciality coffees, as well as creating its own range of superb flavoured coffees.

The salted caramel flavour coffee is being launched shortly on www.cherizena.co.uk and costs £3 for 125g. It is available as beans or ground, regular or decaffeinated.

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Expansion plans for Focus Consultants

Regeneration experts, project management specialists and construction and property services firm Focus Consultants has made six new appointments in Nottingham and Leicester.

The company also plans to take on additional staff at its recently opened office in London.

The firm, based at Phoenix Business Park in Nottingham, and with branches in Leicester, Lincoln, Boston and London, specialises in securing grant assistance and delivering projects and programmes. Across the UK, Focus has secured £730 million of grant assistance, and delivered more than £980 million of projects and programmes since 1994 - including heritage, culture and the arts, health, regeneration, affordable homes and energy carbon sustainability projects.

The recent appointments have been made in response to growing demand for services in the firm’s Energy Carbon Sustainability Team and the Economic Development Team. They will soon be joined in the new London office by project managers and building surveyors.

“We are very pleased to welcome six new employees, each of whom brings different talents to our teams,” said Steven Fletcher, partner at Focus Consultants. “It’s also exciting news that we are expanding our London office after winning a number of contracts in and around the capital.”
T
he new employees in Nottingham are chartered and trainee quantity surveyors Matthew Gent and William Morris, Sophie Noon, who is a specialist researcher, building surveyor Andy Graham and assistant building surveyor Thomas Willis. Gareth Morris has also joined the Leicester office as part of Focus Consultants’ Energy Carbon Sustainability Team.

Focus Consultants specialises in creative approaches to securing funding packages and delivering high quality projects across the Midlands and the UK.

www.focus-consultants.co.uk

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Croots Farm Shop to support Derbyshire children’s charity for 2012

Derbyshire farm shop Croots will be supporting two charities during 2012, it has announced.

The farm shop in Wirksworth Road, near Duffield, will continue to raise money for the Shire Horse Society in recognition of the Shire horses that live in the fields around the store. But it will also support Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre – a charity that provides disadvantaged children in Derbyshire with holidays in Skegness.

The charity provides 450 holiday places per season and needs to raise more than £150,000 a year to continue its work.

Steve Croot, who runs Croots Farm Shop, said: “With the support of our customers and staff, we have raised many hundreds of pounds for local and national charities since we launched in June 2008, and this year we hope to continue the good work by collecting for the Shire Horse Society and Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre.

“We plan to have a number of events and competitions over the next 12 months which we hope will raise much-needed funds for these two causes.”

Croots Farm Shop and Kitchen, based at Farnah House Farm, is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

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Derbyshire wedding cake expert Luke Evans Bakery looks at trends for 2012

The future’s looking bright for wedding cakes this year.

Luke Evans Bakery, which has been making and designing wedding cakes for generations of couples in Derbyshire and beyond, says this year’s trends include bold designs, with purple proving a popular colour.

Elegant and vintage styles, with intricate designs, are also a hot favourite with brides and grooms who are tying the knot in 2012.

The American style of tiers of cake without the use of pillars or stands continues to be in demand, with round being the most popular shape of cake.

And when it comes to the type of cake, the older generation tends to prefer traditional fruit cake, while the younger generation often favours a flavour such as banana or carrot cake. Virtually anything is possible now when it comes to flavours, and many couples opt to have different cakes for each tier, creating a tall and elegant showpiece.

Wedding cakes made of cupcakes or fairy cakes are also bang on trend, having been popular for the past couple of years. A modern alternative to a traditional cake, cupcake wedding towers allow newly weds to have a range of different flavours of cake and endless choices when it comes to design.

“There are so many beautiful options for wedding cakes,” said Sharon Dance who has worked at Luke Evans Bakery in Riddings for 18 years and has decorated hundreds of wedding and celebration cakes.

“Trends in wedding cakes tend to go round in circles. It’s like fashion. When they come back round, the younger generation haven’t seen them before so they appear to be fresh and new. Having said that, there are always new designs, ideas and influences, so each wedding cake is individual and unique to a couple.

“Last year purple became popular as a colour, and that’s continuing in 2012. Round is the most popular shape of cake, and many couples are opting for brighter, bold designs. However, elegant and vintage styles are also very trendy, possibly influenced by last year’s royal wedding.”

Luke Evans Bakery, founded more than 200 years ago, has been making cakes for generations of Derbyshire’s newly weds. The bakery will be taking part in a number of wedding fairs across Derbyshire this year, including Horsley Lodge on February 19th and Derby Conference Centre on March 18th.

It already has several orders for 2013 weddings as couples look to plan ahead and book the key wedding day items.

“The wedding cake is traditionally the centrepiece of the wedding reception,” said Sharon. “The possibilities for style, design and decoration are virtually endless, and then of course there’s the type and flavour of cake. Many brides and grooms opt for a three-tier cake, with one tier of fruit cake, another tier of Madeira cake and a third tier of chocolate cake. This means they have something to suit everyone.”

For more information about Luke Evans Bakery’s wedding cake service visit www.lukeevans.co.uk

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Shanti Yoga School and Full Movement Training School stage open day event in Nottinghamshire

Yoga is coming under the spotlight at an open event being held by Shanti Yoga School in Nottinghamshire.

The event on Saturday January 14th is being held at the Eco Centre at Home Farm, Screveton, and will focus on new classes that are launching this month and next.

These include seated yoga for the less mobile and a course to train as a yoga teacher.

The event, which runs from 11am to 3pm, will also be an opportunity to find out more about the Full Movement Training School – a sister company to Shanti Yoga School - which teaches a unique therapy linked to Hatha yoga.

Both organisations were run by Andy Thomas, from West Bridgford, who died in March 2011, and the open event marks a re-launch by his family, friends and colleagues.

“The open event at the Eco Centre is the chance for anyone interested in yoga or the full movement method to find out more,” said Liz Thomas, Andy’s wife.

“We have a range of yoga classes starting in January and February, for people who want to learn yoga and for people who currently practise yoga and would like to learn how to become teachers. A course to train in becoming a Full Movement Method practitioner also begins at the end of January.

“The open event will feature some mini taster sessions and also the opportunity to meet members of the team and teachers.”

A six-week course of yoga classes for men and women starts at 6.30pm on Monday January 16th at the Eco Centre, while yoga classes for the less mobile begin on Thursday January 19th from 11am to 12.30pm.

The seated yoga classes are run by Sandra Fowkes, who explained that yoga could be beneficial for those with reduced mobility.

“Everybody can have a go and you can still get the benefits,” she said.

Shanti Yoga School, which has recently been accredited by Yoga Alliance as an approved Teacher Training School, was founded in 2003 and has trained dozens of teachers in Hatha Yoga, who have since gone on to run their own classes.

A two-year teacher training courses run at specific weekends to help students who have weekday commitments starts in February 2012.

The Full Movement Training School, which is based in Colwick, Nottingham, but also runs courses at the Eco Centre, teaches therapists in the discipline of the Full Movement Method, a unique blend of yoga and physical therapy that was created by Andy Thomas.

Andy trained therapists locally, nationally and abroad to practise FMM, which resolves muscle and joint pains, immobility and malfunction, and students have gone on to open FMM clinics in Bournemouth, Sheffield and elsewhere.

In November 2011, the Full Movement Training School was given official accreditation from the Federation of Holistic Therapists, the largest and leading professional association for therapists in the UK and Ireland.

To get to the Eco Centre, follow the signs for Car Colston off the A46 and pick up the Screveton sign in Car Colston. Turn left at the Farmeco sign in Screveton.

For more information visit www.shantiyogaschool.co.uk or www.fullmovementmethod.co.uk


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Croots Farm Shop takes part in Farmhouse Breakfast Week in January

Derbyshire farm shop Croots is celebrating Farmhouse Breakfast Week with all-day breakfasts and a buy-one-get-one-free deal on breakfasts.

This is the fourth year that the farm shop on Wirksworth Road, Duffield, has taken part in the national event which aims to promote the importance of breakfast.

From Tuesday January 24th to Sunday January 29th, Croots will be offering breakfast all day in Croots Kitchen, with a buy-one-get-one-free deal.

Farmhouse Breakfast Week has been run annually by the HGCA (the cereals and oilseeds division of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board) since the year 2000, and aims to raise awareness of the benefits of eating a healthy breakfast and demonstrate the variety of breakfast foods available in the UK.

The theme for the campaign is “Shake Up Your Wake Up” - make small changes to your morning routine to make sure you have time for breakfast every day.

Steve Croot, who runs Croots Farm Shop, said: “We have taken part in Farmhouse Breakfast Week since we launched in 2008. We feel it’s an excellent way of raising awareness of the importance of a healthy breakfast and the wonderful range of local and national breakfast items there are to choose from.

“Our breakfasts will feature a number of Derbyshire products, including our own award-winning sausages.”

Croots Farm Shop and Kitchen is open Sundays from 10am to 4pm (café until 3.45pm), and from Tuesday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm (café until 4.30pm). It is closed on Mondays.

For more information visit www.croots.co.uk

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New membership structure introduced by business support organisation The Food and Drink Forum

Business support organisation The Food and Drink Forum has launched a new membership structure to offer more flexible grades.

The Forum, which has been supporting food and drink companies since 1998, has also boosted the range of offers available to members.

“Previously our membership grades focused on the size of a business, but we have changed the grades available to allow members to choose the level that best suits their needs. It also offers them the flexibility to move from one grade to another from year to year, depending on their stage of development,” said Food and Drink Forum managing director Fiona Anderson.

“The new structure has been introduced in response to feedback from members and we hope it will provide more value.”

The Food and Drink Forum, which is based in the Business Centre at Southglade Food Park, Nottingham, and operates in Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Northamptonshire, Rutland and across the UK, provides a range of different services to food and drink firms.

Advice, expertise, business support, training, production and technical services, sales and marketing advice and lead generation are just some of the services on offer. In addition, members can also benefit from the use of business facilities, meeting rooms and a new product development kitchen at Southglade Food Park.

“We have based our grades on the needs of businesses, drawing on many years of experience within the industry,” said Fiona Anderson. “Membership packages are available to any food and drink producer or manufacturer of any size, from start-up companies to larger established organisations. We also have a consultant membership grade for those who supply into the food and drink sector.”

Bronze, Silver and Gold membership packages have been introduced, with prices starting at £110 plus vat per annum. Visit www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk for more detailed information.

The Food and Drink Forum was launched in 1998 as a not-for-profit membership-led organisation to stimulate and support the sustainable growth and development of the food and drink industry in the East Midlands.

It aims to:
• Champion the food and drink sector in the East Midlands.
• Develop strategic influencing partnerships within and outside the East Midlands.
• Act as a centre for information and knowledge on all subjects relating to the food and drink sector in the region.
• Stimulate and facilitate sustainable change within companies of all sizes across the food chain.
• Generate income and secure resources to meet the needs of a high-quality service.
• Promote the food and drink sector to future employees through education and the raising of skills.

For more information about the services offered by The Food and Drink Forum visit www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk

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