Food and Drink iNet (Innovation Network) supports launch of fruit salsas

An East Midlands organisation that supports new developments in the food and drink sector is backing a firm’s plan to launch the first fruit-based salsas of their kind in the UK.

The Food and Drink iNet (Innovation Network) has awarded £2,250 Innovation Advice and Guidance funding to support development of Purple Pepper Fruit Salsas.

The four salsas have been created by Carron Smith, who runs outside catering company Cookies of Oakham. After winning an award for her initial product development of Purple Pepper at the Food and Drink iNet Innovation Awards 2010, Carron is moving towards the official launch of the products.

Now she’s working with experts to find a way of maximising the shelf life of the salsas and is looking at the best packaging for her products.

The iNet, which links academic and private sector expertise and knowledge with local food and drink business innovation needs, has granted funding to help Carron work with food technical experts at Nottingham Trent University. Cookies of Oakham is match funding the support.

“Since the products are made using only fresh and raw ingredients and there’s no cooking involved, challenges exist in extending shelf life sufficiently to produce a commercially viable product,” said Carron, who lives in Glenfield, Leicester.

The Nottingham Trent University experts will help her to determine the best ways for her salsas to be packaged to ensure that they have maximum shelf life.

“The iNet has been absolutely fantastic through all of this,” said Carron. “I couldn’t have done it without their support and without the support of Diana Thraves and Mike Dixon at Nottingham Trent University.”

Carron hopes that her Purple Pepper Fruit Salsas will be launching by the end of August – initially for sale to local delis and farm shops, and via food fairs. In the future she hopes to be selling the products direct to customers online.

Richard Worrall, Food and Drink iNet director, said: “One of the main functions of the Food and Drink iNet is to support the development of promising new products, and Purple Pepper Fruit Salsas fitted the bill perfectly. Carron has sought the advice of experts from concept through to development, and we are pleased to support her as she embarks on the final stages before product launch.”

The Food and Drink iNet, which is funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), is one of four regional iNets that operates across the region. It has a pot of finance available this summer to provide match-funded support for eligible projects, which could be focusing on new products, accessing new markets or looking at new ways of working.

The Food and Drink iNet aims to build on the tradition of innovation in the food and drink industry in the region by helping to create opportunities to develop knowledge and skills, and to help research, develop and implement new products, markets, services and processes. It is managed by a consortium, led by the Food and Drink Forum and including Food Processing Faraday, Nottingham Trent University, the University of Lincoln, and the University of Nottingham. For more information visit www.eminnovation.org.uk/food

For more information please contact the Food and Drink iNet on info@foodanddrink-inet.org.uk

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East Midlands business support organisation The Food and Drink Forum announces its AGM

More than 100 individuals and companies involved in the East Midlands food and drink sector are expected to attend the annual general meeting of The Food and Drink Forum.

The Forum is one of the largest business support organisations in the region dedicated to the food and drink sector, with members across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Rutland.

The annual general meeting and members’ networking supper is the flagship event of the organisation’s calendar and attracts many of the region’s key industry players. It takes place on June 16th at Kelham Hall near Newark, starting from 4pm.

Forum managing director Fiona Anderson said: “The AGM is always a very popular and well-attended event. It gives members the chance to chat about issues in the industry and to make valuable contacts.”

Each year the AGM is followed by the Members’ Supper which this year is being sponsored by recruitment consultants Ambitions Personnel.

Established in 1990, with 17 locations in the East Midlands, and currently supplying over 1500 temporary workers to the food industry on a daily basis, Ambitions Personnel believes that an organisation’s best ingredients should be its people.

Speakers at the event include Sam Sangha, managing director of Nottingham-based importer and wholesaler of oriental foods Asiana Ltd, and his daughter Sandy Lathia, who is the firm’s business development director. They will be speaking about bringing a product to market.

Head of marketing at Pork Farms Ltd, Andy Napthine, will be talking about Pork Farms’ brand relaunch, which comes as the brand marks its 80th anniversary. The firm supplies chilled savoury pastry products for retail.

The Food and Drink Forum is based at Southglade Food Park, Nottingham, and is a membership organisation that supports the sustainable growth of the food and drink sector across the East Midlands.

Its AGM is open to members only, with the networking supper open to members and invited guests. Anyone interested in finding out more about the benefits of joining The Food and Drink Forum should call 0115 9758810 or visit www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk

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Accreditation success for Nottingham food service supplier, thanks to business support organisation The Food & Drink Forum

Luciano Vendone

Business support organisation The Food and Drink Forum has successfully guided Nottingham-based firm Deli Conti towards gaining a key food safety accreditation.

The Forum’s technical manager Richard Wigley helped the food service supplier to achieve STS accreditation, which is a requirement to supply for some of the major UK food service organisations.

Now the firm hopes it will open new doors and create additional business for Deli Conti, which supplies freshly cooked authentic pasta sauces and meals, marinated olives and a range of other foods and ingredients to caterers, restaurants, delis, pubs and other outlets.

The company, which is based at Victoria Business Park, Netherfield, has taken on three additional staff over the past six months and now employs eight people.

“Richard’s support and guidance has been invaluable in helping Deli Conti to achieve the STS accreditation, and we couldn’t have done it without him,” said Sue Vendone, operations manager at Deli Conti. “We knew that we were doing all the correct things in terms of quality assurance and food safety, but it was documenting it in the correct format that we needed help with, and Richard’s experience in accreditation proved to be extremely useful.

“Now that we have STS accreditation we will be promoting our products and it will increase customer confidence.”

The Food and Drink Forum, which operates across the East Midlands, supports food and drink manufacturers and others working in the sector in a number of ways, including providing help with food safety accreditations such as BRC (British Retail Consortium), STS and SALSA (Safe and Local Supplier Approval).

“Many retailers and food service operators demand accreditations from their suppliers so it makes excellent business sense for manufacturers to invest in gaining the standards,” said Richard Wigley.

“Having the correct accreditations can open doors with potential customers and lead to new business contracts, so I am delighted to learn that Deli Conti has achieved STS accreditation with support from The Food and Drink Forum.”

Among Deli Conti’s recent customers are a small chain of restaurants in the south and a large national chain of Italian restaurants.

The Food and Drink Forum is based at the Business Centre, Southglade Food Park, Nottingham. For more information about how the organisation supports businesses, please visit http://www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk/
or call 0115 9758810.

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Food and Drink iNet support helps coffee supplier Shelton Imports to win new orders

Left to right, Food and Drink iNet advisor for Leicestershire Stevie Jackson and Ximena Shelton, from Shelton Imports, look at the new menus

Coffee specialist Shelton Imports has won an order from prestigious store Harrods and begun selling to a whole new market after receiving support from the Food and Drink iNet.

The Leicestershire-based company supplies flavoured Colombian coffee cubes in individual wraps direct to customers via its website and to retailers like delicatessens and farm shops.

But now the firm has also moved into the food service sector and begun selling to coffee shops and restaurants after receiving support worth £400 through the Food and Drink iNet for the design of a stylish coffee menu.

The menu and other promotional materials have also caught the eye of buyers at Harrods, who are putting Shelton’s products on their shelves in October.

“The iNet’s support has been fantastic because it’s helping to open up possibilities in completely different markets for us,” said Ximena Shelton, who runs Shelton Imports with husband Steven.

“The menu is a great showcase for what we sell. It’s helped us gain new customers in food service, and was instrumental in us winning a contract to supply to Harrods. It’s also helping me to give a better service to delis and farm shops because I have also been able to create new point of sale material.”

Launched in 2009 and based in Kibworth, Shelton Imports sells a range of seven different flavoured coffee cubes, as well as roasted coffee beans covered in chocolate and traditional coffee. It specialises in individually wrapped cubes of coffee that can be instantly prepared using hot water to create a fresh cup of coffee.

The firm now has 46 stockists across the UK, from Kent to Scotland, including seven coffee shops and restaurants.

Shelton Imports received £400 worth of Innovation, Advice and Guidance support from the iNet. The company matched this support with its own investment.

The iNet helps food and drink firms engage expertise from academia, research institutions and specialist business advice for innovation projects to develop new ideas, new products, new processes and to help companies grow. 50% of the equivalent cash value of the support must be contributed by the company.

Funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Food and Drink iNet co-ordinates innovation support for businesses, universities and individuals working in the food and drink sector in the East Midlands. One of four iNets, it strives to develop an effective network to encourage the collaboration of academic expertise and knowledge, and local food and drink business innovation needs.

It aims to build on the tradition of innovation in the food and drink industry in the region by helping to create opportunities to develop knowledge and skills, and to help research, develop and implement new products, markets, services and processes.

The Food and Drink iNet is managed by a consortium, led by the Food & Drink Forum and including Food Processing Faraday, Nottingham Trent University, the University of Lincoln, and the University of Nottingham. It is based at Southglade Food Park, Nottingham, with advisors covering the East Midlands region.

For more information visit www.eminnovation.org.uk/food