The highlight was finding some new visuals for including in our coating systems.

Global food coatings specialist Witwood Food Products is expanding its product portfolio for the meat processing industry with the introduction of a range of rusk, bread rusk and stuffing mixes.

The firm has awarded exclusive distribution rights for the products to Globe Food Ingredients, specialist suppliers to the meat industry.

Witwood’s UK managing director, Bryan Day, says the two firms will work together initially to provide rusk to meat product manufacturers, food ingredient blenders and distributors while developing a range of innovative new products for the sector in the longer term.

Witwood brings almost three decades of food coatings experience to the meat processing industry. The firm has been producing rusk at its UK factory for the last 18 months for use in its food coating ranges, which are sold around the world, and for existing customers.

The firm has chosen to expand sales of the product beyond its core customer base and has selected Manchester-based Globe Food Ingredients to establish and grow the market for Witwood’s rusk in the meat industry.

We’ve chosen to partner with Globe because of their extensive experience and track record in the sector, says Bryan. By combining their specialist industry knowledge with our quality manufacturing processes, we can provide greater choice for meat product manufacturers, food ingredient blenders and distributors.

David Brennand of Globe Food Ingredients, adds; this is an exciting opportunity for us to extend our current product range of high quality food ingredients and to partner with a market leader.

For further information, contact David Brennand at Witwood Meat Ingredients on 0161 331 4923  or email sales@witwoodmeatingredients.co.uk

Apparently it contains twice as many anti-oxidants as raw garlic, and also contains S-Allycysteine, a natural compound with cancer prevention properties.

We saw a few interesting ingredients at the show – nothing revolutionary – but certainly food for thought (no pun intended).

Susan Arkley

Miroil claims that by extending the life of the oil you can fry for longer at lower temperatures and – in theory – the product picks up less fat. All interesting stuff.

Susan Arkley

Royal Greenland’s Fish ‘n’ Rosti is a ‘meal in one’. It’s MSC-certified Alaska pollock topped with a creamy mustard sauce and a twist of Madagascar pepper. A potato rosti slice completes the meal, which is held together using a light breading.

In terms of real innovation, there wasn’t anything earth shattering on show, but Deutsche See’s range of marinated fish was interesting. They’ve used a good range of fish and come up with some creative concepts and interesting ways of presenting the products.

Their Salmon in Wooden Leaf won the Best New Retail Product category in the Seafood Prix d’Elite at the show. It’s a great barbecue product – the wooden leaf gives the salmon a spicy, smoky flavour as it cooks on the barbecue.

Ronald Sprang

The British food service market for Japanese food is worth more than £500 million a year*, a trend that is fast transferring into retail.

Food coatings specialist Witwood Food Products is capitalising on this emerging trend with a new collection of coatings for retail and foodservice that reflect consumer demand for premium products, healthy eating, convenience, sharing and fast casual dining.Witwood is launching the new range on the back of significant investment into NPD at its UK headquarters in Oxfordshire. The firm has invested £100,000 in a complete lab refit to house its growing team of 30 food technologists and technicians in state of the art facilities.

Marketing manager, Heather South, says, Certain Japanese ingredients and foods – sushi, wasabi and teriyaki sauce for example – are familiar to UK consumers, but the depth of consumer understanding of Japanese food is developing in line with the market for this cuisine type as their demand for and exposure to more authentic and complex flavours and ingredients increases.

Our research has given us a clear picture of the current market, highlighted what’s hot and what’s not, as well as identifying emerging trends and helping us forecast where we see Japanese cuisine going in the UK.

The result is a collection of product concepts, which, according to Witwood, offers something for everyone as well as ticking boxes across a range of key food trends.

We recognise that Japanese is still an emerging trend, and certain foods could be a step too far for some people says Heather. We’ve consciously developed a range that has something for everyone, offering ways in which to Japanese food as well as concepts that will tantalise the taste buds of more adventurous Japanese food fans across a variety of different meal types.

For those new to Japanese cuisine, Witwood has created concepts based on the familiar; such as crispy tempura vegetables and edamame beans flavoured with wasabi, sesame and soy and finished with a light seaweed breader.

At the premium end of the range, and for the more adventurous eater, Witwood has developed the alternative Sunday roast – a meaty tuna loin coated in a rich, sticky sauce flavoured with soy, tomato, garlic, a hint of zesty orange and panko crumb with red paprika flakes and seaweed visual, served with wilted pak choi and baby new potatoes.

The range also includes sharing starters – Salmon, Prawn and Edamame Bean Bites, and Japanese Vegetable Cakes; light lunches, such as Japanese Style Fishcake and Chicken Ramen and everyday evening meals including Teriyaki Salmon and Breaded Vegetable Strips with Japanese Curry Sauce.

We’ve shown the concepts to a few customers already and the response has been fantastic, says Heather. Feedback suggests this is because Japanese food offers something for everyone and our new concepts reflect this broad appeal.

It’s official – the UK is the largest barbecuing nation in Europe. With the numbers up from 75 million barbecues in 2005 to 110 million in 2007, more Brits than ever before are choosing the barbie over more conventional meals.

And, according to coatings manufacturer Witwood Food Products, we’re becoming more adventurous cooks, prepared to try new cuts of meat or cooking styles and try out some of the flavours at home that we’ve enjoyed on holiday.

Witwood hopes to capitalise on this growing market with a range of new concepts, developed in the UK in conjunction with Witwoods Australian and Asian subsidiaries to capture the imagination of the more adventurous chef and reflect global flavours and ingredients.

Says NPD manager Trudie Varney, UK consumers are becoming more experienced, well practised outdoor cooks. Add to that a more adventurous approach to barbecuing, a move beyond traditional barbecue foods and the continued focus on more premium products, and you’ve got potential for exciting NPD work.

Our new concepts combine these trends and build on Witwood’s global capabilities to add interest to barbecue options using new, innovative flavours and formats.
Kebabs feature strongly in the new Witwood range, reflecting their growing popularity in the market. Some of the concepts Witwood has developed to tickle processors taste buds include Mango and Chilli Glazed Lollipops, Jamaican Jerk Chicken Kofta, Chilli and Chocolate Fruit Kebabs, Italian Herb and Black Olive Marinated Chicken and Sweet Chilli and Lime Corn on the Cob.

Says Trudie, The perennial favourites such as hot and spicy or garlic & herb flavours are still popular – particularly for families – but other flavours are becoming more diverse, for example sun dried, chilli or honey and mustard flavoured pesto. Flavours incorporating citrus notes such as lemon, lime and orange are also popular this year.

Consumers are becoming more adventurous, and this provides a real opportunity for manufacturers to capitalise with forward thinking and creative product concepts.

Witwood Food Products specialises in the development and manufacture of specialist food coatings for retail and foodservice.