Pictured above: (l-r) Food and Drink iNet director Andrew
Butterwick, and Butt Foods sales and marketing director David
Williams
A Nottingham bread manufacturer celebrating its 20th anniversary
in 2010 has launched a new range of products after receiving
support from the Food and Drink iNet.
Butt Foods Ltd received support worth £3,800 from the iNet
to develop five flavours in its new Big Softy sub roll range. This
also enabled the firm to develop interactive marketing materials to
support the sale of the Big Softy sub rolls into the food service,
sandwich manufacturer, and retail markets.
The range has been such a success that the firm is poised to
launch Big Softy sub rolls in sliced versions at London
contemporary food trade exhibition Lunch! 2010 at the end of
September.
"The Big Softy sub rolls have been a great success from day one
of their launch - our sales have shown 50% quarter on quarter
growth," said Butt Foods sales and marketing director David
Williams.
"As bakery innovators, we are always looking to lead the way and
be up there with any trend, and there is currently a huge demand
from universities, colleges, hospitals, leisure centres,
cafés and other similar outlets for sub rolls.
"The Food and Drink iNet support helped us to develop five
flavours of the Big Softy and also gave us assistance with
interactive marketing, which means we can add downloadable recipes
and information to our website that will give our customers ideas
about how they can use the sub rolls. The Food and Drink iNet has
been a big help to us as we open the latest chapter in the life of
Butt Foods, which is this year marking its 20th anniversary."
Butt Foods, which is based in Nottingham, received £3,800
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.
Founded in 1990 by Mazhar Butt, Butt Foods Ltd produces a wide
range of speciality bakery products for food service, retail and
catering. It bakes up to 60 million products every year at its
purpose-built manufacturing unit.
The business has brought a number of firsts to the table,
including flat breads and bread bowls. Its latest innovation, the
Big Softy, is available in plain white, plain brown, semolina
topped white, honey and oats topped brown, and cheese and herb
topped white. Baked in foot-long moulds or as 8 inch sub rolls, the
range is available nationally through distributors.