All British Baker articles in April 2008 – Page 2
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News
Real Good Food sees good sales, but feels profit pinch
The Real Good Food Company (RGFC) achieved increased sales last year, but profits suffered as a result of soaring commodity prices, with a decline in its bakery ingredients division from £5.6 million to £4m, according to its end-of-year results.Revenue across its sugar, ingredients and bakery divisions rose to £231.1m, up ...
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Easy preparation for fruit and veg
Barbel Quattro has developed a vegetable preparation machine, which can process up to 30kg of vegetables or fruit an hour.The machine features 40 different blades, which keep the delicate cell structure of the product intact, preventing oxidisation and therefore significantly increasing its lifespan, says the firm.Soft fruit, such as banana ...
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News
Linx takes down solvents
Linx Printing Technologies has launched a new model of continuous inkjet printer, which is capable of reducing solvent usage by up to 40% and delivering additional cost of ownership savings.The Linx 6900 Solver uses a new ink system and specially created ’intelligent’ software. The coder adapts to specific printing conditions ...
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Doughnut Week inspiration
Bakers across the UK have been signing up for this year’s National Doughnut Week and are urging others to take part with ideas on how to maximise sales.Kim Cowley of Warings Bakery chain in Berkshire has taken part every year since Doughnut Week began. Soon to open its sixth store, ...
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First Quality sells division
First Quality Foods has sold its couscous packing division to concentrate on its core cereal bar and cake bakery business.The Bristol-based company sold the division, including the Sammy’s brand, to Symington’s - the Leeds-based firm which also packs the Ainsley Harriott brand and own-label products - for an undisclosed sum.First ...
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News
German firm cuts to suit
Ultrasonic cutting machine manufacturer Döinghaus, from Germany, has launched a cutter designed to cut slab products in or out of trays. It will cut triangles and portion round cakes. The unit incorporates a positioning device for accurate product placement and also has an integral cleaning system which uses UV ...
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News
CSM purchases Harden
Bradford-based Harden Fine Foods, which supplies mini-bite flapjacks, brownies and cakes to in-store bakeries in supermarkets as well as restaurants and coffee shops, has been bought by CSM for £6.4 million. The Netherlands firm already owns BakeMark UK and Kate’s Cakes.Welcoming the latest acquisition, Marco Bertacca, CSM European vice-president for ...
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Earning a crust from sandwiches
John Montague (1718-1792), the fourth Earl of Sandwich, often gets the credit for inventing the sandwich. But in fact, the idea of placing food products between two baked products dates back as far as the 1st Century BC, according to US author Linda Stradley, when Rabbi Hillel the Elder started ...
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Knotts secures cross-border deal
Award-winning Northern Ireland bakery Knotts has made inroads south of the border by securing a contract to supply its range of premium, quality "pound" cakes to Donnybrook Fair, a major retailer in Dublin.Andrew Getty, one of the four proprietors of the Newtonards-based bakery, told British Baker that its links with ...
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Costa ethic
Costa Coffee is to source its entire coffee supply from sustainable farms.From September 2008, at least 30% of the coffee used in Costa’s Mocha Italia blend - which forms the base of its coffee drinks - will come from Rainforest Alliance certified sources. It will then gradually work towards a ...
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Face to face at Costa
How did your career progress before joining Costa Coffee? My background initially was in high volume contract catering with Letherby & Christopher, Leith’s and Compass working at various sites in deputy or general manager roles; Ascot and Windsor Race courses, Lords Cricket Ground, EICC. During this time, my key ...
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News
Hoshizaki plays it cool
Hoshizaki has introduced the super-compact DSM 12 ice dispenser, for use when only relatively low volume is required or when usage is occasional.The DSM can either be wall-hung or counter-top mounted and produces 13kg of thimble-shaped cubes every 24 hours.The model dispenses the required amount of ...
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Cool customers
A few years ago, while digging up the M1, workmen dozily pierced the pipeline taking water to Coca-Cola’s biggest factory in Wakefield, Yorkshire. The fact it’s so big it has its own pipeline is the least noteworthy part of this tale (it even has its own reservoir). But what is ...
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Wheat comment
Uncertainty is likely to remain in the market for the remainder of the old wheat crop marketing campaign, and weather is now critical for the new crop. Analysts are expecting a record wheat crop for 2008/09. In the meantime, the new crop forwards market is broadly tracking old crop movements ...
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News
Coca-Cola UK’s sales pitch
Now - 10 casesRetail at 0.95 ex VAT:£194.04Cost at £7.99 per case:£79.90Profit:£114.14 per weekProjection - 20 casesRetail at £0.95 ex VAT:£388.09Cost at £10.99 per case:£219.80Profit:£168.29What it’s worth1 outlet= an extra £2.8k per year profit5 outlets= £14k10 outlets= £28k20 outlets= £56k40 outlets= £112k
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Country Choice takes on rival in NI
UK bake-off and food-to-go giant Country Choice is planning to take on rival Cuisine de France (CDF) on its own turf, by entering the Northern Irish market, which the latter dominates.A team of 12 key Country Choice staff will be blitzing the market over a two-week ...
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Carr’s recoups margin in food business
Carr’s Milling Industries, the Cumbrian-based agriculture, food and engineering firm, has seen a 45% rise in half-year profits.Profits for the 26 weeks ending 1 March jumped to £5.17 million, up from £3.57m in 2006. Carr’s revenue increased by 46% to £162m and adjusted operating profits rose 41% to £6.43m.Meanwhile, the ...
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NewsCryptic bready quiz
See if you can match up the crypric clues to types of bread. And, yes, some of the answers made us groan too. 1. Grandmother 2. Morsel mine 3. Harbour seabird 4. Do you like to dance? 5. Satchel ...
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Workplace coffee boosted by high street trends
Instant coffee from traditional vending machines or via the kettle is increasingly becoming a thing of the past, as consumption of higher-quality coffee in the workplace booms, fuelling value growth of the market, according to new research.In its report, UK Coffee at Work, Allegra Strategies said that spending ...
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Coca-Cola’s profits boost
Coca-Cola’s first-quarter sales and profits show an increase on the same period last year.Pre-tax profits for the three months to March 28 were up 13% on the first quarter of 2007, to $1.9 bn (£954m). Sales were up 21% to $7.4 bn (£3.7bn).President and chief operating officer Muhtar Kent said: ...