Briefs

n FAS Productions, a manufacturer of savoury pastry products, has recently been purchased by Scottish entrepreneur David Orr.

Orr has experience of running bakeries in Scotland, having owned UCB and part-owned California Cake Company, which were sold to Finsbury Food Group in October 2005. Orr already owns the Aberdeen Buttery Company and Fords Bakery in Edinburgh.

n The Whole Grains Council has launched the Whole Grain Stamp for use in Canada, with both French and English words. The stamp uses the same black and gold graphics found on the US version, but it also comes with the French for whole grains: grains entiers.

n The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) is calling for another cut in interest rates by the end of March. Following last Thursday’s rate cut from 5.5% to 5.25%, David Kern, economic adviser to the BCC, said: "Threats to growth are much more acute now than risks of higher inflation, and we would welcome a bold UK move to 5%."

n Rising wheat prices and falling profits caused Jodi Turner, a Canadian baker, to close her Ottawa shop after running her Bread and Roses Bakery for 20 years in the city’s New Edinburgh neighbourhood. But Turner reopened her bakery following a flood of support from customers, who begged her to keep going. She said that the bakery is now operating with fewer staff and selling more wholesale.