All British Baker articles in November 2007 – Page 3

  • News

    Maple Leaf UK acquires Bernard Matthews site

    2007-11-23T00:00:00Z

    Maple Leaf Bakery UK last week made the latest in a string of acquisitions, buying a Bernard Matthews bakery in Dunstable, Bedfordshire.The site specialises in savoury laminated pastry lines, such as pastry topped with egg and bacon, and employs 81 staff, including 18 agency employees.Turkey specialist Bernard Matthews said: "This ...

  • News

    ’Dirt-cheap acquisitions’ up for grabs in 2008, says report

    2007-11-23T00:00:00Z

    Tighter spending and higher commodity prices will combine to make 2008 a much tougher year in the UK bakery market, according to business analyst Plimsoll Publishing.Plimsoll has predicted that companies with large cash surpluses will be able to make some "dirt-cheap acquisitions" in 2008 as others begin to fail.It said ...

  • News

    viewpoint

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    T he sandwich market is really buoyant and heading for a 9% rise this year, according to research from Mintel (pg 4). Certainly, the choice on offer from bakeries, coffee shops and supermarkets is phenomenal. The variety of breads, flavours of filling and healthy-eating options are all terrific. But there ...

  • News

    Premier hit by ’higher’ price rises

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    RHM owner Premier Foods claimed this week that its British Bakeries division had been the most efficient of the big plant bakers in putting up its bread prices to cover rising costs, but that its comparatively higher prices had hit sales volumes.In a trading update, the company said it had ...

  • News

    Gâteau Opéra

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    T his is a classic, multi-layered, coffee and chocolate flavoured cake or slice, which appeared in Paris in the 1930s. It was created in honour of the Paris Opera House. It has a very good shelf-life, as it is made in a slab and can be cut to any ...

  • News

    Directors’ duties

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Directors have powers to take majority business decisions on behalf of companies. As such, various duties are imposed on them to ensure that the companies’ interests are protected.The Companies Act 2006, which will be fully in place by October 2008, codifies directors’ duties into a statutory statement of seven general ...

  • News

    Consumer watch

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    I don’t often go into bakeries. I usually just shop in Sainsbury’s for cost and convenience.I don’t even shop at the Sainsbury’s in-store bakery, as I would think that these products would be more expensive.I’m quite predictable with the bread that I buy and usually just get Best of Both ...

  • News

    Pret rolls out range for Christmas season

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Sandwich chain Pret A Manger says it expects to sell around 70,000 Christmas Lunch special sandwiches a week over the eight-week festive season, after rolling out its Christmas range last week.The sandwich, featuring turkey breast, pork and herb stuffing, fresh leaf spinach, crispy onions and mayo on malted wholegrain bread, ...

  • News

    Briefs

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    n Three armed robbers wearing balaclavas stole cash from a bakery in Long Melford village, Suffolk, last week. The men threatened staff and customers at The Patisserie with what is believed to be a shotgun and a baseball bat.n Baking expert Dan Lepard has written around 50 new recipes for ...

  • News

    Firms fined on safety breaches

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Fines totalling £33,500 have been imposed on two firms after a lorry driver was crushed to death at the Allied Bakeries site in Glasgow.Graham Meldrum died after being struck by a faulty tail-lift on his truck while unloading in July 2005. He was trapped for an hour before his ...

  • News

    Sandwich sales are boosted by consumer focus on health

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    The expansion of sandwich bars and the trend for healthy eating has turned sluggish performance in the sandwich market between 2002 and 2006 into an estimated 9% rise in the last year, says a new report.Research from Mintel estimates the market will be worth more than £4 billion this calendar ...

  • News

    McDonald’s enjoys sales boost

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Fast food chain McDonald’s has announced that global comparable sales in its restaurants rose by 6.9% in October.In Europe, sales were up 6.4%, while in Asia, the Middle East and Africa comparable sales rose 9.4%"We are leveraging our menu variety and value," said McDonald’s chief executive officer, Jim Skinner, ...

  • News

    A Week (and a bit) in the Life

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Tuesday 2 OctoberAfter 28 hours of travel to LA via Orlando, I finally make it to LA to meet up with Steve McCaughey, the latest recruit to the new product development team at Rich’s UK. The purpose of this lightning trip is to learn some lessons from Rich’s US associates ...

  • News

    Swedish bakery

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Scotland’s first Swedish bakery is to open at a multi-million pound development on the site of Edinburgh’s former Royal Infirmary.Award-winning Swedish baker Jan Hedh will be overseeing the opening of the business called Peter’s Yard, which is a joint venture with Swedish businessman Peter Ljungquift and two Edinburgh-based partners. The ...

  • News

    UK Bakeries hopes for a sale

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    UK Bakeries, a family-owned wholesale bakery based in Leicester specialising in baps and rolls, has called in administrators, blaming increased demand for wraps.The business was established in 1939 as G W Kirton & Sons, employing approximately 60 people. It was acquired in December 2002 and changed its name to ...

  • News

    Piemen await verdict in Scotch pie contest

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Tension is mounting among the 70 entrants to the annual World Scotch Pie championship as they wait for the winner to be crowned on November 29.Entries from bakers and butchers - 69 from Scotland and just one from England - were scrutinised by a panel of judges at Lauder College ...

  • News

    November - April Highlights in the coming months include the CCFRA course on Wheat, Milling and Flour Quality and the Baking Industry Summit on Corporate Social Responsibility

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    November17 - 18 November, 2007Bread Matters FundamentalLocation: The Village Bakery, Melmerby, Penrith, CumbriaContact, tel: 01768 881899Andrew Whitley22 Chorleywood Bread ProcessLocation: CCFRAContact, tel: 01386 842104 (The Training Department)24 - 25 Basic BreadmakingLocation: Cann Mills, DorsetContact, tel: 01722 341 447Email: info@panary.co.uk28 - 29 Understanding Wheat, Milling and Flour QualityLocation: CCFRAContact: ...

  • News

    Andrew Pollard, chairman, British Society of Baking

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    I enjoyed the BSB autumn conference for many reasons but, above all, for the ability to socialise and talk about general bakery issues other than just the prices of raw materials, which seems to have dominated us all in the trade for some time.With unprecedented increases in flour, oils and ...

  • News

    Fletchers’ staff seek union advice

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    Staff at Sheffield bakery Fletchers have been holding talks with union representatives and legal advisers over proposed changes to their contracts, which they fear could cost them thousands of pounds in pay cuts.Management at the plant in Claywheels Lane, Wadsley Bridge, revealed their plans on a company noticeboard (see ...

  • News

    Subway adds power to EIPC

    2007-11-16T00:00:00Z

    The European Independent Purchasing Company (EIPC), owned by franchisees of sandwich chain Subway, says it is now one of the biggest independent purchasers of food and paper in Europe.The EIPC, which manages purchasing on behalf of some 2,000 Subway shops across the UK, Ireland, Germany, France, Spain and Benelux, sources ...