A tasty year ahead for Shropshire's food firms

Well no more. All of a sudden, driven in part by a succession of television programmes suggesting you sautee your sausages and flambee your faggots, our food has gone through its Renaissance.

Whereas once, Jilly Goolden snorting enthusiastically into a glass of merlot was met with disdain by much of the viewing public, now there are restaurants which give you a menu for your bottled water.

But the newly elevated status that British food now enjoys overseas isn't the only benefit of our taste transformation.

Shropshire has something of a reputation for being a culinary destination. Ludlow Food Festival has established itself as a centrepiece of the culinary calendar, and according to the boss of a Shrewsbury food centre, 2013 could be a big year.

Karen Davies is chief executive of Heart of England Fine Foods, which represents producers from across the West Midlands at its Food Enterprise Centre on Shrewsbury's Battlefield Enterprise Park.

She said: "2012 has been a tough year for the industry, right the way through the supply chain from producers through to retail and food service.

"But we are still seeing continuing growth in interest in local artisan food and drink from big consumers, and we have seen footfall at the Food Enterprise Centre increase significantly over the year.

"I hope that in 2013 we will actually start to see a bit of movement and growth for our food and drink producers as there is certainly interest out there. I just feel that it's going to be a more positive year."

In the back end of 2012, it was home-baking that particularly accelerated, thanks in no small part to programmes like The Great British Bake-Off.

But at the root of this transformation lies an interest in the origins of food that works very strongly in Shropshire's favour.

Ms Davies added: "People are interested to know where their food has come from. They want to know who has produced it, and want a bit of the story behind it.

"A lot of television programmes about food and drink have helped to raise the interest of consumers, whether it is about baking or it's about foraging. Some of those have got people thinking 'this is something I should be considering', and when we have customers in here they like to know the story behind their own produce, and that for some has been a big thing in 2012.

"You can't stand still in the food industry or somebody will overtake you, and the good thing about Shropshire is that our producers are very innovative. We have innovation coming through in a stronger way among artisan food and drink producers, and I think that will continue in 2013. I think it will be a buoyant year."

Ivan Watkiss runs a group of cafes around the Welsh border, but also set up Cooper's Gourmet Sausage Rolls two years ago as he looked to diversify his business.

His company creates a variety of different flavoured sausage rolls, including pork, chicken stuffing and cranberry, and the pork stilton and pear flavour.

With sausage rolls still more likely to conjure images in the mind of the consumer of something so greasy you can see it clearly even when it's inside a paper bag, Mr Watkiss's company is certainly among those which are breaking new ground, innovating, and coming out on top as a result of hard work and changing public appetites.

He said: "I have shops, and they are at best standing still, but the Cooper's area of the businesses is growing phenomenally fast, and I think that is down to it being a quirky product that isn't in the market.

"People are more concerned these days about where their food comes from, particularly when buying a premium product. They want to know where the farm is, and that it hasn't travelled far. It's not enough to put something out there and just saying 'it's good'."

Cooper's recently moved into larger premises in Shrewsbury, and Mr Watkiss added: "It has probably come from the television chefs, as well as a few scare stories, which mean that people are less trusting.

"I still think 2013 is going to be tough, and I'm not sure we will quite double in size again, as we have this year. It's got to be a good year for us, because it simply needs to be, but I wouldn't say that if I didn't think we could make big strides."

Domestically, then, quality food has found a whole new audience, but HEFF has also recently launched an international trading desk to extend its members' reach overseas.

"It's a whole area that has been untapped for a lot of producers," Ms Davies added. "Some products would be more suitable for overseas markets rather than supermarkets, and by working through a consolidated service we are offering all the leg work.