British biscotti firm takes on the Italian giants

“The Italians have produced almond biscotti for at least 1,000 years, while we started producing it only 18 months ago,”​ Rostand told FoodManufacture.co,uk

“We thought there’s a lot we can to do to develop the category, with sweet flavours. We have also launched the world’s first-ever range of savoury biscotti, which are great as snacks, canapés and biscuits for cheese.”​

The biscotti boss said winning the Small and Medium-sized Enterprise Innovation of the Year would deliver a big boost to the whole team who had worked tirelessly to develop new flavours.

Develop new flavours​

“This win is recognition of the 18 months of hard work by all the team … to get us where we are now,”​ said Rostand. “We are now distributing nationally across the country and it is an endorsement of all the hard work everyone has put in.”

Rostand collected the award at the glittering award ceremony on November 1 at the Hilton on Park Lane, London. The trophy was presented by Mike Gallagher, sales director of manufacturing ERP solutions, with category sponsor Sanderson.

Commitment to innovation​

The FMEA independent judging panel – lead by Paul Wilkinson, chair of the National Skills Academy for Food and Drink – praised the company’s ambition and commitment to innovation.

“This is a true David versus Goliath story, in which our British hero is taking on the might of the established biscotti businesses in Italy. Not only is Great British Biscotti Company opening up global markets for its product range, it is also developing new on-the-go snacking products.”​

Read more about The Great British Biscotti Company’s win here​. A full list of winners and finalists is available here​.

Don’t miss the Me and My Factory interview with Rostand in the January issue of our sister title Food Manufacture​​.

Meanwhile, could your food or drink manufacturing business match the achievements of our this year’s winners and finalists? Find out by expressing your interest in the 2018 FMEAs here​.