The company will be showcasing a few of their products at the UK Pavilion in Hall 8.2 stand A-07.
There will of course be the British sweet red onion, which was highlighted last year and is now in three of the UK multiples, "We are also working with a company in Holland to build more options for the sweet red onions across European multiples and it has been very popular in South Africa where we have exported numerous loads this year," explains Stephen.
New this year will be the Candy beetroot, a beautiful stripped variety. "We have a very innovative beetroot grower within the group," according to Stephen. "I think it is a very under utilised product and, with its vibrant internal colour, has great potential in the prepared veg sector. We also have a beautiful yellow/golden beetroot which has a great flavour."
Bedfordshire Growers will also bring along some new packing options for onions. "At the moment it is pretty standard across Europe to go the shop and and buy a bag of red onions or a bag of brown onions. What we are doing is presenting more convenient options - for example a mixed pack which contains red and brown onions, a pack with onions and shallots and also a pack with onions, shallots and garlic so you can get the your whole allium needs for the week in a one pack solution. If you think about other categories, Mixed Peppers has been incredibly popular as have the mixed vegetable packs," explains Stephen. Stephen explains it is all about the technology to pack different items in one pack. Feeding two products into one unit is not new technology, it is just a case of introducing it into the vegetable industry, according to Stephen.
Photo: Commercial Director Tim Elcombe
"Red onions are popular in salads and sandwiches but people still want to cook with their brown onions, and shallots are very popular, especially with the increased amount of TV cookery programmes and chefs using them more frequently as a base ingredient, so it is interesting to get them all in one pack."
"We will always challenge the norm and strive to make our end customer's life easier.”
For more information:
Stephen Hedderly
Bedfordshire Growers
Tel: +447964974369
Email: stephen.hedderly@bedgrow.co.uk