Brakes launches its 2018/19 Winter Collection

Brakes has launched its Winter Collection 2018/19 as part of a four day event held at its Covent Garden HQ during which the company also shared its insight into the rapidly growing Free From/Vegan/Vegetarian category.

With specific areas dedicated to hospitality and events, free from, all day dining, grab & go and Christmas, the event showcased a wide range of innovative and on trend products either recently introduced or earmarked for launch in the last quarter of 2018.

The rise of the Free From/Vegan/Vegetarian category was evident in many of the different product areas ranging from hot canapes to Nitro coffee, wraps to sweet treats and turkey to desserts. During the event Brakes shared the latest statistics on the category which showed that there was a 987% increase in demand for Vegetarian options in 2017 compared to 2016**, with 28% of the population looking to reduce their meat consumption during the same period*. It also revealed that there are now more than a million vegetarians and 500,000 vegans in the UK**, whilst 11% of UK adults have tried to follow a vegan diet**. Perhaps unsurprisingly, young adults are the ones predominantly adopting permanent vegetarian diets, with half of all vegans in the UK aged 15-34*** and 1 in 10 16-24 year olds describing themselves as Vegan****.

“Whilst healthy eating has been high on young people’s agenda for some time, this is now helping drive growth of those avoiding meat and following a Vegan diet, with numbers doubling in 3 years”, says Brakes’ Food Marketing Manager, Becky Hover. “The biggest contribution is actually coming from consumers choosing veggie dishes, even if they’re not strictly vegetarian. This goes some way to explaining the fact that there were 200m more meat-free meals consumed in 2017 compared to the previous year – a 7% growth in a single year alone*****.”

Given this data it’s no coincidence that Brakes has been working hard to increase its already extensive Free From/Vegan/Vegetarian range with the launch of products such as gluten free sausages, Vegan cheese, veggie burgers, and main courses such as Pumpkin & Sage Tortelloni (V), Lentil & Chickpea Dhal (VE) and Butternut & Lentil Wellington (VE), alongside a wide selection of desserts including Blackcurrant Bavarois (VE) and Raspberry & Frangipane Tart (VE)(GF).

*Mintel 2017

**Just Eat 2017

*** The Vegan Society 2017

**** Mintel/TUCO Global Food Trends 2017

***** Kantar WPO 07.02.2018

Issued by: Dunk Ink, Ravenswood, Hanging Birch Lane, Horam, East Sussex TN21 0BH.

Tel: 01435 813557. Contact: Simon Smith.

Brakes Group

With a business built on quality, reliability, innovation and trust, Brakes UK has been serving chefs across the food industry for 60 years. Every product in our extensive range has been developed or chosen with chefs and their customers in mind, making sure we deliver quality and taste with every bite. We care about where our food comes from and how it’s been produced, which is why we offer complete traceability on all our products, from supplier to plate. We are proud to have one of the biggest ranges of responsibly sourced products in foodservice. From Red Tractor accredited meat, poultry, fruit and vegetables to MSC certified fish and seafood, our food production standards match the toughest requirements of the foodservice sector and meet the highest technical and food safety standards.