vvvegco trade

Welcome to The Very Very Veg Co’s Trading Talk page! The Fenmarc team have created Trading Talk to keep you updated with developments in fresh produce marketing. We aim to bring you the latest news, views and information on this fast-changing marketplace.

Right now it’s an exciting time to be involved with fresh produce. Thanks to celebrities like Jamie Oliver and campaigns by major retailers, not to mention the economy, many British consumers want to make healthier, more economical choices when it comes to feeding their families.

So when our research showed that many cooks were ’stuck in a rut’ when it came to buying and preparing fresh veg, we swung into action and created our very own range of branded veg. With handy tips for storage and prep, plus easy, tasty recipes on-pack and online, we’re ready to bring the nation’s vegetable aisles to life with a new sense of adventure.

The Very Very Veg Co range is designed to appeal to a wide range of consumers, from kitchen novices just starting out with home cooking, to experienced cooks looking for new and different ways to prepare veg: The range comprises:

• Everyday Favourites: Our core, value-for-money selection of everyday veg.
• Unearthed Treasures: Unique or unusual varieties like our red-and-white Rudolph potatoes and colourful Rainbow Carrots.
• Organic: Grown to Organic Food Federation standards
• Easy Peasy: Tasty veg dishes with a twist – the ultimate convenience range
• Small and Sweet: Veg that tastes as sweet and tender as it looks

According to an article in The Grocer, the growing trend for branded fresh produce isn’t just good for the nation’s wellbeing; pepping up the produce aisle is good for retail sales too. That’s why we’re committed to thinking up new ways to help consumers make the most of their veg, with new products, in-store events and memorable promotions all in the pipeline.

So we hope you’ll check in regularly, or even better, subscribe to The VVVeg Co’s Trading Talk page. We’ll keep you posted on industry and consumer trends and offer instant links to leading online information sites. And if you’d like to share news, views and questions about the fresh produce trade, we’d be very, very happy to hear from you. Contact us – you’ll find our details in the contact section above.

We look forward to keeping you updated with The Very Very Veg Co as it grows!

Overheard at Portobello Road Market’s Festival of British Roots in January:
“No-butter baker? I can’t eat a baked potato without butter or cheese!”
“Rudolph’s so creamy you can enjoy it just as it is – try it!”
“I can’t believe it…you’re right, these are really creamy!”

Since our last update on Trading Talk, The Very Very Veg Co’s bright red skin and white flesh Rudolph potato has featured at a couple of A-list veg events in the capital, and its unconventional good looks and great taste have won new fans at both venues.

The first event took place at New Covent Garden Market overnight on 20th and 21st January. As the current star of the Unearthed Treasures brand, the Very Very Veg Co team was keen to show off Rudolph’s roasting prowess, but especially its unique claim to fame as ‘the no-butter baker’.

Clare Dixon from The Very Very Veg Co marketing team says things got off to a quiet start at the stall on Buyers’ Walk, “but as the smell of Rudolph Parmesan Roasties wafted into the air, market traders and visitors seemed to appear from nowhere!” She calculated that around 150 hungry veg vendors tucked into roasties and baked potato wedges by the time market activity peaked around 5.00 am.

“We got an overwhelmingly positive response,” Clare says, noting several on-the-spot conversions when sceptics tried the jacket version and agreed that no butter was necessary. To round off a successful night, stockists S. Thorogood & Sons placed an order for a pallet of 1.5kg bags.

Rudolph goes to Portobello Road

In fact, several New Covent Garden traders were spotted at the Very Very Veg Co stand a week or so later at Portobello Road Market’s Festival of British Roots (29-30 January). In spite of wet and cold weather, the weekend event attracted a high foot count, clad in everything from Gucci to Ugg.

Soon the aroma of Rudolph jacket potatoes was mingling with more exotic whiffs of paella, chorizo sausage and fresh-fried churros doughnuts, an exotic mix reflecting London’s many cultures and visitors from abroad enjoying familiar or new flavours.

Again, the response to Rudolph was surprise and enthusiasm for its ‘I can’t believe there’s no butter’ qualities. Brand Manager Laura Allen says that over 1300 stallholders and visitors sampled the Rudolph jacket potatoes.

“I’ll be off to buy some at the market, because my customers really liked it,” was one stallholder’s response. This was echoed by many traders who sold Rudolph well over the two days of the event, and planned to reorder the following week.

We’ll sign off this update with the recipe for Rudolph Parmesan Roasties as served at New Covent Garden Market. See for yourself what all the fuss was about!

Rudolph Parmesan Roasties:

Ingredients:
1kg Rudolph potatoes
1tsp flour
50g grated Parmesan cheese
Sprig of rosemary, stalk removed and needles finely chopped
Pinch nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
Vegetable oil to cover base of roasting tin

Preheat the oven to 220°c/Gas Mark 7.
Cut 1kg of Rudolph potatoes into quarters and place in boiling water. Simmer for 2 mins and then drain.
Mix the flour, nutmeg, Parmesan, rosemary and salt & pepper in a bowl.
Tumble the potatoes in the mix until evenly coated.
Heat a good glug of oil in a roasting tin for 5 minutes, then add the potatoes, ensuring all are nicely coated in oil.
Cook for 40 minutes, turning once, until the potatoes are golden and crispy.

Enjoy!