Food and Drink

The latest news and updates on food, from the business journalists at Catering Today. We bring you the latest on what’s happening in the restaurants, bars and catering industry, with exclusive stories, analysis, best practice and industry comment.

Aug- 2018 -

21 August

MP accuses Jamie Oliver of ‘cultural appropriation’

Labour MP Dawn Butler has accused chef Jamie Oliver of “cultural appropriation” over his ‘Jerk Rice’ product. In a Tweet to Oliver, Butler said: “I’m just wondering do you know what Jamaican jerk actually is? It’s not just a word you put before stuff to sell products. Levi Roots should…
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9 August

AccorHotels reports ‘success’ with UK urban gardens initiative

AccorHotels has reported successful growth in its sustainable food initiative, with 26 of the group’s UK properties now containing an urban vegetable garden. According to the brand the garden at Novotel London Waterloo produced enough pesticide-free salad last year to supply the green salad bar for 28 days in total,…
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7 August

Pret A Manger introduces genderless gingerbread men

Pret A Manger has decided to make its gingerbread men genderless and call them gingerbread biscuits instead. The decision was made after the sandwich chain’s CEO Clive Schlee received a letter from one of its customers, whose niece Annie asked why Pret only had gingerbread men. So far, the chain…
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1 August

Food operators hit by 75% heatwave vegetable price hike

Food operators face a price increase of up to 75% for high quality root vegetables, due to the recent heatwave and drought. Purchasing company Beacon has reported that vegetables have been shrinking in size and reducing in quantity, resulting in the price hike. Insight from Beacon supplier Ribble Farm has…
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Jul- 2018 -

30 July

Chipotle launches first vegan protein item

Mexican restaurant chain Chipotle has introduced its first ever vegan protein item to its menu, available at all six of its London sites from 30 July. The new slow-cooked, braised tofu (sofritas) is made with onions, garlic, cumin and paprika, all simmered in chopped tomatoes with oregano. The vegan braised…
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20 July

Frozen food sector warned against listeria outbreak

UK retailers and suppliers have been advised to protect their businesses as a dozen more frozen food products feel the impact of recent listeria outbreak. A European-wide warning issued by the Food Standards Authority (FSA) has already resulted in a major recall of big-name supermarkets selling frozen food, meaning products…
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20 July

London ice-cream restaurant kicks out Unilever scouts

London ice-cream restaurant Chin Chin Lab has kicked out a Unilever ‘inspiration team’ after they were found to be writing down the entire menu, consulting work books made by Ben & Jerry’s specifically about the restaurant, and trying every item. Chin Chin Labs posted an image to its Instagram story…
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19 July

Temper City to change entire menu after Indian grill sees ‘sluggish’ customer response

Chef Neil Rankin’s Temper City restaurant is to change its entire menu as a result of what Rankin calls a “sluggish” customer response to the current Indian grill offering. The new menu will be more similar to that at Rankin’s first restaurant Temper Soho. A Temper spokesperson told Catering Today…
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18 July

KFC fined £35,000 for selling undercooked chicken

A Welsh branch of KFC has been fined £35,000 after it was found to have sold under-cooked chicken. Environmental health officers working for Caerphilly Council found that on 4 February 2017 three pieces of fried chicken were served to a customer that had not been thoroughly cooked. The customer alerted…
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16 July

Scotts chefs to introduce new summer menu

Food and cocktail service Buzzworks Holdings has announced a summer menu at its Troon and Largs venues. Chefs at Troon Yacht Haven and Scotts at Largs Yacht Haven have focused on fresh local produce and current dining trends to create summer dishes that showcase Scotland’s best seasonal produce. As the…
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