02.02.04
Cornish food directory goes from
strength to strength as 2004 edition is published
A new version of the hit food directory Cornwall Foodfinder
is to be published with 22 per cent more listings, plus a
new six-weekly magazine to stimulate even more trade for Cornish
food and drink businesses.
One year since its launch, Cornwall Foodfinder is being heralded
as the most effective way yet of putting trade buyers in touch
with local suppliers. The new 2004 version is being unveiled
at the Cornwall Wine and Fine Food Fair on 17-18 February
at St Mellion International Golf and Country Club, where the
first edition of the accompanying Foodfinder bites newsletter
will also be distributed.
Cornwall Foodfinder was developed in partnership by Objective
One Project Cornwall Taste of the West and Cornwall Enterprise,
the aim being to create a definitive directory to represent
the whole of the Cornish food industry and make it easier
for trade buyers to source local products.
As well as the colourful A5 hard-copy directory, Foodfinder
also exists as an interactive website – www.cornwallfoodfinder.co.uk - which is constantly updated with new listings, food news
and seasonal offers. The website alone has received more than
133,000 unique hits since July 2003, with many businesses
reporting substantial increases in trade enquiries and orders
as a result of their Foodfinder listing.
One such business is Bodmin-based Just Water Ltd, which
launched in January 2003. "I'd say 80 per cent of our
new customers have come to us via the Foodfinder listing,”
says Pauline Dyer, director of Just Water. "It's been
brilliant. We're in other directories but the responses just
don't compare. During the summer months our Foodfinder listing
was getting us at least one new business enquiry every day,
resulting in around one new business order each week. As a
very young company, being listed in Foodfinder has probably
been the making of us, and now the business is going from
strength to strength.”
The number of businesses in Foodfinder has now been swelled
by 28 new entries, taking it to a total of 154 listings in
the 2004 edition, including Launceton delicatessen vg.deli.co.
"We've got a very good local clientele, but with a new
range of products in development we need to start reaching
a wider audience,” says Victoria Geach, owner of vg.deli.co. "Foodfinder sold itself to me, not least because it is
a Cornwall Taste of the West publication. It looks good and
having an internet version makes so much sense, I'm very optimistic
that my listing will help open some new doors for the business.”
To give Foodfinder even more impact, 2004 sees the introduction
of a new magazine, Foodfinder Bites, which has been developed
to target trade buyers and stimulate even more interest in
Cornish food and drink businesses. The four page publication
will be distributed every six weeks to key hospitality and
retail buyers, and will include regular features on seasonal
offers, product development and ideas for promoting local
food. The first edition includes passionate producers, new
products and menu planning ideas.
"We're calling it the Foodfinder effect,” says
Carol Trewin of Cornwall Taste of the West, referring to the
impact of the directory on local trade over the last 12 months. "Just about everyone is reporting a rise in trade as
a direct result of being listed in Foodfinder. The magazine's
been introduced to take the Foodfinder concept a step further,
which is to make the sourcing of local Cornish food easy and
rewarding … a joy not a chore.”
Businesses are listed in Cornwall Foodfinder under 12 different
categories, including bakery and pasties, beverages, confectionery,
dairy and eggs, distributors, wholesalers and agents, fish,
fruit and vegetables, hampers and caterers, meat and poultry,
organic, preserves, sauces and snacks, and retailers.
Anyone who missed the opportunity to get their business'
details into the directory can still benefit from the Foodfinder
effect by having an entry on the website, which is updated
throughout the year. All you have to do is log onto www.cornwallFoodfinder.co.uk and submit your details for consideration.
Copies of both the 2004 Cornwall Foodfinder and the new Foodfinder
bites newsletter can be picked up at the Cornwall Wine and
Fine Food Fair, 17-18 February at St Mellion Golf and Country
Club. Entry to the fair is free but a ticket only event. Tickets
can be requested from either Castang Wine Shippers on 01503
220359 or Cornwall Taste of the West on 01579 349363.
Editor's notes:
Cornwall Foodfinder is published in partnership by Cornwall
Enterprise and Cornwall Taste of the West
Journalists are welcome to attend the Cornwall Wine and Fine
Food Fair – tickets are being sent out to key contacts
and news desks. Every effort will be made to facilitate interviews,
though advance notice of specific requirements may help
Cornwall Taste of the West is a £3 million Objective
One umbrella project, funded by the European Agricultural
Guidance and Guarantee Fund (EAGGF), the Department for Food,
Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) and private matched
funding. It is part of the Taste of the West regional food
group. Cornwall Taste of the West's four year project includes
a trade development programme and a marketing grants scheme,
available to small and medium sized food businesses that produce,
sell or process foods in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly
Cornwall Enterprise aims to create prosperity in Cornwall
and provides a range of services for businesses in Cornwall.
For more information contact Nick Blandford on 01872 322846
or visit www.cornwallenterprise.co.uk.
Jason Clark
Communications Adviser
Objective One Partnership Office
Castle House
Pydar Street
Truro TR1 2UD
Tel: 01872 241379
Fax: 01872 241388
objectiveone@cornwall.gov.uk
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