The company’s divisional director food ingredients, Matthew Armitage told FoodNavigator.com: “We have chosen these products for our range as they can be supplied in various quantities, pack sizes and formats to meet the needs of our customers – from caterers through to large-scale food manufacturers.”
After developing experience with the product category over the past two years, the company says that it has decided to focus on this segment in response to growing industry demand. “We are already working with several food manufacturers and processors and our garlic is being used in dips and sauces, ready meals, garlic breads, and Indian foods…,” said Armitage.
Dehydrated and puree
Rectory Foods wants to offer its customers the flexibility to buy quality garlic in a range of formats including: Whole, chopped, frozen, dehydrated and puree etc, he added.
Included in the new range is what the company terms a “unique,” ambient 10kg sterilised garlic purée pouch pack, containing 100 per cent garlic, with no additives or preservatives. The result of a year-long research and development programme, the sterilization process is said to ensure the optimum quality, texture and application capacities plus a 10-month shelf life.
Rectory Foods claims to be the first company to offer garlic in this format in the UK.
In the dehydrated range, Rectory Foods offers garlic powder, granules and flake supplied in 100g to 25kg pack sizes.
In addition to food manufacturers, both branded and own label, the products are aimed at ethnic and international food processors, pizza, pasta and Italian food producers and industrial bakers baking products such as authentic Italian focaccia, crostini, garlic bread and other international breads.
Most of the company’s garlic is sourced from China. This year the country is expected to produce an estimated 11,580,000m tonnes compared with 10,070,000m tonnes last year.
Hot season
The company timed the launch of the new garlic range to coincide with the start of the harvesting season in China. Known as the hot season, the key buying period for garlic is mid-June to end-August.
“This year, prices for garlic are set to remain high, perhaps up to double the early 2009 season rate, but we are committed to delivering quality products at competitive prices. The price hike follows this year’s trend of increasing prices due to lower yields during 2009, coupled with a poor crop,” said Armitage.
The new garlic range is available in the UK and potentially throughout Europe.