Scottish Farms Supply English Families With Traditional Bacon

Families in the north of England can now sample the superior taste of old-fashioned bacon for the first time following the launch of Scottish family butcher Simon Howie's dry cured bacon into 70 Tesco stores in the North of England. The launch into England follows the conspicuous success of Simon Howie's dry cured bacon in Tesco stores throughout Scotland and follows extensive market research which identified an opportunity for development within the existing bacon category. Simon Howie, a family butcher, said: "Growing up on our farm, Findony, meant I always understood the importance of quality local produce. Even as a lad I remember the excitement of a bacon sandwich on a Sunday morning; the smell from the kitchen, the taste in my mouth, which is why all our bacon is thickly cut, dry cured by hand and contains no added water – just the way it used to be." Research by the firm suggested that 45% of bacon within the value and standard product range is sold on promotion and, as a result, brand loyalty within this sector is low. A niche was therefore identified for a premium product, which concentrated on specialist dry cure, provenance and animal welfare. David Niblett, national sales manager at Simon Howie, said: "Simon Howie bacon is dry cured by hand in Perthshire in the traditional way by our team of award winning butchers. All of our pork is sourced from the UK, the majority from Scotland. "There are no added flavouring compounds, allowing the natural flavour of the pork to come through. There is no water added to our bacon, allowing for a pleasurable cooking experience with no shrinkage and no release of white protein, which is so common in many of our competitors' bacon varieties these days." Plans are presently being put in place to make Simon Howie's dry cured bacon available throughout the rest of the UK.