In March 2003, the chip became wrapped up in world politics when cafeteria menus in the White House changed its name from French fries to freedom fries, in a culinary rebuke to France due to the country’s refusal to support the US position on Iraq. But it was the French who first served pommes frites in the 18th century, and since then, chips have become one of the UK’s favourite foods.
In the UK almost 38,000 tonnes of chips are eaten every week according to the British Potato Council (BPC), and approximately 1.1 million tonnes of British potatoes are made into chips every year. The 14th National Chip Week will take place from February 14-20 and the BPC will run an intensive week-long campaign of promotional activities for the industry.
“It has been a long-running campaign and it goes from strength to strength,” says BPC marketing manager Kathryn Race. “On Valentine’s Day we will be kicking off National Chip Week with heart-shaped chips, working together with the oldest fish and chip shop in London, Rock, Sole and Plaice, for a national radio campaign.”
Fish and chips are the UK’s most popular takeaway meal with over 4,600 fish and chips shops, and sales totaling £945 million a year. According to the BPC, consumption figures show that one in four British potatoes (mainly Maris Piper) are used to make chips and 40 per cent of meals eaten out now include chips.
The chip is celebrated under the slogan `Love Chips’, and Race says the week-long activities aim to put chips at the front of consumers’ minds, as well as eating more chips and encouraging repeat purchases in stores and take-aways. The industry is supportive of the campaign, with potato merchants, processors, caterers, fish and chip shops, and many third parties taking part in the high-profile consumer promotion. “The campaign is once again well supported by many of the industry’s big brands, such as Hellmans, McCains and HP sauce, and major retailers Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Budgens and Waitrose have planned in-store promotions linked to chips and potatoes,” she adds.
Although potatoes do not count as a portion under the 5 A DAY campaign definitions, Race says that it is still important to eat carbohydrates and chips fall into this category and can be eaten as part of a healthy and balanced diet. Waitrose has introduced a healthy-chip alternative to coincide with National Chip Week - Perfectly Balanced Oven Chips as part of its redeveloped range which launched in January. “Now consumers can enjoy chips without guilt,” says company nutritionist, Moira Howie. The chips are made using only British Maris Piper potatoes and sunflower oil and contain only 132 calories and 2.5g of fat per 100g. All calorie, fat and salt information is highlighted on the range’s diagonal green packaging.
Howie says: “The Waitrose Perfectly Balanced range is not a fad or new trend for the start of the year. We have approached the range using the basic principles of healthy eating. We want to encourage enjoyment of all food groups, such as eating a combination of fruit and vegetables and the occasional indulgent foods too.” The Waitrose Perfectly Balanced Oven Chips are priced at £1.89 for 1.8kg and are now available at all Waitrose branches.
Lutosa is a specialist manufacturer of potato products and currently sells five lines in pre-cooked chilled and frozen chips.
“It’s important to find new ways to reach consumers and reducing the fat content in chips is a factor we have focused on at Lutosa,” says sales director, Chris Mayhew. The Belgian chipmaker employed Camden Research Association to conduct an independent analysis on its chips to certify that after cooking, the chips are low in fat. “The fat content in chips after cooking is the most relevant measure,” says Mayhew, “and we can now guarantee this to our customers, who include schools, foodservices and retail.”
This season, potato prices have dropped, says Mayhew, with plenty of good quality potatoes available. “We use the Belgian variety, Bintje, and both quality and prices have been excellent and tuber sizes above average - the yield per hectare was high and the weather favourable this season.” Lutosa stores 25 per cent of its annual supply needs post-harvest, in case it runs into a difficult supply situation towards the end of the season.
In 2004, Lutosa saw the chilled chips sector grow by almost 15 per cent and the UK currently represents 25 per cent of total sales volumes for chilled, while the frozen chip market remains more static, says Mayhew. “Planning requirements differ for chilled products because of their limited 21-day shelf life. We need to plan orders and production on a much tighter schedule - the products require more administration because orders are smaller, we need tighter control on transportation and the process is labour intensive,” he adds.
Lutosa has several projects in its chips pipeline to target both new markets and introduce new fresh products. In particular, it will be focusing on growing its business in Ireland which Mayhew says offers the greatest opportunities. “The Northern Irish chip consumption per capita is the largest in Europe but southern Ireland is still evolving. In May 2004 we recruited Noel Chawke as sales manager for Ireland because we saw significant growth in that region.
“We have been in the frozen chip business for 27 years and only seven years in the chilled chip sector. But the frozen sector is mature so we will be using our established relationships to expand on chilled chips lines.”
National Chip Week’s major focus is with Britain’s fish and chip shops, says Race, “which use about 600,000t of potatoes to prepare 277 million portions of chips each year.” For Barts Fresh Produce, fish and chips shops account for the majority of its trade, supplying its most popular product, the 14mm par-fried chip. General sales manager Dennis Morgan says the newer fresh variety chips show the most potential. “We are the only company in Europe with this water-based product. We recognised there was no real alternative to a fresh cut chip for the industry so we set out to produce a thick-cut chip with no added chemicals and a two-week shelf life.”
Morgan says the new chip was developed because par-fried products ended up being too dry when cooked. “The price of a par-boiled chip is cheaper to produce and is a better end product. Barts developed a low temperature water-blanching system where the natural flavour of the potato remains locked within the chip and reduces the cooking time,” he says.
Fresh French Fries were introduced in January 2004 and sales of the chips have gone well, says Morgan: “The potential for this line is strong, because the chips’ appearance, both before and after frying, looks just like the real thing. In the past, chilled par-fried chips have proven to be dry and not travelled well after frying, nor kept moist in the hot box.”
Barts produces and delivers a range of prepared potato products and supplies the catering, wholesale, retail and foodservice sectors, but in the UK it services mainly fish and chip shops through its distributors who work closely with the fresh produce sector. The company’s processing operations take place in Poperinge, Belgium and raw material is sourced from a large direct-grower base, mainly from farms located in the surrounding area, equating to approximately 60 per cent French and 40 per cent Belgian potatoes. “We use two potatoes varieties for production - Bintje and Agria - which have the best qualities for chilled chips.”
Chilled chip products represent 10 per cent of Bart’s UK sales at the moment but Morgan can see this changing: “The UK catering sector offers the greatest potential for growth and we can see it becoming our biggest market for chips. We have a small customer base for water-blanched products here and we will be expanding this and promoting other products.”
The 1960s saw the introduction of the first frozen chip in the UK and in the health-conscious 1980s, the first low fat chip was developed which could be cooked in the oven. Today there are plenty of chip-eating options available to consumers, says Race. “There is a chip for every chip-eating occasion with so many different forms and lines on offer, through fish and chips shops, restaurants and retailers. A 175g portion of chips contains five times more vitamin C than a 100g bunch of grapes, and double the fibre, 75 times more folate and four times more vitamin C than an apple. It is great the industry is taking into account a variety of consumer needs.”
Consumer interest for this year’s chip week has already been high, says Race, with over 10,000 hits to the campaign’s website, www.lovechips.co.uk. She says: “The website provides a host of chip-related facts, games and chip recipes to promote chips in all their forms during the week.” Chips and potatoes will also be promoted to 1.1 million internet users following an agreement with service provider Wanadoo.
Race says National Chip Week campaigns over the last three years have generated press and media coverage worth £2.5m, many times the industry’s investment. “During previous campaigns retailers reported an increase in sales, and fish and chip shops reported sale increases of up to 33 per cent while caterers and pubs saw demand for chips rise weeks after the promotion.”
THE BIGGER THE BETTER
During Chip Week 2004, the UK claimed a world record when former Hereford Mayor, Alan Williamson entered the Guinness Book of Records for the world’s largest bag of chips. The Belgians formerly held the record and Williamson said he felt it was his duty as a British chippy to bring the record back where it belonged. “There really is nothing better than a portion of traditional British chips and we challenge any nation to produce them better than us.” The winning bag weighed in at 368.5kg and measured one metre squared.
This year Kelvin Baines from the Chip Stop in Stoke, Plymouth is looking to break Williamson’s record during National Chip Week. Baines is confident he will break the record on February 17 when he cooks up the best of British Maris Piper.
CELEBRITY CHIP-EATERS
As part of National Chip Week, the BPC have surveyed over 1,000 chip-eaters to find out how they eat their chips. Race says: “The way you eat your chips could reveal some interesting facts about your personality. The ‘love chips’ website categorises personalities into five chip-eating types. We are compiling the results and will reveal them during chip week.”
Here’s one description from the site, but if it’s not you, click onto www.loveyourchips.co.uk.
THE GOURMET
Your ideal chip is hand made from the correct variety of top quality British potatoes and cooked in the finest fresh oil. You take a long time preparing them and then serve them with homemade dressing and fine meat or fish, eating them slowly and savouring every mouthful.
The Gourmet has very high standards. You are an organised individual who is well known for making lists. You tend to worry - especially about your health and have an unprecedented sense of guilt - you are the person who is sure you are about to be stopped when a policeman drives behind you!
In your love life you are very passionate - you lust after your many lovers but only truly love your friends. You are however deeply monogamous and looking for a soul mate. That person will have to be a bit adventurous as this is the one time you forget your self-control and go wild. Your ideal match is crisp, dark and eloquently saucy.
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