Golden Wonder! BFFF Award Results 2022

On one of the hottest days of the year 2022, the KK team swapped their office attire for a touch of glamour and headed to The Brewery in London for the BFFF Frozen Food Awards!

The BFFF, British Frozen Food Federation, is the UK’s frozen food trade association. Their annual awards evening is focused on celebrating innovation and quality across the frozen food sector and this year, KK Fine Foods were delighted to be recognised in several categories.

Perhaps most prestigious is the Foodservice Product of the Year, which we were absolutely thrilled to be awarded. This is the product that impresses most across all foodservice categories and this year it went to our Trio of Arancini; a dish that also won Gold for Best New Meat Free Foodservice Product.

In total, along with the Foodservice Product of the year award, we were awarded 2 Gold, 2 Silver and 1 Bronze in various categories across Foodservice:         

FOODSERVICE PRODUCT OF THE YEAR:

Trio of Arancini (Beetroot & Goats Cheese, Spinach & Ricotta, Pumpkin & Mozzarella)

GOLD AWARDS

• Best New Fish Product

  Sri Lankan King Prawn & White Fish Curry

• Best New Meat Free Product

  Trio of Arancini ((Beetroot & Goats Cheese, Spinach & Ricotta, Pumpkin & Mozzarella)

SILVER AWARDS

• Best New Meat Main Product

  Beef Rib Rendang

• Best New Seasonal Product

  Camembert en Croute

BRONZE AWARDS

• Best New Meat Free Product

  Mangalorean Roasted Cauliflower & Spinach Curry

Managing Director, Samir Edwards, said: ‘I am thrilled that KK Fine Foods has received such broad recognition from leading industry experts in this year’s Frozen Food Awards. I am hugely proud of the team that have worked so hard to get this fantastic result as I know it means a lot to have our efforts rewarded in this way - we continue to focus on maintaining the highest standards in both food quality and product innovation for our customers.’

Here's to next year!   

OUR ENERGY MANAGEMENT

From family homes to the workplace, our awareness of and responsibility for the impact we have on the environment is more prominent now than ever before.

We each have a duty of care to the planet we share, and at KK Fine Foods, this is something that influences many of our day-to-day practices. Through careful energy management that is consciously geared towards electricity, water and gas reduction, we aim to be as energy efficient as possible.

 So how exactly are we instigating this positive change? Well, we are doing it in a number of ways:

1.     Sensor Taps

Through improved reliability and flow-pressure control, Sensor Taps result in approximately 50-60% savings on handwash water consumption; an investment we believe is worth making.

2.     Sensor Lights

Again, there is a significant energy saving benefit to Sensor Lights with an estimated 65% saving on electricity consumption for lighting in cold storage areas.

3.     Improvements in Steam Supply

KK are transitioning to Gem Steam Traps, which are set to improve both cost efficiency and energy output significantly in the long term.

4.     Waterless Urinals

Switching to waterless urinals will result in a 100% saving on toilet water consumption within this area.

In addition to the above, KK’s environmental committee have monthly energy meetings with an external energy efficiency company, who keep us on track with our vision and progress. There is also a dedicated KK Green Team, who are aiming to gain the ISO 14001 environmental accreditation in 2022; an objective that requires a focused team effort from all areas within the business. 

Beyond the inner workings of KK, we also continue to connect with employees to establish a working culture that is environmentally conscious and in line with our eco-ethics. We are working towards being a single use plastic-free zone and are encouraging employees to bring in their own water receptacles by installing free water stations throughout the building.

Environmental awareness is something that guides our mission and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future - together, we can influence and ultimately instigate positive change.

KK FINE FOODS RAISES THOUSANDS FOR LOCAL CHARITY - GIDDO’S GIFT

In early 2019 our employees voted to support Giddo’s Gift as KK’s Charity of the Year. Giddo’s Gift is a local charity, set up in memory of Jordan Giddins, and aims to help improve the lives of teenagers and young adults suffering with cancer within Wales and North West England through gifts and grants.

Throughout 2019 our employees have taken part in numerous activities, including Tough Mudder, bingo nights, cake sales and raffles to raise a total of £5,500 for the charity. We are thrilled to announce that for 2020 KK employees have voted to continue to support Giddo’s Gift and we look forward to another year of raising money for such a worthy cause.

A spokesman for the charity said: “A huge thank you to everyone at KK Fine Foods Deeside, they chose us as their Charity of the year 2019 and have raised an incredible £5,500 through lots of fundraising events. I was thrilled to be told today that they have voted to support us again this year, especially when we went up against 4 other very worthy Charities. The local support we receive is overwhelming and enables us to help so many young people in Jordan’s Memory, he will certainly be smiling down on us tonight. Thank you all so very, very much.”

Samir Edwards, Managing Director of KK said: “Every one of our employees have been fully behind supporting Giddo’s Gift and we have all had lots of fun along the way, it’s been nice seeing how everyone has pulled together to raise funds for the charity. We look forward to supporting Giddo’s for the year ahead, hoping we can smash our previous year’s total of £5,500.”

KK PLANS MAJOR £5.5M EXPANSION

KK Fine Foods are expanding and diversifying its production facility to supply frozen ready meals in the retail sector, having specialised in the pub and restaurant sectors.

The expansion plans include upskilling the current workforce and creating 40 new jobs, as well as accommodating a research and development centre with the potential of increasing opportunities for Welsh suppliers.   

The Welsh Government is supporting the £5.5m expansion plans with £550,000 from the Economy Futures Fund.

Economy and North Wales Minister Ken Skates said: “The expansion plans by KK Fine Foods is great news for Deeside and the industry as a whole in the North Wales region.  They are an established company here and it’s good to see how they are keen to innovate and expand. I’m pleased the Welsh Government is supporting the expansion and I look forward to seeing the company go from strength to strength as it reaches out into the retail sector.”

Samir Edwards, managing director at KK Fine Foods, added: "The continued support from the Welsh Government is very important during this exciting time of growth for KK. This latest expansion will enable KK to meet growing demand from new and existing customers, whilst creating over 40 new jobs for the local area. In addition to this, it will allow KK to have a continued focus on investing in our employees, through training and up-skilling our workforce. As this funding will aid the growth of our business, it will also assist in the growth of those businesses who supply KK, many of which are also located in Wales."

KK FINE FOODS ‘GREEN TEAM’ VOLUNTEERS GO LITTER PICKING

At KK Fine Foods, we measure the success of our business not just in economic terns but also in environmental and social aspects. KK Fine Foods is passionate about reducing its impact on the environment through improving energy performance, carbon footprint, waste management, plastic reduction and recycling on site. KK has an environmental ‘Green Team’ consisting of staff from across different departments who have received specific training and are responsible for ensuring we meet our environmental targets.

Following an intensive three day audit KK was awarded the Green Dragon Environmental Standard, gaining Level 4 certification in June 2019. Green Dragon is an environmental standard that is awarded to organisations that are taking action to understand, monitor and control their impacts on the environment. As part of our Environmental Green Dragon certification, we have committed to reducing our impact on the environment. Our ‘Green Team’ took part a littler picking event around Zone 3 on Deeside Industrial Park on Friday 20th September. This event was planned in conjunction with Flintshire Council as part of the THE BIG DEE DAY campaign encouraging local companies to be proactive to help the local environment.

The Big Dee Day is one of the biggest community and conservation based events in North East Wales and North West England and has been a well-established, annual event since 2007. Covering the coastline and tributaries from Talacre to Chester and Llangollen and north Shropshire the Big Dee Day is not just a large scale litter pick it’s so much more. It is estimated more than 12 million tons of plastic, from bottles and bags to microbeads end up in our oceans every year (greenpeace.org.uk) and the River Dee, its estuary, river banks and marshes have the potential to capture a significant amount of plastic. In Flintshire hundreds of people take part every year working hard to clear rubbish from the river embankments and beaches collecting hundreds of bags of litter as well as sprucing up the special places along the River Dee’s banks, coast and catchment area.

We are proud to be part of this fantastic scheme which has such a positive impact on our local area and beyond. Thank you to all our Green Team volunteers for taking part - lots of litter and plastic collected!

KK Fine Foods Chosen As One Of The 1000 Companies To Inspire Britain For 2019

KK is thrilled to announce that for the third consecutive year we have been identified as one of the 1000 Companies to Inspire Britain for 2019.

The report is a celebration of the UK’s fastest-growing and most dynamic small and medium sized businesses (SMEs), with companies representing over 40 sectors and spanning every country and region across the UK.

To be selected as part of this impressive report, criteria requires firms to not only demonstrate significant growth over three years but also out-perform their sector peers, highlighting KK Fine Foods as one of the market leading food manufacturing companies in the UK.

David Schwimmer, CEO, London Stock Exchange Group:

“Congratulations to all the companies selected for inclusion in the sixth edition of London Stock Exchange Group’s 1000 Companies to Inspire Britain report, which identifies the UK’s most dynamic SMEs. SMEs drive growth, innovation and job creation and are the lifeblood of the British economy. We believe that supporting the growth of these businesses is critical to the UK economy and the creation of a society that works for everyone.”

Samir Edwards, Managing Director, KK Fine Foods:

“We are absolutely thrilled to have had our efforts noticed by the LSE for a third year running. This recognition is a huge achievement and is a reflection of the hard work, dedication and passion demonstrated by our team.”

KK achieves environmental standard award!

Green Dragon is an environmental standard that is awarded to organisations that are taking action to understand, monitor and control their impacts on the environment. KK is proud to have achieved Level 4 and have a clear pathway to Level 5.

KK Fine Food Takes Home 5 Awards at The BFFF Awards 2019

KK Fine Foods Ltd has continued its winning streak at the BFFF by taking home an impressive five awards this year, including three Gold awards!

KK Fine Foods’ Lamb, Apricot & Chickpea Tagine was awarded Gold in the ‘Best New Ethnic or World Cuisine Product’ category. Our experienced NPD team are renowned for their innovative world flavours and worked closely with the team at Giraffe World Kitchen to create this delicious and authentic recipe. Inspired by the trending flavours of the Middle East, the tagine includes traditional harissa paste for a spicy kick and sweet apricots to balance the flavours. The lamb has been slow cooked for hours using sous vide technology to ensure it’s perfectly tender and succulent, helping to secure the Gold award.

KK’s second Gold of the evening was in the ‘Best New Starter Product’ category for our Mac Cheese Bites. Created in partnership with JD Wetherpsoon, this indulgent bite has a centre of macaroni pasta in a rich vintage cheddar, Scottish cheddar and mozzarella cheese sauce all coated in a crispy panko style crumb.

Inspired by the huge trend of plant based eating, KK worked alongside JD Wetherspoon for another award winning dish; Sweet Potato, Chickpea & Spinach Curry. This delicious curry is not only vegan but also gluten free, making it a perfect free from option for JD Wetherpsoon diners. The flavours in this curry have been inspired by the modern Indian street food trend that is sweeping the UK and secured the dish a Silver award for ‘Best New Ethnic or World Cuisine Product’.

KK would also like to congratulate Brakes on winning Gold in the ‘Best New Free From, Meat Free, Vegetable Based Product’ category for their Beetroot, Red Pepper and Quinoa Burger which KK Fine Foods in proud to manufacture.

Our final award of the evening was Bronze in the ‘Best New Meat Product’ category for our Beef Lasagne, a classic recipe that has been elevated with smoked streaky bacon and Chianti wine for a rich and flavoursome lasagne.

Managing Director, Samir Edwards said “We had an amazing evening and these awards demonstrate our commitment as a business to continually deliver high quality, innovative and most importantly, great tasting products to our valued customers. This award is a credit to the whole team at KK, who work tirelessly to ensure we create award winning food.”

Food & Product Innovation Event – In Partnership with Steelite International

On Thursday 22nd of November KK partnered with Steelite International to hold our first Food & Product Innovation Event at Steelite’s stunning London showroom.

This unique event gave our customers the opportunity to understand KK’s key trends for 2019 and see Steelite’s new and exciting designs. KK Fine Foods’ NPD chefs demonstrated these trends through a range of inspiring dishes which were served on Steelite’s inspirational tableware.

Delicious food deserves beautiful tableware. Thank you to all of those who attended the event and helped to make it such a success!     

Another Award Winning Evening for KK Fine Foods at the Quality Food Awards 2018!

The Quality Food Awards are the most prestigious awards for food and drink products on sale in UK grocery outlets. Following an impartial, robust and rigorous judging process, the winners were announced at a glittering gala dinner in London.

We are delighted to announce that we had yet another successful evening at the Quality Food Awards, collecting two awards.

Our stunning Chilli & Crab Linguine was crowned winner of the ‘Best Frozen Ready Meal - Seafood’ category, shortly followed by our Lamb Pastichio which won ‘Best Frozen Ready Meal - Meat’! In addition to this, we were also ‘Highly Commended’ for our tasty Beef Stifado and Red Pepper Rice.

Managing Director, Samir Edwards said “We had an amazing evening and these awards demonstrate our commitment as a business to continually deliver high quality, innovative and most importantly great tasting products to our valued customers. This award is a credit to the whole team at KK who work tirelessly to ensure we create award winning food.”

Congratulations to all the other winners!

KK Fine Foods Founder Layla Edwards Wins Legacy Award

The twelfth annual Flintshire Business Awards were celebrated at an award ceremony at Soughton Hall recently.

The Awards, whose headline sponsor was once again AGS Security Systems, recognise excellence and outstanding performance by businesses across the county.

The winners of the ten categories were revealed at the exclusive black tie award event on Friday 19 October. With an audience of more than 200 influential business people, Flintshire companies were celebrated for their successes.

The Lord Barry Jones Legacy Award was presented by the Rt Hon. Lord Barry Jones to Leyla Edwards, founder of KK Fine Foods, in recognition of her outstanding services to local business and the economy.

The Rt Hon Lord Jones, President of Flintshire in Business, Mersey Dee Alliance and Deeside Business Forum, said: 

“I am thrilled to present this award to Leyla Edwards who richly deserves to receive this recognition for the outstanding work she does in support of our great County of Flintshire. Leyla Edwards made the right judgements, kept her nerve and overcame inevitable road blocks. She negotiated finances, never buckled, displayed gut, determination, staying power, character and imagination. Leyla became an employer to over 425 people and has perfected a brand widely acknowledged in a notoriously-crowded food industry. It’s a remarkable and brilliant story!”

Congratulations to Leyla and all of the other winners!

KK Fine Foods Sponsors Flintshire Business Award's 'Best Business Over 10 Employees'

KK Fine Foods are thrilled to have sponsored an award at the twelfth annual Flintshire Business Awards, which recognises excellence and outstanding performance by businesses across the country.

The winners of the ten categories were revealed at the exclusive black tie award event on Friday 19 October. With an audience of more than 200 influential business people, Flintshire companies were celebrated for their successes.

Judging the ‘Best Business Over 10 Employees’ Award was KK’s Managing Director Samir Edwards. Once again, the standard of entries were incredibly high which meant choosing one winner was difficult. However, we are pleased to announce Wagtail UK as the very worthy winner.

KK Fine Foods Managing Director, Samir Edwards said: “Wagtail is an impressive company, driven by a highly knowledgeable and skilled workforce. Over the past 15 years Wagtail has grown to become a leader in its field and continue to grow with a clear vision and strategy. This is driven by a fantastic entrepreneurial spirit and innovative mind-set that is responding quickly to the ever changing needs and challenges faced in this industry. Wagtail should be applauded for how seriously they take their ethical responsibility with regard to the dogs and their investment back into the business and their employees.”

Congratulations to Wagtail and all the other winners!

Award Winning Innovation At KK Fine Foods

John Roberts
Business Development Chef

This week we attended the Whitbread Supplier Awards and are thrilled to announced that KK won the ‘Food & Drink Innovation Supplier of the Year’ Award.

Our New Product Development Team are highly skilled chefs that are passionate about creating innovative dishes to inspire our customers, this award is a fantastic recognition of their hard work!

Well Done!!

KK’s First Family Fun Day!

KK held its first family fun day this September which was a great success. The sun was out and our employees and their families enjoyed a wonderful day of activities, face painting, food, drinks and ice cream!

KK Fine Foods Sponsors Flintshire Business Awards!

KK Fine Foods is delighted to announce that we will be sponsoring the BEST BUSINESS OVER 10 EMPLOYEES AWARD at the 2018 Flintshire Business Awards!

The Flintshire Business Awards are a great platform for businesses of all sizes across all sectors to stand out against their competitors. Success in the Flintshire Business Awards brings acclaim to your organisation and raises the profile of your activities in Flintshire and beyond. It is also an excellent opportunity gain recognition for your team’s hard work!

You can apply by clicking here – deadlines for entries are 21st September.

GOOD LUCK!

KK Fine Foods Chosen As One Of The 1000 Companies To Inspire Britain 2018

KK Fine Foods is proud to announce that for the second year running it has been chosen as one of the 1000 companies to inspire Britain for 2018. Created by London Stock Exchange Group, 1000 Companies to Inspire Britain is an annual celebration of some of the fastest-growing and most dynamic small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK.

In order to be selected as part of this impressive report, criteria requires firms to have demonstrated significant growth over three years and to have out-performed sector averages and peers, highlighting KK Fine Foods as one of the market leading food manufacturing companies in the UK.

Xavier Rolet, Chief Executive, London Stock Exchange Group said: “Four years on, LSEG’s ‘1000 Companies to Inspire Britain’ report continues to highlight the dynamic, entrepreneurial and ambitious businesses across the country that are boosting UK productivity, driving economic growth and creating jobs. The strength and diversity of these companies is readily apparent with a broad mix of UK regions and sectors represented. These companies are the very heart of an ‘anti-fragile’ economy: more robust; more flexible and less prone to boom and bust. We must ensure we continue doing all we can to support high growth potential businesses like these”.

KK wins BFFF Foodservice Product of the Year 2018!

British Frozen Food Federation’s (BFFF) Annual Product Awards is now in its 31st year. The awards scheme recognises the best products from across the frozen food industry.

We are delighted to announce that KK won 3 awards including the most prestigious award of the evening ‘Foodservice Product of the Year 2018’ for our Gluten Free Butternut Squash, Brie, Beetroot & Truffle Infused Oil Tart.

In addition to this we also won two further awards: 

GOLD AWARD: Best New Bakery/Pastries Product
Gluten Free Butternut Squash, Brie, Beetroot & Truffle Infused Oil Tart

SILVER AWARD: Best New Main Course/Meal Centre Product
Gluten Free Seafood Rigatoni with Pinot Grigio

Managing Director, Samir Edwards said “We had an amazing evening and these awards demonstrate our commitment as a business to continually deliver high quality, innovative and most importantly great tasting products to our valued customers. This award is a credit to the whole team at KK who work tirelessly to ensure we create award winning food. ”

Environmental Award success for KK Fine Foods

We are delighted to announced that pioneering environmental waste management company, ACM Environmental PLC, has awarded KK Fine Foods a Greener Path Award for consistently achieving zero % to landfill in 2017.

The Greener Path Awards were created to celebrate the great work businesses across the UK are doing in reducing the impact they have on the environment. Organisations who demonstrate exemplary effort and achievement in minimizing waste, boosting recycling and increasing landfill diversion while seeking out innovative and sustainable ways to handle waste streams, are potential candidates.

Here at KK Fine foods we pride ourselves on being a forward-thinking business, and by working in partnership with ACM Environmental we have fully optimised the diversion of waste from landfill in 2017.

Andy Jacobs, Chief Executive of ACM Environmental said “We are delighted that KK Fine Foods is a recipient of the Zero % to Landfill Award.  We have worked in partnership with them to help implement an environmentally-sound waste management strategy and to see them achieve such impressive landfill diversion results is extremely gratifying.”

KK Sponsors MIDAS 2018

We are pleased to celebrate our continued sponsorship partnership with the Menu Innovation Network.

As part of this a number of our team attended the Menu Innovation Forum on Thursday 1st March at The Cumberland Hotel in Central London to showcase some of our fantastic dishes to a captive audience of leading companies and delegates from the casual dining sector of the UK foodservice market. 

The day was a huge success thanks to the many delegates and sponsors that braved the ‘Beast from The East!’ to make sure they didn’t miss out. It was a great opportunity to meet and greet some of our existing clients and also start to develop some new relationships that may lead to more business for us in this rapidly growing sector.

The event culminated, late in the evening, with the presentation of the Midas Awards hosted by Nigel Barden from BBC Radio 2 and a three course meal from Michelin Star chef Glynn Purnell. A team of mystery diners and judges with considerable menu development experience had been tasked with deciding the winner in each of the 27 categories.

KK Fine Foods PLC sponsored the award for Pub Dining Clubs which was deservedly won by Graeme Warwick from Stonegate Pub Co. for Yates. Congratulations must also go out to Richard Jones from Greene King Pub Co. for Flaming Grill and Sarah Shaw from JD Wetherspoon who were also nominated in this category.

The winner and a representative from KK Fine Foods will take part in the Menu Innovation Network’s tour of Chicago in May 2018. The five day tour includes entry to the world’s largest foodservice event, presentation on the latest US food trends, behind the scene visits to leading Chicago restaurants and an invaluable chance to network with all of the key menu development chefs from the biggest and best UK operators.

KK Wins At The Quality Food Awards 2017

The Quality Food Awards are the most prestigious awards for food and drink products on sale in UK grocery outlets. Following an impartial, robust and rigorous judging process, the winners were announced at a glittering gala dinner in London.

We are very pleased to say that we had yet another successful night at The Quality Food Awards, collecting two awards. First we won at the Good Choice! Quality Food Awards, collecting the award for Best Meat Free Product for our Iceland Luxury Roast Parsnip & Portobello Mushroom Pithivier. Later at the Quality Food Awards we collected the award for Best Frozen Ready Meal for our Iceland Luxury Beef Rib Chipotle Chilli & Red Pepper Rice!

Congratulations to all the other winners!