At the heart of our philosophy is our desire to source artisan food producers and partner with them to upscale traditional methods, while staying true to crafts perfected over generations.
Here are our food heroes – the epicurean masters – who define the food Cranswick has become famous for.
After single-handedly resurrecting the humble British sausage back in 1991 from his first shop in London’s Smithfield Market, Martin joined Cranswick in 1995.
Today, Martin helps us create our Sausages of Distinction. Together, we combine prime cuts of meat, fresh herbs and seasonal vegetables to ensure our gourmet sausages are bang on.
The Brits’ love of bacon is part of our national identity. It’s a part of Chris Battle’s too. Yorkshire born and bred, Chris trained as an apprentice at legendary Jack Scaife’s butchers in Keighley market. In the 1970s, Chris went on to run the company.
After seeing the quality of imported bacon start to decline, Chris spotted an opportunity to bring back the hand-cured bacon of old but in a new way. His lightbulb moment saw him spend two years perfecting his speciality dry cure bacon; changing recipes, breeds and processes before going on to supply Fortnum & Mason and the House of Lords.
Chris joined us in 2004, where his unique techniques for preparing bacon are helping us bring the best of British bacon home once more.
Farmer’s daughter, Gill began working on her parents’ farm as a child and later became a qualified butcher, going on to open her own shop in the area. A move to Yorkshire saw her go it alone again, specialising in savoury pastry and producing her first handcrafted sausage rolls. Savoury pastry is still Gill’s specialty – she knows that the simplest baked foods are the hardest to make, with so few ingredients there’s nowhere to hide – every technique and process must be perfect. But the most important ingredient is time. Great pastry needs to be rested – it adds that extra something. Which is why at Cranswick Gourmet Pastry, all our pastry is hand-rolled. You can’t rush perfection.
Global procurer and food obsessive, Vaz Frigerio, believes there’s always something new to taste, be it continental meats, antipasti, cheese or olives. Beginning his career as a humble dishwasher in a North-Italian restaurant, Vaz went on to travel the world as a food buyer. He joined our Continental Fine Foods business in 1999 and is now a lynchpin of the team. Together, we believe that fine foods don’t need to cost the earth. Often the best products are those simply grown in the right conditions by passionate people.
Typically associated with the continent, charcuterie has been produced in Britain for centuries. As an 8th generation curer and charcuterie expert, Colin Woodall is a true artisan. Starting in his family business at just 10 years old, Colin learned all aspects of charcuterie and pioneered the UK’s first prosciutto-style ham with his Uncle, tweaking the recipe to suit British palates.
In 2003, Colin expanded the Woodall’s factory and product range while fiercely guarding his family’s long-held traditions. Today Colin brings his specialist knowledge to help Cranswick bring back old cures and traditional methods to make the very best in British charcuterie.