United Biscuits (UB), a leading international manufacturer of biscuits, snacks and cakes, has today announced the launch of two new products into the free-from aisle – McVitie's Gluten-Free Original Hobnobs and McVitie's Gluten-Free Milk Chocolate Hobnobs. Rolling out in-store from early July, the new range is designed to give all consumers the chance to enjoy a McVitie's moment.

The high proportion of naturally gluten-free oats in McVitie's Hobnobs allowed the recipe to be converted without any compromise on the biscuits' great signature taste and crumbly texture. Available in two variants – Original and Milk Chocolate – the McVitie's Gluten-Free Hobnobs will feature new packaging, based on the conventional McVitie's Hobnobs design.

The range will be supported by a digital and PR campaign, to raise consumer awareness and drive trial. Building on McVitie's strong heritage as the UK's number one sweet biscuit brand, and on-shelf recognition with consumers, the range is anticipated to have an RSV of £3m in its first year.

The launch marks a commitment from UB to extend the accessibility of its popular sweet biscuit ranges, bringing the brand's extensive baking expertise to a range of consumer dietary requirements. The new products will form part of the free-from sweet biscuit segment, which has seen continuous growth over the past five years, with the category doubling in size since 2012 to be worth over £55m today.

Kerry Owens, McVitie's Brand Director at United Biscuits, commented: “The free-from sweet biscuit segment is one that continues to expand, with 55 per cent of UK consumers now open to buying gluten-free products. As the market leader in the main biscuit aisle, free-from is an important sector for us to expand into, to ensure McVitie's moments are open to all of our consumers with specific dietary requirements.

“Thanks to our strong baking heritage, consumers rely on McVitie's to deliver great tasting, quality products, and as a result we anticipate strong demand from shoppers to see the range on-shelf in-store.”

ENDS

For further press information contact the team at 3 Monkeys Zeno:

Tel: 020 7009 3100

Email: ubtrade@3monkeyszeno.com

About United Biscuits

United Biscuits (UB) is a leading international biscuit manufacturer whose baking heritage goes back generations, with many recipes passed down since the 1800s. UB bakes some of the best loved sweet and savoury biscuits and cakes that are household names in their respective markets; supported by a strong culture of innovation to continually develop snack brands. Among UB's popular brand names are McVitie's, Penguin, go ahead!, McVitie's Jaffa Cakes, Jacob's, Jacob's Cream Crackers, Twiglets, Mini Cheddars and Carr's in the UK, BN, Delacre, Verkade and Sultana in Continental Europe and Haansbro in Nigeria.

As the leading manufacturer and marketer of biscuits in the UK and second largest in the Netherlands, France, Belgium and Ireland, the company owns and operates 16 manufacturing facilities, of which seven are in the UK and has a strong footprint for growth, with products sold in over 130 countries.

UB is owned by Yildiz Holding – Owner of the master brands Ülker, McVitie's and Godiva, Yildiz is a global, snacking focused food company with over 320 brands in 49 different categories. With 77 factories in 14 countries, the company exports to 100+ countries and operates in a geography housing around 4 billion people. Yildiz is the world's 3rd largest biscuits company and employs 50,000 people around the world.