Russell & Atwell, a Birmingham-based chocolate company who secured investment from entrepreneurs Steven Bartlett and Peter Jones on BBC1 show Dragons’ Den, is the latest food brand to experience the state-of-the-art development kitchens on offer at The Food WorksSW, the food and drink innovation centre in North Somerset. 

Russell & Atwell’s creators Steve Russell and Giles Atwell have been using The Food WorksSW unique commercial kitchen in Weston-super-Mare to experiment with new flavours and create micro batches of their melt-in-the-mouth fresh chocolates that celebrate the very best in British produce. The kitchen is home to specialist industry equipment including a chocolate tempering machine, and will be a regular booking for the duo as they look to continue to produce and trial micro batches of fresh chocolates, like their recent Honey & Walnut, Strawberries & Cream and vegan chocolate truffles that use a plant-based alternative to double cream.

Steve Russell from Russell & Atwell said, “The scale of the kitchen at The Food WorksSW is just perfect for us to produce micro batches of our fresh chocolates. We are very happy that we’ve discovered the centre as we can experiment with new flavours there and then test the market with them.  Their commercial kitchen is cool in temperature so it’s ideal for working with chocolate. We’re very excited to try out more British produce in our fresh chocolates  as we continue to create more micro batches each month at The Food WorksSW.”

Zoe Plant, New Product Development and Innovation Manager from The Food WorksSW said, “We’re thrilled that Russell & Atwell have made a regular booking in our commercial kitchen to further their business. Its size and specialist equipment is the best match for their needs when creating micro batches of their fresh chocolates. We’re looking forward to accommodating them over the next year and of course, trying some of their delicious chocolates!”

The only centre of its kind in the south west, The Food WorksSW is based in the heart of the Weston-super-Mare Enterprise Area, less than 30 minutes from Bristol, and is close to Junction 21 of the M5 motorway. It has state-of-the-art facilities including five product development kitchens which are available for flexible short-term contract hire for food and drink businesses of all sizes to test, develop and manufacture their products - prices start from just £96.90 per day (inc VAT).

Technical support packages are also now available at the centre. A team of food industry experts, provide technical support to businesses navigating their way through a range of food disciplines – from new product development, and quality assurance hygiene, to food safety and efficiency. The team helps food and drink businesses produce a safe product in an efficient way. 

For more information on how The Food WorksSW can help businesses, visit foodworks-sw.co.uk, or stay up-to-date follow @foodworks_sw on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. A range of case studies can be found on the website and on The Food WorksSW YouTube.

-ENDS-

For further information, images or interviews, please contact RAW Food & Drink PR:

Hanna China: 07702 031956 / hanna@rawfoodanddrinkpr.co.uk or Rebecca Payne: 07789 557234 / rebecca@rawfoodanddrink.co.uk

About The Food WorksSW

• The Food WorksSW is a state-of-the-art food and drink innovation centre located in the heart of the Weston-super-Mare Enterprise Area, near Junction 21 of the M5 motorway, owned by North Somerset Council and operated by The Food and Drink Forum. It’s the only centre of its kind in the South West and helps both start-ups and established businesses with the experience and equipment they need to innovate and grow. 
• Since it opened in October 2021, 150 businesses have been helped by The Food WorksSW.
• The centre was created by North Somerset Council following feedback from food and drink producers that they needed facilities and support as it wasn't available elsewhere. For many, this limited their ability to grow their business and create jobs. The centre now helps UK-based businesses of all kinds - from start-ups to well-established companies and hospitality businesses - to grow or diversify their product offering. Not only does this support the sector, it underpins the council’s goal to strengthen economic growth across the area.  North Somerset Council selected Nottingham-based The Food & Drink Forum to operate The Food WorksSW on its behalf (www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk).
• The Food WorksSW Food Innovation Centre is home to five development kitchens, each containing specialist equipment centred around creating different products including dairy, bakery and drinks. These are available for flexible short-term hire by food and drink businesses of all sizes to test, develop and manufacture their products. Specific information about the kitchens and the equipment available can be found at www.foodworks-sw.co.uk/development-kitchen-hire.
• The development kitchens, which are available with or without onsite technical and development support, contain specialist equipment tailored to the areas within the industry - bakery, dairy, drinks, commercial and trial. Flexible short-term contract hire is available for businesses of all sizes to test, develop and manufacture their food and drink products, or dishes, with prices starting from just £96.90 per day (including VAT).
• The Food WorksSW technical team provides businesses with support including food safety and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP); developing a product; scaling up production; product costing; labelling compliance; and certification such as British Retail Consortium (BRC) and Safe and Local Supplier Approval (SALSA). More information can be found at www.foodworks-sw.co.uk/technical-support. Support bundles are also now available: www.foodworks-sw.co.uk/bundles 
• All of the 12 on-site food-grade business units at The Food WorksSW are currently let and in use by food and drink producers. With 24/7 access to the secure sites, the units contain food-grade non-slip resin flooring, a staff kitchen and changing area, roller shutter doors, three and single phase electricity, video intercom system and access control, discounted use of the development kitchen space and meeting rooms, access to specialist business and technical development support and free business membership with site operators, The Food & Drink Forum.
• Gelato, salsa, kefir water, vegan cheese, deli items, brownies, chilli sauces, high protein cookies, frozen ready meals and curry dishes are just some of the products which have been developed at The Food WorksSW. Established brands including Hullabaloos Drinks, Trethowan Brothers, Butcombe Brewery, Russell & Atwell, Hoots Sauce, Sunbird Kitchen and the Field Doctor have all benefited from using the centre’s facilities and support. Many chefs also regularly use the venue to develop their menus.
• The food and drink innovation centre also includes meeting rooms, conference facilities and a coffee shop where events can be hosted. Anyone is welcome - businesses do not have to operate in the food and drink sector to book these facilities.