Speciality-Food-June-2025

17 specialityfoodmagazine.com Keith and Katy Morrison SOLLEY’S Locals and visitors keen to sample an authentic taste of Kent are bound to visit Solley’s, an ice cream business that has become synonymous with the region since its launch in 1985. Its story starts with Stephen Solley, who was looking to add value to the milk produced on his farm. The ice cream is made using fresh and creamy Channel Island milk delivered twice a week from the neighbouring farm’s herd of Jersey and Guernsey cows – some of which are direct descendants of the original herd – and the luxurious texture of the range is boosted by the addition of double cream. By working with local independent farm shops, pubs, attractions and other outlets, Solley’s has built a reputation for being a truly local business – which is solidified by the brand’s welcoming of visitors to its farm, where an on-site ice cream parlour offers a chance to see where the ice cream is made, and fans can take a tractor ride around the farm. solleys.co.uk SOUTH EAST Stela Tanase BUSY BEES A desire to create healthy food for family and a much-loved hobby of keeping bees was behind the creation of Busy Bees – a Berkshire-based honey brand that brings the natural health benefits of great quality honey to food lovers in the local area. Entirely pure and raw, Busy Bees honey is a step above the options available on the mass market, and Stela and her husband Eduard – who looks after the bees with love, care and skills passed down through generations of his family – are passionate about keeping it that way. The business’s bees traverse a relatively wide area of Berkshire, with the starting point of some being hives in the couple’s own back garden, meaning that the flavour variations present in the honey are diverse – from lavender to cherries and gooseberries, the bees are fed well and their delicious diet, an authentic representation of their region, is perfectly represented in the honey they produce. busybeeshoneysuppliers.com Andrew and Di Mills NUNC DRINKS Nestled in the rolling hills of Buckinghamshire, Nunc is a family-run brewery on a quiet mission: to craft grown-up drinks that are not only good for you — and the planet — but are wildly refreshing too. Founders Andrew and Di built their small-batch brewery from scratch, using local ingredients like raw honey from beekeepers within five miles of their brewery. No flavourings. No shortcuts. Just 100% real ingredients. Their award-winning range includes non-alcoholic kombucha and a lighter alcoholic 2.5% alternative to sparkling brut wine. Every one of their drinks is crafted with raw honey, layered, complex, and designed with adults in mind. Cans, not bottles. Compostable leftovers. Packaging made within 10 miles. Nunc’s commitment to local sourcing and low-impact production is more than a box tick – it’s at the heart of everything they do. They’re a proudly Buckinghamshire-born brand that’s making waves (and fizz) in the world of modern adult drinks. nuncliving.com WALES Joanna Morgan RADNOR PRESERVES An idyllic life spent in rural Wales inspired Joanna Morgan to take up preserve- making. Living in a cottage with no electricity and boasting a garden full of fruit and vegetables, she used an old recipe book passed down from her grandfather to preserve the produce from her land by candlelight. The venture soon proved popular with family, friends and beyond, and it has now scaled up to be one of the key flagbearers of the region’s food scene. Simultaneously deliciously simple and playful, the range is now impressively varied. A particularly stand-out product in the range is the Welsh Cider & Leek Chutney – an unique combination which celebrates the Welsh heritage at the heart of the business. New to the range is an attractive tin filled with Radnor Preserves sweet and savoury preserves, which boasts a stunning image of the region’s famous Cambrian Mountains. Indeed, the brand is such a passionate advocate of its provenance that the images used on its packaging have inspired holidayers and locals alike to explore the area like never before. radnorpreserves.com Matthew Rees CARMARTHEN HAM A family history of butchery plays a vital role in the success of Carmarthen Ham PGI – one of the relatively few PGI-accredited products hailing fromWales. Matthew Rees is the sixth generation of his family to work in the business – with his son following close behind. The most iconic product served up by the family business, Carmarthen Ham PGI, is a cured and air-dried ham which is making the region into a destination for food lovers. The ham is still prepared in the family butchers shop, but its popularity belies the small size of the operation; the team is currently at capacity for orders, which is testament to both the superior quality and taste of the product and the artisanal techniques used in its creation. carmarthendeli.co.uk PRODUCED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH