Guardtop Ltd, growers of aronia berries and producers of Tickleberries 100% aronia berry juice were delighted to hear that that they had been successful in their SALSA Audit. This news will herald the start of an important chapter in the growth and awareness of aronia berries and the Tickleberries brand.
Not heard of aronia berry? You are not alone, yet, this dark berry grown on bushes (similar to blackcurrants) is widely grown in North America and East Europe, particularly in Poland, where Andrew Tickle purchased his initial 2000 aronia plants back in 2011.
Why did Andrew Tickle, owner of Guardtop Ltd, decide to grow aronia berries on his farm near Sevenoaks, Kent? It all started from reading a paper called “Minor crops: an alternative for the UK fruit industry” which was written by a researcher at East Malling Research, Felicidad Fernandez. This then triggered a string of events for Andrew, who saw a potential for the aronia berry in the UK.
This was proven right, when in in 2012 every single one of the 2000 plants on a hectare of grade three land at Johnsons Farm had established successfully. A second planting of another 2000 plants showed similar growth in 2013.
From there Andrew then went on to create the Tickleberries 100% Aronia Juice, which through an informative website found regular customers and introduced these amazing berries to a new audience in the UK.
With 2015 being a key year for the aronia berry crop and the growing awareness to aronia berries in the UK, Andrew realised that with the demand for locally sourced products by many of the UK major retail buyers, food service and catering companies, to ensure confidence in the product, the next step would be to achieve a Small and Local Support Audit (SALSA) Audit.
SALSA is a food-safety standard written by experienced food safety experts to reflect both the legal requirements of producers and the enhanced expectations of ‘best practice’ of professional food buyers. The SALSA certification is only granted to suppliers who are able to demonstrate to an auditor that they are able to produce safe and legal food and are committed to continually meeting the requirements of the SALSA standard.
There was certainly a lot of forms to fill, boxes to tick and of course the Audit Inspection too, however the hard work has paid off with the arrival of the SALSA Audit Certificate in early October.
Now, together with a barcode on the bottle label, full traceability is assured and all resellers / end users can stock the product with total confidence and we can look forward to the Tickleberries Juice being seen in shops and within products made by fellow British producers.
To find out more and to purchase, go to www.aroniaberriesuk.co.uk or call 01474 871527
