April products and suppliers update: Business moves for Illy, Pepsi and Unox

Illy fuels the home of motorsport 

 

Coffee brand Illy has announced a multiyear partnership with the Silverstone racetrack, bringing its 100% arabica blend to the home of British motorsport. As the circuit’s exclusive coffee partner, Illy will be served site-wide across all major race events, as well as throughout the year at corporate events, the recently opened Kart Silverstone and the trackside Escapade hotel and restaurant.

 

Delphis Eco fills Holley’s shelves

 

Speciality and fine food wholesaler Holleys has signed a partnership with cleaning products brand Delphis Eco. As part of the collaboration, Holleys will stock the full Delphis Eco range, including washing-up liquid, multipurpose cleaner, bathroom cleaner, heavy-duty degreaser, non-bio washing powder and stain remover.

 

Pepsi to run hub off the sun

 

PepsiCo UK has announced a multimillion-pound investment in a new solar power project at its distribution centre in Leicester. Working with energy infrastructure specialist Ineco Energy, the project will install solar panels across 30,000 square metres of roofing at the centre. Once complete, the panels are expected to generate 2.84 GWh a year, sufficient to power the entire logistics hub, reducing demand on the national electricity grid.

 

32 Dumas sharpens Signature FSE portfolio edge 

 

Signature FSE has added French chef knife brand 32 Dumas to its product line-up. The UK foodservice equipment supplier already has the knifemaker’s sister company de Buyer in its portfolio. Each model in the 32 Dumas Signature series – which includes paring, utility, bread, santoku and chef knives – is available in two handle finishes. One is made of holm oak, a dense hardwood sourced from sustainably managed forests, and the other is micarta, a composite material of layers of fabric compressed with resin.

 

Otter delivers the owzat oomph

 

Somerset County Cricket Club has made Otter Black its official stout. Otter Brewery’s Otter Black will be available throughout the 2026 season from the ground’s County Room, Long Room, Stragglers, 1875 Club and the main bar in the club’s fan village. Brewed in the neighbouring county of Devon, the stout uses flaked and roast barley from Dartmoor, English Maris Otter barley malt and a blend of Willamette and English Fuggle hops for a dark ale with a distinctive flavour profile.

 

Skope’s chills thrill Hubbard

 

Hubbard Systems has added Skope Refrigeration to its portfolio. The supplier will offer the Skope ReFlex and ActiveCore ranges through its nationwide network of distributors and reseller partners. The ReFlex series is a line of undercounter refrigeration solutions, designed to maximise storage capacity while maintaining a compact footprint. The ActiveCore series sets out to provide reliable, efficient refrigerated storage for the everyday needs of foodservice operators in multiple sectors.

 

Auto pitch perfect with Swallow’s event platform

Swallow Events has launched an event operations platform to help catering businesses and hospitality operators find, apply for and secure pitches at UK events. To minimise administrative work, the platform combines a fixed-price marketplace, live auction and tender system in a single automated environment. It standardises the process of securing a pitch at a festival, market or trade show, connecting traders with organisers through a single platform that automatically handles all applications, contracts, compliance documents and payments.

 

Paragon puts Bols cocktails in its mix

 

Paragon Brands has been appointed UK distributor for several brands across the Lucas Bols portfolio including the Bols Liqueurs range. Paragon aims to drive the UK footprint of Bols Liqueurs – which includes Bols Peach, Elderflower, and Pink Grapefruit as well as Bols Blue Curaçao and Bols Triple Sec – with a renewed focus on the on trade and connecting with the UK bartending community.

 

ReFood eats up Cornerstone Kitchen food waste

 

Cornerstone Kitchen has partnered with ReFood, a specialist recycler that uses anaerobic digestion technology to transform unavoidable food waste into renewable energy and nutrient-rich fertiliser. All of the Midlands-based caterer’s food waste is now segregated and collected through its partnership with ReFood, ensuring it is recycled into biogas and fertiliser rather than sent to landfill. ReFood has also recently picked up the food waste recycling contract for Dolce Schools Catering.

 

River Café fires up second Orchard pizza oven

 

Orchard Ovens has fitted out London’s Michelin-starred River Café with a second pizza oven. The new Valoriani wood-fired oven was installed at the Hammersmith venue as part of its 2026 refurbishment.

 

Eddys edible spoons come to Cookie Club 2

 

Plant-based bakery the After School Cookie Club has rolled out edible spoons from sustainable brand Eddys at its Coal Drops Yard site in London’s King’s Cross. The move follows a successful introduction at the bakery’s Mayfair premises, where it launched alongside a limited-edition apple crumble pot designed to pair with the spoon. Made from a blend of five grains and seeds, the Eddys spoon is fully edible and a no-waste alternative to single-use cutlery at scale.

 

Meiko rolls out 10,000th M iQ machine

 

Meiko has now made more than 10,000 M-iQ flight and rack dishwashers. The milestone 10,000th model has been deployed at Gate Gourmet in Copenhagen Airport, where it will wash up to 10,500 reusable cups an hour. Originally launched in 2009, the series has since undergone a wide-ranging technical evolution, with recent additions including the M-iFlow IPB automation module, which can help to address kitchen staff shortages while boosting efficiency and profitability.

 

Produce Network limits client numbers for service gains

 

Produce Network, a London-based members-only wholesale supplier of fruit, vegetables, herbs and speciality ingredients to high-end restaurants, has launched a capacity-controlled membership model. The aim is to serve member kitchens without compromising service during peak times. Members receive produce delivered overnight within a contracted delivery window, with an 11pm cut-off for same-day order adjustments. Pricing is locked monthly, and delivery included as standard. Chef-defined quality specifications and substitution preferences are set before the first order is placed, and members then choose whether to allow auto-substitution of equivalent items, or to be called for approval or have credit applied. Produce Network has built a proprietary system to manage the complete order-to-delivery cycle.

 

Triple turnover the target for Salcombe Distilling

 

Devon-based Salcombe Distilling has reported 10% year-on-year growth, outpacing the drinks industry average and prompting the maker of gin and rum to aim to triple in size over the next five years. Growth to date has been assisted by a 25% uplift in Salcombe’s domestic on-trade wholesale channel, reflecting a deliberate strategy of partnership-led expansion that involves co-developing business plans and aligning performance targets with operators and distributors servicing the on-trade.

 

Unox charity challenge sets Highlands endurance test

 

Oven manufacturer Unox is to sponsor the 6 Nations Plus Challenge, a fundraising initiative bringing together leaders from across the commercial catering equipment and foodservice sectors to raise at least £25,000 for charity Maggie’s Cancer Centres. Co-founded by James Connolly of Celltherm Coldrooms, Greg Archer of Contiquip and Duncan Hepburn of Hepburn Design, the 6 Nations Plus Challenge is a one-day endurance team event, and comprises a Kelpies climb, Loch Lomond canoe crossing and Cobbler ascent, on Friday 5 June. Unox, the event’s founding and main sponsor, will field two teams in the challenge.

 

Mossgiel expands organic milk pipeline

 

Mossgiel Organic Dairy in Ayrshire has taken on three farms across northern Scotland in a bid to meet the growing demand for organic natural milk. Auchlea Farm (near Aberdeen), Wester Manbeen (near Elgin) and Connage Highland Dairy (near Nairn) all now supply Mossgiel directly with milk. The move grows the independent dairy network’s capacity by more than 10%. Mossgiel supplies milk to Scottish hospitality venues including Native Edinburgh hotel and the Left Bank restaurant in Glasgow.

 

Double delight for combi king Rational

 

Kitchen equipment manufacturer Rational is celebrating two milestones this year, after producing its 1.5 millionth combi-oven in its 50th anniversary year. Rational launched its first combi-oven, the CD 101, in 1976, three years after the company had been founded by German businessman Siegfried Meister. The combination of steam and convection enabled chefs to apply a variety of cooking methods, such as roasting, baking and steaming, in one device. Five decades of development have produced such classics as the ClimaPlus Combi (1996), the first combi oven with precise climate control, as well as the SelfCookingCenter (2004), which could adjust settings automatically, and the iCombi Pro (2020), which delivers the desired result at the touch of a button.