‘We’ve got to support British charcuterie makers more’

I was invited to judge at the World Charcuterie Awards (WCA) after a chance meeting with founder Henrietta Green at Chiswick Cheese Market, (London’s largest cheese market).

The vision for the WCA is to help raise the profile of charcuterie in the UK, and to raise the bar on product quality and innovation. Over almost two decades our taste for cured meats has steadily increased. 

James Swift, founder of Trealy Farm based in Monmouthshire, was probably the first producer of quality cured meats. 

I remember meeting James when he was touting samples to top restaurants in London and one day dropped a sample at mine. The head chef, Jerome Ponchelle, a former student of Michelle Bourdin, was a little sceptical that the British would be capable of producing anything palatable. There was genuinely a sacré bleu moment when the kitchen team all agreed that this was very good. 

From a handful of producers in the early noughties, there are now over 200 registered cured meat producers. The trend is not slowing down as more and more people are seeking out quality charcuterie. Brexit has done its utmost to build trade barriers and help create labor shortages. On the flip side it has seen passionate artisan British producers surge and take on new exciting ventures, cured meats being one of them. 

Not discounting Trealy Farm, another of my favourite producers of salumi is Westcombe Charcuterie. Paul Burton joined Westcombe, famously known for their exceptional Cheddar and Caerphilly to work in their farm shop. Paul had formerly been a chef on the Isle of Mull. Given the restaurant’s proximity being so far from suppliers his creativity as a chef turned to experimenting with fermentation and utilising whatever was local and in season. When he started working at Westcombe his vision was applauded and Westcombe Charcuterie was born. 

The methods of production at Westcombe really need to be applauded. The vision of a circular economy is really in sight. The product is second to none and embraces the flora and fauna perfectly. When you buy a Pomona Salami, you will experience the taste of Somerset, the taste is woody, smoky, appley, grassy, herby and peppery. The inspiration for Pomona came from Somerset autumnal walks breathing in fresh warming scents as the leaves start to fall. This took Paul and his team over a year to master, and it really is a winner.   

What I love about the Westcombe project is that it is all encompassing. I feel a sense of family with the team that work there. Tom Carver, who manages Westcombe is open-minded and can see the benefits that a holistic approach to his team can bring. What is important is his mindfulness of the whole farm. 

British Artisan food is clearly on the rise. We need to take inspiration from these brilliant people that just love what they do. Given that over 90% of what we consume is industrially made it is time that we made a change for the better. 

A recent study by Professor Karen Charlton insists that current food systems not only contribute to climate change, but also to malnutrition in all of its forms. There are billions of people who only have access to highly processed foods as nutritious naturally produced foods become less accessible through price and routes to market. 

Let us try to support those small passionate producers, especially in this current climate. Interest rate hikes are only benefiting the rich. Small farms and business owners are paying ridiculous interest rates to fix our country’s issues – why should the backbone of society have to pay such a price.