Ginsters’ Vegan Pasty Success Could Lead to Its Own Factory

Following the success of Ginsters’ vegan puff pasties, the company is now considering opening its own factory for manufacturing plant-based products.

Samworth Brothers—which owns a number of meat-centric companies, including the UK-based pasty brand Ginsters and Dickinson and Morris—says production at the plant-based facility could begin as soon as this summer.

“We are consulting with colleagues at Brooksby Foods about a re-purposing of the site to produce plant-based lines. The consultation is ongoing and has not concluded,” Samworth Brothers said in a statement to Just Food.

“If it did go ahead, the repurposed site would initially have 100 to 200 roles and we would be looking at redeploying other colleagues to other parts of the business where possible.”

Ginsters Goes Vegan

Ginsters, based in Cornwall, England, is the U.K.’s biggest-selling pasty maker. In addition to pasties, the company specializes in making a number of other food items. These include sausage rolls, pasta bowls, sandwiches, and a variety of savoury snacks.

Last May, Ginsters reformulated its vegetarian Moroccan Vegetable Pasty to have a vegan filling. The relaunched Moroccan pasty was the company’s first-ever vegan product. Cornish Michelin-star chef Chris Eden developed the recipe for the puff pasty. It is filled with chickpeas, butternut squash, roasted red pepper, and a variety of Moroccan spices.

The company released its second vegan pasty last year. Ginsters teamed up with plant-based meat brand Quorn to create the Vegan Quorn Pasty. It combines marinated Quorn pieces with locally-sourced vegetables including potatoes, onions, and swede.

“As the nation’s favorite pastry brand, it’s essential we are part of the vegan conversation, strengthening our product offering to both retailers and shoppers,” Ginsters managing director, Kieran Hemsworth, told British Baker.

He continued: “As food retailers expand their plant-based options for existing and new customers, we want to support retailers in bringing ever more choice to the category.”

Earlier this year, Ginsters announced it had once again teamed up with Quorn to create a vegan sausage roll. The meatless pastry features vegan sausage that is “peppered with herbs and spices” and wrapped in a dairy-free puff pastry.

Hemsworth told The Grocer the company created the vegan sausage roll in order to appeal to flexitarian consumers. “[Fifty-five percent] of all consumers are reducing their meat intake, yet choice for vegan rolls is very limited,” he said.

He said the pastry has “been developed to close the disparity between consumer demand and market choice.”