Zest Food Partners announces launch of Sigma’s The Mad Butcher

Sigma – the largest charcuterie producer in Europe and a client of Zest Food Partners – has launched The Mad Butcher brand of gourmet authentic cured meat snacks.

Meat snacking has grown by 38% since 2020 (IRI, Kantar), making it the fastest-growing food and drink category in the UK, and it shows no signs of slowing. The category is set to be worth £454 million by 2027 (+49%).

Newby Groves, managing director of Sigma UK & Ireland, says: “There is a huge opportunity to add category value and growth to the already-dynamic snacking category. By innovating further, we have created a premium brand of gourmet, sharable meat snacks that fulfil consumer needs. As the largest charcuterie producer in Europe, we are experts in premium, quality cured meats and are best placed to enter the meat snacking market.”

The Mad Butcher range includes Classic Pork and Chilli Pork Sticks which are available in 70g impulse packs. Displayed on clip strips, they offer a ready-made merchandised solution that can be hung up in full view to capture customer attention. The range also includes 500g packs in three flavours: Classic Pork Bites, Classic Salami Bites and Chorizo Bites.

To support operators with serving the snacks, The Mad Butcher offers branded display jars, serving pots, serving utensils, point-of-sale material, and marketing support.

Newby Groves says: “About a third of snacks purchased are purchased on impulse so we want to make sure we support operators to have their snack offering clearly displayed. The displays need to be as attractive and as enticing as possible which is why we came up with the concept ‘Jars in Bars’. These are branded glass jars to display the snacks on or behind the bar, which can then be decanted into the branded pots or cones to serve, making this a premium serving solution.”