
The view from the bread on Launch Day

The boss baker at work on Launch Day
It was a wonderful event, at Allendale Bakery on Saturday the 7th of February, 2009, and we can scarcely believe that we’ve been producing wonderful bread ever since!
Our press release tells the story of the Launch Day, but the real story since has been of hard work, love and labour to get the bread out to devoted customers who love it!
“It doesn’t seem like the ideal time to launch a new enterprise, but as Andrew Whitley, the founder of the Village Bakery at Melmberby, and author of ‘Bread Matters’, explained to a crowd of 100 strong in his inspiring address at the opening of the new Allendale Bakery last Saturday [the 7th February], bread-making within one’s own community is actually a noble calling of service. So, much more than an enterprise then, more a continuing labour of love.
Some three years ago, Carrie Winger transformed her kitchen up on the fells of Sparty Lea into a catering enterprise, and soon found herself creating her own breads and rolls to complement her celebration offerings. As the new regeneration effort at Allen Mill developed, she took the opportunity to begin to construct a real, commercial bakery within that complex.
The new bakery is founded on the core concept of creating wholesome food from local ingredients — the enterprise will be seeking official organic status for its products, which are made from the finest organic flour milled in Stamfordham at Gilchesters Organics from grains grown in Northumberland. The company’s strap line: ‘Traditional values — Today’s tastes’; reflects its commitment to quality.
With new delivery networks and distribution outlets to be developed throughout the district, the enterprise will have to work hard in today’s economic climate, but with a commitment to quality and service, and the finest wholesome processes, the Allendale Bakery has made a brilliant beginning. Certainly, the entire preliminary production run of 100 loaves last Saturday was snapped up within moments by eager buyers!
Allendale Bakery’s bread is available at The Market Place, Allendale, as well as at the Allendale Co-operative Society, and at discerning pubs and cafés around the region, and the bakery will, of course, continue to sell its products from the premises in Allen Mill, six days a week from 9:00am until ~4:00pm, where real bread-making can experienced directly.