GIVING THE NEXT GENERATION OF FISH FRIERS A ‘BATTER’ INSIGHT 

AAK Foodservice gave some of the UK’s best young fish friers a ‘batter’ insight into the world of frying oils during an enlightening site visit to the leading oils company’s factory in Hull.

The visit from the Young Fish Friers Group, formed by the finalists of the annual competition, included an introduction to AAK and the oils market, a site tour and a session with the company’s technical manager, shedding light on some untouched industry issues.

Hailing from fish and chip shops across the UK, half of participants used frying oil produced by AAK either under AAK’s brand or a distributor private label AAK manufacturers. AAK are also a sponsor of The National Fish & Chip Awards 2014, set to be hosted by TV chef Jean Christophe Novelli.

Overall, participants said the visit was “incredibly informative”, with Paul Bastin saying he could take the knowledge back to his shop and increase productivity and effectiveness, and Danny Horsley encouraging other fish friers to expand their knowledge and visit the site.

Cem Oktem said it was particularly beneficial to get an insight into the refinery of the oils. “It’s good to know about the sustainability and traceability of our frying mediums, something that isn’t usually covered in as much detail as fish and potatoes,” the young fish frier said. 

“With the tour of the factory, it was also great to see how many steps of refinery the oil undergoes before it gets to our shop, while the presentation helped us understand more about the GreenPalm scheme and the wide range of oils from around the world.” 

Overall, every Young Fish Frier really rated their visit to AAK highly and found the day to be both interesting and beneficial.

Bob Burgess, AAK’s technical manager, said: “We gave the group an insight into how we refine our oils and the chemistry and processing involved, which really opened their eyes.”

The Young Fish Friers Group was formed by the NFFF to help build the knowledge and confidence of the young people in the fish and chip trade in the UK, and is committed to developing the industry through sharing ideas and skills and responsible sourcing to ensuring that fish and chips is the nation’s favourite meal for years to come.