British Pie Awards crowns vegan cauliflower and onion bhaji pasty as the best

From cornwalllive.com

The British Pie Awards 2025 winner has officially been crowned - but it won't be for everyone. This unlikely pasty isn't traditional and is missing something - there's no trace of meat.

Warwickshire based pasty-expert, The Phat Pasty Co, has triumphed at this year’s British Pie Awards, taking home the prize for best pasty with their vegan Keralan cauliflower and onion bhaji pasty. The pasty-maker beat off 17 mouth-watering entries in this category to take home the iconic accolade. 

Now in its 17th year, the pie-oneering awards honour the most delectable pies across the nation, ranging from classic British staples to bold, inventive, and even eccentric creations. The competition features 26 distinct categories, encompassing traditional favourites alongside vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free options.

The Phat Pasty Co say they are all about bringing the best quality, authentic products in a fun brand to the foodservice market place. With traditional recipes and special "flavours with a twist" they like to delight operators who serve their products to hungry customers across the UK.

                                                                               The winner is crowned

Matthew O’Callaghan, chairman of the Mowbray Pork Pie Association and host of the British Pie Awards, said: “This year's awards have been a fantastic tribute to the nation's deep affection for pies of all kinds, with an incredible atmosphere and an unprecedented level of creativity on display.

"Wednesday was an exciting day as we had the chance to sample some truly outstanding pie entries. The Phat Pasty Co has emerged victorious in the highly competitive pasty category with their Keralan Cauliflower and Onion Bhaji Pasty. These awards highlight the talent and innovation of pie makers across the UK, and I extend my heartfelt congratulations to them on this well-deserved win.”

The British Pie Awards recruited the 'most qualified pie connoisseurs' to judge every single entry. A record 169 judges are on the panel, with extensive industry experience between them. This year, the judging panel included representatives from Selfridges, M&S and illustrious department store Fortnum and Mason, alongside esteemed food writers and a Great British Bake Off winner, as well as a plethora of chefs and pie experts.

https://www.cornwalllive.com/whats-on/food-drink/british-pie-awards-crowns-vegan-10004541

The carbon footprint of a pasty could be halved if made vegan

From cornwalllive.com/

Experts at the University of Exeter made a tool to assess the carbon footprint of a pasty

A traditional Cornish pasty has a carbon footprint of 4.4 pounds, researchers have found.

But a meatless pasty could nearly halve that figure.

There are 120 million Cornish pasties made annually contributing £300 million each year to Cornwall and, according to researchers at the University of Exeter, each one produces around 1.5-2kg (4.4lbs) of carbon.

Though the research has shown that their carbon footprint could be halved if the traditional beef filling is replaced with a vegan or vegetarian alternative.

Researchers from the University of Exeter have made a new tool which can determine how much carbon emissions are released in the making of a given pasty - and the tool will be available for free to pasty makers.

According to the researchers the whole pasty industry contributes up to 240,000 tonnes of carbon a year.

The Carbon and Low Impact Pasty (CLIP) tool measures the carbon emissions of the ingredients that make up a Cornish pasty as well as factoring in transportation, freezing and the energy and water used to make it.

It found that whether the pasty had beef inside contributed most to its carbon footprint, and where the beef came from was also important, with Brazilian beef 10 per cent more carbon intensive than European beef due to factors including the potential for deforestation.

Freezing was also a significant factor, with a pasty frozen for six months having a 20 per cent higher carbon footprint than one frozen for only a week.

In this way the tool is able to examine the environmental impact of different business models, as smaller pasty producers tend to tailor their production to seasonal demand, while bigger firms often over-produce pasties and freeze those they don’t need.

Transporting a pasty by lorry to another town or city also increases its carbon footprint – but not significantly.

The researchers compared the carbon footprint of pasties transported locally (25km) to those that have transported 500km across the country and beyond to Europe (2,000km).

They found that travelling 500km increased the carbon footprint of a pasty by only 1 per cent, and the long haul journey of 2,000km saw carbon emissions rise just 5-6 per cent.

Dr Xiaoyu Yan, Senior Lecturer in Energy and Environment at the University of Exeter, developed the tool as part of Agri Tech Cornwall programme with colleagues from Tevi, an initiative led by the University of Exeter that aims to create economic and environmental growth in Cornwall.

Dr Yan said: “I’m in Cornwall and I love pasties, but the reason I want to look at this is not so much for the pasties but because I think they are an iconic, traditional type of processed food that has the potential to raise people’s awareness of embedded carbon in food products.

“Usually what people see in the news is about the carbon in raw ingredients really but there’s very little out there for processed food like a pasty or even a pizza or other types of ready-made foods.

“It’s quite difficult to get a number because you need to know exactly what’s in there and how it’s produced and how they’re transported and stored.

That’s why we want to look at such a product to help people to understand the complexity of the processed food we’re dealing with today.”

The tool will be made available free of charge to Cornwall’s pasty makers, and the research team has already received positive feedback from those manufacturers that have already used it.

The carbon footprint of a pasty was found to be relatively low compared with other foods – a roast dinner can produce up to 3.2kg of carbon, and a lasagne is 5kg.

Cornish pasties contribute £300 million each year to Cornwall and have iconic status, so the research team wanted pasty makers to be able to gain an accurate picture of the true environmental impact of the regional delicacy.

It was developed as one aspect of a wider research programme that looks at the social, ecological and economic dimensions of food products and of reimagines how food systems work within regional settings.

Professor Steffen Boehm, Professor in Organisation and Sustainability at the University of Exeter Business School, who is leading the programme, said: “By using the CLIP tool Cornish pasty manufacturers will have the ability to select the best food from an environmental perspective by providing clear information on the true environmental impacts incurred at every stage, including production, manufacture, processing, transport, storage and disposal.”

https://www.cornwalllive.com/news/cornwall-news/carbon-footprint-pasty-could-halved-5514112

Carrs Pasties Partners With Meatless Farm To Launch Vegan Sausage Roll And Pasty

From plantbasednews.org/lifestyle

'Our aim has always been to produce top quality, healthy products with mass appeal'

Bolton-based bakery Carrs Pasties has partnered with the Meatless Farm Company to launch a vegan sausage roll and pasty.
The eatery, which has three stores in the UK's biggest town, says vegan options were the most popular requested food items.

'Mass appeal'

According to This Is Lancashire, Managing Director of Carrs Pasties, Joe Carr, said: "Even in the early stages of developing our vegan range, our aim has always been to produce top quality, healthy products with mass appeal.

"Rather than rush into a quickly expanding market, we wanted to take the time to find a partner like the Meatless Farm who share our values.

"We always say that we wouldn’t sell anything that we wouldn’t queue up to buy ourselves – so whether you are a vegan, vegetarian, or if you are simply looking to reduce the amount of meat in your diet, please give our new vegan range a try and let us know what you think."

                                   Vegan products were highly requested (Photo: Carrs Pasties)

Samples of the plant-based products, which uses ingredients such as rice, pea, and soy protein, will be available to try from the bakery's original shop on Halliwell Road from August 19.

The items will also be showcased at the Bolton Food and Drink Festival which begins on August 23.

https://www.plantbasednews.org/lifestyle/carrs-pasties-vegan-sausage-roll