We’re overjoyed to have been awarded the Gold Award in the category of Best Retailer at the Love Food Drink Devon 2020 Awards.
Food Drink Devon was sadly unable to host the annual food and drink awards this year due to Covid-19. They introduced an alternative awards scheme which celebrates businesses who have worked hard to adapt and continue to trade throughout these unprecedented times.
These awards were open to all food & drink businesses based in Devon.
We entered into the category of Retailer of the Year, where businesses were judged upon Quality, Sustainability and Provenance. Entries also needed to demonstrate excellent customer service and show support for local producers and the community.
We’re especially proud to have been recognised for our efforts in making Packed Kitchen a more sustainable and socially aware business. Over the past 12 months we have begun our shift towards a more seasonal menu, allowing us to be a more responsible and sustainable retailer.
We have reduced the number of food miles and have begun to incorporate fruit and vegetables grown in our allotment in some of our meals. Our main supplier is Dart Fresh, where we can choose from the highest quality meats including Dartmoor Beef (featured in our Sesame Beef Stir Fry) and Red Tractor Westcountry Chicken Breast (as seen in our Chicken Autumn Pilaf). We have also used Veg in a Box for seasonal veg that can be traced back to Devon Farmers. This provenance also extends to our snacks and breakfasts, which feature The Body Blend Protein Powder, a Torbay-based company. Traceability isn’t always evident in protein powders so we’re proud to be able to be supplied with high quality and vegan friendly protein powder.
In response to the lockdown, we committed to donating an extra 25% of all of the meals we produced to vulnerable people, elderly neighbours and NHS workers.
We proudly celebrate other cultures through the meals you can find on our menu, often inspired by our own heritage and experiences travelling. We are conscious that we don’t just want to take from these cultures and communities, but also give back. That’s why we decided to donate 10% of all profits from selected dishes to causes and projects in the country we took inspiration from. An example of this was the spicy favourite, Groundnut Stew, which was inspired by a visit to Ghana last year. 10% of profits from every Groundnut Stew we sold was donated to a project in this country. The projects we supported was a charity providing school uniforms to children in rural communities in the North of the country.
Of course, quality is of paramount importance. Each meal is cooked to order, and we take pride in ensuring each meal is perfect and of a consistently high standard.
Customer service has always been at the heart of what we do. From our humble beginnings taking orders from our family and friends, being able to listen to feedback and what our customers say has helped shape the service we offer today. Where possible we will always tailor meals to the needs of our customers, including specific macro-nutrient in meals to help with training and weight loss. We pride ourselves on efficient and open communication – we work hard to make it as easy for the customer as possible.
So many of our customers stay with us once they’ve tried our food. We hope you appreciate the convenience and quality of our meals and service.