Handmade puds on a roll

Farmhouse Fare is building a 930m2 extension to its factory in Clitheroe, Lancashire, to meet growing demand for its premium chilled puddings.

The space will house a product development kitchen, offices, storage and a goods-in area, said founder Helen Colley, who hit the headlines last year when she secured a listing at Tesco after standing up at a conference and asking Sir Terry Leahy why he didn't stock her puds.

Colley opened the 1,860m2 factory in 2002 after gaining listings with Booths and Sainsbury for puddings she was then making in the kitchen of her parents' farmhouse in Gisburn.

Her company, which now supplies all of the leading supermarkets and some caterers, is on course to turn over £8M this year, up from £5M last year.

Her best seller is sticky toffee pudding, closely followed by bread and butter pudding and chocolate desserts, said Colley, who is also looking at exporting: "There is a real demand at the top end of the chilled desserts market for complete decadence."