Charlie Bigham, an emerging giant of the food world

Charlie Bigham, the founder of Bigham's, is one of the emerging giants of the food world. He is passionate about creating a food business that champions the benefit of long term thinking, a thing he believes we are sorely lacking in the UK at present. To understand his philosophy, all you need to do is look at the award-winning, architect designed production facility (aka kitchen), in Somerset, that cooks over 50% of their food. It is a thing of beauty that he hasn't ever even calculated the pay back for.

During his chat with Ollie Lloyd on The Food Talk Show he explained how he is focused on improving their core products rather than getting obsessed by the excitement of innovation. He champions the idea of EFD (Existing Food Development) rather than NPD or NFD (New Food Development) as he calls it. He loves to climb into the metaphorical weeds of his supply chain to find the best possible ingredients and make his products as good as they can be. 

He hates fake meats and believes they are doing immeasurable harm. He seems them as overprocessed and something that his company would never get involved with. That said, he is a true believer in adopting a more sustainable approach to eating and does see a reduction in meat as critical to the challenges we face.

His approach is different but it is having a major impact and is winning with customers. A business that more should be looking to emulate.

Edited by Stella Gent