'Forces Sauces' launched to help veterans charities

Attention! Andrew Webb went to sample two tasty new sauces conceived by veterans and available in the shops now.

Two veterans charities - The Royal British Legion and Stoll - have joined forces to help launch two new sauces. Forces Sauces was conceived by Bob Barrett, a former Queen's Life Guard trooper who turned to Stoll for help when he became homeless after his business ran into difficulty. The charity helped Bob set up the The Beef Kitchen in Fulham, staffed by ex-servicemen and serving roast beef butties to nearby Chelsea football fans.

He tells me how the idea came about: "I watched the lads unloading the van after a trip to cash and carry, and there was all this sauce and ketchup. I thought 'we could have a go at making that'" So Bob and lads got to work making small batches to sell in the cafe.

However, to take things to the next level Bob and the team needed some allies. "We wanted as much Britishness and Englishness in it as possible, after all it's about supporting British forces, and one name kept coming up, English Provender Company" says Bob. It's the EPC that have helped bring Bob's recipe to the Nation.

Unique bottle

I ask Kerry Bishop, marketing manager for EPC, about the unique solider-shapped bottle. "It had that character shape and it brings the brand to life. It's really important that every bit of it communicates that story." This meant the production line had to change, but I think it adds charm to the product. At least 6p from every bottle sold goes towards supporting beneficiaries of The Royal British Legion and Stoll. Now that doesn't sound a huge amount, but us brits spend almost £200 million every year on tomato ketchup and brown sauce, so the potential is huge.

A taste for action

I tried the brown sauce first, it's really good, not vinegary or too sweet and gloopy like many I've tried. Instead it has an excellent strong spicy flavour. Bob recommends mixing it with your raw mince almost as a seasoning when making burgers from scratch. The tomato one too has a strong tomato flavour, and again, a good bite thanks to paprika, pepper and ground cloves. There's clearly a lot of good ingredients in these sauces. "Good things take time, and quality lasts" adds Bob.

Deploying reinforcements

Corporal ketchup and Brigadier brown are what you might call an expeditionary force into the theatre of FMCG. There are plans afoot for reinforcements in the form of Major mayonnaise and Sergeant salad cream. Bob explains it like this: "You put two words together, and you put them on the table and you watch what happens. I put down Forces Sauces, and thank God a team of clever people thought, 'yeah that's got legs'. Anyone who supports this cause, gets my support. It's now up to the general public to try them."

The sauces (rep £2.19) are in 800 Tesco stores as of June 10 and will be in other retailers shortly. Or you can buy online here.

Would you choose a product that supported a charity, even if it cost a few pence more? Talk to us in the comments box below.

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