Manchester is Peanut Butter Capital of the UK

Duerr’s Celebrate 25 Years of Peanut Butter

Manchester may be famous for the first computer, the nation’s first free public library and the meeting of Rolls and Royce – but now the city can be proud to take a new crown – as the biggest producer of peanut butter in the UK.

After 25 years of production, Duerr’s (F Duerr and Sons) is celebrating their nutty credentials as the UK’s largest producer of peanut butter, with 150,000 jars of the healthy spread rolling off the production line every day at its purpose built factory in Wythenshawe.

The family company, best known for making marmalade and jam, started producing for Whole Earth and supermarket own labels a quarter of a century ago from its former site on Prestage Street in Old Trafford. As demand for the spread grew, the company expanded to produce for all the major UK retailers before launching their first branded Duerr’s range, made from all American peanuts, in 2012 (available at Tesco).

The boom in demand for peanut butter drove the company, now run by fifth generation brothers Mark and Richard Duerr, to invest £2.6m in a new purpose built production and storage centre on Dallimore Road directly opposite their main building on the Roundthorn Industrial Estate, Wythenshawe. The new facility has increased capacity and since production started in late 2011, new orders have followed.

The UK peanut butter market is now worth £56 million a year and has reported a 20 per cent rise in sales over the past two years, according to research house Mintel, which the Duerr’s family attribute to the growing awareness of the health benefits of the snack.

Peanut butter is one of the richest sources of heart-healthy monounsaturated fats – it’s also low in saturated fat and an excellent source of protein to keep you feeling full for longer, fibre for bowel health and folate which can protect against colon cancer and heart disease, says Catherine Collins, chief dietician at St George’s hospital in London.

The nuts are thought to help reduce inflammation in the body and boost the health of blood vessels around the heart. Harvard Medical School researchers recently reported that snacking on peanut butter five days a week can nearly halve the risk of a heart attack.

Even better, these health benefits seem to occur without promoting weight gain – researchers found that people eat less after a snack of peanut butter compared with other snacks.

F Duerr and Sons has been making spreads and preserves in Manchester since 1881. The business, started by Mary Duerr making jam in her own kitchen as husband Frederick sold the jars to the local Co-Op, has grown into a multimillion pound business, employing 240 local people and turning over £64.4m. In its last company accounts, the business reported a 9.3% increase in turnover and a year on year volume increase of 7%.

Mark Duerr, managing director of Duerr’s, comments: “These are record times for peanut butter in the UK and as the biggest producer of the spread, we wanted to celebrate.

We are proud to have played a part in peanut butter’s rise in this country, with more than a third of households now buying it on a regular basis. It’s another American classic that’s taken root over here and with growth of around five per cent year on year, demand isn’t showing any signs of slowing down.”

Nutty facts:

• Duerr’s purchase 20 billion peanuts per year to keep the production lines rolling – that’s enough to fill 5 Olympic sized swimming pools or if laid end to end would stretch to the moon!
• In the UK, crunchy outsells smooth by 60:40
• There are approx. 500 peanuts packed into a standard jar of peanut butter.
• Peanuts have more protein, niacin, folate and phytosterols than any nut.
• Peanuts and peanut butter contain over 30 essential nutrients and phytonutrients.
• Peanuts are naturally cholesterol-free.