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Image shows serving suggestion for Golden Valley Foods' Gluten-free Chicken Fillet Italiano

Frozen food distributor Central Foods has boosted its range of gluten-free chicken products for foodservice operators with the launch of Golden Valley Foods gluten-free chicken fillet-Italiano and Golden Valley Foods gluten-free Southern fried chicken goujons.

The new menu items join three other gluten-free Golden Valley Foods poultry products - Kievs, chunks and goujons - introduced in 2018.

The move is in response to increasing demand for free-from items from foodservice operators who are responding to calls from consumers for more products that are suitable for people with coeliac disease and those who avoid gluten.

Gordon Lauder, MD of Central Foods, said: “Chicken is the most popular meat served in the UK, and there’s growing demand for gluten-free products generally, so the Golden Valley Foods gluten-free chicken fillet-Italiano and the Golden Valley Foods gluten-free Southern fried chicken goujons are ideal items for foodservice operators to add to their menus. There has been strong interest in the three Golden Valley Foods gluten-free chicken products launched exclusively through Central Foods earlier in 2018, and we are very pleased that we have now added a fourth and fifth to the range, which gives our foodservice customers even more choice when it comes to chicken.”

The Golden Valley Foods gluten-free chicken fillet-Italiano is a butterflied chicken breast fillet in a crispy Southern fried coating, topped with a herby tomato sauce, red and green peppers, ham and mozzarella, which provides a really different centre-of-the-plate item.

Cooked in a combi oven in just five minutes from frozen, the menu item is perfect for pubs, bars, restaurants, and cafés, as well as business and industry catering operations.

The Southern fried goujons are ideal for starters, buffets, finger food, and sandwich and wrap fillings. Both products are made from 100% chicken breast meat and are moist and tasty - providing something that’s perfect for all customers, not just those looking for a gluten-free option.

“The Golden Valley Foods poultry range is our most popular range at Central Foods, offering a selection that includes fillets, wings, drumsticks, satay, nuggets and steaks. The extension of the gluten-free options is likely to make it even more popular, given the increasing demand for gluten-free items,” added Gordon.

According to Coeliac UK, Mintel estimates that 13% of the UK population is now avoiding gluten. As a supplier of hundreds of products to the foodservice sector, Central Foods’ own statistics show that demand in this market continues to grow, and the company predicts that the trend looks set to continue in 2019.

Central Foods, based at Collingtree, near Northampton, supplies more than 400 different lines into foodservice, ranging from vegetarian and free-from items, meat products, bakery items and canapés through to buffet products, desserts and puddings. It currently sells to more than 220 independent wholesalers, as well as larger national and regional wholesalers, and foodservice caterers across the entire foodservice industry including schools, universities, pubs, bars, restaurants, hotels, leisure centres, garden centres, cafés, care homes and many other outlets.