Manufacturer reports strong demand from overseas for low-sugar snacks

BATTLE OATS, a manufacturer of low sugar protein snacks, is looking to double its exports over the next 12 months, which would mean that over 30 per cent of its sales come from overseas.

The Hull-based firm has recently increased its focus on the Middle East after attending the world’s largest food trade show, Gulfood, in Dubai.

Battle Oats said prospective buyers at the show were keen to buy British-made food products and distributors in Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are now ordering Battle Oats’ products.

As a longer-term goal, the company is also looking to enter the US market. With the world’s largest fitness industry by revenue and size, Battle Oats said America offers huge growth potential.

To help start the process of exporting to the US, the business joined a trade mission to San Francisco supported by the Food is GREAT campaign – an initiative by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Department for International Trade (DIT) to help UK food and drink businesses sell their goods and services overseas.

The company has also had support from government trade advisers in Yorkshire, who helped with regulatory challenges relating to exporting, such as obtaining the correct paperwork required for exporting to the Middle East.

Battle Oats was established in 2014 and employs just seven staff. Since shipping its first order overseas in 2015, the business now exports to 15 countries around the globe. It has also secured contracts with a wholesaler that supplies the armed forces stationed in Germany.

Kevin Smith, co-founder of Battle Oats, said: “While we’ve only been exporting for a short while, it’s been brilliant to see how receptive overseas buyers have been to our products. A large part of this is simply because we’re a British company. We’ve even had requests to put the Union Jack on our packaging because consumers in some countries really revere UK products.”