Special Diet Type
Gluten free
Wheat Free
No Added/Reduced Salt or Sodium
Lactose Free
Dairy Free
No Artifical Additives
No Added Sugar
Egg Free
No Nuts
Good for Children
Yeast Free
Shellfish/Fish Allergy
Soya Free
Citrus Free
Low Cholestrol
Vegetarian/Vegan
Organic
Healthy Eating
Low Carb/Weight Loss
Fairtrade
Cruelty Free
Kosher
Halal
Other Special Diets

Home Page > Food Trade Network > What is the Food Trade Network?

What is the Food Trade Network?

WHY AND HOW THE FOOD TRADE & WHOLESALE NETWORK WORKS

In a nutshell...

It's an Innovative way of unleashing a fantastic array of new foods into the special diets market
To get producers seen and out there nationally and internationally
To provide a meeting point for Special Dietary food producers, wholesalers, retailers and caterers
A one stop resource of wholesale contacts and prices
Bulletin board for specific wholesale requests and research
Benefits include discounted carriage rates
To share deliveries and optimise carriage options
To address the critical Special Dietary foods supply deficit and satisfy consumer demand
To make healthy and speciality foods more readily available in everyone's local shops
To put quality, variety, creativity and gourmet food onto the 'Special Dietary Food' shelves
To link in and be seen where your consumer group goes to find the food and information they want
Special Dietary Foods is one of the fastest growing sectors of the food industry
It is also undersupplied and relatively recession proof
To access information and news relevant to your business
To benefit from special members rates and offers

Why is it needed though....?

The Good News!

With awareness accelerating and the easy accessibility to allergy and intolerance testing, the demand for 'safe' foods for special diets is exploding. The numbers are multiplying so fast that demand way outstrips supply.

An amazing range of lovely and innovative produce for all kinds of diets proliferates out there

but...

Many of the producers are smaller concerns who lack the funding for mass media marketing and so remain unknown outside of their patch. Invisible,

The ecomomic downturn is affecting most businesses confidence in investing in promoting themselves, at the very time when they must be seen to even retain their market share - let alone prosper.  This makes decision making re how to market and network so crucial that many delay or freeze in the headlights, and do nothing - and remain hidden.

Meanwhile retailers, caterers, hotels, restaurants, wholesalers and distributors are receiving relentless moans and critisism for not addressing special dietary needs and accusations of not caring or making the effort.  A bit unfair when the existence of thousands of exciting new produce plus the wholesale availability is unknown to them!

The result is stalemate, purely due to enormous  cracks and gaps in promotion, communication and the supply chain - which is incredibly frustrating for eveyone.

Coeliacs and consumers on any kind of restricted diet currently have to take it upon themselves to research and discover the existence of these products or else survive on the limited range available in their local shops and supermarkets. When they do discover them they also discover that the cost of getting them from the producer/supplier to their doorstep is ridiculously high (especially since the changes in postal charge criteria), and also makes for yeti sized carbon footprints! Often it is just not viable.

Eating out is a minefield - many restaurants and hotels etc do their best to cater for particular dietary needs but the essential ingredients, recipes and knowledge they need to support them are just not made available to them.

And then there is more very good news!

Special Diets Directory is dedicated and determined to turn this situation around completely. By showcasing these elusive (and exclusive!) manufacters, chefs, producers, restaurants, in fact every single element, they will make a splash onto the radar of consumers and each other whilst also getting their wholesale rates out to the all important trade sectors.

The icing on the cake is that it is too affordable to pass by - the cost to each member can come out of the petty cash!

Special Diets Directory even provides a way of minimising the transportation costs!

Time, risk and legwork on both sides is immediately eradicated, the process fastracked and hey presto - as part of Special Diets Directory Community, communication, negotiation and trade happens!

The 'How?' is simple...

...the producers and manufacturers of special diet foods, products and services post their wholesale rates and contact details on their own self edited webpage within the restricted Wholesale Network area of the Special Diets Directory site.

Trade members (shops, retailers, caterers, food warehouses, restaurants, hotels, etc etc) have a personal log in to the Wholesale Network (which is not viewable to the public) to browse all the wholesale rates for the huge diversity of food, products and services submitted. This will be ever changing in content and expanding all the time, keeping ideas fresh and choices eclectic..

There is a bulletin board for producers and trade to access to network and post their requests & comments.. (For example a caterer may be looking for a ready made gluten free desserts to keep for ceoliac customers and they can easily post this request to see who can provide or develop one for them.)

...it doesn't stop there - there is also two way access to/by couriers, carriers, distributers and other producers who provide deliveries and who can fill part loads and offer prefential rates!

By sharing and/or consolidating deliveries everyone can save on costs, decrease carbon footprint - and help save the planet too!