Gourmet scotch egg gets royal seal of approval
A gourmet scotch egg company has had royal endorsement from Buckingham Palace after being awarded Entrepreneur of the Week at Pitch at Palace.
David and Christine Laing from The Clucking Pig company were recognised by Prince Andrew while presenting their products at a Pitch at Palace event in Sunderland last January.
After receiving the award, the couple were invited to Buckingham Palace to privately exhibit their scotch eggs to some of the palace’s main caterers and event managers.
“We went along in March, and thought we’d be one of several hundred people there,” said David Laing. “But it turned out we were the only foodies invited on the day itself.”
“And there we were, Prince Andrew, the Queen’s personal chef and around 30 royal staff – all sat around a table tucking into our scotch eggs,” he added.
The company’s scotch eggs are made using free-range eggs from its flock of hens housed at its four-acre small holding in Grewgrass Lodge, North Yorkshire.
In April, the couple attended the final Pitch at Palace event at St. James Palace where their scotch eggs were served as canapés by palace staff to over 500 guests.
“To go from selling our first scotch egg at Saltburn Farmers’ Market in 2013 to Buckingham Palace less than four years later is the stuff of dreams,” said Christine.
The couple said the whole process has raised their profile both locally and nationally, with orders coming in from delis and invites to numerous events.
“Some of the bigger supermarkets have asked us to have a chat, so let’s see what happens,” said David.
“We’d need to be 100% sure they’d be happy to work within our own values,” he added. “That means working with local producers who share our values of good local food and high animal welfare.”
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