East of England Co-op brings Christmas home with locally sourced Christmas products

The East of England Co-op has teamed up with Suffolk-based chocolatier Hadleigh Maid to craft a gigantic Winter Spiced Truffle Walnut Whirl that is shining a spotlight on local produce this festive season.

Weighing in at 11.8kg, the enormous whirl is over 200 times heavier than a standard whirl and has been grabbing shoppers’ attention at the East of England Co-op’s Hadleigh store. Filled with 6,300 grams of mixed spice and cinnamon truffle centre, the whirl has been topped off with 500g of white chocolate drizzle and 36 walnuts, and a festive golden sparkle all over.

According to recent research conducted by Evvnt, East Anglian adults will spend an average of £417 on Christmas, including food for the festive season. With this in mind, the East of England Co-op is getting behind local producers to highlight the high calibre of Sourced Locally Christmas produce available across Suffolk, and the value of shopping local for our regional economy.

Roger Grosvenor, Joint Chief Executive of the East of England Co-op, said: “Food plays an important role at Christmas, and by switching out one treat for a local alternative, customers can help to support our region’s producers.

“We have something for everyone, from Christmas essentials such as cranberry sauce and sausage meat, to sweet festive treats including mince pies and hazelnut praline. Whatever you choose, local produce is delicious and shopping local reduces our carbon footprint.”

Garry Spink, Store Manager of East of England Co-op store in Hadleigh, said: “As a supplier that is particularly local to our store, we were proud to receive Hadleigh Maid’s ginormous Winter Spiced Truffle Walnut Whirl. I’m sure it tastes as incredible as it looks and it certainly got my colleagues and our customers into the festive spirit.”

Gavin Bowie, Managing Director of Hadleigh Maid, said: “The creation of the whirl was no mean feat, but as you can see our team of talented chocolatiers was up to the challenge. As a business we take a great deal of pride in our products and we are incredibly grateful for the support the East of England Co-op has given us over the years.”

Pictured – Store Manager Garry Spink with customers in the East of England Coop store in Hadleigh.

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