| Type | Family company |
|---|---|
| Genre | Bakers |
| Headquarters | Uddingston, Scotland |
| Products | Cakes, biscuits |
| Employees | 550 |
| Website | http://www.tunnocks.co.uk/ |
Thomas Tunnock Limited, commonly known as Tunnock's, is a family baker in Uddingston, Scotland.
The company was formed by Thomas Tunnock as Tunnock's in 1890, when he purchased a baker's shop in Uddingston. The company expanded in the 1950s, and it was at this time that the core products were introduced to the lines. The company has continued to expand, and now employs 550 staff. It is currently headed by Boyd Tunnock CBE, grandson of Thomas.[1] It began exporting in 1957 and now sells its products in about 30 countries; the largest importer is Saudi Arabia.
Factory tours have become so popular that the firm now keeps a year-long waiting list to manage demand.[2]
Since 2005, Tunnock's has sponsored The Tour of Mull, an annual car rally held on the Isle of Mull.[3]
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The Tunnock's Teacake is a sweet food popular in the United Kingdom. They are often served with a cup of tea or coffee.
The product consists of a small round shortbread biscuit covered with a dome of Italian meringue, a whipped egg white concoction similar to marshmallow.[1] This is then encased in a thin layer of milk or dark chocolate and wrapped in a distinctive red and silver foil paper for the more popular milk chocolate variety, with blue, black, and gold wrapping for the dark.
The name tea cake is somewhat confusing as generally a teacake is taken to mean a sweet bread roll with dried fruit added to the mix, which is usually served toasted and buttered. A Tunnock's Tea Cake bears no relation to this product.
The Tunnock's Wafer, correctly known as the Tunnock's Milk Chocolate Coated Caramel Wafer Biscuit, is a bar consisting of five layers of wafer, interspersed with 4 layers of caramel. The bar itself is coated in chocolate, made from condensed milk. The wafers are wrapped in red and gold coloured foil. Dark chocolate wafers, wrapped blue and gold, are also available.
An individual wafer is devoid of a sell-by date, though the multipacks do have one. However, in many small outlets they are available separately. The wrappers of the milk chocolate version bear the wording "more than 5,000,000 of these biscuits made and sold every week".[4]
St. Andrews University has a Tunnock's Caramel Wafer Appreciation Society, founded in 1982.[2]
The other products in Tunnock's lines are largely based on the core products. The Caramel Log is similar to the Caramel Wafer, but with the addition of roasted coconut to the outside of the bar. Wafer Creams and Florida Orange have chocolate and orange flavoured cream in place of the caramel.
A Snowball is similar to the Tea Cake, with the addition of grated coconut to the exterior of a soft chocolate shell but with no biscuit base.
Despite pressure to do so, Tunnock's does not make any own label biscuits for supermarkets.[1]
The distinctive cheeky face of the Tunnock's Boy appears on nearly all Tunnock's products. The boy is based on no one and was chosen by Thomas Tunnock because of the clean, friendly image his face brings to the Tunnock's business.