BBC Gardening and Food Shows are right on target!
- 23 hours ago
- 5 min read
It’s always good to try out the brand new and of course the well-established, and at the BBC Good Food Show and BBC Gardeners' World Live currently on at the Birmingham NEC, there are new products and firm favourites galore.
Hot off the press, so to speak is CoffeeB, a brand-new eco-friendly way of making exceptional coffee that was launched just the day before! (17 June 2026). James Newitt is the founder of CoffeeB, having the license for the UK side of the Swiss company business. Over a cup of coffee, James explained that CoffeeB is 100% coffee, 0% pods. Rather than plastic or aluminium pods or capsules, the coffee is made in balls, with are garden compostable. After brewing simply discard your coffee ball in the garden compost or waste food collection.
“The world is ready for a change,” said James. “People may not realise that every minute almost 29,000 used coffee capsules go to landfill somewhere in the world. So, every ball used is one less to go to landfill. CoffeeB products are packaged with care, FSC-certified packaging designed to reduce waste and minimalize environmental impact. It’s a premium Swiss design, engineered with precision for unmatched quality.”
They are currently using Delica Swiss coffee and are hoping that more big coffee brands will come on board ditching the plastic and aluminium capsules or pods, in favour of CoffeeB balls.
Discover more: https://coffeeb.co.uk/
Revived after our coffee, the Elementary WhatsOn team of Ann and Rob, went walkabout around the main halls of the Good Food Show and Gardeners’ World Live, spotting a few well-known faces demonstrating their skills to large theatre audiences. Namely Si King, the Hairy Biker and Adam Frost chatting to Nikki Chapman. Lots of other top chefs were also around over the 4 day event, providing cookery and gardening advice, talks and demonstrations.
If you were looking to add that little bit extra flavour to your salads or use as dipping sauces etc., then Little Doone Sweet Balsamic Dressing is something delicious to try. Colin Hanna has been making the original sweet balsamic dressing for himself, friends and family since 2007. Gradually, through months and years of trying out different flavours all with the deep, full flavours of their Original as its base, he has come up with 15 other varieties.
Colin explained, “We simply take a small batch of Original, and blend in pure zests, or fresh fruit, or maybe a hint of chilli, but there are no flavourings! We learned a long time ago that if you want something to taste good, you put good things in. Simple!”
Probably not as simple as he implied, as chatting further he mentioned that for the Ginger Sweet Balsamic Dressing alone, he has to peel, chop and juice 12 and a half kilos of fresh ginger for each batch; and the fruit dressings only use fresh Scottish-grown fruits. Colin only does a couple of shows a year, but you can discover the whole range and buy from him online: Discover more: https://www.littledoone.co.uk/
As the day wore on and stomachs started to rumble being surrounded by artisan products, I found my way back to Kuljots Kitchen, an award winning artisan provider of Indian Street Food, who we featured back at the Winter Good Food Show. This family business cook fresh every day, samosas, large spring rolls, curry and rice – delicious traditional Indian food which has won them two great Taste Awards. They also produce an award-winning Tikka Masala dry rub. They say, “Once you taste our food, you will love it,” Which proved true, as it had me going back for more!
Discover more: kuljotskitchen@gmail.com
For anyone busy in the kitchen, having a set of sharp knives is important, and we stopped to talk to Stepan Hrycak, The Knife Sharpener Guy, who is a a retailer of the world's leading, suction based knife and scissor sharpener. Stephan from the Ukraine uses only ‘Any Sharp’ products, which are guaranteed.
Discover more: https://theknifesharpenerguy.co.uk/
There was a great space indoors for the indoor plants section of the Gardeners’ World Live Show, which also covered garden furniture, greenhouses, BBQs, garden heaters, water features and so much more. One pair of quirky entrepreneurs were Chris and Colin of York whose stand was a cute little tin potting shed. They make unique garden ornaments and terrariums using recycled receptacles, containers and pots.
Chris and Colin had both retired from the fashion, beauty and hairdressing world and wanting something new to do, Chris was reminded of his granddad who was a great gardener, and that love of plants had also brushed off on him. So, Chris and Colin started making their rustic and humorous garden accessories and plant containers. Chris said, “We use all recycled containers; each terarrium we do is built from scratch, you never have the same one twice.”
Another interesting stand was Horticus Living, the brainchild of Anna, who makes modular living wall kits, so you basically grow your plants verticals from your walls. Obviously, the first questions are, why doesn’t the soil fall out? And how do you water them? Anna’s website gives all the details about caring for your plants, but in a nutshell, you water from above through a grid of watering holes; and the Loam soil is a mix of clay, sand and silt in equal parts. Anna added, “Clay and silt are water retentive and as a result help soil particles to stick together. These natural properties, combined with plants’ roots, which inhibit soil erosion, and planter design, prevent the soil from falling out.” Plus, her frames allow you to make changes to your wall design or add to it as often as you like.
Anna is passionate about the environment and the planet, and likes to make small differences wherever she can. She has found a great use for the off-cuts of lorry tarpaulins, which would end up in landfill. She buys the scrap pieces and turns them into potting mats. As a potter she also makes her own terracotta pots, and the frames are made just a mile down the road. So, all made within her home city of Leicester. Discover more: https://www.horticusliving.com/
We’ll finish off on a prickly subject, succulents. There’s such a wonderful variety of these plants to be had, and probably no one knows more about them then Daniel, the founder of Ottershaw Cacti. The family had a large display in the Floral Marquee and a smaller stand in the main hall run by daughter Lottie. Lottie told us that her dad, became interested in cacti and other succulents when his mum bought him a cactus when he was 11, which he kept on his windowsill. Fascinated by them, his collection grew and grew as did his practical knowledge.
“It’s a hobby gone mad!” said Lottie, pointing out that Daniel through being involved with the BCSS, Haworthia, MSG & Mammilaria societies; he has been a BCSS Judge in both cacti and succulents for over 20 years. Ottershal Cacti open to the public on special open days. The next being 22 August 2026.
So another fascinating day at BBC Good Food Show and BBC Gardeners’ World Live. The shows run at the Birmingham NEC until Sunday 21 June 2026.
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