Hawkshead Relish Company in Ambleside, Cumbria, United Kingdom | Food

The Hawkshead Relish Company, near Ambleside, are makers of award winning handmade Relishes, Pickles and Preserves in the heart of the Lake District in the United Kingdom.

They are all made by hand using traditional methods and the finest ingredients.  No artificial flavourings, colourings, preservatives or thickeners are used, just really great fresh ingredients.

All are Gluten Free and with one exception (Ballachong Prawn Chutney) all are suitable for Vegetarians.

The Hawkshead Relish Company is a small family run business based in the beautiful English Lake District.   Mark and Maria started making Relishes, Chutneys and Preserves to serve alongside the dishes in their busy village centre cafe near Ambleside, however, when the Foot & Mouth epidemic of 2001 hit the region they were forced to diversify and making more of their delicious chutneys and relishes seemed the obvious way to go.

Within a couple of years they had to close the cafe down to concentrate on the production full time and were winning many awards and accolades for their products. In 2005 they received the top award from the Great Taste Awards when they won the coveted "Speciality Producer of the Year" award, "Receiving this award from our peers was the ultimate icing on the cake for us" said Maria, "from almost going out of business in 2001 to this has been a huge emotional rollercoaster of hard work and determination".

In 2007 production at Hawkshead Relish Company moved into a lovely 16thC restored cruck barn, just a mile south of Hawkshead, ensuring long term employment for the small but dedicated workforce, supporting the local economy and community is very high on their list of priorities.

All the products at Hawkshead Relish Company are still made by hand in small batches with no colourings, preservatives, artificial flavourings or padding out. "If it doesn't add flavour it doesn't get added" said Mark, who is the creative influence on the partnership. "Allowing the great quality of the ingredients to speak for themselves is the key to creating a product that bursts with flavour".