Which products are still proudly
Made in England?

In the last century, England was the world's manufactory, a title it has long since lost to the nations of the Far East.

A "Made in England" badge on products is becoming a rarity, with more and more English firms moving operations abroad to save money.

And as every civilised nation, we suffer from the increasing 'sameness' of generic products, bulk manufactured in China and stuffed onto shelves the world over.

Time was, when travel was exciting, when products and currency varied from country to country, when part of the joy of travel was to try out new tastes and experience the unusual.

Now, you can travel from New York to London to Moscow to Beijing and those golden arches will be with you all the way.

Globalisation truly takes the fun out of life!

And what about England where we hear doom and gloom messages every time we open a paper or turn on the news? Should we worry?

NOT ONE BIT!

Individualism is writ large in the English psyche and we are fighting back.

All over England you can find small and large producers who revive traditional products and methods of making them, who look at what's around them and use it.

If you want to find traditional English products to enjoy while visiting, or to take back home, then bookmark this page. As I scour the country for the best of English, I will update the page. If feasible, I'll also add any news and special offers that I may find.

So which products are still proudly "Made in England"?

Food

England has always had artisan food producers: the butcher who cured his own pork and made his own sausages, the baker who not only delivered the bread, but also experimented with pies and tarts, the man who turned the harvest from his orchard into delicious cider, the fisher smoking his catch, and - of course- the cheese makers.

In addition, many people make their own jams and preserves, their pickles and chutneys, their sloe gin and elderflower champagne.

And over the last ten years - as English supermarkets have tried to take over the country - I've seen a distinct rise in good, locally produced food.

Farmer's markets - almost unheard of when I came to England - are held every week across the country and the produce they sell can be truly amazing.

So I've decided to devote some space here to traditional foods ably revived and new ones imaginatively created.

And no, I've not tried them all - yet!

Many of the ideas here come from family and friends and colleagues, from holidays, trips or surprise picnics. I'll slowly work my way through the list, reviewing as I go.

And if you've visited England and found a food or supplier you particularly liked - please let me know.

My current favourite foods are:

Cider, Cider Brandy and Perry
Kendall Mint Cake
Bakewell Pudding
Mead
Marmite
English Mustard

Homeware

Carpets and furniture spring to mind here, as well as porcelain, pottery and cutlery.

A certain vacuum cleaner would have fitted onto this page a few years ago, but they're a case in point and have proudly moved their production abroad.

But I've no doubt that, once I start looking, I'll find several more companies than the ones listed below.

And, again, if you know of any firm or product you'd like to see mentioned please let me know.

At the moment we have:

Sheffield cutlery
Axminster carpets
Staffordshire Pottery
Royal Doulton

Cloth and Clothes

In the Middle Ages, England was famous for its wool, which was shipped to Flanders to be turned into cloth.

More recently, with the introduction of cotton into England, cotton mills overran parts of the country, driving the Industrial revolution. Then they closed down again as manufacture moved to "cheaper" countries.

Now England has artisan weavers and small woollen mills who produce anything from blankets to jumpers. In due course, I'll let you know where to find them.

Ships

England, being an island, has always built ships, and for many years shipbuilding was a major industry, especially in the north of England, on the Tyne.

I cannot even pretend to understand what it was like to work in a shipyard - the closest I've come was probably an oil rig.

But a couple of years ago, the BBC produced the most marvellous series of Radio Ballads, stories and memories with music, and The Ballad of the Big Ships is one of the best 'history lessons' I've ever heard.

Try this. It's definitely worth listening to.

These days, of course, few ships are made in England - but if you've listened to the radio ballad, you'll know that it's hard to keep a good thing down. Shipbuilding in England is not dead!

Cars and Motorbikes

At the beginning of this century, England took to the new invention of motorised transport with enthusiasm and many small car companies sprang up. They did well, they became successful - especially in races - and, eventually, they folded, were taken over or moved production abroad.

Not many now remain. TVR - pictured above - was one of the most recent to move production out of England. But Morgan and Triumph are still proudly "Made in England".

Return from Made in England to the Essentially England homepage.