‘Codmother’ of Calshot to stock her crabcakes at Aldi after TV triumph

Calshot-based fishcake maker Hayley Elston has reeled in a national supermarket deal after winning Channel 4 TV show Aldi’s Next Big Thing.

Hayley set up the Fabulous Catch Company in 2012 to help a group of Isle of Wight fishermen sell unwanted brown crab meat, creating a zero-waste product by using every edible part.

Now, some 12 years on, the business is set to become a whole different kettle of fish with a contract to stock a new product, the ‘Crabulous Crabcake’ at Aldi.

An estimated seven million viewers watched the nail-biting finale last night as Hayley was told by show hosts Anita Rani and Chris Bavin that she had beaten hundreds of applicants to secure the deal.

Visit Hampshire Biz News for bright, upbeat and positive business news from the county

“It’s completely surreal,” said Hayley, who works with her business partner, Michelin-starred chef Herbert Berger, to develop her range of products.

“We’ve known for a little while that we were winners but had to keep it under our hats!

“Watching myself on the TV was like experiencing it all over again. Now it’s incredible to know that Crabulous Crabcakes will be sold nationally in Aldi. I’ve had so many messages from friends and well-wishers – I feel like a superstar!

“This all started with a dream to make responsibly-sourced, sustainable fish products available to all – and today I’m pinching myself that the dream has come true.”

The Crabulous Crabcake was developed specifically for Aldi after the supermarket giant asked Hayley to scale up her existing crabcakes while retaining flavour and consistency.

This texture and flavour delighted the judges, who chose the Fabulous Catch Company over five other finalists – including rapper Stormzy’s personal chef – to secure an order to supply Aldi with 60,000 units to be rolled out across 960 stores.

Explaining the origins of The Fabulous Catch Company, Hayley said: “One of the fishermen’s biggest areas of waste was brown crab meat. Everyone wants picked white crab meat, but brown crab has much more flavour, so we developed what was the beginnings of our crabcake.

“We also made a crab pasty and a crab bisque with the shells, and a white fishcake. We took our products across the water to the farmers markets in Fareham where they were an instant hit. We couldn’t make enough. We moved off the island at the end of 2016 to the New Forest and have grown steadily since – but this takes us into a new league.”

For more information about The Fabulous Catch Company, visit fabcatchco.co.uk

Read more - Circumstance Distillery unveils organic single grain whisky