Our final Café Life of 2023 delivers a mouth-watering festive bonanza, with a focus on key flavours and trends for what is a vital time of year for hospitality. 

There's plenty to enjoy in this new issue... not least three previews of key events for the sector. Café Business Expo, lunch! and Caffè Culture promise plenty of networking opportunities, product launches and expert speaker programmes.

We’re thrilled to announce that to celebrate the launch of our spicy new Peri-Peri flavour, we’re running a competition to ‘Be the face of NEW Real Peri Peri Chicken’.

As a café or restaurant owner, we know you wear a lot of hats. One minute it’s stock management, the next it’s menu creation, kitchen prep, front-of-house… and we can’t forget cleaning duties!

BioVate Hygienics, a pioneering brand of sustainable and carbon neutral cleaning products, is offering six Café Life readers a product bundle consisting of an all-surface cleaner, floor and wall degreaser, multipurpose surface cleaner, bio cleaner and sanitiser, washing up liquid and a toilet cleaner worth £60.

Kite Packaging, an award-winning UK packaging supplier, recently upgraded their large letter postal boxes for enhanced performance and security. The boxes are now offered as part of a package along with euro slot hang tabs, also known as hanging tabs.

Welcome to the sixth edition of Café Life magazine's 'How to Start & Run a Coffee Bar' guide.

There is so much to think about when starting up your own hospitality business, especially in the current financial climate. However, it's also exciting and a wonderful challenge - with demand for vibrant coffee houses and cafés returning to pre-pandemic levels, creating new opportunities for those with an entrepreneurial spirit.

Another independent business was recognised at the FFFAs, with Coventry-based Wicked Cookies winning Gold and Silver awards for their dairy- and gluten-free cookies. The Snickerwoodle rose to the top ahead of 40 entries, with a coveted gold. Their Vegan & Gluten-Free Triple Chocolate cookie followed close behind with a silver.

JJ Foodservice is helping coffee shop customers raise their game with a new YouTube playlist featuring Damian Burgess, world-class coffee consultant and trainer.

There’s a staffing problem in hospitality – and the older generation could be part of the solution.

Dessert restaurant brand, Creams Cafe, is focusing on all things nostalgia with its new retro-inspired summer menu – available until 10 October to enjoy in-store, for delivery and on-the-go nationwide.

The relationship between Sandwich King and Soken continues to flourish.

Innovation from Wrapmaster can help operators keep ahead of the legislation curve.

The Trend Tracker Survey 2023, the latest consumer research from Two Sides Europe, seeks to understand changing perceptions towards print, paper, paper-based packaging and tissue products. The survey questioned more than 10,000 consumers in 16 countries across the world.

Gavin Ellis is director and co-founder of environmental organisation, Hubbub. Here, he delivers invaluable insight into current and future packaging and waste trends.

Although health trends continue to dominate the marketplace, there is still a demand for indulgence, while offering more nutritional alternatives. This creates a whole host of opportunities for foodservice operators. Whether it’s a quick snack or dessert option, look no further than Panesco’s latest cakes and biscuits range.

Eddie is an edible ink desktop printer for printing full-colour photos, logos, designs and text directly onto the surface of baked goods and confectionery. It is now capable of printing on even taller items, including doughnuts, jumbo marshmallows, bagels and mini cakes up to 60mm tall and 120mm wide, using its new Platform Kit accessory.

Caffeine Limited has expanded its partnership with the Simonelli Group and is now supplying its range of Nuova Simonelli coffee machines in the UK.

A survey¹ from Lantmännen Unibake’s Schulstad Bakery Solutions brand has shed new light on teacake buying and consumption habits of UK shoppers.

Award-winning snack maker, Burts, has introduced a premium flavour of Beef & Mustard hand-cooked Ridges to its range. Available from September 2023, it will sit alongside the Reaper Chilli & Lime Ridges, as Burts focuses on growing its brand into the expanding hand-cooked crinkle market.