The Jus-Rol™ story dates back to the days when convenience foods were a rarity and luxury food items were almost non-existent. It was in fact in the 1930s, in Coldstream, Northumberland when a family man named Tom Forsyth opened his own bakery business. Little did he know then, that after surviving the war and the great depression, that his business would lead him to become the founder of the UK’s pioneering pastry company, Jus-Rol™.
In the early 1950s Tom began selling puff pastry to his bakery customers and ‘Just-Roll’ was soon in regular demand. The locals loved his puff pastry and it was within no time at all that his pastry rose not only to be popular for its great taste and quality but above all, convenience. Tom soon realised that there was an opportunity to produce the product for a wider audience and so he struck while the iron was hot and began trading nationally in 1954.
The name ‘Just-Roll’ originated from the ladies that worked in the bakery, who were encouraged to take home cuttings from the pastry products prior to cooking. When asked what they did with it they replied “we just-roll it out and………….”
The name stuck, but when registering the company, “Just Roll” was considered too descriptive and so was shortened to “Jus-Rol™”. Back then, the pastry was wrapped in cellophane and labelled, red for puff and blue for Shortcrust. These colours have remained the UK standard indicators for all pastry, frozen or chilled to this day.
The business soon grew rapidly at a local level with production exceeding sales. However, with the lack of freezers in the 1950s it was difficult to store the vast amount of pastry that consumers were demanding at the time. The problem was soon solved in 1957 when Lovell & Christmas (Part of Fitch Lovell) were appointed as Jus-Rol™’s primary wholesalers in England. It was clear from the sales figures that the business was becoming a phenomenal success, meaning expansion was a necessity.
The company relocated to Berwick and one of the first new lines to be introduced at Berwick was frozen Yorkshire Puddings. This new convenient take on a British favourite became a big winner overnight and even earned royal approval with orders from the Royal Yacht Britannia. The next big successes to follow were frozen potato croquettes, produced from locally grown potatoes and sausage rolls. Experimentation at the factory was continuous and in 1960 the Vol-au-vent was launched, the product swept the country and enhanced the firm’s reputation even further.
During the 1960s Jus-Rol™ began to export regularly, the first overseas market was Canada followed by Cyprus, Lebanon and Greece. Jus-Rol™ then gained a foothold in the Arab markets, this called for bi-lingual packaging!
With Britain entering the Common Market many opportunities arose including recruitment of a sales team and export managers. This rapidly built up contacts with Germany, France, Holland, Belgium and then Italy, where Jus-Rol™ exported Pizza dough to! Who said you can’t sell ice to the Eskimos!
By the end of 1990, Jus-Rol™ was bought by the Grand Metropolitan group, whose portfolio included the giant Pillsbury company based in Minneapolis USA. Although Jus-Rol™ was strong in the UK this would add an international dimension that would further their success. The Pillsbury doughboy, an extremely popular brand icon, would soon sit alongside the Jus-Rol™ brand name as dual branding was displayed on the packs for the first time.
Grand Metropolitan , which changed its name to Diageo in 1997, sold its Pillsbury business in 2001 to US giant General Mills, a global food company, also based in Minneapolis. This was a dream come true for Jus-Rol™, as the new owners were and remain a major player in the international food arena and rank as the sixth largest food company in the world. The following year Berwick changed its name to General Mills Berwick, and products continued to be branded under Jus-Rol™ and Pillsbury.
2004 saw the 50th Anniversary of Jus-Rol™. On 6th November a celebration day was held in Berwick. To help celebrate Jus-Rol™’s 50th year, a recipe book was produced with help from Britain’s top chefs and food writers including Jamie Oliver, Antony Worrall Thompson, Gordon Ramsay and James Martin. ‘A Passion for Pastry’ was produced which supported the Academy of Culinary Arts Adopt a School Trust. The book was launched in March 2005 and has been selling in bookshops to many a pastry lover across the UK.
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