Britain's Got Talent judge, Amanda Holden can Count On It.

It is clear to see why Simon Cowell chose Amanda Holden to be one of the judges on the brilliant, Britain’s Got Talent. Not only is Amanda grounded in the real world, she also has got an eye for spotting a winner, as she proved when she gave the phenomenon that is, Susan Boyle, the thumbs up. Another winner Amanda has been quick to spot is Count On It® food freshness labels, the scratch-off label memory joggers that show when a product was first opened, stored or frozen.

Despite her life never been busier, mum to two-year-old Alexa and married to record producer, Chris Hughes, Amanda loves cooking for her daughter – but wants peace of mind when preparing her meals.

“These labels are fantastic – I put them on everything from pasta sauce to Alexa’s leftovers,” she said.

“I love giving Alexa fresh, wholesome food, but because of my busy lifestyle, I need to keep track of when I opened stuff – these labels do the job for me.”
Amanda also uses them for batch freezing. “Good nutritious food like fish pies and cottage pies can be made in advance and frozen, and these labels act as a check on when the food was first frozen – they are so simple to use but so effective, I’m beginning to wonder how I ever managed without them”.

Count On It® labels are on sale in Lakeland stores nationwide and are also available in Lakeland’s brochure and online at www.lakeland.co.uk. They are also available from www.count-on-it.co.uk

Lakeland’s Barbara Shepherd said: “Count On It® labels are one of a number of products we have introduced to help people reduce food wastage. We liked the no nonsense simplicity behind this product and how it can help people save money – foodies, mums and families will love it”.

For more ideas on how to get the best from your Count On It® labels visit www.count-on-it.co.uk

CELEBRITIES LOVE FOOD FRESHNESS LABELS

Count On It® food freshness labels are proving a huge hit with mums across the country.
Available from Lakeland stores and the new January 2009 brochure, leading delis and online at www.lakeland.co.uk, the stick-on labels feature scratch-off panels which show when a product was first opened, stored or frozen.
One of the labels biggest fans is actress and TV star Amanda Holden. Amanda is mum to two-year-old Alexa and her life has never been busier. Recently married to record producer Chris Hughes and about to start filming the third series of Britain’s Got Talent, Amanda loves cooking for Alexa – but wants peace of mind when preparing her daughter’s meals.
“These labels are fantastic – I put them on everything from pasta sauce to Alexa’s leftovers,” she said. “I love giving Alexa fresh, wholesome food, but because of my busy lifestyle, I need to keep track of when I opened stuff – these labels do the job for me.”
Amanda also uses them for batch freezing. “I love making Alexa nutritious foods like fish pies in advance, the labels just remind me when I put them in the freezer.”
Amanda loves the labels so much she has recommended them to her friends Sarah Parish, Angela Griffin and Jane Wall.
Sarah, who has a 7-month-old daughter Ella-Jayne, loves the labels and uses them to help her safely store baby milk and baby food. “These labels are a godsend for busy mums – they are just so easy to use but very effective – just one less thing to worry about,” Sarah said.
Angela agrees. She uses them a lot for freezing food for her two young daughters Tallulah Jae and Melissa. “I’m wondering how I ever managed without them – busy mums will know how easy it can be to forget how long food has been stored and with these labels you can be certain if it is still fresh and safe to eat - no need to worry or to throw away perfectly decent food,” she comments.
For more ideas on how to get the best from your Count On It® labels visit www.count-on-it.co.uk

Christmas Grocery Money Saving tips

Each month, the average family throws away £50 of food that was bought but not eaten.  That’s £600 which could have been spent at Christmas or the January sales. But Christmas IS a time for indulgence, and if planned right, we can still spoil ourselves and keep the costs down. Saving money does not mean cutting down on luxuries and fun, if anything, having a well planned, affordable Christmas will make it even more enjoyable.

Save money by getting the portions right - Be realistic about how much you can and will eat on the day - don’t spoil the day with indigestion and wasted food. Rather than a whole turkey, why not a have fresh turkey crown, chicken or duck
If you do get carried away with your preparation and have leftovers - don’t worry, just freeze (if made from fresh) or store them for later - using a Count On It® label of course - these will be especially handy if you have unexpected guests arrive later or for eating on the days following Christmas Day.

Keep it fresh and save yourself time - Don’t spend all your holiday in the kitchen cooking and preparing food- the answer - your freezer. Sausage rolls, mince pies, vegetables and fruit can all be prepared days or even weeks earlier and stored in the freezer, just pop them in a food container or bag, stick on a Count On It® label and they are ready to be cooked if and when you need them - leaving you free to enjoy time with friends and family.

Love your leftovers and save waste - So good, you could eat it all again - well, store it as leftovers and you can. Bubble and squeak, soups, curries are all possible with leftovers and a bit of imagination. Cheeses, chutneys, deli goods are perfect for storing in the fridge, just stick on a Count On It® label and use at a later date to liven up a sandwich or jacket potato.

Count On each other - it’s Christmas. Invite some friends or family over for dinner. It doesn’t have to be a formal affair- just an occasion to enjoy each other’s company. Suggest everyone brings along a dish, that way you keep your grocery bills, cooking and leftovers to a minimum - never mind the washing up.

Amanda can Count On It

Christmas leftovers are as much a part of the festive season as the tree and presents. It’s the one time of the year we buy those little food luxuries – chutneys, pickles, sauces – as well as cream, mayonnaise, too much meat, fish, seafood and puddings – our fridges groan with the amount of food we purchase.

In the last 12 months we have all become more aware of the amount of food we waste, and this set against a backdrop of soaring food and energy costs, means people are more determined than ever not to waste good food or throw it in the bin.
Help is at hand. Count On It™ easy to use food freshness labels will tell you at a glance if your food is still fresh and safe to eat.

The stick-on labels display scratch-off panels which show when a product was first opened, stored or frozen. No more guess work needed.

The labels are a godsend for busy, on-the-go mums. And there is no one busier this year in the run up to Christmas than TV star Amanda Holden. Amanda, mum to two-year-old Alexa, will tie the knot in early December and then starts filming the third series of Britain’s Got Talent with Simon Cowell and Piers Morgan.

“I love giving Alexa fresh, wholesome food but a lot of the time I forget when I opened the jar of pasta sauce or carton of fruit juice – these labels are brilliant as reminders,” said Amanda.

Amanda also uses them when batch freezing. “Good nutritious food like fish pies and cottage pies can be made in advance and frozen, and these labels act as a check on when the food was first frozen – they are so simple to use but so effective, I’m beginning to wonder how I ever managed without them”.

Amanda is confident her friends, actresses Sarah Parish and Angela Griffin, also young mums with busy lives, will find them useful. “I’ve already lined up a few boxes for them to try out over Christmas”

Count On It™ will go on sale in Lakeland stores nationwide from January. The product will also be available in the new Lakeland brochure and online at www.lakeland.co.uk. It is also available from www.count-on-it.co.uk

Lakeland’s Barbara Shepherd said: “Count On It™ is one of a number of products we have introduced to help people reduce food wastage. We liked the no nonsense simplicity behind this product and how it can help people save money – foodies, mums and families will love it”.

Count On It™ has also received rave reviews from a number of leading food writers and home economists including Leicestershire-based Teresa Bovey.

As someone who loves food, both preparing and eating, Teresa has found the labels a fantastic aid in the kitchen. “I love them – I use them on everything from sauces and dips to freezing and leftovers – I don’t throw any food away as I’ve got peace of mind that it is still fresh and safe to eat”, Teresa added.

For more ideas on how to get the best out of your Count On It labels visit www.count-on-it.co.uk – the money you save on food could come in very useful

On Air across the Midlands

As part of our continuing promotion of Count On It, it's imminent launch into Lakeland and our celebrity endorsement from Amanda Holden, I was invited to be be a guest on two radio shows in the Midlands this week - the Frances Finn show on BBC Radio Nottingham and the Rupal Rajani show on BBC Radio Leicester.

Frances' focus was from an entrepreneurial angle - how I came up with the idea and how I got it into the market place, whereas Rupal's interview was more informal and gave me the opportunity to further explain how Count On It could help save time, money and food waste. In addition to this I gave some tips on how to get the most out of Christmas, for example preparing food and freezing, reusing leftovers etc.

Both were enjoyable, in different ways and both translated into further online sales. To hear the interviews click on these links

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p001jxcg/The_Morning_Show_01_12_2008/

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/p001lqk3/Rupal_Rajani_03_12_2008/

Ignorance is bliss?

Food waste is a huge problem, we all know it is because we are all constantly being encouraged to recycle, compost, use leftovers, meal plan, all sorts - but why do we all think it is someone else's problem? WRAP statistics claim that 9 out of 10 people are adamant that they do NOT waste food, yet these very same households are throwing away nearly 90KG of avoidable food waste each year. Wasting food does not mean you are a bad person, it just means that you have got used to decades of affordable food, but this is changing, food IS getting more expensive, so most of us will have to wake up and smell the coffee. Value food more and save some money in the meantime - oh and don't forget your Count On It labels to help you achieve all this!