^ L to R: Presenters Paddy McGuinness and Cherry Healey filming Inside the Factory at Image On Food Ltd

PRESS RELEASE

A Market Drayton business renowned for its creativity and craftsmanship is set to shine on national television as BBC One’s Inside the Factory Christmas Special goes behind the scenes at Image On Food Ltd – home of Original Biscuit Bakers and the historic Billington’s Gingerbread brands.

Image On Food Ltd, based in Market Drayton – famously known as the ‘home of gingerbread’ – welcomed Inside the Factory presenters Paddy McGuinness and Cherry Healey in September 2024 for an exclusive look at the fascinating process behind its much-loved hand-iced biscuits.

The festive episode follows the journey of Original Biscuit Bakers’ Christmas range, focusing on the popular Santa and Reindeer biscuit design. Viewers will see every step of the process, from the arrival of raw ingredients to the finished biscuit treats ready for dispatch across the UK. Along the way, the programme will showcase the artistry and precision that goes into creating these delights, including mixing the delicious signature dough, rolling, cutting, baking, robotic flooding and the intricate hand-icing by talented artisans that makes Original Biscuit Bakers’ creations so distinctive in quality.

^ Original Biscuit Bakers Santa gingerbread biscuit dough being cut.

^ Original Biscuit Bakers Santa post-sugar pasting stage.

^ Original Biscuit Bakers gingerbread Santa being hand-iced decorated.

Original Biscuit Bakers has been delighting customers for more than three decades with its hand-iced biscuit novelties, stocked in quality farm shops, visitor attractions and national retailers such as Waitrose and Booths. Their Christmas collection includes festive favourites such as Santa, Reindeer, Gonk, Snowman, Snowflake, Santa Man and Penguin – each biscuit lovingly crafted and decorated to bring joy to every celebration.

Although the episode focuses on Original Biscuit Bakers’ festive creations, Image On Food Ltd is also home to another Shropshire icon – Billington’s Gingerbread. Crafted in Market Drayton since 1817, this historic recipe combines secret spices, a dash of rum and golden syrup to create crisp gingerbread fingers that have been enjoyed for over 200 years. This enduring tradition sits alongside the company’s innovative hand-iced biscuits, making Image On Food Ltd a true champion of both heritage and creativity.

The business continues to go from strength to strength with production continuously ramping up. Last year alone, the factory produced an astonishing 3,686,460 gingerbreads – weighing in at 185 tonnes – across 94 hand iced designs.

^ L to R: Inside the Factory presenters Cherry Healey and Paddy McGuinness at The Fields Kitchen in Market Drayton, holding hand-iced Reindeer and Santa biscuits from Original Biscuit Bakers.

Managing Director Gemma Williams said, “We were delighted to welcome the Inside the Factory team to our factory and share the passion and craftsmanship that goes into every biscuit we make on site. Gingerbread is such an important part of our local heritage here in Market Drayton and we’re proud to keep this tradition alive while continuing to innovate and bring joy to our customers across the UK. It was a wonderful experience to meet Paddy and Cherry – they were genuinely interested in every detail and brought such energy and excitement to our factory. We hope viewers enjoy getting a sneak peek behind the scenes and seeing the care and creativity that goes into every biscuit we produce.”

The Christmas Special episode of Inside the Factory featuring Image On Food Ltd will air on BBC One on Tuesday 23^rd December at 8pm, offering viewers a unique glimpse into the world of gingerbread and hand-iced biscuits. For more information about Original Biscuit Bakers and Billington’s Gingerbread, visit: https://imageonfood.co.uk.

Original Biscuit Bakers, are returning as headline sponsors of this year’s Heritage Gingerbread Trail & Contest, taking place on Saturday 27th September 2025 as part of the Ginger & Spice Festival in Market Drayton.

Running from 9.30am to 4.30pm, the family-friendly trail and competition will wind through the town centre, celebrating Market Drayton’s rich gingerbread-making heritage. A much-loved highlight of the festival, the trail will feature imaginative gingerbread creations displayed in 47 local businesses – many of whom are also proud sponsors of the event.

The Original Biscuit Bakers Heritage Gingerbread Trail & Contest is a free and family-friendly event, forming part of the Ginger & Spice Festival 2025. Designed to celebrate Market Drayton’s rich culinary heritage, the trail invites festival-goers to explore local shops, attractions and historic sites throughout the town.

Each participating business or organisation will showcase a specially dressed gingerbread character in their window or premises, themed around “Characters from History.” Families are encouraged to follow the trail, discover all the gingerbread characters and vote for their favourite display.

The character with the most public votes will win the People’s Choice Award with also a runner up, while an additional winner and runner up will be chosen by the Mayor of Market Drayton, Councillor Tim Manton, and a special guest judges Nick and Carol Ford from Acton Scott Heritage Farm in Shropshire on Tuesday 23rd September 2025, ensuring a fun and fair celebration of creativity and community spirit.

To incentivise voting participation, a FREE prize draw will take place at the festival. All those who complete the trail form in full and correctly will be entered into the free prize draw. There will be one winner and one runner up in the children’s category and one winner in the adults’ category. The winners will be announced after the festival, week commencing 29th September 2025. If chosen, they could win the following:

Adult: An artisan food and drink hamper

Child: A children’s gingerbread hamper

Original Biscuit Bakers are also bringing a stall to the spicy artisan market with our delicious hand decorated and iced gingerbread biscuit creations plus heritage biscuit Billington’s Gingerbread. We will also be hosting free of charge gingerbread decorating in the Original Biscuit Bakers children’s crafting area throughout the day.

Gemma Williams, Managing Director of  Image On Food, the home of Original Biscuit Bakers and Billington’s Gingerbread, said:

“We’re proud to support the Ginger & Spice Festival once again, especially the much-loved heritage trail. It’s a brilliant family event that brings Market Drayton’s history to life through food, storytelling, and hands-on experiences. The festival continues to grow in popularity, and we’re delighted to be part of something that celebrates the town’s unique culinary roots.”

Julia Roberts, Festival Director of the Ginger & Spice Festival, said:

“We’re thrilled to once again have Original Biscuit Bakers as the headline sponsor of our much-loved Heritage Gingerbread Trail. Their support is invaluable in helping us celebrate Market Drayton’s unique heritage and bring our creative vision to life. The trail has become a firm family favourite, and this year we’re excited to see the imaginative gingerbread window displays dressed to the brilliant theme ‘Characters from history’. We are also grateful for their support of the children’s crafting area which enables us to offer free of charge activities for the community to enjoy.”

To view the list of trail sponsors please visit the website and see the heritage trail page here:

Images of the sponsors and organisations with their gingerbread character pre-decorations are here to view:

Gingerbread Heritage Trail Maps can be picked up from the trail station on the high street being run by volunteers Jane Moore and Julie Pryce from 9.30am on Saturday 27^th September. They will also be displaying their collection of Gingerbread memorabilia that they have collected over the years.

Jane Moore and Julie Pryce said:

“We’re delighted to once again be running the Gingerbread Heritage Trail at this year’s Ginger & Spice Festival. It’s always such a joy to see so many families taking part, with children spotting the wonderful gingerbread characters in shop and business windows right across our lovely town. The whole community gets involved, which makes the trail really special. We also look forward to sharing our growing collection of Market Drayton gingerbread memorabilia on our stall – it’s a tradition we’re proud to celebrate as an important part of our town’s heritage.”

We look forward to a successful community event that brings together creativity, heritage, and local pride—celebrating Market Drayton’s rich gingerbread-making tradition in a fun and meaningful way for families, businesses and visitors alike.

New

Quick View

Birthday Biscuits

10 Pack – Panda & Koala

£19.99

Add to basket

New

Quick View

Birthday Biscuits

10 Pack – Countryside Friends

£19.99

Add to basket

New

Quick View

Birthday Biscuits

Super Mum Gift Pack

£12.99

Add to basket

Quick View

Out of stock

Party Packs

10 Pack – Mystery Box

£10.00

Read more

New

Quick View

Out of stock

For Clients

Love Birds Duo Pack

£12.99

Read more

Quick View

Birthday Biscuits

10 Pack – Unicorn Party Pack

£19.99

Add to basket

Quick View

Fairytale

10 Pack – Llama Party

£17.99

Add to basket

Top Seller

Quick View

Birthday Biscuits

10 Pack – Assorted Farmyard Range

£17.99

Add to basket

We are pleased to announce that our recent unannounced BRCGS audit, has awarded us an AA+ grading.

This is a fantastic achievement and a testament to our unwavering commitment to maintaining the highest standards of food safety and hygiene. The “+” signifies that the audit was unannounced, adding an extra layer of credibility to our certification.

The BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety is a leading certification programme, recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative and widely accepted by brands and retailers. Certification provides consumers with the confidence that their supplier meets the highest standards of product safety, integrity, legality and quality. Achieving a high-level certification like AA+ highlights our dedication to supplying the best possible products and our commitment to consistently high standards of Food Safety, making us a safe choice for our customers.

During the unannounced on-site audit, the inspector assessed the practical implementation of the standard requirements. This included observing procedures and processes, reviewing documentation and conducting staff interviews. Key members of our team from Operations, Engineering, Technical, HR/Health & Safety, along with Management, were involved in the audit that covered all areas of our site.

Gemma Williams, Managing Director, said: “We were delighted with the result of our recent BRCGS audit. The auditor was full of praise for everyone’s assurance to high standards and integrity, within our strong company culture. This award is a testament to the hard work and commitment of our entire team and is driven by their dedication and passion for excellence.”

Certificate Issued March 2025

Team members from Image on Food (L to R): Anthony Munt, Operations Manager; Gemma Williams, Managing Director and Becky Baxter, Technical Manager – proudly holding the company’s BRCGS certificate.

Our website is officially live.

Please take a look at Our Story, view our product videos and browse our store.

Any queries you have about buying or supplying our biscuits, do not hesitate to contact our team!

With Gingerbread love from the Original Biscuit Bakers Team

Our range of gingerbread biscuits advertised in Speciality Food

The company success with 123insight software being explained in Advanced Manufacturing magazine

Our gingerbread advent calendar being promoted in The Blend

Our BRC certificate celebrated in the World Bakers Online

Our Assorted Farmyard range featuring with the top picks of Shropshire

Our Christmas range in Fine Foods