A NORTH East baker has secured a supermarket deal to sell a pie it hopes will become as identifiable with the region as Cornish pasties are with the South West.

Tindale & Stanton has created a ‘beef and broon’ pie, which will be launched in Asda stores across the North East next month, using ingredients sourced locally.

Peter Frankland, managing director of parent company Hobson Foods, said: “I’ve been in the business for 30-odd years. The traditional North East pie has always been mince and onion, and when you tell other people that’s your local pie, it doesn’t sound very exciting.

“We haven’t got the Cornish pasty or the Welsh oggie or the North West butter pie – something that is distinctive to an area.”

He and his staff came together for a brainstorming session to decide what would make up an authentic North East pie.

“There’s nothing more synonymous with Newcastle than Brown Ale,” said Frankland.

Despite the name, Newcastle Brown Ale is no longer produced on Tyneside, so the Burnopfield wholesale baker turned to local micro-brewery Mordue.

Frankland said: “We decided to make beef and broon using the provenance of local suppliers.

“It’s Northumbrian beef, purchased from Manners, and Mordue’s ale we’re using from their micro-brewery in North Shields.

“It’s really a toe in the water for us and if it works, we’ll be looking at using other local ingredients.”

The pie will be launched in all 21 regional Asda stores on September 12. It has already created a stir among the supermarkets with the Co-op also keen to stock it.

Asda, which originally wanted to stock the pie exclusively, won the right to sell the product first because it was the first supermarket that Tindale & Stanton approached. It is likely that the Co-op and Morrisons, which also buy pies and pasties from the firm, will also sell the beef and broon in the near future.

“Certainly, we’ve had some interest with this product – local food is creating a lot more interest,” said Frankland, whose ultimate aim is for the brand to have a national profile.

Frankland has been involved with the company since 1988. In 2008, he formed Hobson Foods to take Tindale & Stanton out of administration and was involved with the management-buyout of the business in 2003.

Tindale & Stanton, which employs 125 people, also sells its products to wholesalers, workplace canteens, smaller bakers and shops.