Meet the Producer - Stoats
Stoats started in 2005 with a wee, shiny trailer touring the summer festivals. Known as the ‘Stoats Porridge Bar’ they supplied their own unique blend of porridge, but many customers were expecting an actual bar of porridge. Inspired, co-founders Tony and Bob returned to their Edinburgh kitchen and set about making the world’s first porridge oat bars! They now have a great range of oatcakes, flavoured porridge and delicious porridge oat bars and have a small fleet of hot porridge trailers touring festivals.
Stoats are passionate about ‘all things porridge’. They take great pride in sourcing premium Scottish oats and working on different blends to give the best texture to their range. They use unrefined, wholesome ingredients to create delicious snacks, pots and bars.
Oats can help stabilise blood sugar, being a low GI food, combined with natural ingredients like honey, seeds and raspberries they provide a healthy snack that will actually keep you going. Their mission “to take porridge to the people” is working, in addition to creating the world’s largest bowl of porridge for the Guinness Book of Records in 2007; they’ve also sent porridge to the Olympians in 2012!
The Stoats range includes Porridge Oat Bars, available in 50g and 85g bars in 6 flavours including Fig & Date and White Chocolate & Hazelnut. They are also available in multipacks.
As Bob from Stoats says "Tasty apple pieces, sweet sultanas, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and a good sprinkling of cinnamon. A few years ago we served warm porridge topped with stewed apples, toasted oats and a sprinkle of cinnamon. The recipe was a hit, so we made it into an Apple & Cinnamon Porridge Oat Bar. Yum!
Whole blueberries, sweet sultanas, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds and runny honey. Our raspberry and honey bars were so popular, we ran out of fruit for a few months. We needed a quick fix – and blueberries were it. They produced a cracking colour and delicious tang, so we’ve been making these Blueberry & Honey Porridge Oat Bars ever since!"
Raspberry & Honey is our top seller! Tangy raspberry pieces, sweet honey, juicy sultanas and crunchy seeds. Raspberry & Honey Porridge Oat Bars are inspired by Cranachan, the classic Scottish dessert. They’re made from our unique blend of Scottish oats, tangy dried raspberries, crunchy seeds and a hint of honey.
Apricot & Sultana is the the original Porridge Bar flavour! Juicy sulphur-free apricots and sultanas mixed with sunflower seeds and pumpkin seeds."
Stoats’ Porridge Quick pots are a convenient way to grab an on-the-go breakfast, simply add hot water! They come in Cranberry & Blueberry, Apple & Cinnamon or the Classic Scottish quick pot and are crammed with real fruit pieces, without any flavourings or enhancers.
For porridge at home, try their flavoured range. A classic Scottish Porridge, Apple & Cinnamon, Apricot & Sultana and Sunflower & Poppy Seed are all available in 750g boxes and are ready in minutes on the stove or in the microwave. Bob reckons "The oat blend is our unique blend of jumbo and flaked outs that gives the right mix for nice textured fluffy porridge with a bit of bite, This is the first product Stoats started with in 2005 selling from the porridge bar/van." Scottish jumbo oats are mixed with flaked oats to provide great texture and satisfying food, then generous portions of fruits, seeds and spice are added to make them “not just oats, but Stoats!”