Food News, with Christine Rutter

THE humble black pudding is back in vogue.

Television chefs are turning their attentions to the regional delicacy by cooking it up on the small screen.

And the traditional dish is enjoying guest spots on the menus of upmarket eateries.

Demand for the product has snowballed to such a degree that one East Lancashire black pudding maker has enlarged profits by a colossal 200 per cent.

Champion black pudding maker Andrew Holt said his award-winning product is in hot demand.

His black puddings have already been at the centre of a price war in Nelson.

And since picking up prestigious international awards for his product, he has received an order for a batch from the French Embassy!

Trying to explain the fascination with the snack that has spent so long on the back burner, Andrew said: "There is no sitting on the fence with black puddings."

Those who love them make the highest possible claims for them. The army of people who detest them will not eat them at any cost - and many have not even tried them at all!

"People either love them or hate them - there is no in between," declared Andrew, whose black puddings have been voted the best in Britain. As if on cue, a man appeared in the yard of Andrew's factory, R.S Ireland in Waterfoot, during the interview.

"Ooooh my boss loves 'em," cooed the man, jamming a stick of black pudding under his arm.

"He has to have one every single day. He can't do without 'em," he maintained as he sauntered back to his car.

This is one of many private visits from black pudding fanciers.

One man, who visits the factory three times a week, cannot wait until he gets home to eat his black pudding nibble and brings his accompaniments with him in his car.

Yet despite this enthusiasm, there are just some people who can't stomach them.

Andrew believes the dislike for the traditional snack is down to ignorance.

"People seem to have this idea that black puddings are full of junk, but only good quality gear goes into them," said Andrew, frowning at the sunshine which slashes his sales of the hearty snack.

Andrew himself admits he was blind to the blessings of black puddings when he took over the factory that made them from a recipe dating back to 1879. "I would never have thought of eating one before I took over the business but now I know how they are made, I eat them all the time," said the father-of-two, who now churns out 100 tonnes of them every year.

His black puddings are made from a mixture of pearl barley, onions, bread-crumbs, blood, pork fat and a secret blend of 14 herbs and spices.

He also makes a lean black pudding without the fat - which is going down a treat with slimmers previously denied the savoury snack.

Andrew currently holds the title for the best black pudding in the country, clinched at a national championship run by The Butchers' Benevolent Society.

And he clinched best British entrant in two international black pudding championships in Belgium and France.

"The British title is the most prestigious for me. I'm very proud of it and I put a lot of hard work into winning it," he said.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.