Jaffa Cakes
 A Jaffa Cake cut in half |
|
| Origin | |
|---|---|
| Place of origin | United Kingdom |
| Creator(s) | McVitie and Price |
| Details | |
| Type | Snack food |
| Main ingredient(s) | Sponge cake, orange-flavoured jam/jelly, chocolate |
Jaffa Cakes are a snack introduced by McVitie and Price in 1927 and named after Jaffa oranges, and now manufactured by numerous companies including McVities, Cadbury and other biscuit manufacturers, Tesco and other supermarket chains.
The most common form of Jaffa Cakes are circular, 21⁄2 inches (64 mm) in diameter and have three layers: a sponge base, a layer of orange flavoured jelly and a coating of chocolate.[1][2] Jaffa Cakes are also available as bars or in small packs, and in larger and smaller sizes.[3] The original Jaffa Cakes come in packs of 12, 24 or 36.[4]
Jaffa Cakes are consumed primarily in the United Kingdom and Ireland.[5] McVitie's did not trademark the name "Jaffa Cakes" and so other companies such as Tesco, Sainsbury and Aldi also make products under the name Jaffa Cakes.[5]
Contents |
Marketing strategy
As an established brand that was "languishing", McVitie's started releasing the product in an updated packaging format and saw an increase in sales.[when?][6] Their marketing strategy has been to make the product "ubiquitous" and to be "easily accessible and available at arm's length".[7]
Manufacture
Because of nature of the product – having multiple components of cake, chocolate covering and jam – special hardware accelerators were devised to allow rapid computer inspection of 20 products per second, taking place under four symmetrically placed lights.[8] The McVitie's Jaffa Cakes are made in a factory that covers an acre and travel a production line over a mile long.[5]
Flavour variants
Although Jaffa Cakes are usually orange flavour, limited edition flavours have been available, such as lemon-lime,[9] strawberry[10] and blackcurrant.[11]
Categorisation as cake or biscuit for VAT
In the United Kingdom, value added tax is payable on chocolate-covered biscuits, but not on chocolate-covered cakes.[12] McVities defended its classification of Jaffa Cakes as cakes at a VAT tribunal in 1991, against the ruling that Jaffa Cakes were biscuits due to their size and shape, and the fact that they were often eaten in place of biscuits.[13] McVitie's insisted that the product was a cake, and according to rumour produced a giant Jaffa Cake in court to illustrate its point.[13] After assessing the product on eleven criteria, including "texture", "attractiveness to children" and "consistency when stale",[14] the court found favour of McVitie's, meaning that VAT is not paid on Jaffa Cakes in the United Kingdom.[12][15]
See also
References
- ^ "Labelling rules". Food Standards Agency. 2008-04-09.
- ^ "Jaffa cake recipe". jaffa-cakes.com. 2009-12-09.
- ^ "Jaffa Cake's lemon squeezy bar". Thegrocer.co.uk. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
- ^ "Jaffa Cakes, A Cake Or Buscuit?". ColdRicePudding. 2009-01-01. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
- ^ a b c Harry Wallop (06 May 2012). "Jaffa Cakes - definitely not biscuits - prepare to take on imitators". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
- ^ "Essentials of Marketing Management – Geoffrey Lancaster, Lester Massingham – Google Books". Books.google.com. Retrieved 2012-11-02.
- ^ "The Fundamentals of Marketing – Edward Russell, Russell Edward – Google Books". Books.google.com. Retrieved 2012-11-02.
- ^ "Machine Vision for the Inspection of Natural Products – Google Books". Books.google.com. Retrieved 2012-11-02.
- ^ "McVitie's Jaffa Cakes Lemon and Lime". Snackspot.org.uk. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
- ^ "McVitie’s launches limited edition Strawberry-flavoured Jaffa Cakes". Talkingretail.com. 2009-04-27. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
- ^ "Jaffa Cakeover". The Daily Record. 2005-12-12. Retrieved 2010-06-22.
- ^ a b Lee, Natalie (2011). Revenue Law Principles and Practice. A&C Black. p. 1009. ISBN 9781847667663.
- ^ a b "What you do – and don't – pay VAT on". Which? Magazine. June 24, 2010. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
- ^ "United Kingdom VAT & Duties Tribunals Decisions – Torq Ltd v Revenue and Customs [2005]". British and Irish Legal Information Institute. Retrieved September 27, 2012.
- ^ "The borderline between cakes and biscuits". Retrieved 2013-04-28.
