Eight rock factories in Blackpool have been wiped out and only ten remain. Our iconic confectionery tradition, Blackpool Rock, is in crisis.
An influx of imported rock is crippling local business, undercutting domestic producers and putting livelihoods at stake.
Not only this, but cheap imitations - made in China but called “Blackpool Rock” - are eroding trust in locally-made goods and driving shoppers away.
Just 50 people in the UK have the skills required to properly letter sticks of rock; almost all of them are in Blackpool.
Unless the industry is protected, “this is what’s going to wipe out the [rest of the] factories,” says one local business owner.
You can help us save it.
With the newly elected Blackpool South MP Chris Webb, we're calling on government to grant Blackpool rock the same protected status as other cherished British staples such as Wensleydale Cheese, the Cornish Pasty and the Cumberland Sausage.
Webb told us: “This is part of our cultural seaside heritage and we’re going to loose it if we don’t stand up to protect and save Blackpool rock.”
If we get enough signatures, Webb has pledged to take the petition to Westminster and ensure Defra look to act.
We urgently demand DEFRA, the department responsible for food production and its Secretary of State Steve Barclay, grant protected status to Blackpool Rock to safeguard its name and tradition.
Sign our petition to save Blackpool Rock.
