Going back to its roots as ‘Spanish’ returns to Yorkshire

LIQUORICE is going back to its Yorkshire roots to be grown commercially in Britain for the first time in more than a century.

Yorkshire farmer Robert Copley, 42, is starting planting this week at his farm in Pontefract, the town that was once the centre of liquorice growing as well as the home of the famous Pomfret Cake.

He hopes to produce a ton of the sweet in two years on just half an acre of land, and will cut hundreds of twigs from bushes to sell them as chewing sticks for £1 each.

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The plant needs deep soil to grow because its roots can run to 4ft in length.

In 1885, there were 10 companies in the UK producing the sticks but growers could not meet the demand. Farmers were forced to give up after imports flooded in.

There are only two factories in the UK today, Tangerine Confectionary, part of Cadbury Trebor Bassett which manufactures Liquorice Allsorts, and Haribo - but both use liquorice mostly grown in Turkey, Italy and Spain. In some parts, liquorice is still called “Spanish”.

The plant was first brought to Pontefract in the 11th century by Crusaders returning from the Middle East. It was initially used as a medicine and only in the last few hundred years it was turned into a sweet - a change marked by the famous Pomfet, or Pontefract Cake.

Fans of liquorice included Napoleon, who reportedly always carried some in a small tortoiseshell box.