About Stockan's of Orkney - and how we hand bake traditional Scottish Oatcakes in Orkney

The Orkney Islands, situated off the north coast of Scotland are renowned for their beauty, sights of historic interest, bird watching, fishing and walking, attracting visitors from all over the world. They also play host to some of Scotland's top food producers, one of whom is Stockan's, makers of the award winning Orkney Oatcakes.

Stockan's Bakery is located in the town of Stromness and it has a long and proud history. In the present day, the company is one of the country's top Oatcake Manufacturers, selling the Stockan's range throughout the UK, through all the major multiples, as well as a network of Wholesalers and Cash and Carrys.

In an island situation like this, Stockan's are very dependant on their suppliers and carriers for getting ingredients such as oatmeal, vegetable oil, flour and so on as well as packing materials. Regular, timely deliveries are vital to ensure the continuity of production needed to meet the requirements of the company's very busy order books.

The process of making Stockan's Oatcakes begins with a shipment of oatmeal, which is unloaded and put into the dry goods store at Stockan's bakery.

Quality checks are carried out on the ingredients and reports submitted to the factory office, where quality control is coordinated. This is also where incoming orders from customers are received by fax, by post and increasingly these days, by email.

When all the raw material quality checks have been verified, production can begin. The ingredients are taken into the production area for weighing off into the quantities required to make up batches of dough.

After the dough has been mixed, it's loaded into the moulding machine, where a roller creates Stockan's well-known, triangular oatcake shape. This comes off the production belt into a baking tray which is then in turn loaded onto a rack for baking. Now the oatcakes are loaded into the ovens where they are fired.

When the baking is complete, the Oatcakes, still on their racks, are put into the cooling tunnel till they can be handled in preparation for wrapping.

At this point, the cooled oatcakes are transferred to the packing tables where they are assembled by hand into stacks of eight before going forward for wrapping. Stockan's have a skilled loyal workforce, some of whom have been with the company for over 25 years.

The oatcakes are now ready for wrapping. They are loaded into the feed packing machine where they are covered with polypropylene film and heat sealed.

Each packet then passes through a metal detector before being inspected and packed ready for shipping. Pallets are then prepared for dispatch and their destinations can be far and wide.

On their way out of the Orkney Islands, the Oatcakes will sail past the Old Man of Hoy, the famous seastack that appears on the Stockan's logo. Stockan’s supply all the major multiples, as well as a network of wholesalers and cash and carrys and some larger retailers. Because of the company’s location, Stockan's only ship out in pallet quantities.

Stockan's traditional oatcakes, staple food in years gone by, are proving to be an incredibly versatile and popular product in these health conscious days. Free from hydrogenated fat, high in fibre and full of the goodness of oats, they'll grace any table.

Simply buttered or combined with the topping of your choice, oatcakes are ideal for a quick and easy snack, packed in a lunchbox or as an accompanyment to an after dinner cheese board.