Newmarket sausage
Encyclopedia
The Newmarket Sausage is a sausage
made to a traditional recipe from the English town of Newmarket, Suffolk. There are two very different types of Newmarket Sausage because two different family butcher
s claim the name. Both are very popular and sold around the United Kingdom in supermarkets and specialist sausage shops. There has been discussion over whether Newmarket Sausages should receive the status of Protected Geographical Indicator of Origin
(PGI)
The Musk’s Newmarket Sausage variety is produced by the Musk family butchers, located in the Newmarket town centre. James Musk and/or Elizabeth Drake (his wife) originally conceived the recipe in 1884 and it has remained unchanged since. The Musk’s creation was awarded the Royal Warrant
by various Kings and Queens throughout British history, most recently by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005. The more widely known Powter’s Newmarket Sausage is the younger of the two recipes, conceived in 1896 by William Harper when trading under his own name. Powter’s Sausages used to have a larger presence in British supermarkets than Musk's. Both varieties have won several awards.
In 2005 the European Union
and the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
tried to persuade the two companies to merge recipes and gain Protected Geographical Status
, from which products such as Parma ham and Stilton cheese have benefited. It would mean that their use of the Newmarket label would be protected to them for the sausage market, but it would also mean that only one of the two recipes could exist. Faced with this problem, each party stands firmly by its own recipe, and neither wants to bow down nor merge recipes.
, 3 miles from Newmarket. Elizabeth Drake, the owner of a butchers shop in Tea Kettle Lane was widowed in 1882 and, in 1884, remarried to butcher James Musk in Depford, Kent. She then began (or possibly continued) to sell the Musk's variety of sausages. These are believed to have been produced at Ivy House Farm where the Drakes were tenant pig farmers. Drake and Musk also had a shop in Market Row, Newmarket from which they traded until moving to the High Street of Newmarket. James Musk died in 1905, a few months after opening the main shop on High Street, where the business traded until 1979. After his death the business passed to James' stepson, Louis Frederick Drake (the Musks had no children), and later to his grandson Louis Gilbert Drake.
Musk’s sausages were favoured by royalty and Warrants were issued to Musk’s from George V
in 1907, Prince Edward
of Wales (later the Duke of Windsor) in 1929, Queen Elizabeth, later Queen Mother
, in 1965, and Queen Elizabeth II in 2005. It is not known whether Elizabeth Drake created the Musk’s recipe and her new husband was the business influence to make it a success or whether James brought the idea back to Newmarket from Chiswick
(near London) where he had been working as a butcher in 1881.
The main difference between Powter’s and Musk’s recipe is that Powter’s uses rusk as a filler and Musk’s uses bread, but each has a secret spice mix recipe locked in their own safes.
Sausage
A sausage is a food usually made from ground meat , mixed with salt, herbs, and other spices, although vegetarian sausages are available. The word sausage is derived from Old French saussiche, from the Latin word salsus, meaning salted.Typically, a sausage is formed in a casing traditionally made...
made to a traditional recipe from the English town of Newmarket, Suffolk. There are two very different types of Newmarket Sausage because two different family butcher
Butcher
A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat or any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat, poultry, fish and shellfish for sale in retail or wholesale food establishments...
s claim the name. Both are very popular and sold around the United Kingdom in supermarkets and specialist sausage shops. There has been discussion over whether Newmarket Sausages should receive the status of Protected Geographical Indicator of Origin
Protected Geographical Status
Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...
(PGI)
The Musk’s Newmarket Sausage variety is produced by the Musk family butchers, located in the Newmarket town centre. James Musk and/or Elizabeth Drake (his wife) originally conceived the recipe in 1884 and it has remained unchanged since. The Musk’s creation was awarded the Royal Warrant
Royal Warrant
Royal warrants of appointment have been issued for centuries to those who supply goods or services to a royal court or certain royal personages. The warrant enables the supplier to advertise the fact that they supply to the royal family, so lending prestige to the supplier...
by various Kings and Queens throughout British history, most recently by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005. The more widely known Powter’s Newmarket Sausage is the younger of the two recipes, conceived in 1896 by William Harper when trading under his own name. Powter’s Sausages used to have a larger presence in British supermarkets than Musk's. Both varieties have won several awards.
In 2005 the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
and the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is the government department responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United Kingdom...
tried to persuade the two companies to merge recipes and gain Protected Geographical Status
Protected Geographical Status
Protected Geographical Status is a legal framework defined in European Union law to protect the names of regional foods. Protected Designation of Origin , Protected Geographical Indication and Traditional Speciality Guaranteed are distinct regimes of geographical indications within the framework...
, from which products such as Parma ham and Stilton cheese have benefited. It would mean that their use of the Newmarket label would be protected to them for the sausage market, but it would also mean that only one of the two recipes could exist. Faced with this problem, each party stands firmly by its own recipe, and neither wants to bow down nor merge recipes.
Musk variety
Musk’s sausages originated in the small village of StetchworthStetchworth
Stetchworth is a small village and civil parish in East Cambridgeshire, England, to the south of the horse-racing centre of Newmarket and around east of Cambridge.-History:...
, 3 miles from Newmarket. Elizabeth Drake, the owner of a butchers shop in Tea Kettle Lane was widowed in 1882 and, in 1884, remarried to butcher James Musk in Depford, Kent. She then began (or possibly continued) to sell the Musk's variety of sausages. These are believed to have been produced at Ivy House Farm where the Drakes were tenant pig farmers. Drake and Musk also had a shop in Market Row, Newmarket from which they traded until moving to the High Street of Newmarket. James Musk died in 1905, a few months after opening the main shop on High Street, where the business traded until 1979. After his death the business passed to James' stepson, Louis Frederick Drake (the Musks had no children), and later to his grandson Louis Gilbert Drake.
Musk’s sausages were favoured by royalty and Warrants were issued to Musk’s from George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
in 1907, Prince Edward
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
of Wales (later the Duke of Windsor) in 1929, Queen Elizabeth, later Queen Mother
Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon
Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon was the queen consort of King George VI from 1936 until her husband's death in 1952, after which she was known as Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, to avoid confusion with her daughter, Queen Elizabeth II...
, in 1965, and Queen Elizabeth II in 2005. It is not known whether Elizabeth Drake created the Musk’s recipe and her new husband was the business influence to make it a success or whether James brought the idea back to Newmarket from Chiswick
Chiswick
Chiswick is a large suburb of west London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It is located on a meander of the River Thames, west of Charing Cross and is one of 35 major centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically an ancient parish in the county of Middlesex, with...
(near London) where he had been working as a butcher in 1881.
The main difference between Powter’s and Musk’s recipe is that Powter’s uses rusk as a filler and Musk’s uses bread, but each has a secret spice mix recipe locked in their own safes.