Television show the Great British Bake Off has significantly boosted demand for food products made in Bradford which helped increase sales by 31 per cent at a West Yorkshire group.

The Low Moor-based home baking division of Leeds firm Symington’s more than doubled production of Aunt Bessie’s home-baking ingredients, due largely to a resurgence in baking prompted by the popular TV show.

The Cleckheaton Road site has added around 50 jobs, just about doubling its staff as demand has risen.

It is also making products for Symington’s new operation in Melbourne, Australia, which supplies a leading supermarket chain.

In 2012 Symington’s bought the Lancashire-based Victoria Foods business and transferred production of products such as Romix, Granny Smith and Jane Asher cake and baking mixes to Low Moor.

Symington’s business development director Henrik Pade (pictured) said the home-baking division had produced strong results.

He said: “The business has benefited from a strong interest in home baking which is back in vogue thanks to programmes such as the Great British Bake Off.

“While people are taking to baking they are keen to use pre-prepared ingredients that help them get the right results.”

Symington’s other Bradford operation, the Millerdale crouton production site at the Euroway trading estate, had also been successful and added ten jobs in the past year and now has around 70 staff manning the UK’s leading crouton plant which had seen demand rise by 20 per cent.

Relaunches of the Ragu and Chicken Tonight ranges also provided a sales boost at Symington's, which secured new funding and backers following a management buyout last year.

It said the acquisition of Victoria Foods would also be a platform for strong growth in the years ahead with capital for further expansion.

In the year to February 24, Symington’s increased sales by 31 per cent on 2011 to £141.5 million. Pre-tax profits rose from £7.7. million to £10.1 million.

The challenging economic climate had seen Symington’s focus on improving manufacturing efficiency and a tight control on fixed overhead expenditure. Even so the economic climate had hit gross margins.

Mr Pade said: “While the numbers are pleasing, the fact we take most pride in, is our ability to create new jobs. We have since the current team took over in 2007 created some 500 new jobs. In the past year alone added more that 160 new jobs.”

Symington's said its current financial year would benefit from the full-year integration of the Victoria Foods business along with continued growth of its new product pipeline and further branded and own label product development.