A SUPERMARKET chain is stocking its shelves with products from a west Wiltshire business after they proved popular with pancake-loving shoppers.

From this week, Suzettes Pancakes will be available in Waitrose stores.

Each pancake is hand made in traditional iron pans at the company's base in Sutton Veny.

Clare O'Leary, manager of Suzettes Pancakes, said: "Our pancakes and batter mix have already been available in some regional Waitrose stores. From this week they are available everywhere."

Two years ago Mrs O'Leary bought the company from three naval wives who had started the business in 1977.

Initially she took the pancakes to county shows.

In 2001 the business was threatened when foot-and-mouth brought the cancellation of county shows.

Mrs O'Leary said: "The foot-and-mouth outbreak was the key factor in kickstarting Suzettes as a retail product. The dairy that mixed our batter closed so I was forced to buy the mixing machinery and find my own premises. It also gave me time to design the packaging, carry out product testing and set up a website."

After getting the equipment a chance came to meet Waitrose's buyers.

Mrs O'Leary said: "None of my products were ready to be sold in shops. We submitted my pancakes with mock labels as we had not had any printed.

"The Waitrose buyer loved the homemade quality. We were offered the chance to supply a small number of Waitrose branches as part of the Locally Produced range."

The products have been so successful Waitrose is selling them nationwide and will stock them where they sell well.

Clare and her team have made 73,660 pancakes by hand since December.

With her busiest day of the year on Shrove Tuesday this week, Mrs O'Leary also managed to fit in a television appearance when BBC 2's Working Lunch filmed live from Suzettes Pancakes.