W & M Duncan and Company

History

Mary Duncan and her eldest son William began a cake business in Dundee in 1861. The company relocated to 205 High Street, Edinburgh in 1884 and started producing chocolate confectionery. In 1896 it moved to the Regent Confectionery Works on Beaverhall Road, Edinburgh. Ingredients were kept at Wishart's Warehouse, a former ship chandlery in Leith later renamed Shore Place and now converted to flats.

Around 1900 a retail shop opened at 86 Leith Street, near the east end of Princes Street, and William was then living at 20 Eyre Crescent. The Walnut Whip was introduced in 1910. By 1916 the Beaverhall factory had expanded to six times its original size and business was thriving. Rowntree purchased the company in 1927 but continued using the Duncan's brand.

In 1967 the Edinburgh factory ceased all other production and focused solely on the Walnut Whip. Rowntree closed the factory in 1987, but it was immediately reopened through a management buy-out trading as Duncans of Scotland, reviving the dormant name. Jeremy Salvesen bought the business in 1991 and moved it to Bellshill, Lanarkshire. That same year Duncan's won a Ministry of Defence contract to supply chocolate bars for military ration packs, providing over 4 million 60g chocolate bars to the forces from 1991 until 2003.

Two flavours were initially supplied: a Raisin and Cereal Chocolate bar with a maroon wrapper and a plain milk bar with a blue wrapper. The milk bar carried the Duncan's 'Of Edinburgh' logo rather than the newer 'Of Scotland' standard. With the introduction of the GP ration pack in 1992, which replaced cans with pouches, the quantity of Duncan's bars supplied increased significantly, with every menu including at least one. In 1993 and 1994 additional bars were supplied to rebuild ration stocks after the Gulf War, totalling eight flavours: Rum and Raisin, Raisin and Cereal, Plain Milk, Milk Chocolate With Mint, Mint Crisp, and Milk Chocolate With Orange.

A special 'Milk chocolate, with milk' bar appeared in 10-man rations in 1995, but that is the only recorded instance. In June 1997, for cost reasons and to streamline production, Rum and Raisin and several other flavours were removed, leaving only plain milk and raisin and cereal. The plain milk bar's wrapper changed from blue to red in 2000 and remained that colour until 2003.