HAVING got to the kernel of her tiny daughter's nut allergy, Angela Russell made sure that when it came to her cooking nuts were a no-no.

But so delicious were the goodies she baked in her kitchen in Harrogate, that years later she launched her business, It's Nut Free - and now everyone's going "nutty" about her products, including supermarket giants Sainsbury's and Morrisons.

Now, with ten employees, and plans for many new product lines, Angela is aiming for the Small Business Of The Year and Women In Enterprise titles in The Press Business Awards 2007.

Her success comes as the number of people developing life-threatening allergies in the UK grows dramatically, with at least one in 50 young children across the country suffering from nut allergy.

It was because her daughter, Kirsty, then aged two, was in danger of developing a possibly fatal reaction to nuts called anaphylaxis, that Angela baked, then later marketed, her nut-free flapjacks, cakes, biscuits and confectionery.

Now Kirsty is 17, and this week went to work for her Mum at their new factory in Thurston Road, Northallerton.

Earlier this year, her company was listed by the NHS as the sole supplier of nut-free snacks of the kind now enjoyed by passengers on airlines such as Air New Zealand, Air France and Quantas.

Angela has just received her first order from Irish retail giant Musgrave, and is in talks with major UK retailers such as Asda and Waitrose.