A Norfolk man dubbed the Sausage King is hoping to get people to send in stories about their favourite sausages and raise money for a new book to help promote the industry.

Stephen Plume, 34, of The Street, Brockdish, was described as the Sausage King in the national press after starting a website in 2001 to find the best sausage after being dismayed by the quality of the products he was finding in shops.

Since then he has been inspired by the TV show Long Way Down, which features Charley Boorman and Ewan McGregor's motorcycle rides to Africa, to carry out a number of motorbike journeys of his own to discover the best sausages.

And now he is planning to write a book – if he can raise sufficient money through donations – to chronicle the best sausages in the land, based on suggestions submitted by sausage fans through his website, called sausagefans.co.uk.

He believes the book could help revive the fortunes of flagging High Streets up and down the country, which have been hit by the economic downturn, by encouraging people to visit their local butcher or market sausage stall, which would have the knock-on effect of driving business for other shops.

He said: 'What has happened is that the High Street is in decline so sausages could be the answer for the High Street.

'Someone who visits a sausage stall on the market could buy other things as well.'

During his adventures, he has spent more than 12 years travelling 5,000 miles around Britain to catalogue 470 flavours of sausage and has written a book, The Sausage King Adventures, which includes a history of sausages.

Mr Plume, who lives with his wife Hannah, 34, and children Henry, six, Oliver, two and Rosie, 11 months, said he was hoping to attract funding from butchers for his new book.

He added: 'It is a great thing. People are very enthusiastic about it, so it is nice to be involved.'