Ulster Grocer – Summer 2016

Grocer TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & DRINKS COMPANIES ISSUE

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Over 40 years at the heart of the Northern Ireland food industry

SUMMER 2016

ULSTER

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CONTENTS

email: info@ulstergrocer.com

48-51

Volume 51, Number 6 Summer 2016

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31-45

20-21

20-21 FINTONA MARKS FIFTY: Local retailer Henderson Group has announced it has reached the 50th store milestone for its EUROSPAR brand in Northern Ireland, months ahead of schedule with a Fintona store opening on June 2.

Contents

Art Editor: Stuart Gray Production Manager: Stuart Gray

66

46-47

31-45 TOP OF THE PILE: Ulster Grocer takes its annual look at the Top 25 Food & Drinks Companies filing their annual accounts in Northern Ireland, with Moy Park again taking the top spot and Drinks Inc. reentering at number 25.

46-47 A VERY GOOD YEAR: Northern Ireland Year of Food & Drink 2016 hits its halfway point, with Food NI’s Michele Shirlow reviewing the latest activity aimed at bolstering prospects for local producers, retailers, the hospitality trade and tourism industry.

48-51 LOVE DAIRY: is the June focus for Year of Food & Drink, with Dale Farm extolling its range of fresh dairy and ice cream products across the Dale Farm, Dromona, Spelga, Mullins and Fivemiletown brands over ps 48-49, while Unilever highlights its ice cream product launches over ps 50-51.

Independent News & Media Ltd © 2016. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior permission of Independent News & Media Ltd.

53-55 STATE-OF-THE-ART: Take a look at the latest pieces of kit supplied by Crossgar-based Henderson Food Machinery, a global supplier of new and used processing and packaging equipment from a range of quality brands.

66 CHOOK CHOOK: In the Hot Seat this month is Wesley Dickey who, together with his wife Carole and parents own Chook Chook, a second generation familyrun poultry company in Cullybackey better known as HK Dickeys.

8 • Ulster Grocer | JANUARY 2011

ULSTER GROCER

Editor: Alyson Magee E: alysonmagee@greerpublications.com Contributors: ,John Hood, Chloe Ormiston, Michele Shirlow, Jason Winstanley Sales Manager: Mark Beckett E: markbeckett@greerpublications.com Senior Accounts Manager: Michelle Kearney E: michellekearney@greerpublications.com

www.ulstergrocer.com

5

NEWS

Editor’s comment: Big is not always bad A s Year of Food & Drink reaches its halfway point, the initiative has to date largely shone the spotlight on the burgeoning craft/ artisan food and drink sector in Northern Ireland, and rightly so.

At the same time, however, larger-scale food and drinks producers, suppliers and retailers should not be forgotten.

The annual Ulster Grocer Top 25 Local Food & Drinks Companies ranks businesses filing annual accounts in Northern Ireland according to turnover, while also including figures for pretax profits and employee numbers.

While the listing doesn’t vary greatly year to year, there are usually a few shuffles and new entrants and, overall, the Top 25

provides a very illuminating picture of the different sectors involved in the grocery trade, their ongoing performance and some interesting data in relation to turnover/profit or turnover/employee ratios.

D&B’s Jonathan Cushley analyses the figures much more succinctly on p33.

Big is not always bad, and all of these companies pay a vital role in not just the local grocery sector, but also the wider Northern Ireland economy and workforce.

Alyson Magee Editor

Trust is the key for future growth of the food industry H

Pictured are, from left, Michael Bell (NIFDA), Glenn Roberts (Deloitte), Heather Hancock (FSA), Fergal O’Brien (IBEC) and Brendan Jennings (Deloitte).

uge opportunities exist for businesses in the food sector, according to a speaker at Deloitte’s 5th Annual Food & Drink Dinner held recently at Hillsborough Castle, who went on to praise the quality of food and drink produced in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Heather Hancock, chair of the UK Food Standards Agency, also said to achieve more would require a collective focus on increasing public trust in the provenance, quality and safety of the food they eat.

Michael Bell, executive director of NI Food & Drink Association, spoke about challenges facing the sector, the industry’s view on Brexit and progress still required to create a sustainable and integrated food chain.

Fergal O’Brien, director of Policy at IBEC, noted that while the Irish economy overall had now bounced back to pre-2007 levels on most measures, the lack of price normalisation in the consumer economy continues to hurt both the food and retail sectors.

Great Taste visits Belfast to celebrate Year of Food & Drink

G

reat Taste judged Northern Irish entries on home soil this year at Belfast Metropolitan College’s Titanic Quarter Campus over June 7–10.

Invited to Belfast by Invest Northern Ireland, to take part in Northern Ireland’s Year of Food & Drink 2016, the world’s most coveted blind-tasted food awards will form part of a 12-month celebration of quality, innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship in the country’s food and drink industry.

This comes after an impressive year for Northern Ireland in 2015, when 150 of its products scooped Great Taste stars, with 124 achieving a 1-star, 23 getting a 2-star and three exceptional products being deemed worthy of a 3-star accolade.

This select group of 3-star winning products included Baronscourt Estate’s Wild Sika Venison French Rack, Dale Farm’s Fivemiletown Ballyoak smoked brie and a Brown Soda Loaf by McErlain’s Bakery, all of which now proudly carry the unmistakable gold and black Great Taste logo.

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2016 has already seen an uplift in Great Taste entries from Northern Ireland, with 138 companies entering 712 products this year, compared with 109 companies entering 554 products in 2015.

A host of experts were lined up to blind taste the Northern Irish entries, including esteemed food critic Charles Campion, BBC Radio 2’s Nigel Barden, Michelin star chef Michael Deane, multi-award winning chef Danny Millar and many more chefs, buyers, restaurateurs and writers.

“Shining a light on the very best the country has to offer is at the heart of Northern Ireland’s Year of Food & Drink, and of course this is what Great Taste is all about,” said John Farrand, managing director of the Guild of Fine Food, organisers of Great Taste. “We look forward to uncovering some more hidden gems in Belfast and bringing them to a worldwide audience which we know is eager to source from the list of Great Taste stars.”

John Hood, director of Food & Tourism at Invest Northern Ireland, said: “There’s a fantastic momentum behind the development

Alyson Magee is pictured with fellow judge Charles Champion.

of food and drink in Northern Ireland right now, which can be seen in the big increase in Great Taste entries this year, so we’re very excited about welcoming the judges to Belfast and seeing which products come out on top.”

Award-winning products will be announced in August. Meanwhile, having judged more than 100,000 entries from across the globe in the UK and Ireland over the past 22 years, Great Taste is now set to head overseas for the first time, launching Great Taste Portugal.

NEWS

Henderson Group adds sizzle to the BBQ season H

enderson Wholesale, run by SPAR and EUROSPAR owner the Henderson Group, has launched a new line for its ownbrand range in collaboration with one of Northern Ireland’s longest established butchers.

The enjoy local range, which was launched in April 2015 with a £25m investment into the local agri-food industry, has been expanded with a high-end convenience line of gourmet sausages, burgers and chicken breasts from Ballymena’s K&G McAtamney.

The Group has invested around £200,000 to develop the new product range, which was recently scored as ‘excellent’ in a blind taste test at the Ulster University Business School’s Food and Consumer Testing Suite (FACTS).

The new range complements the rest of the 100% locally-sourced BBQ range for enjoy local, which also includes popular meat, poultry, salad and deli salad solutions from Henderson suppliers including Ballyclare’s Fred C Robinson, Rockvale Poultry in Armagh, Willowbrook Foods in Co Down and Dungannon-based Dunbia.

Avondale Foods in Craigavon has extended its line of deli salads for the enjoy local range to include cheese coleslaw and chipotle coleslaw, as well as a sundried tomato pasta with feta cheese and a quinoa and edamame bean salad.

The fresh food team at Henderson Wholesale has also developed speciality added-value BBQ products with K&G McAtamney’s for

Neal Kelly, director of Fresh Foods at the Henderson Group, is pictured with celebrity chef and brand ambassador Paula McIntyre at the group’s annual SPAR-B-Q held at the National Grand Café in Belfast.

summer eating, including smoky bourbon sizzle steaks, sirloin steaks with peppercorn sauce, chilli chicken wings and BBQ ribs.

“The enjoy local range has come on leaps and bounds over the past year,” said Neal Kelly, fresh food director at the Henderson Group. “It has already expanded from 126 products to 144, from a total of 25 local suppliers and now we’re delighted to launch the revamped meat and poultry range.”

Independents’ Day 2016 launched at Stormont M

inister for Infrastructure Chris Hazzard launched the 2016 Independents’ Day campaign at a packed Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association (NIIRTA) reception in the NI Assembly earlier this month (June).

Pictured are, from left, Sean Sheehan, Bank of Ireland small business director; Glyn Roberts, NIIRTA CEO; Infrastructure Minister Chris Hazzard; Nigel Maxwell, NIIRA chairman; and Chris Conway, Translink CEO.

Over 170 NIIRTA and Chamber of Commerce members, MLAs and key stakeholders attended the launch of the Independents’ Day campaign, which celebrates the huge contribution independent traders make to local communities and to the local economy.

Consumers are urged to make a special effort on July 4 to support these invaluable local businesses.

For the first time on July 4, Translink will be providing shoppers with a fantastic offer of a £2 return ticket after 9.30am for all Ulsterbus town and Metro services in Belfast.

“This is a worthy initiative by NIIRTA to underline the importance of independent businesses to our economy,” said Hazzard. “We need to improve transport connections for people, goods and services and to increase use of public transport.”

Finance Minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir said: “I want to deliver for all our people, and this includes the business community. We already have a vibrant and dynamic independent retail sector and I will do what I can to help support the innovative, can-do attitude that is so evident among our retailers.

“I would encourage everyone to support their local businesses on Independents’ day and celebrate the contribution they make to our communities, as well as the wider economy.”

7

NEWS

MasterChef 2016 winner champions Fivemiletown Cheese

Pictured are, from left, David Dobbin of Dale Farm, Jane Devonshire DAERA Minister, Michelle McIlveen and Simon Dougan of Yellow Door.

T

o mark the re-launch of Fivemiletown speciality cheese, Dale Farm invited MasterChef 2016 champion Jane Devonshire to a special celebration at The Merchant Hotel earlier this month (June).

In June 2014, Fivemiletown was rescued from financial difficulty by Dale Farm, the UK’s largest dairy cooperative owned by 1,300 local farmers.

At the event, Dale Farm unveiled Fivemiletown’s modern new look for its award-winning handmade cheeses, Ballybrie, Ballyblue, Ballyoak and the smoked Oakwood cheddar, aimed at enhancing the artisan

cheese products’ on-shelf presence.

Devonshire was joined by Simon Dougan, owner and head chef of Yellow Door, who treated guests to a unique interactive tasting session, introducing fresh flavour combinations to pair with the Co Tyrone craft cheeses.

“Dale Farm’s purchase of the Fivemiletown Creamery demonstrates the company’s strategy to support the local dairy industry and to grow its branded portfolio of quality consumer products,” said David Dobbin, Group CEO at Dale Farm.

“Our new packaging makeover reflects Fivemiletown’s reputation as Northern Ireland’s top speciality cheese brand, whilst paying homage to its 100 years of expertise, heritage and tradition. We’re delighted to say that, since the acquisition, the creamery has boasted improved sales and growth. This event really is a celebration of the skill involved in making the cheese, and its award-winning quality.

“To have Jane, the current MasterChef champion advocate for our brand is very special. Also Michelle McIlveen joining us as the newly appointed minister for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs, demonstrates the importance of quality local produce for Northern Ireland and beyond.”

DAERA Minister Michelle McIlveen said: “As we progress through our Year of Food & Drink, it is important that we harness the benefits of our successes and continue to drive quality, innovation and creativity to explore new market opportunities for future sustainable production within our food and drink sector.”

Huhtamaki invests £5m in Lurgan plant to boost capacity Pictured are Stephen Kelly, chief executive of Manufacturing Northern Ireland, Philip Woolsey, general manager of Huhtamaki Lurgan and Petr Domin, executive vice-president (interim) Huhtamaki Molded Fiber.

H

uhtamaki Lurgan, the molded fiber packaging specialist, unveiled new state-of-the-art machinery earlier this month (June), which will increase capacity by as much as 25%; significantly boosting the company’s market share.

The purpose-built machinery, which was part of an investment in excess of £5m by the Huhtamaki Group, will also lead to a considerable boost in energy efficiency whilst allowing the company to expand its molded fiber product range.

Installation of the fully automated and entirely bespoke machine commenced in November 2015, creating 12 new full time jobs.

Employee headcount at the plant, which has been manufacturing molded fiber products such as cup carriers, egg cartons and egg trays for 80 years, is now in excess of 200.

“This new machinery not only secures jobs, but attracting such significant investment from the wider Huhtamaki Group is also a huge vote of confidence in our staff and their ability to produce a world class product in Lurgan,” said Philip Woolsey, general manager at Huhtamaki Lurgan.

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As Ireland’s largest wholesale group, Musgrave Marketplace offer the most comprehensive range on the market for SMEs, retailers & foodservice professionals. Customers can shop in any of the 3 cash & carry’s across NI, which are open Monday to Saturday, or shop online 24/7.

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DayToday is a retail solution designed by Musgrave that allows convenience stores to compete more effectively and profitably in their market, while still maintaining their independence.

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SuperValu is a leading foodmarket convenience brand for independent retailers in NI providing real food from the heart of Northern Ireland. SuperValu believes in quality local food, selling in excess of £105 million worth of products from Northern Ireland each year; this helps to sustain jobs in local communities across the province.

If you are interested in joining one of our market leading brands please contact:

Centra is a leading convenience brand in Northern Ireland offering a vibrant range of local produce for everyday living. Centra stores throughout the province are owned and managed by independent retailers who are committed to supporting towns and villages in which they live and operate, resulting in the sale of £96 million worth of products from Northern Ireland each year.

MACE is one of Northern Ireland’s leading convenience store brands, with over 110 stores and 50 years in NI. All stores are owned and managed by independent retailers who are proud to be at the heart of the communities they serve. Focused on local shoppers’ needs, MACE offers the right range, great value and a modern shopping experience for its customers.

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15/06/2016 16:44

RETAIL NEWS – INDEPENDENTS

Northern Ireland hits lucky lottery streak with 48 millionaires in five years T

‘Lady Luck’, aka newly crowned Miss Northern Ireland Emma Carswell

he National Lottery recently revealed that 95 millionaires have been created in Northern Ireland since the very first Lotto draw in 1994, while more than half of those were created in the last five years.

A total of 48 new millionaires struck Lottery gold in the period from January 1, 2011 until March 31, 2016 - which equates on average to one new millionaire every 39.9 days.

Lottery mathematicians have also revealed that the average number of millionaires per year from Northern Ireland is steadily increasing.

The statistics, which include winners who have gone public and those who haven’t, show that since the National Lottery began in 1994, there has been an average of 4.4 millionaires per year from Northern Ireland. In the last 10 years, that figure rises to 6.2 per year, and then further again to 8.8 millionaires per year over the past five years.

“There’s definitely something in the Northern Ireland water in recent years which is making it one of the luckiest postcode areas in the UK,” said Andy Carter, senior winners’ advisor for

The National Lottery.

“We can’t put it down to anything other than lady luck so we would advise players in Northern Ireland to make the most of this luck on your doorstep while it lasts.”

A further 695 ‘high tier’ winners from Northern Ireland have, meanwhile, scooped prizes of £50,000 or more, while last year more than £40m of National Lottery funding was awarded in Northern Ireland through 957 Lottery grants.

Hillsborough revives farmers’ market tradition H

illsborough is reviving the time-honoured tradition of the farmers’ market.

Supported by Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council, the first of two farmers’ markets took place on June 4 at The Courthouse, with a second market to be held on July 2.

Featuring fresh, delicious, organic, and Claire Kelly of Passion Preserved, Robert Emerson of The Plough Inn and Erin Burgess of Grain & healthy foods, the farmers’ markets will Co Bakery. showcase the best local primary and artisan produce. Attending producers include Passion Preserved, Mike’s Fancy Cheese, Neary Nogs Artisan Chocolate, Buchanan’s Farm Shop and Amberline’s organic produce and preserves.

Start-ups, including Erin Burgess’ Grain & Co Bakery and Sarah McGreechan’s Sarah’s World Fare and Little Pink Kitchen, will also be present.

Supporters include The Plough Inn and Azora Café, while other street food vendors include Hog Plate and Pizza Box. “We are excited about bringing a new farmers’ market to Hillsborough during the NI Year of Food & Drink 2016,” said Alderman Allan Ewart, chairman of Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council Development Committee.

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Independent retailers see Living Wage as biggest challenge N

ew research commissioned by wholesaler Palmer & Harvey indicates independent convenience retailers see the Living Wage as their biggest challenge in the year ahead.

According to the research, independent convenience retailers are most likely to cut staff costs and increase prices in response to the Living Wage. One in three stores say they will either reduce staff hours or increase prices, and one in five will cut staff numbers outright.

This is a clear wake-up call for local councils to offer more support to convenience retailers in a very significant employment area, according to P&H. Convenience stores provide over 400,000 UK jobs, and 83% of those staff has spent at least a year at their shop. The data suggests 22% of independent retailers are looking to the local council to help them find solutions.

The survey of 500 UK independent retailers was conducted one month after the introduction of the Living Wage, as retailers react to significant shifts in the retail sector. So far, retail chains have responded to the Living Wage by cutting benefits such as free food, staff breaks, Sunday pay and overtime.

Other major concerns for independent retailers include the sugar tax on soft drinks and changes to business rates.

“Our research confirms that independent retailers see the Living Wage as the greatest challenge facing them, and that they will respond by cutting staff costs and increasing prices,” said Chris Etherington, chairman and CEO of Palmer & Harvey. “Stores around the UK are looking to local councils to help secure the 400,000 jobs in convenience retail and offer solutions to the issues facing the sector.”

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RETAIL NEWS – symbols

Centra kicks off summer of rugby in Ulster U

Ulster Rugby stars Darren Cave, Roger Wilson and Ruan Pienaar, along with Centra Belfast Boucher Road retailer Diarmuid Farrell, help young players Nathan and Abi Toland kick-off the 2016 Centra Ulster Rugby Summer Camps.

lster Rugby and local convenience brand Centra have launched a new series of Summer Camps which will include five new School of Excellence camps.

The camps, which are sponsored by Centra and its independent retailers, will visit over 20 venues across Ulster from July 4– August 25. This year will see the introduction of the three-day School of Excellence camps for players aged 12-16 years, which have been developed in conjunction with Ulster Rugby’s Director of Rugby Les Kiss and will be delivered by qualified Ulster Rugby staff.

Each year, the Summer Camps have grown in popularity and since their launch in 2008, have welcomed over 11,000 participants. Young players benefit from expert advice from qualified Ulster Rugby staff coaches with Ulster players on hand to give tips on the game, talk about life as a professional player and interact with the participants.

“Our partnership with Ulster Rugby has gone from strength to strength over the past nine years and we’re proud to have supported over 11,000 young people in their skills development,” said Jennifer Morton, brand manager at Centra. “We hope the camps provide young players with the opportunity to stay fit and active during the school holidays.”

Full details of this year’s Summer Camps and how to book can be found at camps. ulsterrugby.com.

Costcutter launches new summer of sport campaign F

ollowing the success of its Love Local Deals campaign at the start of the year, Costcutter Supermarkets Group has launched its latest instore promotional marketing campaign which supports a summer of fantastic deals across its stores.

The Love Summer Deals campaign began on May 12 and runs to September 14, featuring promotions on a wide variety of convenience products covering everything from everyday essentials to summer drinks and sizzling barbeque deals.

The footfall driving campaign is being supported by a full POS suite for retailers and through consumer leaflets and advertising campaigns – including a dedicated Eurosthemed TV advert to drive customers in store.

A dedicated Euros section has also been created on the ActivHUB retailer portal to Promotional activity at The Chalet Costcutter store in help retailers make the most of the football Portadown. tournament with downloadable game cards, wall planners, in-store games to engage customers and hints and tips to drive sales. A series of retailer and consumer incentives are also being run with prizes including a holiday in France, shopping vouchers and football kits up for grabs.

“The new Love Summer Deals programme is the third phase of activity this year to help our retailers drive sales and follows the successful Love Local Deals campaign in the first quarter and the subsequent Easter and Love Local Spring Deals activity,” said Jenny Wilson, marketing director, Costcutter Supermarkets Group. “Summer is a key trading period and with major sporting events including the Rio Olympics, the Euros and Wimbledon, we want to help our retailers drive increased sales opportunities through the right products, deals and high level support to drive customer awareness and footfall.”

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Nisa sees fresh food sales soar

N

isa has announced a significant uplift in sales of fresh produce and fresh meat products over the last few months.

Following the launch of Nisa’s Wholesale fresh produce service in March, sales of loose fresh fruit and vegetables have increased by 40.2%, with retailers keen to take advantage of the competitive deals available. In addition to this, since the revamped Heritage fresh meat range was launched to members at Nisa’s annual retail exhibition in April, the category has seen an overall uplift of 20.1%. The relaunched range offers members improved cost prices as well as an improved consumer price and promotional offer.

As part of Nisa’s increased focus on promotional activity for the coming year, a number of fresh produce items are now featured on the consumer leaflet each promotional period, driving sales in member stores and helping Nisa retailers to stay competitive in the market. Further to this, the cost of 33 fresh produce items were also recently reduced to enable members to benefit from a competitive retail price whilst maintaining strong profit margins.

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2016

“

Since joining Nisa we have seen a

significant sales

uplift”

“I was a Costcutter member for 21 years, but felt Nisa’s flexible model would benefit our 7,000 sq ft family-run supermarket in the village of Portglenone in County Antrim more.

Our store is now a fully-fledged Nisa Extra as it underwent a revamp including a new fascia, gondola ends and staff uniforms. The store has undergone several expansions over the years and it has a deli, butchers, off licence and a wide range of products.

A strong range and promotions are really important to us because our aim is to attract shoppers to do a weekly shop at our store,

rather than travelling nine miles to the nearest multiple. We also pride ourselves on providing a friendly customer service.

We joined Nisa because we knew we would benefit from the support and services they provide, especially the fantastic availability and range for our large store, and we look forward to a prosperous future working together.

We’re in a new era now and it’s onwards and upwards from here.”

Philip O’Neill

PORTGLENONE, COUNTY ANTRIM

To find out why joining Nisa is as easy as 1-2-3 visit www.join-nisa.co.uk 10932_NISAtradePress_Oneil_2016_A4_AW02.indd 1

14/03/2016 17:34

RETAIL NEWS – MULTIPLES

Asda wins prestigious responsible business award A sda has been crowned Resource Efficiency Champion at Business in the Community’s prestigious Responsible Business

Awards in Northern Ireland. The retailer scooped the award in recognition of its ongoing Sustainability Programme.

Pictured are, from left, Robert Ryans, general store manager, Asda Antrim; Dr Ian Garner, WRAP; Joe McDonald, senior manager, Corporate Affairs for Asda NI; Gillian McKee, deputy managing director, Business in the Community Northern Ireland; and John Cunningham, Electric Ireland.

“We are delighted to receive this accolade,” said Joe McDonald, senior manager, Corporate Affairs Asda NI. “It is the second award we have accepted in four weeks which recognises our ongoing commitment to sustainable practices across the business, having recently been named Green Retailer of the Year at the Ulster Grocer Marketing Awards.

“Our entry for the Business in the Community Awards focused on the steps we are taking to reduce the resources needed to grow, process, store, transport and retail the food and drink we sell. Our sustainability programme forms an important part of Asda’s corporate responsibility strategy and has delivered a hugely positive impact on our business, customers, suppliers and the environment.”

The awards ceremony saw over 500 business people from across Northern Ireland gather at Belfast’s Waterfront Hall to recognise Northern Ireland’s leading responsible companies.

Dunnes Stores sponsor Small Producer of the Year D unnes Stores Simply Better is to sponsor the prestigious Small Producer of the Year award as part of this year’s Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards – open to food producers and manufacturers across the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

The accolades, now in their fourth year, recognise excellence in food and drink product development from a wide variety of companies selling to Irish consumers.

Once again, the judging will take place over four weeks in June and July at the Dublin Institute of Technology’s School of Culinary Arts and Food Technology. The results will be announced at a gala dinner in the fabulous surroundings of the Round Room at The Mansion House in Dublin on September 8.

A team from Dunnes Stores Simply Better range and a guest celebrity judge will sample all the shortlisted small producer products and choose a winner based on the best in quality, taste, aroma, price point, innovation, packaging and ingredients. The overall winner will also receive an opportunity to work directly with the Simply Better Development & Buying team.

“The development of our National & International Award Winning Simply Better food collection has taken us on a tour around Ireland and further afield to meet and work with passionate food producers, quite often several generations of the one family,” said Diarmuid Murphy of Dunnes Stores. “Supporting these small producers is very much part of the ethos of the Simply Better brand.”

Gluten free artisan bakery secures Tesco NI deal M

oditions, a gluten-free bakery started in a home kitchen and now based in Galgorm, Ballymena, has secured a deal worth an estimated £220,000 with Tesco Northern Ireland.

The business, founded by Christine Shaw as she endeavoured to create great tasting gluten-free treats for her coeliac husband, will supply its traditional range of baked delights to an initial 15 stores across Northern Ireland, just two years after launching.

The range of products includes Great Taste Award-winning Gluten Free Coffee Cake, Gluten Free Jam & Coconut Cake, Gluten Free Sticky Tealoaf and Gluten Free Irish Soda Bread Mix. “All of the recipes are simply old, traditional favourites, tweaked and altered ever so slightly to make them coeliac friendly,” said Shaw. “We source all ingredients locally where possible, and make our own jams on-site. We use only fresh free-range eggs and, to keep saturated fat low, use Rapeseed oil instead of butter or margarine.

“What started out as a small home-based business has been absolutely transformed by the support of Tesco Northern Ireland – we were fortunate to meet the buyer not long after launching.”

16

Sean Largey, Tesco NI commercial manager, is pictured with Christine Shaw, founder of Moditions Gluten-Free Bakery.

The flavour of

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Yummy Lamb Curry

in a hurry

Hoi Sin Beef

chop, chop!

With a new 40 sec TV advert running on local TV, Outdoor activity across the whole province, digital support on Facebook, Twitter and Google plus press activity across the year, over 90% of consumers in Northern Ireland will be flavouring their lives with the Northern Ireland Farm Quality Assured mark. So make sure you stock NIFQA Lamb and NIFQA Beef during 2016.

For consumer recipes and much more visit beefandlambni.com

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08/06/2016 12:24

My Life in the Grocery Trade James Blair, operations director at Heavenly Tasty Organics WHAT IS YOUR CURRENT ROLE? I’m currently the operations director at Heavenly Tasty Organics, which supplies healthy snacking products for babies and children to retailers in 14 countries.

but also in export markets, as well as looking after our existing customers. And within this, I am responsible for ensuring the supply chain is managed to meet the needs of our customers. We now have a growing number of customers at home but we export to Spain, Sweden, Slovakia, The Baltics, Middle East, Asia and as far as Australia so there is quite a lot to keep me occupied.

BRIEFLY OUTLINE YOUR EMPLOYMENT HISTORY TO DATE? I have been in sales and retailing for the past 18 years. I began my retailing career in Dundee, Scotland as manager of The Discovery Store. After four years in Scotland, I moved to London for four years taking up a senior managerial post with Robert Dyas before returning to Northern Ireland to work for companies such as Next and Nestlé. I took up my role here in 2011.

WHAT DOES YOUR ROLE INVOLVE? Essentially I am involved in all aspects of the day to day running of the company. Still a small company, we have big ambitions and my primary role is new business development and looking after existing business both at home and in export markets to meet the company’s ambitions. Our new range of healthy snacks for babies and children launched in autumn 2015 and are now available in over 14 countries.

WHEN DID YOU TAKE UP THIS POST? I took up the post of operations director in 2014.

WHAT ARE THE BEST/WORST PARTS OF THE JOB? The best would have to be having the

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WHAT HAS BEEN THE PROUDEST MOMENT OF YOUR CAREER TO DATE? There have been a few in a short few years at Heavenly. Securing listings within the very competitive baby categories of Tesco UK and Morrisons have given Heavenly a lot of growth for 2016. Each new country launch we do is always a proud moment as it takes time and patience to achieve these. opportunity and responsibility to drive the growth of the Heavenly brand on a world stage in a competitive market place. Also hearing the feedback from retailers and consumers alike on the fantastic range of products we supply.

Worst would have to be the timescales it can take to break into markets. I spend a lot of time negotiating and travelling to secure the next partner for Heavenly.

BRIEFLY OUTLINE A TYPICAL DAY? Every day is different and varied. Having a small but growing team means that I work across all areas of the business. This means I can be in a buyers’ meeting one day and exhibiting at a consumer show the next with some marketing, finance and quality in between. My main role is in business development, bringing our products to new customers both here in the UK and Ireland

WHAT IS THE BEST THING ABOUT BEING INVOLVED WITH the LOCAL RETAIL INDUSTRY? First and foremost, it would have to be the people connected with the industry. There is a massive network in Northern Ireland who are all very supportive of each other and get behind the work that is going on. For us, as a small business it is about growth and being able to create local jobs to support that growth.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE TO DO TO UNWIND AWAY FROM WORK? Being a husband and wife team, it can sometimes be hard not to talk about business 24/7. But for me, it is about spending time with my wife Shauna, and our children, both here in Northern Ireland and in far off sunnier climates!

Charity Golf Day

Thursday 4th August 2016 (Shot Gun start 2.00pm) Our Annual Grocery Aid Golf Day will be held once again at Belvoir Park and will be a shot gun start.

The event is very relaxed and is a great opportunity to reward your sales team, entertain customers and friends and play this prestigious championship course.

For more information or to book your place contact adrian.moore@courtneyandnelson.co.uk

RETAIL PROFILE

EUROSPAR reaches 50th store milestone ahead of schedule Retail brand now largest by store numbers in Northern Ireland, with five more due to open by end of 2016

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ocal retailer Henderson Group has announced it has reached the 50th store milestone for its EUROSPAR brand in Northern Ireland, months ahead of schedule.

The retailer has also announced that a further five stores will open before the end of 2016.

As the 50th EUROSPAR opened in Fintona, Co Tyrone on June 2, it marked the brand achieving the largest number of stores from any supermarket brand in Northern Ireland.

The convenience-supermarket brand is owned by the Henderson Group and has operated in Northern Ireland since 2000. The company has invested a total of £70m in the brand over the past 16 years.

In September 2015, the Group celebrated 15 years of the brand successfully operating in Northern Ireland and projected the opening of the 50th store by the end of 2016. With this landmark surpassed already, Paddy Doody, Sales and Marketing Director at Henderson Wholesale, looks ahead to further openings this year.

“The strength of the EUROSPAR brand in Northern Ireland shows that the way people

Ian and Johnny McKernaghan opened the 50th EUROSPAR in Fintona.

are shopping is changing,” said Doody.

“Consumers no longer want to take time out of their busy lives to visit a multiple for a big shop, they are looking for convenience and value but with the choice of a multiple, and that is where the EUROSPAR brand delivers.

Des McVeigh, Independent owner of EUROSPAR Warrenpoint opened 2000, Paddy Doody, Sales and Marketing Director at Henderson Wholesale and Gregory Cochrane, Manager of the first Henderson Retail owned EUROSPAR also opened in 2000 on Rathgael Road, Bangor.

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Just a matter of months ago, we were planning to open eight more stores here in 2016, surpassing the 50th store milestone, and we have already done this, with a further five planned to open by the end of the year.

Investment in this brand has reached over £70m and we will continue to invest to bring a better and more convenient way of every day shopping throughout Northern Ireland.”

Through the 20 company-owned EUROSPARs here, Henderson Group directly employs over 600 members of staff, with over 1,000 more employed through the rest of the independently-owned EUROSPAR network.

“As we continue to recruit retailers and open supermarkets within communities, we are providing vital employment opportunities, and also enabling local suppliers and farmers to get their products on our shelves,” said Doody. “Over 75% of our fresh product is sourced here including the new enjoy local range which is made up of 144 products from 25 local suppliers, while many EUROSPARs provide the local butcher, bakery and post office services for the community.”

The new stores will also have the opportunity to provide life-saving equipment for their area with the installation of a new, state-of-the-art defibrillator that will be accessible to the public 24/7.

The first two EUROSPARs opened in Bangor and Warrenpoint in 2000. The 50th store, EUROSPAR Fintona opened on June 2.

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*by store numbers

FOOD & DRINKS NEWS

Cavanagh Free Range Eggs wins Asda deal John and Eileen Hall, Cavanagh Free Range Eggs

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ward-winning Cavanagh Free Range Eggs has won its first major supermarket deal to supply its locally-farmed free range eggs to Asda stores across Northern Ireland.

As a result of the new contract, all eggs sold in Asda’s 16 Northern Ireland stores will be locally sourced. It will also help to build the Cavanagh Eggs brand and sustain jobs

in the family-run business which currently produces 12 million free range eggs per year and employs seven people at its onsite packing centre outside Newtownbutler in Co Fermanagh.

The deal follows Cavanagh’s participation in last year’s Meet the Buyer event held in Asda’s Enniskillen store. Since then, the company has followed guidance provided

by Asda’s local sourcing team, including achieving Lion Accreditation – the recognised quality and traceability guarantee.

Eileen Hall, who runs the business with her husband John, is also currently part of Asda’s Supplier Development Academy which seeks to help local food producers boost their business potential with the retailer.

“This is a major development for Cavanagh, marking a significant step forward

C&J Meats launches new quality beef brand L ocal meat processor C&J Meats has launched a new range of branded premium steak products targeted at markets in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland.

The brand, Sam’s Farm Matured Beef, is named after John McCann, a founder and owner with Colm Pyers of C&J Meats. The Kilmorebased business is already a major exporter of beef to Great Britain, the Republic of Ireland and other parts of Europe.

The name originated from the nickname ‘Wee Sam’ given to McCann by family and friends in his youth. A trained retail butcher with an eye for quality beef, both on the hook and on the hoof, he hand selects all the cattle entering the company’s modern deboning facility.

McCann also has a passion for livestock farming, with his own working farm in Co Armagh. The distinctive box imagery depicts John’s dedication to sourcing cattle in all conditions.

“The Sam’s Farm product range includes sirloin, fillet, cuberoll and rump trimmed and packaged with care to impress discerning beef connoisseurs,” said Pyers. “The beef is matured for 21 days to give the optimum balance of flavour and tenderness.

“Quality assurance is a key element of our business, ensuring the provenance, quality and safety of all our products. Our dedicated quality team employs a comprehensive Quality Management System, which has been independently audited, to maintain high standards of food safety and quality.”

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for our small but very committed team,” she said. “Over the last four years we’ve focused our efforts on building the brand and developing our product range to ensure we’re ideally positioned to supply major supermarkets. We know that contented hens produce the best quality, tasty eggs, and we’re delighted that Asda has also recognised this. We believe the move will also be appreciated by their Northern Ireland customers.”

Brian Conway, from Asda NI’s Local Sourcing Team, said: “This is yet another example of our commitment to Northern Ireland Year of Food & Drink and it also shows how initiatives such as our Supplier Development Academy are delivering positive business results for local producers.”

Genesis Crafty sets up Bakery Academy in Northern Ireland

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enesis Crafty has established the region’s first Bakery Academy in a bid to ‘develop the next generation of talented bakers’.

The academy will be based at the company’s bakery in Magherafelt, and aims to recruit its first batch of students over the next few months to enable training to start in September.

Genesis Crafty, renowned across the UK and Ireland as a business run by six baking brothers, is a major supplier of morning goods and cakes to leading UK retailers including Marks and Spencer, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Asda.

It has gained a series of awards for its products including UK Great Taste Awards.

The company has lined up with the College of Food, Agriculture and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) in Loughry, Cookstown, Co Tyrone on development of a relevant curriculum and in delivery of some training programme modules.

The vast majority of the year-long course will be delivered at the bakery in Magherafelt and will provide successful students with industry recognized qualifications.

FOOD & DRINKS NEWS

Winners celebrate at the Food Heartland Awards

Pictured are, from left, Roger Wilson, CE of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council, Brian Irwin from Irwin’s Bakery who won the Industry Ambassador Award, Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council Darryn Causby, host for the awards Pamela Ballantine and Paul Greenfield (vice chairman of Council’s Economic Development and Regeneration Committee).

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he first Food Heartland Awards, led by Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council, has taken place at Craigavon Civic and Conference Centre.

Over 60 businesses from across the borough competed across 12 award categories, which aim to showcase the

borough’s local produce, the people behind the thriving agri-food sector and the sector’s potential for growth and positive impact on the local economy.

Winners included Best New Start - Burren Balsamics; Best Growth Business - Armagh Cider Company; Best Export Business - Moy Park; Best Marketing Initiative - Irwin’s Bakery; Innovation Award - Kestrel Foods; Sustainability Award - Harnett’s Oil; Best Dish Using Local Ingredients - Newforge House; Best Use of a PGI Product in a Dish Award -The Moody Boar; Best Use of a PGI Product Award - Long Meadow Cider; Rising Star Award - Kevin McCann - P McCann & Sons; Best Licensed Eating Establishment The Moody Boar; Best Non-Licensed Eating Establishment - Yellow Door (Portadown); Best Independent Retail Food Business Award High Street Harvest; and Industry Ambassador - Irwin’s Bakery.

“On behalf of Armagh City, Banbridge

and Craigavon Borough Council, I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate the winners and finalists of our first Food Heartland Awards in association with NFU Mutual,” said Lord Mayor of Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council, Cllr Darryn Causby.

“It has been an incredible journey and over the past few months we have been privileged and inspired to see the hard-work and dedication of local food companies, as well as the abundance of top quality produce and producers that exists within our borough.

“Along with our continued partnership with Northern Ireland Year of Food & Drink 2016 and our ongoing commitment to this industry, through the Food Heartland Forum, businesses within the borough will have ongoing opportunities to showcase their wonderful products and businesses which will only serve to benefit them but have a positive impact on our local economy.”

Bakery sector insight column – The bread basket

BY CHLOE ORMISTON, IRWIN’S BAKERY CATEGORY AND SHOPPER INSIGHTS MANAGER

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s it just me or is the idea of what healthy food is and isn’t becoming very confusing?

We’re told to cut carbs, limit dairy, reduce sugar… the list goes on and on.

Key stakeholders across the food and drink landscape are promoting so many conflicting stories that the everyday consumer is baffled. Even the recent ‘eat clean’ food craze, for example, is being targeted by influential foodie celebrities as questionable behaviour, with some saying processed foods shouldn’t be classified as dirty.

Despite consumer confusion, health and wellness has been cited as a key trend in food and drink for 2016. When it comes to using it as a reason for consumption, it’s at 30% and growing (2). Many consumers have altered the way they make food choices over the past year, with 51% of people giving more priority to healthy products, 44% proactively looking for fresh goods and 42% singling out nutrition as an important factor in deciding what to buy. Interestingly, 49% of consumers said stories in the press and social media are responsible for their change

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in attitude (3).

These behaviours have led to items in shoppers’ baskets getting healthier. Health and wellness categories are growing and items like prepared salads, water, yoghurt drinks, nuts and fruits have seen double digit year-on-year growth. The number one growth brand of 2015 was Slimming World’s ready-meal range in Iceland. On its launch date, shoppers were queuing outside the store to purchase the £3 range. (2) Overall, our shopper surveys show three very evident health and wellness trends.

First, there’s the idea of health with indulgence. The confusing health messages have led consumers to set their own boundaries; health and indulgence happily exist in many consumers’ diets. As much as healthier categories are in growth, so are categories like sparkling wine, popcorn and chilled dips. Four of the top 10 growth brands in 2015 were alcoholic drinks (3).

This balance through portion control has led many consumers to eat well, but also have a little bit of what they fancy.

Second, the ‘healthier vs diet’ category driver is growing. ‘free from’ and functional categories are in growth but ‘low calorie’ has a flat performance (3). The trends show that the consumer confusion and mistrust of product labels have led to a shift away from negative claims like low fat, salt, carbs to positive associations like ‘better for you, high fibre, protein and improved energy’.

Finally, taste is still king. Consumers are telling us they are actively seeking out healthier alternatives of their favourite foods and choosing products that help them achieve their dietary needs without compromising on taste. These statements are crucial to retailers and manufacturers in trying to achieve health targets through formulation – it’s important to remember taste is still a key driver. Great tasting products that deliver the right eating experience remain a high priority for consumers.

Source: 1) Health and Social Care Information Centre Report 2016; 2) Kantar World Panel UK 2016; 3) C Space 2016.

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food & drinks news

Consumer insight and market update

BY JASON WINSTANLEY, MOY PARK SENIOR INSIGHT AND RESEARCH MANAGER FOODSERVICE: ARE WE AT THE ZENITH? e have seen before in this column that, over the last few years, foodservice as a channel has been booming. As retailers have fought each other in a relentless price war, consumers have been seeing their spend on groceries fall. With inflation at historically low levels, (helped in no small part by the grocery price war), and the fact that wage growth has slowly been creeping up, disposable income for many has been at its highest level for years. Data from credit card providers has consistently shown that this boom for consumers has been invested into areas of discretionary spend: leisure activities, travel bookings and staying away have all been areas which have seen sharp increases in spend (1).

Foodservice has been a particular beneficiary, bouncing back from the nadir of the recessionary years, and posting Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) between 2012 and 2015 of 1.1%, compared with just 0.2% in the years between 2009 and 2012, and this growth has been accelerating every year since 2009(2).

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On these measures, things have never looked better for the industry, and participation figures of 93% in 2015, with a million additional consumers eating out during the course of the year, would seem to back this up (3). However, unlike in grocery, where prices have been effectively locked down, foodservice has recently seen the price of menu items rocket. In truth, prices have been drifting up for a while; like-for-like menu prices for main meals saw relatively small but consistent increases between 2013 and 2015, but, 2016 has suddenly seen a big leap, across all price points. Increases of 5% or more across all day parts and all elements of food service have not been uncommon in the most recent quarter (4). To some extent, this rise in prices has been masked because, in many cases, the way that we are choosing to eat out of home is changing; more frequent purchasing of smaller portion sizes, often including snacking and/or food on the go, has held down average spend, but the underlying menu price rises are real enough.

At the moment, these price rises don’t seem to have fully entered the consumer mindset;

The way we are choosing to eat out of home is changing” growth in food service remains healthy, with the price rises currently helping to drive it4.

And there is plenty of encouraging growth in the channel – the new wave of healthy fast food outlets which serve adventurous food are particularly appealing to Millennials, and two major sporting events over the summer could well bump up growth still further. However, with inflation set to continue to nudge up, it may just be that the food service industry comes to look back on mid 2016 as a high water mark.

Sources: 1 – Based on publicly available data from Barclaycard and VISA, 2015/2016; 2- M&C Allegra Food Service Eating Out in the UK Report, September 2015; 3 – MCA Insight Top of Mind Report, February 2016; 4 – MCA Insight Menu and Food Trends Report, April 2016

ADVERTORIAL

McCormack Potato launches ‘a-peeling’ new website F amily-run McCormack Potato, Moy has launched a new website – www.mccormackpotato.co.uk – showcasing its unique family story, product and services to retailers, foodservice clients and consumers.

The website provides a single, integrated web presence for the organisation as part of the company’s effort to be more strategic and accessible in communicating with customers and stakeholders.

“Our new user-friendly website has streamlined navigation, new functions, better tools and a strong image-led design, making it easier to find information and be inspired by what we do,” said Barry McCormack, sales director. “We’ve been passionate about quality potatoes for over 40 years, and we felt it was important to highlight the family commitment and values behind McCormack potatoes too.

“There’s so much happening right now at McCormack Potato, so investing in telling our story properly online was a priority. We’ve showcased our popular Nature’s Harvest retail range which is celebrating its 20th anniversary. Visitors can easily browse our 17 lines of quality potatoes and find out more about our exciting new Chippers – the perfect potatoes for chips.”

Barry believes the new website is key to promoting the company’s reputation as the chipping potato experts. “We have a top reputation as specialists in seasonal chipping potatoes and are proud to service a high percentage of chip shops and the catering sector,” he said.

“You’ll find out more about why we are endorsed by NI’s number one takeaway and discover more details about our new peeled, chipped and vacuum packed service. We have recently invested £100,000 in new state-of-the-art equipment to service clients all over Ireland.”

Established over 40 years ago, McCormack Potato is one of the UK and Ireland’s most trusted potato suppliers. Its enduring reputation for

quality is endorsed by a range of glowing customer testimonials on the new website.

Brain McCormack, who started the business in 1971, said: “We’d like to thank so many of our top clients and brands across the UK and Ireland who contributed such kind words of praise and recommendation and helped make our website such a success. We already are generating new enquires daily and intend to keep the site refreshed and relevant to our customers’ needs.”

With concise product information on all McCormack’s lines of potatoes and services, as well as latest news, delicious recipes and more, the new site keeps visitors informed and inspired in true McCormack family style and offers a new communication channel for trade.

Visit the new website at www.mccormackpotato.co.uk.

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food & drinks news

Irwin’s Bakery teams up with Tourism NI for top picnic search

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ix months into Northern Ireland’s Year of Food & Drink, Irwin’s Bakery has consolidated its partnership with Tourism NI by joining forces to find Northern Ireland’s ultimate picnic spot.

“Through the Best NI Picnic campaign, we want to celebrate the Year of Food & Drink

and capitalise on the burgeoning tourism market and growth of our iconic bread ranges - Nutty Krust and Softee - which have seen a significant sales growth year on year,” said Colette Wilson, head of Marketing, Irwin’s Bakery. “The campaign will not only uncover the top picnic spot, but also the best sandwich

to enjoy while you’re there.

“In support of the Best NI Picnic, we have launched an integrated marketing campaign that includes outdoor advertising, promoted social media posts and targeted PR activity.”

Eimear Callaghan, marketing officer, Tourism Northern Ireland, said: “Tourism NI is delighted to support Irwin’s Best NI Picnic competition in this exciting year celebrating our unique food heritage. We produce some of the world’s finest and freshest ingredients and, along with our stunning landscapes and coastline, we are spoilt for choice with picnic locations. We look forward to seeing the entries.”

Irwin’s Bakery and Tourism NI are calling on the public to take photos of their favourite sandwiches in their top picnic spots. Four finalists across Northern Ireland will be chosen for #irwinsbestpicnic and the public will have the chance to vote for the top winner. For more details, visit www.irwinsbakery.com/competition.

Teeing up fledgling food success Italian chef sets up artisan ocal food pasta business in Northern L and drink start-ups will Ireland have the chance to showcase their talents to an international audience at the Northern Ireland Open.

The Ulster Joining Ulster Bank’s Terry Robb (right) and Galgorm Castle’s Bank Food Christopher Brooke (second right) are, from left, up and coming young golfer Jordan Hood from Galgorm with local producers Festival, hosted Alice McIlhagger, Linda McGibbon and Paula Heaney. at Galgorm Castle during the NI Open from July 27-31, will provide businesses such as those from the Entrepreneurial Spark Hatchery in Belfast and Artisan NI, the chance to set up shop for samples and sales at the purpose-built marquee. The NI Open is Northern Ireland’s annual professional golf tournament, which continues to grow every year and is truly a golf tournament for all the family.

Joining Ulster Bank’s Terry Robb (regional manager Private Banking) and Galgorm Castle’s Christopher Brooke at the launch of the Ulster Bank Food Festival were local producers Paula Heaney, who owns Belfast-based healthy juices outlet Skinny Malinky’s, Whitehead handcrafted confectionery producer Linda McGibbon, founder of Sea Sugar and Alice McIlhagger, who runs Brambleberry Jams based at her home in Ballinderry Lower.

“Not only does the NI Open provide a platform for top international talent, it also offers local food and drink businesses a chance to show what they’re made of and reach new markets at a time when the spotlight is firmly on outstanding local quality produce,” said Robb.

“We’re proud to provide help for what matters to their businesses.”

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talian chef Gaetano Bonora has set Gaetano Bonora up a fresh pasta business, La Dolce Vita, in Northern Ireland, making a range of authentic Italian pastas and sauces.

The new business, which is based in Portstewart in Co Derry, is already supplying pasta to delis and restaurants in Northern Ireland and aims to expand to other markets.

Bonora, from Puglia in southern Italy, launched the business earlier in the year, and has worked as a chef in Puglia and Florence.

“While I studied English at the Ulster University in Coleraine, I spotted an opportunity to provide authentic pasta and sauces working part time in a local restaurant,” said Gaetano. “There’s a world of difference, especially in taste, between fresh pasta and the pre-packed varieties here. I was also approached by local people interested in Italian pasta.”

Helping Gaetano in his business La Dolce Vita is Australian businesswoman Clíodhna Rae, who had come home to her native Portstewart to care for a family member.

“I drew on my experience working as a chef in my home region of Puglia and later in Florence,” said Bonora. “I had grown up helping my father Giuseppe on the family’s fruit and vegetable farm in Puglia, which is in south of the country and away from the established tourism centres. Puglia’s ‘cucina povera’ is about as rustic as Italian cuisine gets.”

DRINKS NEWS

International Cider Challenge rewards NI ciders T

wo Northern Irish companies have won medals at the recent International Cider Challenge 2016. The winners were Armagh Cider from Co Armagh, Northern Ireland’s ‘Orchard County’ and Kilmegan Cider of Dundrum, Co Down.

Kilmegan Cider, run by Andrew Boyd and one of Northern Ireland’s most recent cider producers, was among just eight major trophy winners and also won a gold medal for its handcrafted Real Cider in the Bottle Conditioned/Bottle Fermented category in the competition organised by the UK’s Off Licence News magazine.

The small business, started in 2013 by Boyd, a longstanding cider enthusiast, also won silver for his Irish Farmhouse Cider and bronze for Cider Infused with Wild Elderflower. The company also gained silver medals for all three ciders in the design and packaging category.

Armagh Cider, Northern Ireland’s longest-standing cider producer, gained silver medals for its Madden’s Mellow and Madden’s Special Cask, a wood-aged cider and a bronze medal for its Doyle’s Summer Fruit Cider.

Armagh Cider is a family business owned run by Helen Troughton using apples mostly from its own orchards.

The trophy for Kilmegan Cider is the first time that a major award in the International Cider Challenge has gone to an Irish processor.

Both successful Northern Ireland companies have won UK Great Taste Awards in the past.

Andrew Boyd

“I’ve been immensely encouraged by the awards. I intend to keep Kilmegan Cider as a specialist craft business with an emphasis on hand production and quality first,” said Boyd.

“I’ve never really liked the overly sweetened ciders made with apple concentrates, water and chemical enhancers. Choose the right blend of apples for the cider and sweetening juice and there is no need for additives.”

New lager from Northern Irish craft brewery N

orthern Irish craft brewery Clearsky Brewing has launched its third beer, Tidefall, named after a waterfall that flows directly into the ocean or the

sea.

The brewing company, which is based in Dungannon, Co Tyrone, was established in late 2013 by Stephen McKenna who has more than 20 years’ experience of the Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland drinks industries.

“Lager is the most popular style of beer across Ireland and we wanted to offer a European style lager beer that had flavour, was refreshing and easy drinking but remains true to the ethos of craft beer,” said McKenna.

“Tidefall has a soft hop flavour and gentle malt sweetness. We hope that it is of interest to both existing lager drinkers who are open to new lager styles and craft beer drinkers who appreciate flavoursome well-brewed lager.”

It is already stocked in dozens of off-licences, hotels, restaurants and gastropubs across Ireland including the iconic Sunflower Bar in Belfast.

“Although I’m usually a stout or porter drinker, after a busy shift on a Saturday night, Tidefall is my go-to. It just hits the spot,” said Pedro Donald, owner of the Sunflower.

Award-winning craft distiller teams up with LA Drinks L

urgan-based LA Drinks has been appointed as the exclusive distributor of Blackwater, an Irish craft distiller of gin and vodka, for Northern Ireland.

“We are delighted to add the award-winning Blackwater Distillery range of spirits to our portfolio and we look forward to growing the Blackwater brand throughout Northern Ireland, as part of our expansion strategy,” said Laurence Creaney, managing director of LA Drinks.

LA Drinks has been a supplier of beers, wines and spirits to the off and on trade for over 20 years and also import a huge selection of wines from all over the world.

Barry McCaughley, operations manager, said: “Feedback from our sales team tells me the Blackwater No5 Gin has already been very well received by the on trade and is currently featuring on many gin lists throughout the Province. At present Blackwater distills two gins and one vodka but watch this space for further developments as master distiller Peter Mulryan has exciting plans for the future.”

Blackwater Distillery is situated on the banks of the Blackwater River, just outside Cappoquin in West Waterford.

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ADVERTORIAL

Innovation boosts Mackle Petfoods 2

016 has been a very busy sales year to date for local pet food manufacturer Mackle Petfoods, with both their flagship brands Brandy and Cat Club performing extremely well and their new super premium dog food brand Naturo gaining traction in retailers across Ireland.

Brandy Brandy has a strong local heritage dating back to 1971. Brandy is made using only 100% Irish meat sourced from across the island of Ireland. The use of 100% Irish meat is unique to the brand. Brandy is also fully traceable from farm to bowl. Irish consumers are concerned about the provenance and quality of the product they feed their dogs and they have really embraced the fact that Brandy uses only 100% Irish meat and has full traceability.

Dog owners view their dog as a key member of the family so they want to feed them the best. Consumers are also looking for value and Brandy offers customers high quality products at a competitive price.

Brandy have recently introduced two promotional variety 3 packs, Brandy Variety Traditional Loaf and Brandy Variety Chunks in Jelly, both price marked at £1.50, offering the customer value for money and the retailer strong margin. Brandy 6 Pack is available in three variety options, Loaf, Chunks in Jelly and Chunks in Gravy. While our Brandy Variety 12 Pack range enables consumers to trade up to larger multi-packs.

Brandy 6 Pack – On Pack Competition This summer Brandy 6 Packs present an exciting on pack competition, not to be missed by retailers and customers alike.

Brandy wants to celebrate all four legged family members and is offering customers the chance for their dog to star on Brandy packs.

To win, customers must tell us what makes their dog 100% family and share a photo of their dog, demonstrating their dog’s role in the family. The winning dog will star on pack and receive a dog photoshoot and a supply of Brandy dog food. The first 100 entries will also receive a cuddly toy. The competition runs until 5th August on all Brandy 6 Packs, including Traditional Loaf, Chunks in Jelly and Chunks in Gravy 6 packs. It will be supported by an all-Ireland radio advertising campaign and a strong digital campaign.

Customers will be able to enter the competition at brandydogfood.com/win or on Facebook (facebook.com/brandydogfood).

“Brandy… because they’re 100% Family!”

Naturo Naturo is Mackle Petfoods’ super premium wet dog food offering, made with 100% 28

natural ingredients. Naturo was created in 2010 to build upon established success in canned pet food manufacture. The brand was a new departure for Mackle Petfoods, injecting a new product concept into the pet food market. Naturo offers customers the convenience of plastic packaging – available in a plastic tray with foil lid and cardboard sleeve, an easy ‘rip and tip’ concept.

The attraction of Naturo as a unique super premium product along with offering retailers incremental sales has helped the brand gain traction throughout Ireland.

Consumers are increasingly looking for high quality products which support the health and well-being of their dog, contain a high percentage of meat and are 100% natural – all of which Naturo offers. Naturo combines essential proteins, fibre and carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals and fats and oils to create a natural and nutritious meal for dogs. With 60% meat and no artificial colours, flavours or preservatives, consumers can be confident their dog will love the taste of Naturo!

The range is available in a 400g tray in

the following varieties: Lamb & Rice with vegetables, Chicken, Lamb & Rice with vegetables, Salmon & Rice with vegetables, Duck & Rice with vegetables and Senior Turkey & Rice with vegetables. Grain Free 400g dog food recipes are available in Chicken & Potato with vegetables and Salmon & Potato with vegetables. To cater for smaller dogs, 150g pack sizes are also available.

Naturo are excited to extend the range over the coming months to include Grain Free Duck and Grain Free Turkey 400g packs along with a Grain Free 400g multipack.

Visit www.naturopetfoods.com for further information.

“Naturo… Natural, Nutritious, Delicious!”

Cat Club Not to forget our feline friends, Cat Club is continuing to experience sales growth. When it comes to meal times our feline friends can be fussy creatures, so product quality and palatability is key. Prepared using high quality Irish Meats, Cat Club cat food is fully traceable from farm to bowl. Cat Club’s carefully prepared natural meaty chunks in appetising Jelly and Gravy have all the nourishment and essential vitamins and minerals to ensure all-round good health and lively energy, so consumers know they are feeding their cats a tasty, nutritious meal they’ll love!

Sales have been driven by the brand’s Variety Chunks in Jelly and Chunks in Gravy 6 Packs.

Cat Club is also available in a Variety Chunks in Jelly 12 Pack for consumers looking a larger multi-pack format.

Why not visit Cat Club at facebook.com/catclubcatfood.

“Cats love their Cat Club”!

WIN

Summer On Pack Competition Brandy are offering families the chance for their dog to star on pack.

To WIN, customers simply need to pick up a promotional pack and tell us what makes their dog 100% family.

- Winning dog will star on packs of Brandy.

- Prize includes dog photoshoot and supply of Brandy dog food.

- First 100 entries get a FREE cuddly toy.

- Competition will run across the Brandy 6 Pack range until 5th August.

For more details visit: brandydogfood.com/win

206933 Brandy FP Ulster Grocer Press Ad AW.indd 1

Because they’re 100% Family

Tel: +44(0)28 8778 4641

/brandydogfood

31/05/2016 16:51

Are you a

TOBACCO RETAILER? From 6th April 2016, under the Tobacco Retailers Act (Northern Ireland) 2014, all retailers of tobacco products in Northern Ireland are required to be registered by law.

If Retailers do not register and continue to sell tobacco products, they could face fines up to ÂŁ5,000 and banned from selling tobacco for up to 3 years.

ACT NOW! Retailers have until 1st July 2016 to register their business. Registration is QUICK, FREE AND EASY. The simplest way is online on the Tobacco Register NI website,

www.tobaccoregisterni.gov.uk Alternatively, paper applications can be downloaded from the website, can be obtained by telephoning the Registration Authority on

028 9027 0428 or your local District Council.

Tel: 028 9083 3040 www.ni-trucks.co.uk TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Moy Park retains its position while Drinks Inc. regains slot

R

eturning now for a fourth year, the Ulster Grocer Top 25 Local Food & Drinks Companies offers a unique picture of the leading businesses operating in the sector.

Ranked by turnover, the listing also looks at both turnover and pre-tax profits year-onyear, alongside latest year data for net worth and employee numbers. Only companies filing their annual accounts in Northern

Ireland are included.

D&B, which compiles the Top 25 for Ulster Grocer, has also this year provided a table (below) looking at 10 national retailers with a significant presence in the local grocery sector, but falling outside the scope of the Top 25.

Producing a set of figures which should very much be viewed as estimates, D&B has taken the UK turnover of the 10 retailers and

extrapolated turnover for Northern Ireland; based on a NI/UK population ratio of 2.2%.

There will be many discrepancies in these figures, for example Lidl UK Gmbh files consolidated accounts under its Germanregistered parent company and Dunnes Stores has only five GB stores compared to 20 in NI. However, the estimated figures still provide an interesting picture alongside the Top 25.

Estimated turnover of major retailers in Northern Ireland Rank 1

Company NAME TESCO PLC

ARD

Turnover (£000)

PRE-TAX Profit (£000)

Net Worth (£000)

EMPLOYEES

28/02/2015

62,284

-6,376

3,300

506,984

2

J SAINSBURY PLC

31/12/2012 14/03/2015

23,775

-72

5,214

148,400

3

ASDA GROUP PLC

31/12/2014

23,232

921

6,721

174,389

4

MARKS & SPENCER PLC

28/03/2015

10,311

600

4,792

83,089

5

COOPERATIVE GROUP

02/01/2016

9,301

23

2,954

69,078

6

ICELAND FOODS LTD

27/03/2015

2,682

59

710

24,030

7

B&M RETAIL LTD

28/03/2015

1,526

151

334

18,316

1,472

147

548

13,843

741

15,182

323

1,592

8

T J MORRIS LTD / HOME BARGAINS

30/06/2015

9

LIDL LTD

28/02/2015

296

0.189

10

DUNNES STORES (BANGOR) LTD

31/01/2015

137

11

Tasting success – global food leaders in NI

BY JOHN HOOD, DIRECTOR FOOD AND TOURISM, INVEST NORTHERN IRELAND

G

lobal food leaders trust Northern Ireland to provide premium quality products and exceptional ingredients for their customers worldwide and have committed to invest over £1bn here by 2020.

John Hood

Those counting on Northern Ireland for pure, natural, quality food and drink include JBS, Brazil’s biggest beef business and owner of Moy Park, a European leader in poultry and Northern Ireland’s largest food business.

Karro Foods, a UK specialist in meats, has its main pork processing operation in Northern Ireland. And Diageo makes Bailey’s Original Irish Cream Liqueur in Northern Ireland. Casa Cuervo, Mexico’s global leader in tequila, now owns Old Bushmills Whiskey in Northern Ireland, the world’s oldest licensed distillery. Lisburn-based Coca-Cola is also part of a global network operating as part of a Greek-owned bottling company.

Four of the Republic of Ireland’s biggest food producers – Kerry Group, Glanbia, Lakeland and ABP – have invested extensively and frequently in Northern Ireland to produce exceptionally tasty, wholesome and safe beef, butter, cheeses, other dairy products and convenience meals.

Underpinning their investment is the recognition that Northern Ireland is a prime

source of grass-fed beef and dairy from animals grazing lush meadowland pastures and reared by generations of family farms committed to the highest standards of animal welfare and husbandry.

Provenance, now such an important feature of the industry, has also led to the development of a cluster of Northern Irelandowned food and drink companies which have invested in Britain, Ireland and further afield.

They include premium meat processors such as Dunbia, Foyle Foods, Linden Foods, and in the dairy sector the newly created Lacpatrick, Greenfields, Dale Farm, the region’s biggest dairy business.

Deliciously different food and drink products have also won international acclaim for quality and innovation in hotly contested competitions such as the UK Great Taste Awards, and the World Cheese Awards It’s hardly surprising that Northern Ireland should celebrate the achievements of food and drink, its largest single industry, during this year’s unique Year of Food & Drink.

31

Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Focus on the Top 25 sponsor Featuring Sean Clarke, Business Development Director at Star Rentals market is very competitive, I believe that with our flexible and competitively priced packages that we have something that will suit every company. I also firmly believe that the support of NI Trucks behind us, servicing our vehicles, will help us to achieve our longterm goals.

WHAT ITEM WOULD YOU TAKE TO A DESERT ISLAND AND WHY? It would have to be my other half. I know that she is not an item (before the feminist brigade start on me) but I really would be lost without her.

WHERE IS YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE? Costa Mijas, a quiet coastal Spanish resort with a small village, local restaurants, sandy beaches and relaxed atmosphere.

Sean Clarke

TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF I have worked in the commercial vehicle industry for over 25 years, specialising mainly in the sale and rental of vans and trucks. I am married and we have three children; our youngest is only three so I enjoy spending time with them at the weekends.

WHAT DOES A TYPICAL DAY INVOLVE? Our office opens from 7am–5pm. Most days, however, I’m out on the road drumming up business or solving customers’ transportation problems. Each day is different, challenging but enjoyable, as I get to meet and work with some really great people.

WHAT HAS BEEN THE HIGHLIGHT OF YOUR CAREER TO DATE? Becoming Business Development Director at Star Rentals and using my experience to help it become a major player in the commercial vehicle hire sector. I still feel there is great potential for further expansion and we are currently in the process of opening a new branch in Dublin. We already have a network of branches in Northern Ireland at Mallusk and Portadown and are co-located with our sister company, NI Trucks.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? The rental market is growing with many firms opting to hire rather than commit 32

capital. There are many advantages in going down this route and I provide a consultative approach to help them reap these benefits.

WHAT IS YOUR MOST DIFFICULT TASK? Having to say no when you have a ‘can do’ attitude. It’s always a last resort as we strive to fulfil all of our customer hire requests, no matter how complex they may be.

WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE YOU HAVE EVER RECEIVED? To always look for suitability over capability in staff. You can nearly always make a suitable hard working person capable with the right training and support. On a more personal note, I once received advice during a karaoke night that I shouldn’t give up my day job – so I haven’t.

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST GRIPE? Staff (in any industry) not thinking outside the box to try and resolve customer issues.

Our rental desk team are always trying to be as flexible as possible and this shows in both our high levels of repeat business and positive satisfaction surveys. Our staff are the best asset we have.

WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE PLANS/ AMBITIONS? To keep building the Star Rentals’ hire fleet and increase its market share. Whilst the

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE FOOD PRODUCT? My wife’s homemade Spaghetti Bolognese, using local produce and slow cooked to really build the flavours in.

HOW DO YOU RELAX? Generally with family, either in the garden or more recently in our touring caravan at some beautiful part of the country for the weekend.

Star Rentals Offering short-term hire, long-term contract hire and quality used truck and van sales from sites in Mallusk and Portadown, we are one of the largest commercial vehicle hire businesses in NI. We provide flexible, competitive, tailor made finance packages for your business. Our mixed fleet ranges from small vans, 4x4s, minibuses and 7.5 tonners, to 18-tonne curtain-siders and 44-tonne tractor units. It is maintained to the highest possible standards, with all vehicles being regularly serviced and inspected.

For more information and a quote, contact Star Rentals on 028 9083 2232 or visit: www.star-rentals.com

Tel: 028 9083 3040 www.ni-trucks.co.uk TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Northern Ireland’s Top 25 Food & Drinks Companies show reduced sales growth at 3.8%

BY JONATHAN CUSHLEY, D&B

2

016 sees the fourth compilation of a Top 25 Northern Ireland Food & Drinks Companies. The listing has been compiled using the same sources as its big brother the Ulster Business Top 100, utilising D&B’s Investigate marketing and analysis tool and allows the reader of the listing to dip below the normal Top 100 Turnover threshold which, in 2015, was some £65.5m. In this year’s listing, 21 of the 25 companies would have made the Top 100.

TURNOVER Sales within the Top 25 during the financial years ending late 2014 and early- to mid2015 (the latest fiscal period annual accounts have been filed for) showed a small increase of 3.8% compared to a significant 13.3% increase reported in the previous year’s listing. The combined turnover of the listed companies reached £6,557m against a corresponding figure of £6,319m for the same 25 companies year on year.

Please note that Fane Valley Co-Operative Society’s turnover figure for 2014, as in previous years, includes the company’s share in a joint venture.

Moy Park has retained its number one position within the listing, posting sales of £1,388m for the year ending 31/12/14; a significant 15.6% uplift on the prior year.

Interesting, 10 of the 25 companies posted reduced turnover for their year-on-year financial figures comparatives, confirming that economic challenges still prevail in the marketplace.

PROFITABILITY The success of any business cannot be based solely on top line sales growth; a key factor in any measurement of success is in the generation of profit. In the Ulster Grocer Top 25 listing, we have reviewed the pre-tax profit figure posted by each of the organisations.

A further example of the current economic challenges being experienced in the sector is that, in the 2015 listing, the Top 25 Food & Drinks Companies posted a flat profit performance. In this year’s compilation, the businesses returned profits of £135.127m compared to a figure on the comparative year

EMPLOYEES The Top 25 Food Companies employed a total of 22,119 people; Moy Park and Dunbia accounting for 8,954 and 3,605 employees respectively.

of £135.113m – a nominal increase of some £14,000. This represents a profit margin of 2.06% comparable to a prior year of 2.14%.

Of the 25 companies, only four businesses posted pre-tax losses for their last financial year.

Unsurprisingly, Moy Park continues to post the highest profit figure of £46.1m (profit margin 3.3%); The Old Bushmills Distillery Company however posted impressive profits of £22.1m on a turnover of £69.1m, a 32% profit margin.

NET WORTH (SHAREHOLDER VALUE) The third measure of a company’s overall success utilised when compiling the Top 25 listing is the company’s value to its shareholders. In its simplest form, it is the shareholders funds (issued capital) plus retained profits – intangibles.

The value of the 2016 Ulster Grocer Top 25 companies to their shareholders is currently £949.9m.

The shareholders’ return for the Top 25 businesses equates to profit/net worth as a percentage – 14.2%.

Inventory turnover defined as the turnover to net worth: this volume ratio indicates how many sales pounds are generated with each pound of investment and this equates to, for the 2016 listing, 6.90.

READER NOTES For this compilation of a Top 25 listing for Ulster Grocer, a date of 20/05/16 has been used as a cut off for inclusion of financial results and only businesses registered in and filing accounts within Northern Ireland have been considered for inclusion.

Financial Information has been gathered using D&B’s Investigate Market Research & Analytics Tool.

Both D&B and Ulster Grocer are aware that due to various group structures – for example it would be expected that businesses belonging to Kerry Group would be included in the Northern Ireland listing – however, due to their group structures, their NI turnover would fall within Irish or UK mainland based subsidiaries. The non-filing of financial results, such as with private unlimited companies means that some additional entities which would expect to be included in the Top 25 companies have unfortunately been excluded.

Other NI group structures have been included in the compilation of the Top 25 as all results represent the individual companies and are not replicated.

ABOUT D&B D&B provides the information, tools and expertise to help Customers to Decide with Confidence. D&B enables customers to have instant access to objective, domestic and global information whenever and wherever they need it. Customers use D&B Risk Management Solutions to manage credit exposure, D&B Sales & Marketing Solutions to find profitable customers and business partners and also utilise D&B Supplier Management Solutions to assist in managing supplier relationships both efficiently and profitably.

More than 90% of the Global 1000 rely on D&B as a trusted partner to enable confident business decisions.

For more information, please visit www.dnb.com/uk or e-mail cushleyj@dnb.com.

33

Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Rank

Company NAME

ACCOUNTS Year Ending

Turnover (£000)

1

MOY PARK LTD

31/12/2014

1,388,273

2

DUNBIA LTD

3

31/12/2012 29/03/2015

826,523

FANE VALLEY CO-OPERATIVE LTD

30/09/2014

553,888

4

UNITED DAIRY FARMERS LTD

31/03/2015

421,482

5

HENDERSON WHOLESALE LTD

31/12/2014

412,941

6

SHS GROUP LTD

02/01/2015

374,007

7

HENDERSON RETAIL LTD

31/12/2014

300,599

8

FOYLE FOOD GROUP LTD

31/12/2014

289,340

9

MUSGRAVE RETAIL PARTNERS NI LTD

27/12/2014

281,417

10

GREENFIELDS IRELAND LTD

31/12/2014

196,959

11

COCA-COLA HBC (NI) LTD

31/12/2014

189,576

12

LAMEX FOODS IRELAND LTD

31/03/2015

153,054

13

DAIRY PRODUCE PACKERS LTD*

31/12/2014

144,120

14

TMC DAIRIES (NI) LTD

31/12/2014

126,081

15

DIAGEO NORTHERN IRELAND LTD

30/06/2015

122,440

16

LAKELAND DAIRIES (NI) LTD

27/12/2014

110,276

17

MUSGRAVE DISTRIBUTION LTD

27/12/2014

99,174

18

JAMES E. McCABE LTD

31/12/2014

93,717

19

BALLYRASHANE CO-OPERATIVE LTD

31/12/2014

81,462

20

PHILIP RUSSELL LTD

31/12/2014

80,560

21

OLD BUSHMILLS DISTILLERY LTD

30/06/2014

69,050

22

DIAGEO GLOBAL SUPPLY IBC LTD

30/06/2015

66,527

23

SAVAGE & WHITTEN WHOLESALE LTD

31/12/2014

63,569

24

SKEA EGG FARMS LTD

31/12/2014

61,029

25

DRINKS INC. LTD

31/03/2015

51,166

*Part of Kerry Group

34

Tel: 028 9083 3040 www.ni-trucks.co.uk TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Turnover (£000) (Previous Sales)

Profit/Loss (£000)

Profit/Loss (PREVIOUS) (£000)

Net Worth (£000)

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

1,201,148

46,109

33,780

195,299

8,954

764,242

6,565

4,610

61,408

3,605

533,935

6,765

8,719

73,662

1,351

443,155

634

6,112

45,686

1,013

397,498

10,576

10,346

80,477

421

393,273

17,108

19,415

116,532

758

297,627

5,717

3,958

21,937

1,748

298,763

-5,368

-1,995

9,251

992

278,007

-1,250

906

17,786

421

184,629

447

461

4,510

30

197,167

10,528

7,051

40,914

517

162,622

2,911

2,264

5,062

6

141,316

51

557

47,593

280

136,370

-1,560

3,068

-14,298

50

128,140

3,016

3,473

18,074

145

107,937

308

348

-3,850

49

109,442

-286

-990

1,235

200

90,448

2,034

2,684

41,549

533

77,849

90

311

12,486

168

80,784

1,124

1,818

13,550

256

59,582

22,052

20,128

119,701

100

65,199

2,685

2,661

32,994

134

58,565

950

1,017

4,612

180

57,776

2,762

2,159

10,873

105

53,907

1,159

2,252

10,919

103

35

Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Investment and corporate responsibility give wings to Moy Park Corporate responsibility is also key focus for Moy Park. The firm recently announced it has achieved Platinum status – the highest scoring level – in the NI Environmental Benchmarking Survey for the third year in a row.

Moy Park has been recognised with a number of other leading accolades including the UK Food Manufacturing Company of the Year at the Food Manufacture Excellence Awards, Meat & Poultry Processing Awards for Processing Business of the Year, Retail Processor of the Year and Product Developer of the Year and a Food Heartland Award for Best Export Business.

Due to the company’s focus on its people, it Janet McCollum, chief executive of Moy Park

M

oy Park is a £1.4bn business employing 12,000 people across facilities in the UK, Ireland, Holland and France. The company is one of the UK’s top 15 food companies, Northern Ireland’s largest private sector business and one of Europe’s leading poultry producers.

In 2015, Moy Park joined the JBS Group – the world’s largest protein company and second largest global food business.

Moy Park is a vertically-integrated business, processing five million fresh chickens per week sourced from 800 local poultry farmers.

Although best known for poultry, Moy Park is a major European producer of beef products, vegetarian products such as spring rolls and onion rings, as well as desserts including donuts and apple pies – a full range from starters and main courses to desserts.

The company continues to grow its business with significant investment in its industryleading operations including a major £20m investment at its primary processing facility in Dungannon, £4m in its ready-to-eat facility in Craigavon, £10m investment in its Ashbourne factory and hatchery in England, and an £8m investment in a strategic multi-year skills programme with the support of Invest NI to deliver a comprehensive suite of training and learning initiatives across the entire company workforce.

36

Rod Addy, editor, Meat Trades Journal, presenting Moy Park’s Matt Harris with the Product Developer of the Year Award at the Meat & Poultry Processing Awards.

has also successfully won an IGD Learning & Development Award, a CIPD NI Award for the Most Effective Organisational Learning and Development Strategy, a RoSPA Health & Safety Award and an International Safety Award with Merit from the British Safety Council for the fourth successive year.

The firm also regularly celebrates the achievements of its team members. Most recently it hosted the Moy Park Annual Farming Awards, which recognised the company’s top performing farmers and the Long Service Awards that celebrate the hard work and commitment of those who have been with the business for 25 or 40 years.

Tel: 028 9083 3040 www.ni-trucks.co.uk TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Honours roll in for number two in the Top 25 D

unbia has 11 meat processing facilities across the UK and Ireland, employing over 4,000 people, partnerships with over 22,000 beef, sheep and pig farmers and trades in over 36 countries world-wide; having grown from a small butchers’ shop.

Jim Dobson OBE, co-founder and co-owner of the business, has recently received two industry honours. He has been admitted into the Worshipful Company of Butchers and clothed as a liveryman of the City of London, making him a Freeman of the City of London. He has also been appointed an associate of the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society in recognition of distinguished achievements in the agricultural industry.

“The Worshipful Company of Butchers and the Royal Ulster Agricultural Society are two highly prestigious organisations representing the two industries in which Dunbia operates – butchery and agriculture,” said Dobson. “I am honoured and humbled to have been admitted into the inner workings of both institutions and am committed to playing an active role to represent and promote both industries to the best of my ability.

“Dunbia has a long association with both institutions which are steeped in history and tradition and have at their heart the development and betterment of their respective industries. The Balmoral Show, at which Dunbia has exhibited for many years, is an excellent showcase for the Northern Ireland agricultural industry and continues to go from strength to strength while the Worshipful Company of Butchers is committed to charitable and educational work.

“I am proud to say that employees from Dunbia have won the Best Meat Processing Student award through the Worshipful Company for four years in a row. Developing young people and giving them the skills and experience to be the best they can be is something I strongly

Jim Dobson OBE (second left) is pictured with Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council Mayor Thomas Beckett, Rosie Carne, chairman of Council for Awards of Royal Agricultural Societies (CARAS) and Prof John Wibberley, secretary of CARAS.

support and will continue to promote through RUAS and WCOB.” Dunbia also recently appeared in the official commemorative publication for The Queen’s 90th Birthday Celebration to take place at Windsor Castle this year. Dunbia is featured in a section of the publication looking at Industry Excellence.

Following a £12m investment in state-of-the-art facilities in its Llanybydder factory, the company is now the largest processor of lamb in the UK. It has a strong focus on corporate social responsibility and supports a number of charities in which the Royal Family is involved.

Dairy deal finalised while awards roll in for Lindens A

busy past year has seen the Fane Valley Co-operative reach agreement with Lakeland Dairies, which acquired the Fane Valley Dairies business in Banbridge on May 1 rather than opting for the original proposal of strategic joint ventures.

The deal will, of course, not have any impact on Fane Valley’s listing in the Top 25 this year, which is based on its accounts filing to September 30, 2014.

One of the oldest companies in Northern Ireland, Fane Valley is owned by around 1,800 farmers from across the Province.

The dairies side of Fane Valley is just one of many businesses, which also include Linden Foods, White’s Oats, Slaney Foods, Kettyle Foods, Irish Country Meats, A Lonhienne, Hilton Meat Products, Duncrue Food Processors, Linergy, Fane Valley Feeds and Fane Valley Stores.

Pictured are, from left, Gerry Maguire, managing director, Linden Foods; Liam Casey, Lidl Linden Foods recently scooped a UK Gold accolade for its Lidl Ireland commercial director; and Rory Fanning, managing director, Slaney Foods.

Inisvale Hereford Fillet Steaks at The Grocer’s Own Label annual awards held in London’s Hilton Park Lane. The steaks from Linden were crowned overall winner from a shortlist of 350 products out of a record 1,400 products.

“We are delighted to be able to win this UK Gold award for our Inisvale Hereford Fillet Steaks with our retail partner Lidl. We both set very high standards across our entire process,” says Gerry Maguire managing director of Linden Foods. “We have an exceptional supply chain with a dedicated and passionate farmer network. Our people our extremely skilled and we have an excellent new product development department that works alongside our customers to bring these mouth-watering products to the shelves at affordable prices.”

37

Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Dale Farm at the heart of the Northern Ireland food industry Number four in Northern Ireland’s Top 25 Food & Drinks Companies

A

gainst the backdrop of a challenging dairy market over the past 18 months, Dale Farm has continued to deliver strong volume growth both in the local market and across the UK and Ireland. The business, owned by local farmers, is now the largest dairy cooperative in the UK and the third largest UK dairy processor after Muller and Arla.

Dale Farm, which is owned by more than 1,300 dairy farmers, has an annual turnover of just under £400m. The company’s activities span the food chain – from providing animal feed and farm inputs to local farmers, collecting milk from co-op member farms, to processing and marketing a wide range of dairy products which are sold in domestic and global markets. Within Dale Farm, the farmer members’ milk is processed into an extensive range of chilled consumer dairy products and into specialist whey protein and milk powder ingredients. The business has five manufacturing plants in Northern Ireland and 38

employs over 1,000 people. Dale Farm’s consumer product range covers every category including cheese, butter, fresh milk, yogurts, fresh desserts and cream and ice cream which it markets under a number of awardwinning brands including Dale Farm, Dromona, Spelga, Mullins and Fivemiletown.

As a co-op, Dale Farm’s main goal is to add the maximum value it can to its farmer members’ milk.

Successful product

and process innovation is a key element of the company’s strategy of growing in added value dairy products and, in the last year, there have been notable successes with additional listings secured with major retail outlets right across the UK and Ireland. These include Dale Farm Protein Milk, Dale Farm fresh vanilla custard, Dale Farm quark soft cheese, Spelga Treasure Pots, a yogurt aimed at children from 18 months old with no added sugar and the newly relaunched range of Fivemiletown speciality cheeses.

To support its ambitious growth plans, Dale Farm has invested over £40m in recent years across its Northern Ireland operations creating new capability and capacity, generating good quality jobs and processing more local milk. The company has also invested in the acquisitions of Mullins Ice Cream and Fivemiletown Creamery’s speciality cheese business; both of which have delivered strong growth.

The year ahead will see Dale Farm play more to its dairy co-operative credentials, launching a major new advertising campaign supporting farmers and promoting local dairy produce. The campaign will have a clear message for consumers that Dale Farm is ‘your farmer owned co-operative’ and that ‘our farmers don’t just milk the cows, they own the company’. Quite simply, when consumers buy Dale Farm products, they are supporting local farmers and their families who own the business and supply it with all its milk.

Tel: 028 9083 3040 www.ni-trucks.co.uk TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Henderson Group top winners at leading industry awards

Henderson Wholesale Marketing Team pictured at the recent Ulster Grocer Marketing Awards 2016.

T

he Henderson Group enjoyed great success at the 28th annual Ulster Grocer Marketing Awards, where they picked up three awards, showcasing how profitable their significant marketing investments throughout 2015 have been.

Owners of the SPAR, EUROSPAR and VIVO franchises in Northern Ireland, the group invested more than £4m in marketing in 2015 and was awarded Best Instore Consumer sales Promotion and Best CSR Initiative, and walked away with the top award for Best Marketing Campaign.

The award for Best In-store Consumer Sales Promotion recognised EUROSPAR’S hugely popular Tesco price match initiative which is available in 50 stores throughout Northern Ireland. EUROSPAR is becoming bigger competition for the multiples as it continues to expand here, offering supermarket levels of value and quality in convenient locations.

The Price Match initiative is a list of everyday branded grocery products that EUROSPAR invests in to enable identical Tesco prices. The list is then updated weekly throughout the year, ensuring continued value for shoppers.

The Henderson Group has always placed a strategic focus on CSR and bettering the communities in which they operate and has a dedicated CSR strategy entitled Tomorrow Matters. Their hard work has not gone unnoticed and they were delighted to be the recipients of the award for Best CSR Initiative.

In 2015, Henderson’s launched an initiative to install defibrillators throughout their network of stores, knowing that they could play a vital role in helping to save lives, particularly in rural areas.

The Heart of our Community campaign became a phenomenal success and the level of community involvement surpassed all expectations. A key aspect of the campaign focused on educating the public on the importance of CPR and how to use a lifesaving defibrillator device.

Retailers were trained in CPR at Henderson conferences, while, as part of the media campaign, how-to videos were produced and shared online and practical, printed information about using a defibrillator made readily available in stores.

The initiative stretches into 2016 when almost 300 defibrillators will be installed as a direct result of this campaign, making it the biggest network of public-access defibrillators available in Northern Ireland.

To win the overall Best Marketing Campaign award was a huge honour for the Henderson Group which, throughout 2015, invested a significant amount in redeveloping their marketing strategies. Much of this spend centred around the Passionate about Local campaign which aimed to position the group as having the most responsible, competitive and convenient stores in Northern Ireland.

The Group launched their own brand

range enjoy local, which used only local suppliers, farmers and growers. The new range, comprising 144 products, was hugely successful with sales growing by 11%.

What’s more, the Henderson Group developed a more refined digital strategy.

With the number of online followers growing significantly, the new digital approach has allowed the group to accumulate more facebook and twitter followers and higher engagement rates than some of its multinational competitors.

Commenting on the triple win, Sales and Marketing Director Paddy Doody said: “We are thrilled to have enjoyed such a successful night at the Ulster Grocer Marketing Awards, rounding off a very positive year for our team. In 2015, we managed to achieve significant growth, despite operating in an increasingly difficult market where barriers to business are becoming ever more pertinent.

We work constantly to expand on our successes year on year and strive to be more innovative in order to drive sales, reduce costs and improve margins. The overall achievements of the Henderson Group in 2015 is testament to the fact that this approach works as we continue to better our business objectives.”

An investment plan of a further £4m has been allocated for marketing in 2016 where the focus continues to be on shopper value, fresh meal solutions, local provenance and building the SPAR, EUROSPAR and VIVO brands. The Group’s continued support for local producers has been endorsed favourably throughout the Northern Ireland Year of Food & Drink 2016 as the brand builds stronger links with local producers and sources the best deals and products for consumers.

On top of this, the group will use 2016 to strengthen its level of community engagement and ensure their charitable ethos remains at the core of everything they do. Along with the ongoing defibrillator initiative, the Henderson Group will also be supporting a host of charitable campaigns bringing its Passionate about Local campaign to life for local people and communities.

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Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Investment in brand development and portfolio boosts the SHS Group The SHS Group has once again been named in the Top 25 Companies. Ulster Grocer speaks to Elaine Birchall, SHS Group CEO

Elaine Birchall

T

he SHS Group was founded in 1975 and operates in the fast moving consumer goods sector in the UK and Ireland.

The SHS Group is one of Northern Ireland’s top 10 companies and remains a family-owned business with its roots in Belfast. In 2015 the Group appointed Elaine Birchall as the Group chief executive officer and, as well as managing the Group’s diverse operations, she has focussed on building her executive team and developing a five-year strategy to support growth and expansion plans.

During Elaine’s first year at the helm, the SHS Group celebrated 40 years in business.

Since its inception, the Group has evolved from a traditional family-run sales and marketing company into a multinational operation with a turnover of £370m. It owns brands such as WKD, Shloer, Bottlegreen and Merrydown Cider and distributes a portfolio of premium brands including Jordans, Ryvita, Finish, Mars Drinks, Colgate, Farmlea and Maguire & Paterson matches. The SHS Group is also a major supplier of own label herbs and spices in the UK. From its Belfast headquarters, the Group provides a strong financial base and central 40

resources for its four commercial divisions, including Strategic Planning and Corporate Services including Finance, IT, Logistics, Customer Services and Communications. SHS Group employs over 750 people throughout

the UK and Ireland.

In the last 12 months, the Drinks Division have developed and launched WKD Blush and renovated their bottlegreen brand including extending into the premium tonics category.

Both the Condiments and Sauces and Sales and Marketing divisions in the UK and Ireland have won significant new business and the Group is growing its International presence business through a two-tiered approach: new product development and development of new markets.

In line with the Group’s strategy of creating centres of excellence, the SHS Group relocated its international back office team to the centralised customer services function in Belfast earlier this year.

Anchored in their family values, the Group recognises that the way in which they manage their business and interact with their employees, business partners and wider community is critical to success.

The SHS Group is in excellent shape with sustained profitability from its owned and agency brands. The business will continue to focus on investment in brand development, people and extension of its portfolio through acquisitions.

Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Buying power, expertise and a strong innovation pipeline

BY MICHAEL McCORMACK, MANAGING DIRECTOR OF MUSGRAVE NI

M

usgrave was established in 1876, and is Ireland’s largest grocery and food distributor, serving over 5,000 shops across Ireland. This scale brings buying power, innovation and a pipeline of new initiatives, expertise in retail and a support structure for the independent retailer that is unrivalled.

Our people are experts in retail and committed to working with our retail partners to ensure long-term success and profitability for their stores.

Musgrave Northern Ireland comprises of the retail and wholesale divisions of Musgrave Group in Northern Ireland and supports 360 independent retailers through the SuperValu, Centra, Mace and Day-Today brands and 2,800 wholesale customers through the Marketplace brand across the Province.

This decision last year to consolidate the two divisions followed an in-depth review of our businesses in Northern Ireland as part of our aim to create a long-term sustainable business.

Musgrave employs over 900 people in the Province through both its wholesale and retail operations, and its independent retailers employ more than 5,000 people from their local communities across NI. Our intention is to run market-leading brands, which are responsive to the needs of the NI consumer, and which deliver a sustainable profitable business for its retail partners.

Following extensive consumer research last year and having engaged with our retailers, we upgraded a number of stores across our SuperValu, Centra and MACE brands with

Michael McCormack

a revised offer which included new product ranges, a new environment, refreshed communications and an updated training package.

2016 so far has seen the roll-out of more than 30 of these upgraded stores throughout Northern Ireland as well as the addition of new stores across the three retail brands.

We developed all the categories that are important to our shoppers – fruit and veg, food to go, meal solutions, coffee, bakery and free from – and each of these categories have

In Northern Ireland’s Year of Food & Drink, we’re proud to be working alongside our local retailers and suppliers in their communities to roll out a number of exciting initiatives.”

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delivered excellent sales and margin growth.

The performance of these revamped stores has been well above expectations with consumers responding by shopping more often and buying more each time they shop.

In Northern Ireland’s Year of Food & Drink, we’re proud to be working alongside our local retailers and suppliers in their communities to roll out a number of exciting initiatives across our SuperValu and Centra brands.

Each of these initiatives demonstrate Musgrave’s commitment and investment in Northern Ireland through its SuperValu and Centra stores which sell in excess of £200m of local products annually. In fact, 60% of everything sold in the stores is produced or sourced in Northern Ireland and more than 75% of all fresh ranges are sourced locally.

We are investing more than £60m over the next three years in our people, brands and business, with the aim of being Northern Ireland’s number one consumer choice in convenience shopping.

Tel: 028 9083 3040 www.ni-trucks.co.uk TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Longstanding history and partnerships throughout Northern Ireland Pictured are Jorge Lopes and Gary Simpson from Diageo NI.

D

iageo is the world’s leading premium drinks business with an outstanding collection of brands including Guinness, Harp, Smithwick’s, Carlsberg, Smirnoff, Captain Morgan, Baileys, Tanqueray and Johnnie Walker.

Its products are sold in more than 180 countries around the world and, as one of Northern Ireland’s major exporters in the

food and beverage sector, Diageo NI continues to contribute to future economic growth while remaining committed to all our customers in the on and off-trade.

Diageo employs over 300 people across three sites including the global Baileys facility at Mallusk, a bottling and packaging plant in East Belfast and the NI corporate headquarters at Capital House in Belfast

which is home to Customer Services and Credit Management for the island of Ireland.

70% of all Baileys sold worldwide is produced at the facility in Mallusk which was opened in 2003. During peak production, over 400,000 bottles per day are produced, the equivalent of 1.6 million litres of liquid produced each week. The Marshalls Road operation is responsible for the bottling, canning and packaging of Guinness, Budweiser, Carlsberg, Harp, Smithwick’s and other beers.

“I am delighted that Diageo has been recognised as one of the Top 25 Food & Drinks Companies here,” said Jorge Lopes, country director for Diageo Northern Ireland.

“We are proud of our long standing history and partnerships throughout Northern Ireland and are committed to supporting economic growth through hospitality, increased tourism and job creation. We will continue to support and provide outstanding service to all our customers through investment in our brands, in the wider economy, our community and with our strategic partners.”

Dynamic drinks company with a comprehensive portfolio D

rinks Inc. is a dynamic drinks company with a passion to provide its customers with the widest range of quality products and the highest levels of service and to be the best route to market for its brand owner partners.

Established by owner Paul Camplisson in 2001, the business has Paul Camplisson grown rapidly in recent years. With annual turnover of £56m March 2016, up 4% on the previous year, Drinks Inc. is now one of the largest and fastest growing independent drinks distributors in Ireland.

Its comprehensive portfolio of over 1,000 products covers the spirits, wines, beers and soft drinks categories. It includes many specialist products and a growing number of quality brands for which Drinks Inc. is the exclusive agent or distributor.

From its base in Belfast – ideally located right next to the main motorway network – the Drinks Inc. fleet delivers its quality products to customers throughout Ireland.

Drinks Inc’s direct sales team has strong relationships across all trade channels, and with no minimum order quantity, no delivery charges and no extra charge for split cases is equipped to offer the best product range, customer service and quality to its customers. For more information, please visit www.drinksinc.com.

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Tel: 028 9083 2232 www.star-rentals.com TOP 25 LOCAL FOOD & drinkS COMPANIES

Major investment and expansion boosts Savage & Whitten S

avage & Whitten certainly has something to shout about this year as it celebrates its centenary, with origins dating as far back as 1916. However, the business has continually evolved over the last number of years to become one of the largest independent wholesaler in Ireland.

Continual investment in both infrastructure and personnel has proved invaluable as the company has experienced phenomenal growth, especially during the last decade.

Furthermore this certainly isn’t a company that’s stands still as 2015 was yet again another significant year for major investments and expansion.

August saw the launch of S&W’s new Chilled, Fresh & Frozen Operation, which provided an additional 1,500 products to supply the Today’s store network as well as independent traders north and south of the border. This major investment has certainly come at a most critical time as the sector is experiencing a huge shift in consumer trends toward fresh foods.

Mark Windebank, managing director, told Ulster Grocer how this new professional operation provides an excellent and complete service to all its customers.

Coupled with the new chilled launch, S&W’s investments continued and September saw the move to a new state-of-the-art, purpose-built 80,000-square-foot ambient warehouse. This move created an additional 40% capacity, which the company will require for the continual growth of the business in the coming years.

Savage & Whitten is now seen as a major employer in the Newry area with employment levels almost doubling over recent years to

146 employees, along with jobs created for a further 50 people in company-owned stores.

Investment in technology has been core to the success of the business, especially the website which now accounts for almost 65% of all orders now received plus this also allows customers more time to focus on the front end of their business instead of being tied up unnecessarily. This online facility allows customers to view 6000-plus pictorial lines, giving them access to online statements, invoices and order history at a time convenient to them.

A large part of the phenomenal growth has been attributable to the huge success of the Today’s symbol during the last six years. Since launching the first Today’s symbol store at the end of 2009, there are currently 110 stores in Northern Ireland operating under the Today’s Local, Extra and Express fascia plus a further 11 stores in the Republic of Ireland. Michael Skelton, sales director, told UG the company also has huge expansion plans for the symbol in the South.

The success of the Today’s symbol has not only been attributable to the No Fees, Non Contractual approach but more importantly to the support services given to retailers such as a full store development package including imagery, EPOS, category management, marketing, and sales support for each store.

S&W is delighted to announce an industry first with the launch of the BIG DL App (downloadable via Smart phones) which allows retailers to engage with consumers to provide a bird’s eye view of the best deals on the high street. Today’s symbol stores are now offering exclusive deals via the BIG DL App. This allows retailers to reach a demographic

August saw the launch of S&W’s new Chilled, Fresh & Frozen Operation, which provided an additional 1,500 products to supply the Today’s store network as well as independent traders north and south.”

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The BIG DL App allows retailers to engage with consumers to provide a bird’s eye view of the best deals on the high street.

Savage & Whitten Managing Director Mark Windebank.

which is more digitally response. This will also help increase footfall and revenue, with the added option to win prizes on a daily basis and keep consumers engaged.

Mark Windebank has enshrined a strong focus on customer service and often quotes the need to listen to our customers. With customer services always being at the core of S&W Wholesale, this was recognised earlier this year as S&W scooped one of the FWD Gold Medal Awards in London for Wholesale Service to Retailers. This award recognises the implementation of improved customer service in terms of business advice and support to retailers, as well as store standards, customer education and overall understanding for the needs of the retail customer.

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Todays Advert A4 Ulster Grocer Yearbook Jan 16.indd 1

11/01/2016 22:06:56

Get hooked on superb fish and seafood

BY MICHELE SHIRLOW, CHIEF EXECUTIVE, FOOD NI

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ear of Food & Drink enters July with a focus on the outstandingly fresh and tasty products from of our Seas, Rivers and Loughs. Many retailers, of course, are already sourcing some seafood that’s harvested by our trawlers in Kilkeel, Ardglass and Portavogie.

Furthermore, June saw the successful launch of Eat-Eel, a unique initiative to showcase one of our three EU Protected Geographic Indicator products, the Lough Neagh Eel, by the Lough Neagh Partnership.

Top chef Danni Barry of EIPIC in Belfast provided a range of highly creative eel ‘tasters’ during the launch of the campaign in Love Fish restaurant. And Simon Dougan included eel on his menu for the splendid Great Taste Award dinner in Clandeboye Lodge.

The quality of our fish and seafood is not always fully appreciated particularly by shoppers and diners. We have, I believe, some of the finest seafood available anywhere in the world, the outstanding quality of which has long been recognised in other parts of Europe and indeed further afield.

You’ll find salmon from Glenarm, for instance, on the menus of high-end restaurants and hotels from San Francisco to Hong Kong and from London to Dubai. It’s also become the preferred choice for fish lovers at Fortnum and Mason, renowned as the ‘Queen’s Grocer’. Chances are our fresh and smoked salmon ends up on the finest china plates in the ‘Royal Palaces’.

Lough Neagh Eels have also been listed by Fortnum and Mason. Over many decades, virtually all the eels were prized by foodies in Holland and Germany. I am delighted to say that they are featuring increasingly on menus here.

A new smoked eel product has just been launched by the fishermen’s co-operative as part of a strategy to boost returns for families around the lough by adding greater value.

The lough is also home to pollen, another delicious fish that for years has been exported to markets including Switzerland.

And there are lots of other opportunities for retailers interested in expanding their

fish and seafood offering to engage with the local industry. In addition to longstanding white fish varieties, the industry offers an amazing range of shellfish including oysters from Killough, Carlingford Lough and Lough Foyle that are prized by restaurants along the Champs-Élysées in Paris.

Fresh and cooked langoustines from Strangford Lough are sold by Carrefour and other retailers in Paris and other parts of France. Mussels, scallops and crabs are also shipped from Kilkeel to discerning customers in Europe.

Holiday makers from here have been amazed to find our lobsters on the menus in Spain, Portugal and Italy. It’s a fact that much of our seafood has been shipped to markets in Paris and Barcelona for ages, because it’s exceptional and is sourced from some of the cleanest environments in the world.

Crab claws from Strangford are served as a delicacy in restaurants in Seoul, South Korea and even in sushi bars in Tokyo! Our seaweed is enjoyed by diners in restaurants in Germany, France, Sweden and Japan. We’ve exported dulse as far as the Falkland Islands!

My hope is that showcasing our seas, rivers and loughs will lead to a greater interest among both retailers and shoppers in our superb fish and seafood and lead to the recognition the industry deserves for producing such exceptional flavours and quality.

Oysters launched by Rooney Fish in Northern Ireland

S

hellfish processor Rooney Fish is to launch oysters, in a major diversification of the business necessitated by reduced catches of nephrops.

Based at Kilkeel in Co Down, the company is producing oysters from its Pacific oyster farm in the pristine waters of Carlingford Lough for customers worldwide under Millbay Oysters.

The family-owned and managed business is Northern Ireland’s most successful exporter of a wide range of shellfish.

“We’ve been exporting fish and shellfish for many years all over the world and have built up a strong customer base, particularly in foodservice, for all our shellfish products,” said Andrew Rooney,

8 • •Ulster 3646 UlsterGrocer Grocer| JANUARY | JANUARY2011 2011

commercial director.

“Our experience of this market and contacts there encouraged us to explore opportunities to supply oysters. We took a decision about a further diversification of our business about five years ago to start our own oyster farm at Millbay on Carlingford, which is one the cleanest stretches of water in the British Isles.

“The sheltered bay is ideal for growing oysters. We set up the oyster farm, which covers almost 19 hectares, in 2013, and invested in the necessary depuration and grading equipment. “The new oysters, grown from seed in our own farm, have attracted tremendous interest among our existing customer base and others we’ve already spoken to about the product.”

Year of Food & Drink

continues with Love Dairy and Seas, Rivers & Loughs N

MAY 27-JUNE 5 Rathlin Sounds Maritime Festival Ballycastle Town/ Rathlin JUNE 2 A Taste of Northern Ireland Gourmet Dinner 7pm, The Belfast Harbour Commissioners Office, Corporation JUNE 3 Beer & Cheese Night 7pm, Indie Fude, The Courtyard, Comber JUNE 4 Argory Food Market 11am-4pm, The Argory, Derrycaw Road, Moy

JUNE 18-19 Bank of Ireland Open Farm Weekend Farms across Northern Ireland

June 18-19 Bushmills Salmon & Whiskey Festival Sat 11am-6pm, Sunday 1-6pm, Bushmills JUNE 17-25 Comber Earlies Fringe Festival Including Cheese & Wine Evening (June 24) at Indie Fude – 7pm and Comber Earlies Festival (June 25) JUNE 25-26 The Irish Game Fair & Fine Food Festival Shane’s Castle Estate, Randalstown Road, Co Antrim JUNE 25-JULY 2 Eel – Eat Food events in restaurants throughout Northern Ireland

JULY 2 River to Lough Festival Noon-5pm, Antrim Castle Gardens, Randalstown Road, Antrim

JUNE & JULY EVENTS

orthern Ireland Year of Food & Drink 2016 is a celebration of everything that makes local produce so good including epic landscapes, time-honoured traditions and the people and producers behind its food heritage.

The theme for June is Love Dairy, while July celebrates Seas, Rivers & Loughs.

JULY 13-17 The Soma Festival for Artisan Food and Craft Beer Upper Square, Castlewellan JULY 14-17 Foyle Maritime Festival Ebrington Square, Queens Quay, Derry/ Londonderry JULY 16-18 Dalriada Festival Glenarm Castle JULY 27-31 NI Open Food Festival 10am-5:30pm, Galgorm Castle Golf Club

The theme for AUGUST is Love NI Meat. For more information on getting involved in Year of Food & Drink 2016, visiT WWW.DISCOVERIRELAND.COM

8 36• •Ulster UlsterGrocer Grocer| JANUARY | JANUARY2011 2011

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Fall in love with local dairy this June Dale Farm explains why NI Year of Food & Drink 2016’s ‘Love Dairy’ month is the perfect occasion to sample their range of innovative new products

A

s a farmer-owned cooperative built on the hard work and dedication of more than 1,300 dairy farmers in Northern Ireland, Dale Farm is keen to celebrate its extensive range of fresh dairy and ice cream products during ‘Love Dairy’ month.

With much loved brands including Dale Farm, Dromona, Spelga, Mullins and Fivemiletown, Northern Ireland’s largest dairy company will be launching an exciting new range of consumer products during the month which demonstrate the company’s ongoing investment in innovation and product development.

Employing over 1,000 local jobs across its five Northern Ireland manufacturing sites, Dale Farm is renowned for its high quality and wide range of dairy products which help support local farmers and provide regional jobs. As evidence of its long-term commitment to the local dairy industry Dale Farm has invested £40m in its local processing plants to expand its cheese, fresh milk and butter capability.

Cheese production has more than doubled in the last two years with Dale Farm now being one of the largest producers of cheddar cheese in the UK. The award-winning 48

Dromona range is being extended to include Dromona Extra Mature (350g) and Dromona Lighter Mature (350g) and the Dromona sliced range is be relaunched in 160g packs.

Also fresh to the market is a fat-free, high in protein Dale Farm Quark which was recipient of a gold award at the most recent World Cheese Awards. The product can be incorporated into a variety of savoury or sweet dishes fulfilling the needs of the health-conscious consumer. Meanwhile, due to consumer demand following a successful launch, a grab-and-go size bottle of 500ml Dale Farm Protein Milk will also hit shelves to offer consumers a fresh healthy dairy product with 50% extra natural milk protein.

The only fresh protein milk product to be produced in the UK, its nutritional benefits – including contributing to the growth and maintenance of muscle mass – are endorsed

by Ulster Rugby’s inclusion of the milk in their ‘Food First’ programme.

Similarly, the introduction of a new pineapple flavour to the Spelga Low Fat Bio range will offer a light and delicious option for consumers to enjoy. It joins a newly improved recipe for the Spelga Cottage Cheese range – available in natural, pineapple

and onion & chive – with revitalised packaging providing improved standout on shelf.

Focused on continually building its brands, and ultimately sales for its dairy farmers and retail partners, Dale Farm’s purchase of the Fivemiletown Creamery in May 2014 further demonstrates the company’s strategy to support the local dairy industry and to grow its branded portfolio of quality consumer products. Boasting improved sales and growth since the acquisition, Fivemiletown’s awardwinning handmade cheeses – including the Ballybrie, Ballyblue, Ballyoak and the smoked Oakwood cheddar – reinforce Fivemiletown’s reputation as Northern Ireland’s top speciality cheese brand. With over 100 years of expertise, heritage and tradition, the packaging of this much-loved range of artisan products has been refreshed to give an outstanding on-shelf presence.

In the coming months, the new and existing products in the Dale Farm brand portfolio will be supported by a heavyweight media campaign to reinforce the relationship between farmer and consumer. Dale Farm farmers don’t just milk the cows – they own the company, and are key to what makes Northern Ireland dairy produce unique. Consumers can rest assured that by purchasing Dale Farm brands they are helping local farmers and their families which, alongside the world-renowned dairy products, is surely a recipe for a long lasting love affair throughout ‘Love Dairy’ month and beyond.

FOCUS ON ICE CREAM

Unilever’s ice-cream selection sure to melt hearts this summer Summer 2016 looks like a sensationally stellar season for ice cream lovers thanks to a host of exciting product launches from Unilever

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unnier spells have officially arrived and HB has upped the ante with the perfect snack solutions for every occasion. New to the 2016 lineup are the Feast Snack Bar (underneath its nutty, chocolatey exterior shell lies irresistible peanut butter ice cream with a soft caramel core), Twister Blackcurrant (gluten-free and made with ripe, juicy blackcurrants then twisted with strawberry fruit ice and vanilla ice cream), Calippo Cola (a fusion of iced water charged with cola), and Solero Red Berry (a refreshing blend of strawberry ice cream enriched with a raspberry swirl and covered in a delicious raspberry coating). Back by popular demand, HB’s much-loved Mint Cornetto is now available for those who yearn for the taste of this retro classic.

What’s more, Unilever also has the inside scoop on soft served ice cream this summer with a selection of new and all-time favourite delights set to tantalise taste buds across the nation. The Gelateria Carte D’Or scooping experience has been created to convey the premium feel and sophistication of an authentic Italian Gelateria. This premium ice cream comes in a choice of palate-pleasing flavours including, new for 2016, creamy Coconut and sumptuous White Chocolate.

From improved energy consumption cabinets,

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to branding and operations support – Gelateria Carte D’Or promises a complete scoop solution that offers a high margin and short payback period.

A retro brand that is sure to evoke childhood memories for some, HB’s iconic Mr. Whippy has made its return! A trusted and recognised brand – consumers will love the nostalgic taste of this classic favourite.

HB Happiness Stations offer the ultimate in-store destination to drive footfall and engagement

as customers can create their own unique ice cream with their favourite premium toppings. In addition, new toppings and seasonal recipe Swirls will be added to HB’s exciting softserve range for 2016.

Magnum has introduced the indulgent Magnum Doubles range in Peanut Butter, Caramel and Chocolate.

Combining a thick, cracking outer shell of chocolate, each Magnum Double is dipped in a smooth and sumptuous sauce over delicious Magnum ice cream. Magnum Doubles will be supported by a heavyweight campaign from April through to August.

Ben & Jerry’s has moved into the snacking segment this year, with The ‘Wich, an on-the-go, hand finished and individually wrapped ice cream sandwich. The ‘Wich perfectly sand’Wiches two of Ben & Jerry’s favourite Fairtrade flavours – Cookie Dough or Chocolate Fudge Brownie – between two soft-baked chocolatey chip cookies. To ensure ice cream lovers can enjoy the ice cream and cookie combo whenever and wherever, the ‘Wich up is also available in a Cookie Dough ‘Wich multipack, a Son of a ‘Wich sharing snack pack (featuring eight mini ‘Wiches) and the euphoric S’Wich up pint.

Please contact your local Unilever sales representative for more details.

Tastes like time to restock the cabinet 108181 HB Innovations Brochure 2016 cover portrait.indd 1

17/02/2016 17:12

YEAR OF FOOD & DRINK – SEAS, RIVERS & LOUGHS

Campaign aims to boost sales of Lough Neagh Eels A major campaign is underway to grow sales of Lough Neagh Eels in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and in Britain.

One of just three Northern Ireland foods to achieve EU Protected Geographic Indicator (PGI) status, Lough Neagh Eels have recently been listed by Fortnum and Mason in London. They are produced by a fishermen’s co-operative on Lough Neagh, the largest freshwater lake in the British Isles.

Lough Neagh is home to the largest wild eel fishery in Europe and the eels produced are regarded by processors as the best available on the Continent – a reflection of the high quality natural feeding available to the fish in the lough. The co-operative operates a sustainability programme to preserve eel stocks.

The company has also just launched a smoked eel product as part of a diversification into added value foods. It already supplies eels to customers in Amsterdam and London.

The campaign to boost sales includes an agreement with Larousse Foods in Dublin to distribute the fresh and smoked eels to its foodservice clients, mostly leading restaurants, across the Republic of Ireland.

The elite of Northern Ireland restaurants have signed up to the first ever restaurant week aimed at celebrating Lough Neagh Eel because eels are tasty.

In Northern Ireland, many of the leading restaurants have signed up to support an Eat-Eel week from June 25 to July 2 that’s being spearheaded by the community-based Lough Neagh Partnership.

Eimear Kearney of Lough Neagh Partnership launches the first ever restaurant week celebrating Lough Neagh Eel. Eel-Eat will run in restaurants throughout Northern Ireland from June 25 to July 2.

“What better way to celebrate our unique product than to dedicate a unique celebration to it,” said Conor Corr of Lough Neagh Partnership.

“We’re tying in our inaugural Eel-Eat restaurant week with the Tourism NI Year of Food & Drink and believe it will be a firm economic driver for the local economy.”

Challenge issued for global food sector to increase transparency

I

n an effort to accelerate the food sector’s movement towards improved long-term future sustainability, the Global Salmon Initiative (GSI), supported by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and The Sustainable Trade Initiative (IDH), has announced a challenge to other food sectors to join them in exposing it all when it comes to key sustainability and environmental data.

“Truth is an essential ingredient of healthy change. Transparency not only accelerates change, it also helps drive it in

a productive direction,” said Avrim Lazar, principle consultant to the Global Salmon Initiative. “We all know that we need to accelerate the pace of change if we are going to provide a sustainable diet for the nine billion people. At the GSI, we have made transparency at the global, regional and company level one of the pillars of our drive to significantly improve sustainability.

Our experience has been that by letting the sun in, it opens the doors to rapid progress.”

The Global Salmon Initiative is a leadership group of 12 global farmed salmon companies who are committed to improving the sustainability of their operations and providing a healthy and sustainable product. The GSI group has recently published its second annual Sustainability Report which features data across 14 key sustainability and environmental indicators, for all 12 member companies across the past three years. The report is available on the GSI website.

Duvillaun Fine Foods launches pure Irish sea salt P

Jane Harnett with the new Irish sea salt.

52

ure, natural sea salt from a remote island in the Atlantic has been launched by Northern Ireland’s Harnett’s Oils under new artisan business Duvillaun Fine Foods.

Based at Waringstown, Co Down, Harnett’s Oils has a longstanding reputation for pioneering award-winning, cold-pressed oils such as hemp and rapeseed.

“We hand-harvest the sea water from around the island which is known for having some of the cleanest waters in the world and is a protected area,” said Jane Harnett, director of Harnett’s Oils. “At present the sea-water is then processed and packaged on our Waring Estate, Co Down,

by Harnett’s, producing our very own artisan salt from what is probably the purest water on the planet.

“We have a number of ideas for the Duvillaun brand in the next few years so hopefully this is our first product of many innovative products. For instance, we are planning to develop Duvillaun lamb.”

Duvillaun, known as the Black island, is an uninhabited island north of Achill Island and South of the Inishkeas in the Atlantic Ocean in Co Mayo in the Republic of Ireland.

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with

AGRI-FOOD NEWS

UFU announces 2016 schools competition winners

Representatives from UFU, ASDA and Bank of Ireland show the winning entries.

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he Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU), in partnership with Bank of Ireland Open Farm Weekend and Asda, has announced the winners of the 2016 ‘A Year of Food and Farming’ schools competition which welcomed over 5,000 entries this year.

The competition, sponsored by Asda, was open to all nursery, primary and special schools across Northern Ireland. Pupils were asked

to put their creative skills to the test around the theme, ‘A Year of Food and Farming’ with a range of prizes up for grabs. This year, the winning schools will also visited their nearest participating open farm on June 17 to learn more about the ‘farm to fork’ journey.

“Tying in with the 2016 Year of Food & Drink, our objective was to engage with the kids and get them thinking about farming and the hard work that goes into producing the first class food they eat,” said Barclay Bell, president of UFU. “It was evident from the entries received that a considerable amount of time and effort has been put into this year’s competition from both the pupils and teachers and I would like to thank everyone that took part in the competition this year.”

Joe McDonald, corporate affairs manager at Asda NI, said: “As a sponsor of Bank of Ireland Open Farm Weekend and champion of Northern Ireland’s agri-food sector, we were delighted to support the schools’ competition this year. It is so important that the next generation understands where their food comes from, as well as the abundance of local food and drink producers we have in Northern Ireland. The Year of Food and Farming competition is a great way to encourage school children to learn more about how our food makes its way from farms across Northern Ireland, to the supermarket shelves and onto kitchen tables.”

PM confirms reduction targets for antibiotics in livestock farming T he European Medicine Agency’s (EMA) has failed to recommend a ban on the use of colistin, a last-resort human antibiotic, in livestock farming [1].

This is despite the EMA’s assessment in a new report that resistance to colistin is ‘likely’ to be transferring from farm animals to humans in the European Union, says Alliance to Save our Antibiotics.

The EMA’s recommendation comes as David Cameron announced new measures to tackle antibiotic resistance, including strict oversight - and possible bans - on farm use of antibiotics which are critical for human health, such as colistin, and

a target for reducing the overall use of antibiotics.

Instead of banning colistin use in livestock, the EMA wants a target to be set which would result in an overall reduction in use of about two thirds. However, even if the target is achieved, over 100 times more colistin could still be used in farm animals than in humans in the EU. The emergence of colistin resistance is considered to be a major step towards completely untreatable human infections.

Despite being toxic, colistin has become a last-resort drug used for serious human infections that do not respond to

treatment with other antibiotics due to resistance.

“The European Medicine Agency is being grossly irresponsible and putting people’s lives at risk by supporting the mass medication of farm animals with a last-resort human antibiotic,” said Cóilín Nunan, scientific adviser to the Alliance to Save our Antibiotics. “While we welcome the Government’s decision to tackle the overuse of farm antibiotics, if the Prime Minister is serious about protecting critically important antibiotics, he must immediately ban the use of colistin in farm animals.”

UFU comments on successful EU Referendum Debate A head of the EU referendum vote, the Ulster Farmers’ Union facilitated a debate of the remain and leave arguments for the local farming and food industries.

The speakers were Sir Peter Kendall, a former president of the NFU, for remain and former DEFRA minister, Owen Paterson, for leave.

UFU President Barclay Bell said the aim was to allow the industry to hear both sides of the argument and to have their questions answered, as the campaign enters its final stages. “Our position has always been that we would not tell our members how they should vote,” he said. “We believe that in the 56

absence of a compelling reason to leave the EU, the status quo is better for agriculture – but the 12,000 farming families we represent will make up their own minds.”

He added that people had enjoyed the cut and thrust of a spirited debate and that, in staging it as an open meeting, the UFU has met its aim of helping people make an informed decision on a once-in-a-generation vote that will shape the future of agriculture.

“What we can promise is that regardless of the outcome of the vote on June 23, the UFU will continue to work to secure the best possible deal for Northern Ireland’s most important industry,” said Bell.

Pictured at the EU Referendum Debate hosted by the Ulster Farmers’ Union are Victor Chestnutt, UFU deputy president; Owen Paterson, Vote Leave campaign representative and former DEFRA minister; Barclay Bell, UFU president; John McCallister, Stronger In campaign representative; and Ivor Ferguson, UFU deputy president.

BALMORAL SHOW REVIEW

Food and drink sector urged to grasp long-term opportunities L

ong-term opportunities for Northern Ireland’s food and drink sector far outweigh the current challenges it faces, Ulster Bank’s head of Northern Ireland emphasised at one of the Balmoral Show’s flagship events.

Speaking at the Ulster Bank lunch in the show’s main marquee, Richard Donnan said that, with weekly sales of some £175m according to the latest Richard Donnan, left, Ulster Bank head of Northern Ireland figures, the food and drink is pictured with Neal Kelly, centre, director of Fresh Foods at Henderson Group, the speaker at the event, and Sir Howard Davies, manufacturing sub sector is chairman of Ulster Bank’s parent company, RBS. an incredible Northern Ireland success story and has the potential to further elevate its growing international reputation.

Donnan was joined by speakers at the event including Neal Kelly, director of Fresh Foods at Henderson Group, which employs over 2,500 people in Northern Ireland and includes wholesale, retail and foodservice businesses.

Donnan said that recent years had brought considerable challenges in relation to commodity prices, exchange rates and other issues, but that the food and drink sector remained a key driver of the Northern Ireland economy and has the potential to become even more globally recognised.

“Northern Ireland is blessed with fantastic natural resources and has talented people and businesses who are adding enormous value through innovation and an intimate understanding of their markets,” he said.

“With the global population rising and developing countries becoming wealthier, demand for what Northern Ireland’s food and drink sector produces will only grow. It may not feel like it to everyone now, but the current challenges will also pass and the industry is well placed to capitalise.”

Kelly said: “In order to be successful, we at Hendersons forced ourselves not to fear change and found that being adaptive and moving with our market has led to significant growth across all aspects of our business. I would strongly encourage everyone here today to avoid stagnation by placing more focus on innovation and have the courage to take risks in order to allow your business the freedom to flourish.

“What’s more, we have found that our dedication to local produce has had real resonance with our customers, who are paying closer attention than ever to the food that goes on their plates.”

Asda and Seafish lift trade stand awards at Balmoral A

Pictured on the Seafish stand are Dr Lynn Gilmore, Jen Reid and Darina Fyffe, Food NI with RUAS President Billy Robson and Trade Stand Judge Denis Dooley from New Forest Show.

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sda was awarded Best Overall Trade Stand at the Balmoral Show 2016, while Best Trade Stand displaying local food went to Seafish with The Krazi Baker gaining the reserve award.

Other trade stand awards at the 2016 show included Lely (farm and horticultural equipment); McCormick MacNaughton (other equipment and vehicles); The National Trust (within the Pavilions); and Moore Concrete (not displaying equipment or food).

Tesco continues sponsorship support at Balmoral Show T

esco has been a dedicated supporter of the Balmoral Show for many years, becoming a platinum sponsor in 2012. Its commitment to the Show continued this year, through sponsorship of the Children’s Farm, the Commercial Cattle section and the Balmoral Show Showmakers.

Sean Largey commercial manager, Tesco NI, along with Jenny McNeill and Lorraine Donaldson are pictured at Ark Open Farm ahead of this year’s Show.

Lidl Green Barn draws in the visitors at Balmoral

Visitors enjoyed the Lidl Green Barn at this year’s Balmoral Show.

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he Balmoral Show 2016 marked Lidl’s fourth year as an exhibitor at the show and second year as platinum sponsor of the popular agricultural event.

Visitors to the Lidl Green Barn were treated to cooking demonstrations with celebrity chef and brand ambassador Ian Orr and live performances by music sensation Marty Mone. Guests were also given the opportunity to meet some of Lidl’s suppliers and sample a wide range of local produce and the chance to learn more about Lidl’s Community Works initiative.

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EXPORT NEWS

Irwin’s secures Waitrose listing

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rwin’s has secured a contract to supply its new Rankin Selection Cinnamon and Raisin Toasty Loaf, a twist on traditional Irish fruit bread, to 150 Waitrose stores.

The new fruit loaf was developed specifically for toasting in response to consumer demand for a more indulgent bread in the morning goods

category, according to the Portadown-based company.

Waitrose currently stocks the seven-strong Rankin Selection range in its stores, which equates to more than two million packs annually.

“We are delighted to secure this new business with Waitrose for the Rankin Selection brand,” said Stefan Szymura, senior national account manager for Irwin’s. “The brand continues to be the best-selling traditional Irish bread range in Great Britain, with sales growing by 6% year on year.”

In addition to the Cinnamon and Raisin Toasty Loaf, the Rankin Selection range includes Irish Buttermilk Sliced Sodas, Brown Soda Bread, Stoneground Wheaten, Potato Slims, Barmbrack and Rankin Fruit Loaf.

The range is available in other major retailers across GB, including Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s.

Waitrose to launch UK’s first chicken providing a source of omega 3 W

aitrose is introducing a UK first, a Moy Park-supplied chicken providing a source of omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids which, as a key part of a balanced diet, help to maintain normal heart, brain and vision function.

Research undertaken in 2013 indicated people with the highest levels of omega 3 had a 40% reduction in cardiovascular related deaths compared to people with the lowest levels. Optimum health benefits are obtained from a daily intake of 250mg of omega 3 fatty acids as part of a healthy balanced diet and lifestyle.

This unique innovation has been brought to market by Waitrose in partnership with its chicken supplier Moy Park and animal nutrition specialist Devenish Nutrition.

The project, which has taken a decade to bring to market, came about as a result of concerns within the medical community that consumers were not including enough

sources of omega 3 in their diets; this is of particular concern in children, who often do not like oily fish. To help improve intake, the idea was conceived of developing a more popular protein containing a source of omega 3. Chicken is Waitrose’s top selling protein.

“Food and farming innovation are important focus areas for Moy Park and we are proud to be the first poultry company

in the UK to produce chicken enriched with omega 3,” said Justin Coleman, Moy Park agriculture development manager.

“Including omega 3 in the chickens’ natural diet makes this already healthy food even healthier.”

Dr Joanne Lunn, Waitrose nutritionist, said: “This chicken will make a really useful contribution to our customers’ omega 3 intake as we know it can be hard to consume enough omega 3 from other sources, especially if you are not a fan of fish.”

Initial trials have demonstrated that people eating enriched chicken for just five weeks have increased levels of Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids and see measurable effects on their cardiovascular health. A total of 10 different new products, including whole chickens, breast fillets and thigh meat will go on sale from June 15, priced from £3.59 per kilo.

Down companies milk success through innovation A

round Noon, the Newry-based specialist in premium sandwiches and snacks, has linked up with Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt in Bangor to develop an innovative breakfast ‘on the go’ product for clients in the Republic of Ireland.

The new product, part of Around Noon’s quirky ‘A Bit on the Side’ portfolio of quality snacks, features Clandeboye Greek Style Yoghurt with layers of nut free granola and a rich fruit compote developed by the Newry business. The compote is currently available in mango and strawberry flavours in a handy tub.

“We saw a gap in the market for a top quality and richly flavoured snack product for breakfast and other times in the day,” said David Graham, executive head chef at Around Noon.

“Flavour was key as far as we were concerned. All the components had to be excellent especially the yoghurt. This focus on product quality and taste underpins our approach to all our products.

We opted for Clandeboye Greek Style because it’s a strained yoghurt which provides a thick and creamy taste.”

Bryan Boggs, Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt’s general manager, said: “We were delighted to work in partnership with Around Noon in helping to create the new snack pots featuring our think and creamy Greek style yoghurt.”

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David Graham, Around Noon’s executive head chef, with Bryan Boggs, Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt’s general manager.

MARKETING NEWS

Irwin’s Bakery ‘scores’ with Asda for Euro 2016 A

head of the UEFA Euro 2016 Championship kick-off, Irwin’s ‘teamed up’ with Asda to launch two Howell’s football-themed products, Howell’s Football Biscuits and Football Joeys, which will be available in all Asda stores across Northern Ireland.

The Portadown-based bakery will also offer Asda NI shoppers the chance to Meet the Manager via an exclusive in store competition.

“We are delighted to secure this new deal for our Howell’s products with Asda - as well as joining with the retailer to offer customers a unique VIP football experience,” said Chris Moore, national account manager, Irwin’s Bakery. “As a family-owned business that has been baking bread for more than 100 years, we are passionate about local, grassroots sports and the importance of promoting a healthy lifestyle.

“Irwin’s is a long-time supporter of the Irish FA as title sponsor of Pictured are Chris Moore, national account manager, Irwin’s the Irish FA Nutty Krust Holiday camps – and the new products and in Bakery, Northern Ireland Manager Michael O’Neill and Billy store competition are the perfect way to celebrate what is going to be Clelland, quality manager Northern Ireland, Asda. an exciting summer of football.”

The new Howell’s products are available in all Asda NI stores now, and the in store competition runs until June 22.

One winner and their guest from each of the 16 Asda stores will win a VIP visit to Windsor Park in October, which will include a meet-and-greet with Northern Ireland Manager Michael O’Neill. One runner-up from each store will win an international team jersey of his or her choice.

KETTLE Bites supported with £1.5m consumer campaign

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hroughout May and June, Kettle Foods is supporting the KETTLE Bites range, with the aim of educating target consumers about the product’s great taste while also offering a lighter eat for everyday snacking.

To raise awareness and prompt trial, a wide ranging consumer campaign is running that includes print, poster and digital advertising, bus wraps, extensive product sampling and national social media and PR activity.

Aimed at consumers during the pre-summer holiday diet season, print advertising is appearing in women’s weeklies and monthly magazines. Digital display advertising is also targeting consumers throughout the day, when they are browsing the web and starting to feel a little peckish, on a host of sites including dailymail.co.uk, bbcgoodfood.com and mumsnet.com.

The ads highlight the brand’s key attributes of great flavour combined with under 100 calories. In addition, half a million samples are being distributed to health conscious individuals targeting those looking for something lighter when snacking but who don’t want to compromise at all on taste.

“KETTLE Chips is recognised as the original premium crisp brand which created the sharing category almost 30 years ago,” said Andrew Slamin, marketing director at Kettle Foods. “In addition to our core range, we believe that there is a new opportunity towards healthier eating where consumers are looking for snacks that deliver great taste, but for specific occasions want products that are lighter than traditional fried crisps.”

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New Bodyform campaign challenges the ‘last taboo’ for women in sport

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n a move that has secured support from some of the UK’s leading sports organisations, Bodyform is continuing its mission to break down category taboos with a bold new strategy to drive consumer education around the menstrual cycle – the ‘last taboo’ for women in sport.

Leading sports governing bodies, influencers and medical professionals have all pledged their support for a global initiative to drive conversation, knowledge and understanding of how menstruation affects women when they exercise.

Bodyform’s latest campaign delivers just this.

Titled Red.Fit, the campaign continues to inspire and empower women to live fearlessly by providing them with the practical tools, products and know-how to enable them become more mentally and physically motivated throughout their menstrual cycle.

“The Red.Fit campaign is the perfect extension of our Live Fearless brand strategy,” said Nicola Coronado, marketing director at Bodyform.

“Menstruation really is the ‘last taboo’ for women in sport, simply because we lack knowledge and understanding of this subject area. Using our partnership with St. Mary’s University, Twickenham and UCL will help us to challenge these category stereotypes and transform the consumer mindset when it comes to the perceived barriers around periods and exercise.”

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TOBACCO NEWS

New Mayfair LEPs launched for summer L

imited edition packs (LEPs) for JTI’s mid-price cigarette brand Mayfair will be available from mid-June in King Size and Sky Blue King Size 19s*. The packs will be available across all channels for approximately four weeks or while stocks last.

Reaffirming its position as the UK’s number one mid-price cigarette brand, this is the latest limited edition pack in a long line of successful Mayfair LEPs. Celebrating the brand’s heritage in creativity, the new packs feature a triumphant, multi-coloured crest.

Mayfair holds 53% of the mid-price cigarette market, accounting for 8.4% of total ready-made cigarette sales.

The second largest brand in the UK, Mayfair secured over £1bn in retail sales last year, outselling consumer favorites like Coca-Cola. * Mayfair King Size 19s and Mayfair Sky Blue King Size 19s only – Stats from Nielsen Market Track YTD April 16 and Market Track to April 16.

JTI develops new app J

TI has expanded its digital offering with the creation of a new JTI Advance app. Designed with retailer needs at the forefront of its functionality, the app features an innovative barcode scanner and fingerprint sign-in, shopping list, margin calculator and training modules.

Launching this month (June), the roll out of the app is perfectly timed to support retailers ahead of TPD2 changes and provides retailers with an easy way to access vital category information and up-to-date industry and product news.

The barcode scanner allows retailers to scan all tobacco and e-cigarette products, providing them with the latest product information and retailers can directly add scanned products to their digital personal shopping list.

Another added feature of the app is its fingerprint sign-in technology which allows retailers to access the app quickly and securely.

TRANSPORT NEWS

Potential economic benefits of upgrading A6 cannot be ignored

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he upgrading of the A6 between Derry~Londonderry and Belfast could save goods vehicle operators around £70 for each return journey by a 44-tonne articulated vehicle, clearly demonstrating the potential economic benefits of such improvements, according to the Freight Transport Association (FTA).

The long overdue upgrade is considered one of the biggest problems faced by goods vehicle operators due to congestion and delays on what is regarded as a key strategic trade route.

These comments were made by Seamus Leheny, policy manager for the Freight Transport Association in Northern Ireland, in a letter to six recently elected Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) who represent the Foyle constituency and now sit in the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Whilst acknowledging that the new Infrastructure Minister Chris Hazzard has emphasised his commitment to the delivery of improvements to the A6, FTA is anxious to ensure that politicians in the Foyle constituency are united and determined to ensure the upgrade is delivered during this term of government.

The letter was sent to Mark H Durkan – SDLP; Colum Eastwood – SDLP; Eamonn McCann – PBP; Gary Middleton – DUP; Martin McGuinness – Sinn Fein; and Raymond McCartney – Sinn Fein.

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FTA tells Minister ‘Let’s get the economy moving’

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he Freight Transport Association (FTA) plans to write to Northern Ireland’s newly-appointed Infrastructure Minister highlighting key projects that are a priority for the logistics industry.

Chris Hazzard was named as Minister for the Department for Infrastructure, combining many of the responsibilities previously managed by the now defunct Department of Environment (DOE) and Department for Regional Development (DRD).

The DOE was previously responsible for road safety, Operator licensing, roadside enforcement, vehicle testing and driver licensing while the DRD looked after road infrastructure, sustainable and public transport as well as local ports.

“FTA is pleased that all the transport-related departments in NI are now under the one department and Minister, meaning greater coherence between everything transport-related in local government,” said Seamus Leheny, FTA’s Policy and Membership manager for Northern Ireland.

Leheny said FTA would be writing to the new Minister outlining two key priorities: upgrades of the A6 Belfast to L’Derry road (see left) and the York Street Interchange in Belfast.

BUSINESS NEWS

Economy Minister congratulates Invest NI on 2015/16 performance

Pictured are, from left, Mark Ennis, Invest NI chairman, Economy Minister Simon Hamilton and Alastair Hamilton, Invest NI chief executive.

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conomy Minister Simon Hamilton has congratulated Invest Northern Ireland on their 2015/16 performance as their end of year results are published.

“Invest NI has continued to deliver for the Northern Ireland economy, as its latest performance results show,” he said. “In 2015-2016 the agency once again exceeded its targets, promoting 5,550 new jobs across Northern Ireland, against a target of 4,000. This will secure £341m of employment-related investment into our economy, against a target of £220m.

Ulster Carpets MD Nick Coburn named Chamber president

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“This is a positive outturn when you consider that responsibility for local business starts has transferred to the new Council structures and Invest NI is no longer able to support job creation as part of large company expansions.

“Investment in research and development, and wider innovation, is also crucial to meeting the ever changing needs of the customer.

Invest NI support helped secure £70m of investment in research and development in 2015-2016, surpassing the target by 55%.

“These figures mean that, over the five-year period of the last Programme for Government, Invest NI helped businesses promote nearly 42,500 new jobs, a 39% increase on the previous five years, and 70% over the original Executive target of 25,000 new jobs. It is also encouraging that, across the five years, 64% of jobs, and 60% of total investment has been outside of Belfast.”

“While the Executive finalises the detail around the new Programme for Government, an interim set of targets has been agreed for Invest NI which will provide focus to its work to support business and economic growth.”

2016-2017 Interim Targets include 4,000-6,000 new jobs promoted; £100m-£170m investment in R&D and wider innovation; and £30m-£40m investment in skills.

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ick Coburn, managing director of Ulster Carpets, has been elected as president of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NI Chamber).

Coburn, who succeeds Power NI’s Stephen McCully, Pictured are new NI Chamber President Nick Coburn and joined family owned Vice President Ellvena Graham.

Ulster Carpets in 1977, and was appointed managing director of the Ulster Carpets Group in 2004. With a turnover of £60m, the Group manufactures carpets for the residential and contract markets locally and worldwide.

“It is an honour to be elected president of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry,” said Coburn, speaking following his election at the NI Chamber AGM in the Merchant Hotel Belfast.

“I am delighted to have the opportunity to support business growth through NI Chamber. There are many companies in Northern Ireland who are world leaders in their field and I believe there is an opportunity for even more firms to prosper by exploring and developing new markets overseas as Ulster Carpets has done. I aim to share my experience in export markets with others and to provide inspiration to those considering international sales.

“NI Chamber is committed to engaging with Northern Ireland’s new Executive, particularly the Departments for the Economy, Finance and Infrastructure and by doing so, to help drive through measures to help businesses and the wider economy in Northern Ireland to grow.”

The NI Chamber AGM also saw Ellvena Graham, formerly head of Ulster Bank in Northern Ireland, and the current chairman of the ESB Group, elected as vice-president.

APPOINTMENTS

People on the move...

in association with

RLA thinks bigger with two creative heavyweights B elfast-based marketing and creative advertising agency RLA has bolstered its presence in the local market with two key senior hirings.

Michael Keenan and Colin Maguire arrive at RLA with over 40 years of combined experience in the advertising industry. Their remit will be to help grow the award-winning agency’s portfolio in Northern Ireland, as well as supporting the creative offering in RLA Bournemouth.

Both hires are in line with the executive team’s plan to power up the agency’s creative offering by recruiting the brightest in the industry for its clients.

“It’s great to add to our recent successes and team of big thinkers here with such seasoned campaigners,” said Stephen Roycroft, managing director at RLA. “It’s another big step in our plans for Ireland.”

Keenan and Maguire have looked after and produced campaigns for some of the biggest local and national brands including Phoenix Natural Gas, Dale Farm, Portfolio of Fine Diamonds, Translink, Tayto, Stena Line, SPAR UK, PSNI, Invest NI, Forest Feast, Simon Community and Crimestoppers.

Michael Keenan and Colin Maguire

Ann B Morrison joins Blue Council A

nn B Morrison MBE has been elected for a term of four years to serve as the Northern Ireland member of the British Blue Cattle Society management council.

A former President of the BBCS, she also served for many years as secretary of both Ann B Morrison MBE the NI Blue Cattle club and of Ballymoney Show and farms near Armoy in North Antrim with her husband Jack and eldest son David Their Chatham British Blue herd was founded in 1987 and now has a nationwide reputation for producing quality stock. The British Blue is recognised as the ultimate beef terminal sire with an ability to up grade calves from both dairy and suckler herds.

FDF’s Steve Barnes to be new director general at GroceryAid S

teve Barnes, commercial and membership director at the Food & Drink Federation (FDF), has been appointed the new director general of GroceryAid and will officially start in September.

Barnes has spent his entire career in the grocery industry. He replaces Gillian Barker who has been director general for the last 14 years and who will be retiring at the end of November.

He started his career in location planning, evaluating sites for Safeway, Presto and Lo-Cost stores, then he spent 17 years at IGD (12 of those as business director) and the last four years as commercial and membership director at the industry’s largest trade association, the Food and Drink Federation.

“While I’m disappointed to be leaving FDF, this is a hugely exciting

Steve Barnes

role to take on in the grocery arena,” said Barnes. “I am privileged and humbled to inherit a fantastic team in a supportive industry to serve the beneficiaries of GroceryAid. The assistance given from the industry to those in need is inspiring and I am delighted to have been given the opportunity to drive even greater awareness of the charity.”

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SHELFLIFE

To see your product featured in Shelf Life, contact Mark at markbeckett@greerpublications.com or Tel: 028 9078 3235

Innovations from CocoMojo in Northern Ireland C

ocoMojo, the Northern Irish producer of coconut juices, water and oils, has launched two new products as well as additional flavours to existing lines.

The new products from the Lisburn-based company are an Organic Coconut Sugar and an Organic Coconut Flour, and follow the recent launch of its own coconut oil.

Additions to the juice and water range include pure young green coconut water in Ruby with natural raspberry juice; Peary with natural pear juice; and Bean blended with coconut milk and coffee. Improvements have also been made in shelf through the introduction of aluminium cans (24 months) and PP bottles (18 months).

Both new products have been certified by

the Organic Food Federation, with organic flour said to be perfect for gluten free baking, thickening sauces and soups and high in fibre while low in carbs.

Organic Coconut Sugar is said to have a much lower GI rating than cane sugar and

New natural ‘pick-meup’ drink arrives in NI F

our wholesalers in Northern Ireland are drinking to a ‘happy and healthy summer’ after taking on a new, natural energy beverage originally created over 100 years ago to help relieve the effects of overindulgence.

The premium drink, Overhang, has been tried and tested as a traditional family recipe and passed down the generations until in September 2015, a father and son team from the UK decided to bottle the drink and take it to market.

With refreshing flavours of orange, ginger and lime, along with a host of vitamins and botanicals including milk thistle for the liver, raspberry leaf and ginger for the stomach, as well as burdock for the blood, it is a healthy and refreshing feel-good drink which can be enjoyed at any time of the day or night, but is particularly good at giving the body a kick start to the day ahead.

The four Northern Ireland wholesalers, Savage & Whitten, O’Reillys Wholesale, Provincial Marketing and Pitman Berryhill, saw the potential in Overhang.

“With summer just around the corner, this is a great time to be launching Overhang in the wholesale market,” said Charlie Guy, managing director of Provincial Marketing. “It’s a really refreshing drink filled with lots of good stuff.”

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can be used in hot drinks, baked goods or anything else sugar is used.

“The new products are a response to market demand for an alternative to conventional flour and sugar,” said Patricia McNeilly, who created CocoMojo in 2014.

Cushelle highlights its superior product quality C

ushelle, the UK’s fastest growing major toilet tissue brand in the UK*, is set to continue its trend of positive growth with a multi-million pound relaunch to drive value back into the category.

Comprising a packaging refresh, a new product claim and a new TV advert, Cushelle will be investing in an integrated marketing campaign to emphasise its superior offering and drive clarity around its point of difference in the branded toilet tissue sector.

The new look packs, which have been updated with a new soft-touch film, offer a more luxurious look and feel straight from fixture – driving purchase intent amongst savvy shoppers looking for the perfect balance between quality and value.

Also featured prominently on the revamped packs is a brand new product claim, ‘Made with Micro Air Pockets’, Cushelle’s key point of difference amongst its branded competitors.

Cushelle toilet tissue is made by having hot air whooshed through it to create ‘Micro Air Pockets’ in the product’s fibres. * Source: IRI 52 w/e 14th May 2016

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Q&A any positive feedback we receive from consumers about our products makes it all worthwhile. Testing out the new chicken products is also a great perk.

WHAT IS YOUR MOST DIFFICULT TASK? Trying to relax. When you run your own business, especially a second generation family business, it’s difficult to switch off.

However, spending time with my young grandchildren helps me unwind and appreciate the really important things in life.

WHAT IS THE BEST ADVICE YOU HAVE EVER RECEIVED? Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched!

WHAT IS YOUR BIGGEST GRIPE? Red tape.

WHAT ARE YOUR FUTURE PLANS/ AMBITIONS? We are really excited about the future for Chook Chook - we have done a lot of research and have so many ideas that we want to bring to market. This is just the start of something really important developing in our industry – going back to our roots. We are passionate about supporting local farmers, raising local chickens and appreciating the superb food we can produce here in Northern Ireland.

Wesley and Carole Dickey

In the Hot Seat Wesley Dickey, director of Chook Chook TELL US ABOUT YOURSELF My wife Carole and I, along with my parents, are the proud owners of Chook Chook, a second generation family-run poultry company in Cullybackey. The company was established nearly 60 years ago and is better known as HK Dickeys. We have now launched our new retail brand and we hope the new name showcases our playful character.

WHAT DOES A TYPICAL DAY INVOLVE? No two days are ever the same, although you can guarantee it involves chicken! We manage our birds from field to fork and, as you can imagine, there is a lot that goes on in between.

I am involved in every area of the business and enjoy being hands on in the factory, ensuring that the quality of the chicken is first class.

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WHAT HAS BEEN THE HIGHLIGHT OF YOUR CAREER TO DATE? We have really enjoyed the process of bringing Chook Chook to market. We set out wanting to create something different in a fiercely competitive environment and I hope we have captured people’s imaginations. The new brand gives us a personality and a way to talk to consumers that we haven’t tried before and our new products have been developed with the exceptionally talented Andy Rea, from Home restaurant, because we wanted to raise the standard to restaurant quality. I hope the new brand presents something for everyone – families and professional people alike.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? When you work long and hard to launch a new product – the moment when you see it in a store is a great feeling! Of course

WHOM DO YOU MOST ADMIRE? Hard to single anyone out; my parents certainly, who started the business 60 years ago and who worked extremely hard. Each and every entrepreneur who is striving to rear and produce local food – and there are many of these in Northern Ireland. I think it’s important that we do our best to support the agri-food industry in Northern Ireland for generations to come by buying local. I certainly hope my grandchildren will appreciate how you can live off the land.

WHERE IS YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE? Enjoying peace and quiet in my back garden.

WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE FOOD PRODUCT? Can’t beat roast chicken and we have it for lunch almost every Sunday, though some of our new products are challenging that tradition. A nice rare steak is right up there too.

HOW DO YOU RELAX? When I get the chance, normal things getting out in the fresh air - pottering about in the garden or taking the dog for a walk.

Also nothing puts a bigger smile on my face than when I am greeted by my little grandson who has papa round his little finger!

For further information and trade support, please contact McCabes Key Account Manager Paul Rollins on 0789 6809921