A novel turkey sandwich sauce for Christmas has been created by PEPPUP, the Northern Ireland producer of authentic Italian sauces, peppers and dressings.

The small company, which is based at Newtownards, has just launched the sauce for the Christmas season in 190g jars, available soon from your local delis and butchers.

The new PEPPUP Turkey Sandwich Sauce is a blend of roasted peppers and tomatoes with aubergine and ginger.

Dr Luca Montorio, the founder and managing director of PEPPUP in 2015, explains: “The new sauce offers a richly flavoured sauce to enhance turkey particularly after the Christmas dinner. Ginger works really well with turkey. While it’s aimed initially at the Christmas season, the new sauce can be used throughout the year for instance on chicken. Our strategic focus is on offering shoppers and especially the growing numbers of home cooks due to the coronavirus pandemic different flavours.

The artisan business, a leading supplier to delis, farm shops and family butchers in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, now offers a range of around 15roasted pepper sauces and salad dressing for various seasons including Christmas. As well as the Special Selection range, which includes roasted red and yellow peppers, mild baby green peppers and hot chilli peppers.

The quality and range of PEPPUP’s products have led to significant sales growth since Dr Montorio launched the business with wife Liz in 2015. “Our sales have grown by around 30 percent in the last three years,” adds Dr Montorio, originally from Turin. “Among our most successful products are our unique bolognese sauces.”

The company is rebranding its products to strengthen its image on the shelves with shoppers. A key feature of the sharp, new look is the inclusion of essential nutritional information on the front of the label. “This is a direct response to shoppers increasingly seeking information about content and especially sugar and fat. It made good business sense to switch this information to the label front,” adds Dr Montorio, who develops all the recipes for the products and is a registered nutritionist.

The PEPPUP range includes vegan, dairy free, gluten free options and without any added sugar or fat.  The products are 100 percent plant based and suitable for vegetarians and vegans. The products have also won UK Great Taste Awards for his products.

Leading porridge and oat cereal producer, White’s Oats in Tandragee, county Armagh has partnered with Tesco to announce the relaunch of three of its porridge oat cereals into a more sustainable recyclable paper bag. Speedicook Porridge Oats, Jumbo Organic Oats and Organic Oat Flakes are now available in a larger 1kg bag, removing over 500kgs of packaging annually.

White’s, as part of its wider sustainability strategy, has pledged to deliver 100 percent recyclable packaging across all its products by the end of 2022 and to make it easier for consumers to choose products produced in a sustainable way. Positive gains have already been made with 93% of its packaging already recyclable and 100 percent FSC accredited.

As major stockists of White’s Oats since 1996, Tesco is one of the first retailers in Northern Ireland to supply the new 1kg bags to consumers. Tesco has been working continuously with suppliers to help them reduce packaging and plastic waste and White’s has developed its sustainability packaging credentials to ensure it aligns with Tesco and meets all the credentials for the green standard.

White’s business development manager Stuart Best said: “Through our long-standing relationship with Tesco, we know consumer behaviours have shifted and we are continually looking at innovative ways to address customer concerns around provenance, the environment and sustainability.

‘’White’s has taken a proactive approach on its sustainability journey to promoting more environmentally friendly packaging ensuring its products are not just recyclable but also align with Tesco’s reduction and waste strategy. As well as the move to a larger pack, our Speedicook and organic porridge oats are packed into block bottom bags to remove any excess packaging and to help maximise transport loads to reduce overall carbon footprint.’’

Commenting on the partnership Michael Crealey, Tesco buying manager said: ‘’Tesco Northern Ireland is committed to promoting healthy sustainable products and encouraging more sustainable buying choices by shoppers. The provenance of food and how it is packaged and disposed of are now key drivers in consumer’s purchasing decisions.

‘’As a local company, White’s is fully committed to keeping its carbon footprint low, supporting local farmers within a 60-mile radius of the mill and promoting a short supply chain from farm to pack. We welcome the positive steps White’s has taken in the packaging and marketing of its products, providing greater clarity and trust around what’s recyclable and how to recycle so shoppers can make better informed environmental decisions’.”

Michael Crealey Tesco buying manager, left, with Stuart Best of White’s Oats

Dram in a Can from Two Stacks Whiskey in Northern Ireland is among 12 high-class finalists named for The QDF Factor, an extraordinary industry competition to encourage innovation and creativity among brands which will offer the winner a six-month listing at Qatar Duty Free’s award-winning retail offer at Hamad International Airport in Doha.

The winner will also win a free six-month US$50,000 multi-media advertising campaign with The Moodie Davitt Report, an influential business to business publication and digital information channel with a global readership.

Dram in Can by Two Stacks was selected by the expert judges as “a young company, determined to lead the new renaissance revival of Irish whiskey. Dram in a Can is an intriguingly disruptive new product”. Launched in the US in March, Dram in a Can is the first Irish whiskey in a can. It uses 86-proof whiskey produced by Killowen Distillery in the picturesque Mourne Mountains near Newry in county Down. The whiskey is described as “a complex blend of light and dark grain, pot still whiskey, and peated malt”.

The competition is a joint initiative between Qatar Duty Free and The Moodie Davitt Report, which attracted a rich and diverse array of entries, saw the short-list was announced at the Virtual Travel Retail Expo, in advance of a ceremony on Friday that will reveal the ultimate winner.

Qatar Duty Free vice president Operations Thabet Musleh and The Moodie Davitt founder and chairman Martin Moodie announced the 12 exceptional brands and concepts during the final Knowledge Hub session at the Virtual Expo.

Shane McCarthy, managing director of Two Stacks, says: “We are excited to have made the shortlist with Dram in a Can in such a prestigious competition in the Middle East, highlighting innovation and creativity in the international travel retail space. It will help to increase awareness of the unique product and our range of whiskeys,” he adds.

Other listed products include premium tea, a single malt Scotch whiskey, gin, skincare, Belgian premium chocolate, fine wines

Commenting, Martin Moodie said that he and Thabet Musleh were delighted with the number and quality of The QDF Factor entrants.

“A common theme,” he added, “was Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), in particular around sustainability and giving back to society and we were very encouraged by that.

“Our final line-up stood out by the way they specifically addressed the judging criteria, tailored their entries to the needs of Qatar Duty Free, and for their overall quality, point of difference and commercial viability in what is a unique travel retail location.”

The Moodie Davitt Report has introduced complementary advertising and editorial exposure for every nominee, another important boost for Dram in a Can.

Thabet Musleh also noted the great number of entries across a range of categories. “Once again we have been really impressed with the quality and innovation of all the concepts that have been submitted,” he said.

“This year the entries have reflected the increased focus in travel retail on CSR at the moment with many products being vegan, sustainably sourced or supporting charitable causes and the environment. We had a very tough time shortlisting our finalists.”

The QDF Factor was first hosted in 2020 at the Virtual Travel Retail Expo. It is open to all brands, both within and outside the travel retail channel.

The entrants were assessed on a series of qualitative criteria, including:

• Innovation: What does this product or concept offer that is unique, stands out from its competitors, and creates a talking point for retailer and consumer alike? What is its USP?
• CSR: What additional social credentials does the product offer?
• Presentation: What is compelling about the packaging? What makes it stand out on shelf? What consideration has been given to people and the planet?
• Commercial viability: Who the product is targeted at? What makes it a winner? What is the pricing policy and (going forward) marketing approach?
• Overall quality: Information about the R&D that went into the product, the quality of its ingredients/components.

Two Northern Ireland artisan foods have been listed as gold winners in the influential Christmas products in the Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards 2021 (IQFD).

An expert judging panel selected Christmas products from Willowbrook Foods in Killinchy, county Down and Irish Black Butter of Portrush, county Antrim in entries from the Lidl Deluxe range and Irish Black Butter in a product from Aldi-Ireland.

Lidl Deluxe Buttery Roast Potatoes from Willowbrook won gold in the Christmas Meal Accompaniments category for potatoes buttered and ready to roast.

Irish Black Butter was used to glaze a gold winning Aldi Specially Selected Cook in the Bag, Irish Reduced Salt Half Horseshoe Ham from Connolly Meats in Monaghan. The product is the result of “Aldi exclusively working with Connolly Meats and the award winning Irish Black Butter, bringing a truly unique product to the Christmas 2021 Irish Ham Range.

The Cook in the Bag product is described as “a simple cooking experience for our customers, whilst delivering a succulent and flavoursome product. With a 25 percent salt reduction, the product offers this additional benefit without sacrificing on taste”.

IQFD awards said: “Our expert judging panel had the envious task of tasting a host of delicious Christmas fare, and have collated this impressive list of products to grace your tables this festive period. 

The Irish Quality Food and Drink Awards recognise and celebrate the best in retail, wholesale and foodservice food and drink products available in Ireland. Major retailers play a key role in the competition, the most important in the Irish food and grocery business.

The Christmas awards focus on foods that will be available in supermarkets over the festive season.

Bertie’s Bakery, the craft bakery whose launch coincided with lockdown in March 2020, has just been awarded the highest grade achievable in British Retail Consortium certification for food production.

Regarded as the global benchmark for best practice in food safety, quality and responsibility the BRC Double ‘AA’ grade was awarded to Bertie’s Bakery following a two-day audit in August.

Bertie’s Bakery founder Brian McErlain explains, “This award is the gold standard for food production.  For a young company like ours the achievement is remarkable and I am extremely proud of all our employees and grateful for their contribution in making this happen. 

“BRC certification is very detailed and prescriptive ensuring best practice and standardisation throughout the food production process.  Having this accreditation assures our customers of optimal quality in everything we do and is an invaluable marketing asset.”

The BRC award tops an exceptional 18 months for the relatively new company, coinciding with the addition of 11 Eurospar/Spar stores in greater Belfast, Bangor and Newtownards necessitating the purchase of a seventh delivery van.

Brian adds, “From the outset our focus has been on handcrafted and hand finished methods employing highly skilled bakers and using only the best quality ingredients.  Whilst we pride ourselves in producing the very best traditional breads, cakes and snacks, we also embrace innovation in creating new interpretations of old favourites.”

Photo Caption: Gavin Hawthorne, Head Baker, Bertie’s Bakery with the BRC Certificate 

Belfast ready meals company ‘Go Pig or Go Home’ (GPGH) has expanded into new premises to facilitate the growth of the business.

The small company has just moved into a new 16,050 sq. ft warehouse unit in the Titanic Quarter’s Channel Commercial Park in Belfast.

The health food start-up, which supplies convenience stores, gyms, and for home delivery across Northern Ireland, said it is also recruiting an additional 10 staff in response to ‘the phenomenal demand’ for its original products.

The firm has made a substantial investment in the new premises, including a state-of-the-art kitchen facility, where the team plans to develop innovative new products to add to their existing range.

James Hutchinson, who owns the company with Gary Milligan, said: “We supply our ‘Go Pig or Go Home’ products to the likes of Spar, Centra and SuperValu, as well as fitness facilities and gyms. We also operate a delivery service to homes across Northern Ireland and the growing demand for our products has enabled our expansion

“Channel Commercial Park was the ideal location for us to set up our new production and distribution centre, and we are thrilled to join the vibrant business community already established here,” he adds.

James Eyre, Titanic Quarter’s commercial director, welcomed the firm: “Channel Commercial Park is one Belfast’s largest and most versatile business parks and we have been delighted to welcome a number of new and expanding companies to the park in recent months. The strategic location of Titanic Quarter makes Channel Commercial Park the perfect business location, and we wish Go Pig or Go Home every success in their new home here.”

CBRE NI director Lisa McAteer, who acted on behalf of the landlord Titanic Quarter Ltd, added: “There has been huge competition for quality industrial and logistics units in Northern Ireland over the last year and a half which has led to an increased demand for manufacturing, storage and distribution space.

“We are thrilled to have helped facilitate this exciting phase of expansion for Go Pig or Go Home as the business up-scales to a new warehouse facility in Belfast. Moving to this new premises in Titanic Quarter’s Channel Commercial Park will support Go Pig or Go Home’s ambitious plans for future business growth.”

Image

Lisa McAteer, CBRE, Gary Milligan, GPGH, James Eyre, Titanic Quarter and James Hutchinson, GPGH