Armagh’s trail blazing snacking brand Forest Feast, a FoodNI member, continues to
build its presence in Britain and further afield by launching a version of the on-trend
Dubai chocolate based on dates. The new products are launched as Kestrel Foods,
owner of the Forest Feast brand achieves impressive sales of around £20 million in
Britain over the past year.
Based in Craigavon and with sales worldwide, Forest Feast, a brand of Kestrel
Foods, has introduced Dubai chocolate inspired Pistachio Crisp Chocolate Dates
and Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate Dates.

Dubai chocolate is a filled milk chocolate bar with a sweet cream filling made from
pistachios mixed with tahini and finely chopped kadayif, a traditional Middle Eastern
dessert created in Dubai last year.
Forest Feast’s Pistachio Crisp Milk Chocolate Dates are sweet dates layered with
creamy pistachio nut butter and crispy wafer, finished with velvety Belgian Milk
Chocolate.
Salted Caramel Milk Chocolate Dates are generously drenched in Belgian Milk
Chocolate and buttery French salted caramel flakes for the ultimate salty-sweet,
chewy and chocolate delight.
Every batch is carefully handcrafted at the brands manufacturing facility in Co.
Armagh.
Bronagh Clarke, marketing director “Forest Feast has achieved a fantastic milestone,
doubling sales to more than £20 million in the UK market over the past 52 weeks.
“This growth underscores our efforts to deepen brand awareness and expand market
penetration. With our consumers increasingly seeking innovation, we are
strategically positioned to grow the category by launching two exciting new flavours,
further strengthening our competitive edge.”
The new products launch into supermarket Morison’s this month, and into Waitrose,
Boots, Ocado and other retailers from September.
Kestrel Foods, a family business owned and run by managing director Michael Hall,
is now a UK leader in premium snacks produced an its operation in Craigavon. As
well as Forest Feast, Kestrel’s brands include ActiSnack, an energy snack and Just
Live a Little breakfast cereals and granola. The products have won a host of quality
and innovation awards throughout the UK and Ireland.

Dale Farm, Northern Ireland’s leading producer of cheddar cheese varieties, gained
a series of prestigious awards at the 2025 International Cheese and Dairy Awards
(ICDA), which attracted a record number of entries championing world class cheese
and dairy products. Belfast headquartered Dale Farm is a FoodNI member company.
Dale Farm produces cheddar varieties at Dunmanbridge, near Cookstown, one of
Europe’s most modern cheese processing plants.
The Northern Ireland producer, which draws milk from hundreds of local farms,
gained gold for its mild cheddar, silvers for mature and extra mature cheddars and
bronzes for mature and vintage cheddars.
In addition, Dale Farm won gold for the Best Irish cheese at the show and bronze for
Irish cheddar.
Two golds followed for the Best Retail – mild cheddar and for Best Retail mature
cheddar.
Dale Farm has 1,300 dairy farmer members, mostly in Northern Ireland, in the co-
operative business. The cooperative is centred around helping sustain family dairy
farms for generations
Upwards of 5,500 cheeses were entered from across the world for judging at the
ICDAs in Staffordshire Showground, Stafford in conjunction with the International
Cheese and Dairy Expo.
Winning a prestigious award means being part of an elite group, and 125 year old
tradition of the very best in class. Success brings high profile recognition by UK
retailers and on the international stage as well as increased consumer sales.

Finnebrogue in Downpatrick, a FoodNI member company, has been acquired by
Sofina Foods Europe, part of Canada’s Sofina Foods, Inc. Finnebrogue, which
produces nitrite-free meat products such as sausages, bacon and ham, is one of
Northern Ireland’s leading and most innovative food businesses.
Sofina Foods said it had acquired Finnebrogue as it looks to continue its “ambitious”
growth strategy across Europe.
Finnebrogue, a family-owned business, produces a range of food products, including
outdoor-bred pork, sausages, bacon and ham, as well as plant-based alternatives.
Established in 1991, the company employs around 1,200 people across four facilities
in County Down, Northern Ireland. It was established by the late Denis Lynn and wife
Christine. The company pioneered healthy and plant foods using the latest
production technology. It supplies many of the leading UK multiples.
Sofina Foods, which supplies both branded and own-label seafood and pork
products, said that post-deal its European operations will now employ over 9,000
people across 27 sites.
Founder, chairman and chief executive of Sofina Foods, Michael Latifi, said in a
statement the acquisition will allow Sofina Foods to “continue our journey of
ambitious expansion”.

Luxury breakfast cereal, chocolate coated brazil nuts and steak flavoured crispy
onions from three Northern Ireland food manufacturers, all FoodNI members, have
been endorsed by top judges in Britain, the most important external market for local
products.
Six products from three local companies – Kestrel Foods in Craigavon, Mash Direct
in Comber and Coleraine’s Scott’s Crispy Onions – have won recognition in the UK’s
most influential awards for healthy and innovative food and drink.
The local manufacturers came out on top in categories in the influential Freefrom
Food Awards (FFA), the UK’s only awards dedicated to food and drink that is free
from one or more of the top 14 major allergens. All three are family-owned
enterprises with developing sales in Britain.
The successful local companies were listed among many of the UK’s biggest food
producers including supermarkets such as Tesco, Asda, M&S, Lidl and Morrison’s.
Major manufacturers such as Warburtons and Nairns also featured in the prestigious
awards.
Kestrel, the hugely successful Armagh producer of nuts, dried fruits and breakfast
cereals, was the top local performer with four major awards under its Just Live a
Little and Forest Feast Brands. It was listed in Breakfast Cereals for Gluten-free
Apple and Cinnamon Porridge Jumbo Oat Pot, Maple and Toasted Pecan Granola
and Maple Porridge, and in the Confectionery category for its indulgent Peppermint
Cream Dark Chocolate Coated Almonds.
The judges described the coated almonds as “a delicious mix of flavours using a
high quality chocolate. A great after dinner mint alternative that is hard to resist.”
Bronagh Clarke, Kestrel’s marketing director, says: “We are thrilled to have won
three significant awards for products in our Just Live a Little and Forest Feast ranges
in a market that’s immensely important to us and one in which our products are now
selling extremely well. The recognition, of course, will help to raise awareness further
of what we offer in the free from category.”
The innovation-led snack and breakfast specialist, founded and managed by Michael
Hall, has become a trailblazer in the developing sector through a sharp focus on
highly original flavours and attractive packaging.
The family-owned and managed company, based outside Portadown, is now one of
the most innovative and successful producers of breakfast cereals, snack and
energy foods, the latter under the ActiSnack brand, in the UK and Ireland.

Mash Direct, the farm-based business from outside Comber, won in the Sides
category its Potato, Cheese and Onion Croquette, one of its hugely successful
range.
Mash Direct, owned and managed by the Hamilton family, is now among the most
innovative producers of meal sides and veggie products which range from the
original potato mash product that was launched in 2004 by husband and wife team
Martin and Tracy Hamilton as a farm diversification project. Products now include
bother award-winners such as beer battered chips, beer battered onions, prepared
vegetables such as carrots, broccoli and turnips, potato cakes and vegetable
burgers.
Coleraine’s Scott’s Crispy Onions has been successful in the awards for its Gluten-
Free Steak Flavoured Crispy Onions, one of the small company’s popular ready-to-
eat products.
The business was launched by Richard Scott in 2012 on the back of a successful
vegetable operation formed in 1955. It was the first in the UK to cook, package and
retail crispy onions which it now sells here and across Great Britain. It was the
world’s first producer of gluten-free crispy onions.
Richard says: “This recognition in Britain means a lot to our team, as it highlights our
commitment to creating flavour-packed, gluten-free options without compromising on
taste or texture. Our Gluten-Free Steak Flavour has been carefully developed to
deliver the same bold, savoury punch our customers love — just without the gluten.”
All three Northern Ireland winners have significant sales already in Great Britain and
further afield. Mash Direct and Kestrel have exported to markets in the US, Europe
the Middle East and Asia. Scott’s Crispy Onions has extensive business in Scotland
and England.
The Freefrom Food Awards, launched in 2008, celebrate the very best in allergen-
free from food and drink. They are recognised for supporting, promoting and actively
encouraging both existing and new product development.
The awards enable companies to use an eye-catching logo on their packaging to
indicate that a product has been rigorously taste tested and has clear, compliant
labelling.
Since 2008, thousands of free from products have been blind tasted by specialist
judging panels, featuring chefs, developers, manufacturers, nutritionists and allergy
reactors, and many of our judges are well-known figures in the food and allergy
worlds.

Moira’s Ispini Charcuterie, an award-winning producer of cured meats like salami
and chorizo, is set for a major boost in sales of its innovative products throughout
Great Britain.
A FoodNI member, the small business has just gained distribution there with
Rowcliffe, an industry leader with extensive knowledge and experience in the fast
growing charcuterie sector. Rowcliffe has a vast network of customers in Britain.
Now part of the artisan business group run by meat industry leader Peter Hannan,
the Ispini deal follows a visit by the Rowcliffe buying team to Moira, home of multi-
award-winning Hannan Meats. Mr Hannan owns a number of artisan businesses in
Moira including the acclaimed Abernethy Butter.
Based at Tonbridge in Kent, Rowcliffe is Britain’s leading importer and distributor of
quality cheese, charcuterie and other fine foods. The company has been serving
premium supermarkets and independent retailers across Britain since 1967.
The deal in Britain coincides with Ispini’s launch of a striking new red packaging
designed to set the Moira company’s products out from others in a very competitive
marketplace.
Formed in August 2016 by Jonny Cuddy and sister Janice, Ispini is regarded as
among the leading producers of salami and chorizo meats which won a string of UK
Great Taste, the UK Cured Meats, and Blas na hEireann awards for its cured meats.
Jonny describes the agreement with Rowcliffe in Britain as “a massive boost for
Ispini in a target market”.
The small venture was initially based on the Cuddy family farm in Aughnacloy. Jonny
continues to rears pigs there for curing for pork meats. Charcuterie was developed to
help increase income for the farm.
Jonny continues to develop charcuterie and other cured meats by hand and in small
batches, while Peter Hannan, who acquired the business last year, has stepped up
its marketing activities and by lining up distribution deals in Britain and the Republic
of Ireland.

One of the city’s most popular food events is back! The LegenDerry Street Food Festival returns on Friday 18th and Saturday 19th July bringing together local chefs, producers, and food lovers for a weekend of fun and flavours right in the heart of Derry.

Led by the LegenDerry Food Network on behalf of Derry City and Strabane District Council, and sponsored by Tourism NI and Alchemy Technology Services, this two-day culinary celebration will take over Guildhall Street and Harbour Square beside the iconic Guildhall, promising a feast for all the senses.

Visitors can sample the rich flavours of the region, with every bite telling a story of local produce and passionate makers, paired with the very best in local craft beers and spirits, all in a vibrant, open-air setting in the historic heart of the city.

Coinciding with the 153rd Open Championship (British Open) in Portrush, the festival offers visitors and locals the perfect opportunity to enjoy the region’s renowned hospitality and soak up the atmosphere in one of Derry’s most picturesque and historic spaces.

Speaking at the launch, Mayor of Derry City and Strabane District, Councillor Ruairí McHugh, said the event captures the vibrant spirit of the region’s food culture. “It’s fantastic to see the LegenDerry Street Food Festival back and shining a spotlight on the dynamic food scene that continues to grow across our city and district. LegenDerry Food has become a real badge of quality and innovation, and this festival is a brilliant platform for our street food creators and producers to showcase their incredible talents.

“The Open Championship is set to draw visitors from all over the world, many of whom will take the opportunity to explore the wider region, so this is a wonderful opportunity to engage with new audiences and fly the flag for the North West.”

This year’s edition is set to be the best yet, creating a fun festival atmosphere with family street entertainment by day and DJ sets by night. Looking ahead to the event, James Huey from the LegenDerry Food Network said: “We’re proud to lead the return of this celebration of local food and drink on behalf of Derry City & Strabane District Council with support from Tourism NI and Alchemy Technology Services.

“The LegenDerry Street Food Festival is a platform to showcase the talent, flavour, and creativity of this region — where every dish reflects the people and produce behind it. At the heart of LegenDerry Food is a shared goal: to champion our local producers, create unforgettable food experiences, and position the North West as a leading, sustainable food destination. This festival brings that vision to life, right in the heart of the city.”

Admission is free all weekend, running from 2.30pm to 11pm each day. Full festival details — including food vendor lineups will be announced soon.

For updates and more information, visit www.legenderryfood.com/events