Economy Minister Diane Dodds has launched Tourism NI’s new programme to provide financial assistance to help support tourism providers in creating experiences that reflect the new Northern Ireland Embrace A Giant Spirit experience brand and stimulate demand for local tourism.

With capital grants up to £200,000, the programme will help tourism experience providers develop new and enhanced tourism offerings that will support recovery and growth. 

The programme will also allow for up to 80% funding for private/voluntary sector organisations and up to 50% for public sector towards eligible costs of implementing these enhancements. The maximum amount of grant funding available under this programme for any one project is £200,000.  

Commenting on the new programme, Economy Minister Diane Dodds said:“Northern Ireland is one of the most beautiful places on earth, it offers experiences that live long in the memory and its people are among the most welcoming around. Covid-19 does not, and will not, change these facts.

“This programme will help our tourism sector capitalise on these essential assets. It will connect more providers with the customers they need and give more tourists the opportunity to enjoy the Northern Ireland experience. I encourage all forward-thinking, innovative providers to consider applying.”

Markets & Product Experiences Development Officer at Tourism NI, Brian Connolly, said: “The launch of this new Experience Development Programme comes at a critical period for the survival and recovery of many tourism businesses across Northern Ireland. The programme will help tourism providers develop new and attractive experiences that excite visitors to explore all that Northern Ireland has to offer. These experiences will also be in line with the new Northern Ireland Embrace A Giant Spirit experience brand.”

“We welcome application proposals that bring new and innovative ways to deliver business safely during the pandemic, enhance the visitor experience, support demand and increase consumer confidence. Covid-19 has had a profound impact on the tourism sector, and through this new programme we want to support tourism experience providers in their journey to recovery.”

The programme will focus on attractions and other experience providers.

For full details of eligibility criteria and information on how to apply for the programme, please visit tourismni.com/capitalfunding 

 Closing date for applications is 25^thSeptember at 3pm.

An innovative approach to barbequing has resulted in another national supply deal between Downpatrick-based Finnebrogue Artisan and Asda – building on the success of the relationship which started in 2014.

The new contract will see Finnebrogue supply the retailer’s Extra Special BBQ Chilli Pork Sausage Ladder to 335 stores across the UK.

The highly novel concept, a first for the supermarket sector, combines three of the most popular pork sausage flavours, skewered or ‘laddered’ together, enabling it to be cooked on the BBQ and then divided into four individual slices.

Developed in direct response to growing demand for traditional BBQ alternatives, each sausage ladder contains three chilli inspired flavour combinations – Sweet Chilli, Three Chilli and Carolina Reaper Chilli (the hottest chilli pepper in the world).

Worth over £700k to Finnebrogue, the contract reflects the success of its working partnership with Asda and builds on a succession of national supply deals including 10 Extra Special Christmas lines, which the artisan food company delivered to almost 600 stores last December.

In January 2020, Finnebrogue’s investment in product development also saw the business secure a major deal to supply four new meat-free lines to Asda as part of the supermarket’s own-label plant-based range.

John Cowen, Snr National Account Manager for Finnebrogue said: “Our  innovation-led approach keeps us at the forefront in terms of the creation of new lines, and this is reflected in the range and scope of products which we now supply to Asda. We continue to work closely with the team there, developing ranges – such as the sausage ladder – which meet consumer demand for quality, flavour and sustainability.”

Emma Swan, Asda Buying Manager Northern Ireland added:

“It’s great to see how our partnership with Finnebrogue continues to grow – enabling us to respond to the ever-evolving needs of our customers across the UK and consolidating our ongoing commitment to NI’s agri-food sector.

“There has been a really positive response to our Extra Special BBQ Sausage Ladder which also speaks volumes for the place of innovation, quality and taste in food production today.”

 

A new post-graduate Masters course in food design and innovation launching at Ulster University in September and aimed at food sector corporate professionals seeking to exploit business opportunities in the food and drink industry has unexpectedly struck a chord with chefs and independent restaurant owners.

Course Director Dr Lynsey Hollywood says the course was specifically developed to up-skill food industry professionals, entrepreneurs and artisan producers alike, but the new circumstances created by the pandemic have opened new possibilities for restaurateurs and small food producers keen to diversify.

“We have been contacted about the course by restaurant owners and chefs who are creating new opportunities by expanding their take-away activities into products like meal boxes and developing their   potential to create high-end products such as baked goods, jams and home brews for retail sales,” says Dr Hollywood. “They are keen to hone up and broaden their skills by moving into a space traditionally filled by larger agri-food sector corporates”.

“Whereas food design and innovation has until now been the domain of corporate food service and retailers particularly in the prepared meals sector, Northern Ireland’s restaurant, artisanal and independent food business sector has had to adopt new survival techniques and broaden their offer, recognising the need to develop additional business skills.”

The two-year, part-time course allows people to continue their day-to-day professional life, and includes a variety of assessment methods used to provide the student with valuable feedback on their progress and to explore their ability to be creative using different tools and techniques including, professional conversations, a live design project, videography, information audits, sensory trials, presentations and reports”.

“What’s really exciting about this course is the opportunity to access our cutting-edge facilities like our new Consumer Insight Lab which hosts the only Virtual Reality convenience store on the island of Ireland to explore and understand consumer behaviour. Also, our Big Data Hub utilises market intelligence data to provide detailed shopper insight to help companies identify new product development opportunities. In addition, our well-established Food and Consumer Sensory Testing Suite, managed by Dr Amy Burns, hasan award-winning reputation for its work in the area of sensory testing and product development”, says Dr Hollywood.

Teaching is delivered primarily through virtual and class-based lectures, with presentations from the Food and Drink Business Development Centre staff and industry professionals. The course starts 28th Septemberand each module is delivered by block teaching (threedays), typically from 9.30am – 5pm.

For more information Dr Lynsey Hollywood will be hosting a Webinar with Industry thought-leader Jack Hamilton (Chief Operating Officer, Mash Direct) discussing The Food Industry: Innovation in a Crisison Tuesday 1st Sept at 7pm – 8pm. You can sign up for the webinar via Ulster University Postgraduate page:https://www.ulster.ac.uk/study/postgraduate – under the MSc Food Design and Innovation programme.

For further information: https://www.ulster.ac.uk/courses/202021/food-design-and-innovation-21314#about

Northern Ireland’s Jawbox Small Batch Gin has won a gold medal in the CLASS Magazine’s Bartenders’ Brand Awards 2020 . Jawbox won gold in the Taste category, which is the highest endorsement from experts in the industry.

The judging took place in London and consisted of a highly controlled blind tasting by 50 of the UK’s leading bar professionals. The panel was carefully selected based on their achievements, skills and experience in the UK bar industry. Jawbox Small Batch Gin was highly commended for its aroma, complexity, and taste.

Jawbox founder, Gerry White says: “We are delighted to have received such an accolade from professional bartenders who clearly have an acute knowledge of the flavour profiles of spirits. Our gold award affirms the positive feedback we have received from consumers since we launched Jawbox Gin and it demonstrates that our gin is what bartenders and mixologists are looking for.”

This award comes just two months after the brand launched its Jawbox Export Strength Gin at 47% ABV in a striking black bottle. The team also has plans to further extend the range, with some innovative gins developed using the same award-winning and great-tasting Jawbox Small Batch Gin.

The Jawbox range also includes two gin liqueurs at 20% ABV – Pineapple & Ginger and Rhubarb & Ginger.

The Jawbox Distillery is located on a 300-acre 16th-century estate just outside Belfast where much of the grain for the spirit is grown and harvested. Jawbox Small Batch Gin is triple-distilled very slowly in traditional copper pot stills and in small batches using a unique combination of 11 carefully selected botanicals, eight of the eleven botanicals are ‘steep and boil’. The final three botanicals are put through the vapour extraction method to preserve their delicate flavour and aroma.

Market leading porridge and oat cereal brand, White’s Oats, has secured a new trading partnership with the world’s largest dedicated online grocery retailer Ocado.

The new contract will see White’s range of porridge oats and granolas including Organic Jumbo Oats; Toasted Oats and Toatly Oaty available on Ocado’s online platform. White’s Oats is a Food NI member.

Building on its existing distribution network to Great Britain through an impressive trading relationship with leading retailers, the Ocado announcement introduces White’s Oats products to an even wider customer base.

According to the BRC–KPMG retail sales monitor for July which looks at activity between July 5 and August 1, over 40 percent of all retail sales remained online in July showing that the uptake of online shopping seen during March-June of 2020 has persisted into July.

Hence, this new venture for White’s Oats reflects the growing trend in online shopping habits.

Stuart Best, Business Development Manager for White’s Oats, says: ”Our new contract with Ocado is an exciting opportunity for White’s as we seek to build our branded distribution in Great Britain.

“Our continued focus is on ensuring supply meets demand for our products.

“This new venture with Ocado will mean that as consumer purchasing behaviour adapts, White’s is well positioned to reach those consumers with its online product listings.

“Having been awarded the UK Best Breakfast Cereal for our organic oats at the UK Quality Food Awards in December last year, we continue to supply customers with nutritionally balanced oat cereals that are of the highest quality and taste, and we are confident that through our 180-year heritage of milling oats and our farming partnerships across the UK and Ireland, we can bring real value to Ocado customers through our product offerings.”

White’s Oats is Ireland’s largest oat miller and has been milling locally grown porridge oats at its mill in Co. Armagh since 1841.