A new vegan friendly range of natural and nutritious drinks has just been launched by Born Maverick Beverages, a recently established small business in Northern Ireland.

The Belfast-based enterprise, which has a strong commitment to sustainability, ethical business and the environment, has introduced the three-strong range of products under the Púr-Nature’s Wonder Drink brand in fully compostable packaging.The company is a Food NI member.

The new business and the beverages have been developed by Azhar Murtuza, an international post graduate student from India specialising in biotechnology engineering with International MBA at Queen’s University in Belfast.

“The key ingredient in the warm drink, which helps to relax and soothe the body naturally, is finger millet, a cereal widely grown in India and Africa. Finger millet is rich in amino acids, vitamin D, fibre, calcium and iron. It is anti-oxidant, gluten free, dairy free and fat free. The drinks are the best non-dairy source of calcium compared to other grains. The dietary fibre helps with weight loss and obesity, he explains.

“The wholesome drink is made by adding hot water to a compostable bag in a cup, squeezing to extract the full flavour, stirring and allowing it sit for five minutes. The three flavours are the outcome of extensive trialling with local focus groups to find the most appealing tastes,” he adds.

Mr Murtuza graduated in biotech engineering in India before enrolling for an International MBA at Queen’s in Belfast in 2016. He brought with him to Belfast an interest in developing natural and nutritious products with sustainable environment in food industry.

Regular consumption of finger millet is said to be especially good for bone health and to keep diseases such as osteoporosis at bay and could, thereby, reduce risk of fracture.

“The main problem with finger millet is its taste. I had to find an ingredient to counter the millet’s taste and looked at number of options and settled on coconut sugar which has a very low GI for sugar control” adds Mr Murtuza.

In 2018, he set up Born Maverick to develop and market Púr-Nature’s Wonder Drink, the outcome of his knowledge and research.

He continues: “I was also conscious of the need to produce outstandingly tasty drinks which consumers would enjoy along with the health benefits. All the ingredients used in the drinks are natural and sourced by me. This means I have complete control and ensures total traceability and provenance. The drinks are also made without additives or any preservatives.”

The company developed the drinks using an Invest NI Innovation Voucher which provides funding to enable a company to link with a university or college in creating a new product. Born Maverick tied up Northern Ireland’s food innovation centre at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise in Cookstown, county Tyrone.

Mr Murtuza has also been backed by Invest NI’s ‘From Student to First Sales’ programme that encourage university students in the creation of original products.

“I’ve found Invest NI immensely supportive in my work to develop the new beverages,” he says.

Each 30g pack (RRP £3.99) contains three compostable bags and has a shelf life of four months once opened. There arecurrently three flavours – Cacao and Mint, Raspberry, and Ginger. He has other new products such as vegan friendly popsicles and prawns made out of seaweed in the pipeline.

Glastry Farm Ice Cream, the leading luxury ice cream and sorbet producer in Northern Ireland, has won business with the prestigious Powerscourt Estate and Distillery in the Republic of Ireland.

Glastry, a farm-based producer based at Kircubbin in county Down and a Food NI member, is supplying a range of ice creams and sorbets to the high-end restaurant on the estate which is also close to two championship golf courses near Enniskerry in county Wicklow.

“We are delighted to have won this important business from such a significant operation with a successful Irish whiskey distillery and popular visitor centre on the vast and picturesque estate,” says Will Taylor, the founder and managing director of Glastry dessert ice cream and sorbets which have won a host of awards including from Great Taste and Blas na hEireann, the Irish National Food Awards.

“We are supplying a range of ice cream and sorbets for use in the estate’s successful restaurant in what is an immensely important deal for us which resulted from our longstanding contacts there,” he adds. “The distillery and estate is becoming a major tourist attraction in the Republic.”

Glastry, in addition, has launched its first vegan product, a Raspberry Ruffle sorbet, based on an original product which won gold at the Blas na hEireann Awards.

“The new version of the sorbet is a response to the growing market trend towards free from foods,” adds Mr Taylor.

Powerscourt Distillery, a £15 million development, features a state-of-the-art distillery and stylish visitors’ centre which opened in 2019. The distillery is now distilling Irish whiskies under the Fercullen Brand and is housed in the old mill house on the magnificent estate. It uses mineral water from a nearby well.

The distillery also uses three custom-designed copper stills, while the visitor centre includes six individual tasting rooms, a  gift shop and café facilities.

Glastry Farm Ice Cream is among the most successful Northern Ireland farm diversification projects. The company is now a leading supplier to high-end hotels and restaurants in Northern Ireland and the Republic. The ice cream is produced from milk from the farm’s 300-strong pedigree herd on 150 hectares feed mostly on grass.

“We have total control of the process from the grass and clovers that the dairy cows eat, to the composition of the final product,” Will continues. The company is run by Will and wife Cynthia while Gareth and his wife Liz look after the farm.

Other accolades have included UK Grassland Farm of the Year and Northern Ireland Dairy Farm of the Year.

It’s September in the next episode of UTV’s Rare Breed – A Farming Year and the farming families are travelling to various arts and parts for shows and sales – The Greggs leave Co. Antrim and head to Tyrone, and Jack Smyth does the opposite, leaving Tyrone for Co. Antrim.The Hodges are sorting the bees for winter and the McConnells are scanning cows for calves.

We’re off first to Dungannon where the Gregg family from Cloughmills are taking part in the Northern Ireland Calf Fair in Dungannon.   Wallace and Joan have their hands full with four children and five calves! This is a popular competition showcasing the young handlers’ skills and knowledge.  Eight year old Simon comments, “I’m nervous, and it’s fun at the same time.”  He sets a high standard, so can his siblings keep up? James and Isabella compete against Simon and 14 year old Amy takes part in the last handlers’ class.  Wallace gets caught out, “I was away trying to get away from my children but they found me!”  All the children have a great day.  

September is a key time for selling sheep, so next, we head to Ballymena Mart, where Jack Smyth has travelled from Tyrone to sell some Suffolk ram lambs. He’ll find out if his strategies and planning in 2019 have paid off. He explains, “This type of sheep is not for the show ring, but for the sale ring.” Find out what girlfriend Emma has to say about his day!

September also marks the start of the beekeeping year. The harvest is over and outside Newtownards, Valentine and Chris Hodges are preparing the bees for the winter.  The have some unwelcome visitors in the hive in the form of varroa mites, which are very destructive to the bees, if left untreated. The bees need to have a healthy winter, so Valentine and Chris are fumigating the hives to get rid of the infestation.  They then secure the hives for the winter.

Finally in the Belfast Hills, Mark McConnell and his dad Philip are with vet Cahir McAuley who is scanning cows to see if they are pregnant.  Mark makes notes of all pregnancy details in his ‘wee pink book’ with a llama picture, which his girls bought him. He’s looking forward to plenty of calves in springtime.  

UTV’s Mark McFadden narrates the series, sponsored by Moy Park.   Rare Breed – A Farming Year continues on Thursday 5th March at 8.30pm on UTV.

A Henderson Foodservice coffee partnership with Hastings Hotels, which began in May 2018, is marking one million cups of coffee enjoyed by customers and guests.

 The Mallusk based foodservice company has had a close working relationship with Hasting Hotels for many years and the hotel group commissioned Hendersons to research and supply a signature premium coffee blend to be used throughout their seven strong portfolio of hotels and restaurants.

 Named the ‘Hastings Triple Cert Bean,’ the coffee is supplied exclusively to customers in Ireland through the UCC coffee brand and delivered via Henderson Foodservice.  It’s officially certified by the Soil Association, Rainforest Alliance, and the FairTrade Organisation, validating that it has been sourced ethically and reliably before travelling to Northern Ireland where it is roasted locally.  

Additionally, the Observatory cocktail lounge in the group’s Grand Central Hotel, known for its stunning views of the city and exclusive clientele, is the only location in Northern Ireland to offer a luxury and specially curated coffee blend, Grand Crü. 

Howard Hastings, managing director of Hastings Hotels,said he was thrilled with customer response to their unique coffee solution across all group hotels:

“By working closely with the team at Henderson and UCC and taking the time to create something special, we’ve been able to offer our guests an exclusive coffee blend which can only be found in our hotels. Distinctive coffee flavours and trends are becoming more popular than ever and some of our properties have set up special tasting evenings with expert sommeliers delivering talks and tasting advice – even matching coffee with chocolate and wine.”

Henderson Foodservice managing director Cathal Geoghegan added, “It’s been an excellent partnership with Northern Ireland’s leading collection of hotels with customer feedback and sales to date clearly demonstrating the success of the bespoke coffee blend. We’re also delighted to provide full barista training and machinery maintenance for both front of house and management staff ensuring quality support for this exclusive coffee brand.”

The Hastings Triple Cert Bean coffee blend is available in all Hastings hotels, The Percy French and Cultra Inn restaurants whilst Grand Crü is served only in The Observatory, The Grand Central Hotel.

Foyster Stout has just been launched in Northern Ireland featuring unique Irish Flat Oysters harvested from Lough Foyle, which lies between county Derry and Donegal in the Republic of Ireland on the River Foyle.

The rich and creamy Irish stout (5% ABV) is a collaboration between Derry’s award winning Walled City Brewery, a Food NI member company, and Sippy Fest, the organisation behind the city’s biggest annual celebration of local craft beers, gins and other spirits as well as artisan food.

“Our aim in creating the new stout was to harness distinctive Lough Foyle Flat Oysters, a unique Derry product that’s beenexported to France for generations,” says Sippy Fest’s Connor Doherty. “It’s a phenomenal local product that’s prized there. James Huey, the founder of Walled City Brewery, was also aware of the popularity of oyster stout particularly in the US and saw an opportunity to develop an old style beer in Derry.

“Foyster Stout is something quite different because of its provenance of its ingredients especially the wild oystersgrown in Lough Foyle. We use the complete oyster to help clarify the stout, which is also packed with protein,” he adds.

“It’s also the first time that Sippy Fest has become involved directly in craft beer production. Walled City Brewery has a marvellous track record in the creation and brewing of excellent local beers that reflect Derry’s traditions and so it was great to be working with James Huey and his team on the new beer.”

Mr Doherty continues that the stout doesn’t taste of or have the aroma of oysters. “It’s a really creamy, decadent stout. it’s very subtle. We are the first to create a stout from a native Irish oyster,” he adds.

Walled City Brewery was formed in 2015 by Mr Huey and wife Louise and has since developed a portfolio of original beers. It also operates an award-winning restaurant and a successful homebrew academy, the first in Ireland.

The brewery has already developed a reputation for innovative beers, especially those reflecting the city’s rich traditions. Beers have been named after Derry’s colourful history. Boom harks back to the Siege in the 17th century and Stitch to the area’s history as a global manufacturer of shirts. He’s even created a unique beer based on a recipe from 1689 that he found in the city’s archives and special brews highlighting the hugely successful Derry Girls TV series.

Henderson Wholesale has launched its 2020 Fresh Innovation Awards programme with winners set to be announced on May 15 at this year’s Balmoral Show

The awards, now in their eighth year, honour local farmers, growers and suppliers who work with Henderson Wholesale’s Fresh Team to further improve customer product ranges in SPAR and EUROSPAR supermarkets throughout Northern Ireland.

The initiative features seven categories including Own Brand Supplier of the Year which rewards food companies who help improve and revamp the ‘enjoy local’ and The Kitchen brands, the Product Innovation Award highlighting those who shake up how we use local ingredients to produce homemade and entirely local ranges and the CSR focussed Tomorrow Matters Award.

New for 2020 is Fresh Produce Supplier of the Year which seeks to recognise dynamic farmers, growers and wholesale suppliers who produce and/or distribute innovative and convenient great tasting product ranges.

Other retained categories are Excellence in Regional Delivery and Overall Supplier of the Year whilst criteria for the Young Food Innovator award has been tweaked to include talented individuals aged up to 35.

Television news presenter and co-host of BBC’s Home Ground programme, Jo Scott is MC of the awards breakfast at Balmoral and awards programme judges are; food writer, Sam Butler, Irish News Business Editor, Gary McDonald, DAERA Head of Future Food Policy, Joy Alexander, Food NI’s Michele Shirlow and Ulster University’s Dr Lynsey Hollywood. Chair of the panel is Henderson Wholesale’s Fresh Food Trading Controller, Nigel Dugan.

Neal Kelly, Henderson Group Fresh Food Director launched the 2020 awards alongside Gordon McAtamney from butchery company K&G McAtamney who last year picked up the top award, Overall Supplier of the Year. Urging suppliers to enter this year’s awards programme Neal said:

“Our local suppliers are essential to the growth of our wholesale business and the Fresh Innovation Awards recognises and honours the pioneering work they undertake to push the boundaries in fresh food production and how they wow our customers with new and superb quality product ranges.

Local suppliers to Henderson Group can enter the Fresh Innovation Awards viawww.freshinnovationawards.com.

SPAR Northern Ireland owned by the Henderson Group will once again support the Balmoral Show as a Platinum sponsor, offering visitors an extensive programme of family fun with taste testing from local suppliers alongside performances and entertainment in the SPAR Arena.

Patrick Doody, Henderson Group Sales & Marketing Director added, “We’re thrilled to once again be part of the largest show in the agri-calendar and are looking forward to showcasing our brand and our passion for local produce.”