Great Taste Award for Doyle’s Irish Cider

Posted on

Armagh Cider Company wins two gold stars in ‘Oscars’ of the food and drink world Armagh Cider Company has received two gold stars for its Doyle’s Medium Irish Cider product at the prestigious Great Taste Awards 2019, which took place in Dorset last week.

Considered the Oscars of the food and drink world, the Great Taste Awards is run by the Guild of Fine Food UK and judges products solely on how they taste. Seen as a quality stamp of approval by customers and suppliers worldwide, competition is tough, with just a fraction of the thousands of products entered each year receiving recognition.

This year saw almost 13,000 entries accepted, with Armagh Cider Company the only Northern Irish cider-making business to receive two of the coveted stars.

Mark Troughton, director at Armagh Cider Company, said he was delighted with their two stars, which brings the current total of Great Taste accolades for the business to seven.

He said: “We put a lot of work into perfecting our ciders to ensure the very best quality for our customers, so it means a lot when they win an award that champions great taste. Our Doyle’s Medium Cider is the perfect choice for a balanced cider which sits in between dry and sweet and is full of the natural, juicy sweetness of our home-grown Armagh apples.”

Available in Tesco and M&S across the UK, Doyle’s Irish Cider is now also supplied to bars, restaurants and retailers through O’Kane’s Irish Foods in England. Proud of its ‘blossom to bottle’ cider-making, Armagh Cider Company carries out every stage of its production process onsite at the Troughton family farm. This includes harvesting the apples from their century-old orchards, as well as packaging the products, something which marks them out as unique within the local cider-making industry.

“You can visit our farm to see the entire process first-hand, from growing to packaging,” said Mark. “Our Tours of Armagh Cider recently won the Authentic NI Experience of the Year Award at this year’s Northern Ireland Tourism Awards, which was very special to us.
“We’re committed to giving our customers great-tasting ciders which are authentically Armagh, which is why we’ve invested so much time and effort into growing, harvesting and bottling everything on the farm. Hopefully, the results speak for themselves.”

FOREST FEAST LAUNCHES A NEW AMERICAN-INSPIRED SNACK RANGE OF TRAIL MIXES

Posted on

Healthy snack brand, Forest Feast, has announced the launch of a specially crafted new range of Trail Mixes, to meet growing consumer demand for healthy products that provide a burst of energy to help you to get the most from life.

The innovative range, inspired by the great taste of America, is hand-crafted at Forest Feast’s headquarters, making the most of the company’s in-house roasting and flavouring capabilities and is now available in stores across Northern Ireland.

Speaking about the launch, Bronagh Clarke, Marketing Director at Forest Feast, said: “Innovation is at the heart of our business and we’re delighted to launch this new range. As a team of outdoor enthusiasts who love to snack, we were inspired to create a range of Trail Mixes that are delicious, nutritious and give you an energy boost.

“Packed with protein, our Trail Mixes provide you with the fuel to take on all of life’s adventures – on or off the trails. So, whether that adventure takes you out in your local forest park, up a mountain or out onto the ocean, we have a delicious flavour combination that will take you on a taste discovery.”

Launching with three bold flavours, two sweet and one savoury, Forest Feast’s Trail Mixes are a source of protein and perfect for those with an active lifestyle who want a healthy snack to keep hunger at bay while on the go.

  • The ‘Classic American Trail Mix’ is a combination of honey sesame and roasted and salted peanuts with roasted almonds, milk chocolate beans, dried cranberries and raisins.

  • The ‘Mochaccino Trail Mix’ is perfect for coffee lovers with a mix of coffee vanilla cashews, dark chocolate espresso peanuts, roasted peanuts, dark chocolate coffee beans and white chocolate cranberries.

  • Finally, the ‘Buffalo Ranch Trail Mix’ is a fusion of spicy buffalo cashews, spicy buffalo peanuts, dry roasted peanuts and BBQ peanuts.

Forest Feast, the ‘original snack explorers’, is a family-run business in its 23rd year of operation. Forest Feast’s Trail Mixes are available in 45g snack packs retailing at £1.00 and are now available on shelves nationwide.

For more information contact Paul Ryan, Forest Feast National Account Manager:  paulryan@forestfeast.com.

Slow Food Applications Now Open!

Posted on

Slow Food is a global, grassroots organization, founded in 1989 to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions, counteract the rise of fast life and combat people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from and how our food choices affect the world around us.

The three elements of Slow Food’s philosophy food and food production are:

  • GOOD: a fresh and flavorsome seasonal diet that satisfies the senses and is part of our local culture;
  • CLEAN: food production and consumption that does not harm the environment, animal welfare or our health;
  • FAIR: accessible prices for consumers and fair conditions and pay for small-scale producers.

SLOW FOOD FESTIVAL 2019

This is the 4th year of the Slow Food Festival and this year it returns with a bigger marquee which will house the Slow Food Harvest Market celebrating both our local food and drinks producers. Given this new element within the marquee the festival will be open later on the Saturday evening, until 9pm. Some live music will help create a buzz and a more night time feel. There will also be chef demos, children’s activities and street food zone outside. This year the festival will also have an Oyster bar, showcasing our Lough Foyle Native Oyster.

There will be 2 elements to Slow Food Festival:

  1. Slow Food Harvest Market
  2. Street Food Traders

Deadline for applications is 28th August by 10am

See the attached application form:

Slow Food Festival 2019 Application (1)

Northern Ireland products ‘exquisite’ in Great Taste

Posted on

Rated ‘exquisite’ by a team of 400 food experts in Britain were original products from Northern Ireland covering virtually every sector – meat, bread and cakes, seafood, flour, tea, beer, healthy snacks and condiments.

 

Almost 180 food and drink products from around 70 local companies were listed for gold stars in this year’s UK Guild of Fine Food Great Taste Awards. Eight local companies gained the coveted three gold stars. Apart from those described by the judges as ‘exquisite’, the others were listed as either ‘above and beyond delicious’ or ‘simply delicious’.

 

Featuring in Northern Ireland’s top eight galaxy of stars were products from innovative and independent enterprises such as Hannan Meats of Moira, a company which gained 26 gold stars and has won more Great Taste Awards than any other in the UK and is the only producer to win the supreme championship title twice, as well as Millbay Oysters of Kilkeel, a three-star winner last year, and boutique tea blender Suki Tea in Belfast, a previous Northern Ireland Gold Fork winner.

 

Producers of condiments figured strongly in the top 10 with three gold stars won by Irish Black Butter of Portrush, a sweet/savoury spread made from Armagh Bramley apples, Craic Foods of Cookstown, a specialist in culinary ingredients for chefs, and En Place Foods, also based in Cookstown, a specialist in small batch balsamic vinegars.

 

An ‘Imperial Russian Stout’ from Whitewater Brewery in Castlewellan in Co Down also gained three stars from the expert judging panel.

 

A home bakery, The Little Bakehouse in Dromore, Co Down, among the smallest entrants, gained three stars for its courgette and lime sponge cake topped with lime infused cheese.

 

Other winners of multiple stars outside the three-star category include Morelli’s Ice Cream in Coleraine, which gained a total of eight stars including three in the two-star category; Clandeboye Estate Yoghurt, the only yoghurt produced in Northern Ireland, won individual stars for three products; Craigavon’s Forest Feast which one two-star and five individual stars; Ann’s Pantry, Larne three individual stars; White’s Oats of Tandragee for 4 individual stars; and Hillstown Craft Brewery, Ballymena five individual stars.

 

 Congratulating the winners, Invest NI’s Director of Food and Drink John Hood says: “This is another hugely impressive by the local food and drink industry in the influential Great Taste Awards, the UK’s largest and most trusted awards scheme for speciality food and drink.

 

“It demonstrates the strength of an industry which contributes £5 million to the economy annually and employs around 100,000 people across an extensive supply chain.

 

“Only the best tasting products bear the black and gold logo. It’s tremendous to see such a broad range of local products doing so very well in this hugely important competition. Since its inception in 1993, Great Taste has been the benchmark for speciality food and drink sold in the UK,” he adds.

 

ROI Campaign – Autumn 2019

Posted on

ACTIVATING THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND MARKET FOR ACCOMMODATION PROVIDERS, VISITOR ATTRACTIONS AND FOOD & DRINK EXPERIENCES.

A partnership programme funded by Tourism Northern Ireland. Delivered by Tourism Northern Ireland and Northern Ireland Hotels Federation.

Tourism Northern Ireland and the Northern Ireland Hotels Federation are again targeting the Republic of Ireland market.

Tourism Northern Ireland will deliver TV, outdoor, press, social media, PR and digital advertising. The Federation will assist the industry in supporting this activity and securing direct business from this market. There are two different ways you can get involved in this campaign, outlined below.

The significant investment by TNI will lead to increased website traffic – think about how you can use your offers to capture a sale from this traffic.

The target for this campaign will be Open to Ideas, as detailed below.

Open to Ideas: This group covers all ages but leans towards 35+. They are couples or friends who want inspiration for itineraries but like to plan their own activities.

The campaign will take place from 9th September to 15th November. The closing date for entries is 19th August and further information is available at nihf.co.uk.

Campaign Media Plan

Details are being finalised on the overall media plan but it is proposed to run a series of themed weeks throughout. These are set out below. Participants are encouraged to use these dates to tailor their own activities.

w/c 9th September – Belfast
w/c 16th September – Armagh & Down
w/c 23rd September – Fermanagh & Tyrone
w/c 30th September – Derry-Londonderry
w/c 7th October – Causeway Coastal Route
w/c 14th October – Mournes & Strangford
w/c 21st October – Belfast

* Dates may be subject to change. Please check with us before booking media.

1. Online Promotion and Offers

WHO: Graded hotels, guesthouses, guest accommodation and visitor attractions. Registered food & drink experiences.

Accommodation participants will be asked to provide a B&B offer. Visitor attractions and food & drink experiences should provide a single ticket price so that customers can fully understand the value of a break in Northern Ireland. Free experiences are permitted. Accommodation offers must be bookable online on your own property website and all are subject to availability. You must provide a live booking link as part of the application process. Tickets should be bookable online where possible as this has been proven to be most attractive for customers. The most successful participants in previous campaigns have developed bespoke landing pages with visitor information content and itinerary ideas. We encourage you to consider this if possible. A landing page also allows a bespoke offer or experience to be created that is not visible to your regular vistors.

2. Co-operative Marketing Fund

WHO: Only those taking part in section 1 who are willing to fund 40% of costs.

The Co-operative Marketing Fund is designed to support your own advertising in the Republic of Ireland market. If your planned activity meets the criteria, the fund will cover 60% of your costs up to a maximum payment of £5000 per industry provider. To take part in the marketing fund you must provide an offer in section 1. Those who wish to avail of this fund should note that: Activity and spend must happen between 9th September and 15th November 2019. You can use any media channel as long as it is clearly aimed at the ROI market. You must use a tracking code in your advertising (where possible). You should use the Taste the Island branding where possible. There is a minimum spend of £500 (before subsidy) to take part in this campaign. Important Note: Only apply for what you can spend (ex-VAT). If you don’t spend your allocation, other people lose out.

Who can take part?

This campaign is open to all hotels, guesthouses, guest accommodation and visitor attraction providers graded by Tourism Northern Ireland. If you are not currently graded, contact us for advice. To support Taste the Island, the scheme is also open to food and drink experiences that have registered with Tourism Northern Ireland.

Enter now

Please complete your entry form here by 19th August 2019. Contact us on 028 9077 6635 if you have any queries.

2019 World Cheese Awards

Posted on

A truly global cheese event, the World Cheese Awards has been bringing together cheesemakers, retailers, buyers, consumers and food commentators worldwide for over three decades.

The World Cheese Awards will visit Italy for the first time, taking place in Bergamo on Friday 18 October 2019, as part of the city’s annual FORME cheese festival.

Announced on Thursday 17 January at the Palazzo Regione Lombardia in Milan, the main seat of the government for the Lombardy region, the news will see the planet’s largest cheese-only competition join a four day celebration of cheese in the Medieval heart of Bergamo.

Following an epic edition of the World Cheese Awards in Bergen, Norway in November 2018, where records were broken across the board with 3,472 cheeses from 41 different countries being judged in a single day, the 32nd edition will now be staged in the Capitale Europea dei Formaggi. Reaching out to cheesemakers and cheese experts in every corner of the globe, this year’s line-up is set to be bigger and more diverse than ever before.

Enter online at https://gff.co.uk/awards/world-cheese-awards/

Entry deadline: 9 SEPTEMBER 2019