Noel Allen, founder and manager of Food NI member Noisy Nuts, has been named among the top 35 New Talent 2018 by the influential Grocer magazine.
Top New Talent celebrates emerging talent in food and drink across the UK and also includes developing managers in many of the leading producers and retailers such as Cadbury owner Mondelez International, Lucozade, Premier Food, Kellogg, Sainsburys and Morrisons.
Mr Allen, from Ballygowan, launched Noisy Nuts in 2017 as tasty peanut snacks for craft beers, a market-first taking the craft beer trend to a new level of snacking. The range was launched nationwide across the UK, Northern Ireland and Europe during April.
The range features an artisan peanut kit with flavoured seasonings that “pair with craft beers, and help to elevate characteristics, note and flavour palates within the beers”.
The product has been designed to offer the choice in how to season the peanuts – consumers can pour the whole packaging of seasoning in and shake the pot giving a strong flavour, or season as you go to fit with their beer drinking taste.
The range is available in four variants – Chilli and Lime (pairs with IPA), Chill and Beef (pairs with Stout), Chocolate Orange (pairs with Orange IPA), and Pickled Onion (pairs with Lager) – all in handy 95g packs.
Mr Allen commenting on The Grocer listing says: “I am thrilled to be listed among the top new talent of 2018. With 400 different craft beer breweries in the UK alone and more than 3,500 different craft beer products on sale I knew there was an opportunity to produce a complimentary interesting snack for this buoyant and increasingly growing market. Craft beer drinkers are all about taste and we’re giving them a product that will enhance their drinking experience.”