In conjunction with Tourism NI, Food NI, Hillsborough Castle & Gardens will be running a very special ‘Sustainable Feast’ experience on Friday 8th April at 7pm. 

Sustainability has always been a key ingredient in their business and they are delighted to have this opportunity to showcase a very specially curated menu, comprised of ingredients from their cherished local producers, picked from their walled garden and foraged from the estate at Hillsborough Castle. As well as a delicious 3 course menu, priced at £30 per adult and £15 per child, their chefs will host a talk on the menu ingredients and their sustainability practices at Yellow Door Hillsborough Castle. 

Bookings by email only please to: events@yellowdoorhillsborough.co.uk 

Stay tuned for menu details tomorrow night!

Suki Tea Makers, the multi-award winning Belfast specialist in a range of premium teas and infusions, has been named among the UK’s best tea producers.

The small business, formed by Anne Irwin and Oscar Woolley in 2005, has been listed in the top three finalists for the prestigious Best Tea Company at the London Coffee Festival which runs from 31 March to 3 April at Truman’s Brewery in London’s Brick Lane. The other contenders are Tea Pigs and the Brew Tea Company.

The festival, launched 11 years ago, celebrates the achievements of the UK coffee and industry.

With over 7,000 visitors and 100 exhibitors in its first year, it became pretty clear that the festival was giving the coffee and creative community exactly what it wanted – and what London’s speciality coffee scene deserved, and it still does! This year 30,000 coffee and tea lovers and industry professionals are expected to attend.

The event features an extensive programme of events and tastings covering most types of coffee and tea as well as the latest equipment, demonstrations from world-class baristas and interactive workshops.

Suki Tea Makers is now among Northern Ireland must successful and awarded companies in Northern Ireland. It has won UK Great Taste Awards for its products which are widely available throughout Britain, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.  

The company, based in west Belfast, currently exports teas and infusions to Japan, Rwanda, Kenya, Poland, the Netherlands and Belgium. It sources its tea from a range of ethical and quality focused suppliers.

Suki Tea Makers is also behind a innovative project to grow tea at a small garden in Portaferry, county Down.

Award-winning Glastry Farm Ice Cream is expanding its successful range of luxury sorbets in line with a growth in market demand from consumers for healthy desserts.

The company, which is based on a pedigree dairy farm in rural county Down, near Kircubbin village overlooking Strangford Lough, has added two additional flavours, Acai Berry and Mango and Passionfruit, to its existing and its existing Pear and Raspberry Ruffle sorbets.

Will Taylor, a respected and longstanding dairy farmer and Glastry Ice Cream’s managing director, explains: “Our decision to develop the new sorbets follow extensive market research by industry leader Mintel into consumer buying priorities showing strong growth in demand for desserts perceived to be healthy.

“We’ve developed out business over the years in line with market research. As a result, all our luxury and creamy sorbets are lower in fat and high in fibre. They also have the highest fruit content within the sector in the UK and Ireland and produced using the latest technology. The existing range has become a market leader and extremely popular in particular with leading chefs,” adds Will.

The sorbets have also been endorsed by expert food industry judges resulting in two gold medals in the Irish Food Awards 2016-2017 and gold Stars in the Great Taste Awards 2019-2020, providing a tremendous independent assessment of the Glastry Farm range.

Will continues: “We now add this to range low sugar content and a number of our sorbets will contain enhanced levels of anti-oxidants and Omega 3 for a consumer who is increasingly aware of their health status. The sorbets, furthermore, are suitable for vegans.”

The sorbets also boast a rich creamy texture and are, therefore, difficult to distinguish from ice cream in terms of mouthfeel.

Acai Berry Sorbet issweet and tangy Acai and utilises Glastry’s new sugar alternative that creates a low fat/sugar and high fibre product.

“Acai berry belongs to the superfood class, providing the sorbet with increased antioxidants and nutrients, providing the consumer with added health benefits. It has a beautiful purple colouring, which is as vibrant as its taste! It has recently won gold in the Irish Food Awards 2021. This vegan sorbet is perfect for a healthier desert option,” Will explains. “Our newly developed Mango and Passionfruit Sorbet is one to get the taste buds tingling.

“Bursting with sweet fresh mango flavouring combined with sharp passionfruit, this refreshing sorbet gives you a tasty tropical twist on a classic sorbet.

“Mango is a superfood, therefore providing the sorbet with high levels of antioxidants and nutrients. It is also low in fat and sugar and high in fibre. This amazing vegan sorbet is perfect to cleanse the palette,” he adds.

Bursting with sweet raspberry flavour of fresh fruit, whilst carrying a delicate pink colouring the raspberry ruffle, he continues, is “just like being in a field of fresh raspberries on a warm summers day”.

“This amazing product is low in sugar and fat, high in fibre and rich in antioxidants, perfect for a healthier desert option.

{Pear Sorbet is a deliciously juicy, refreshing and sweet sorbet that has proven to be very popular for vegan customers. The product is low in sugar and fat and high in fibre. This delicious vegan sorbet is perfect for a healthier desert option,” adds Will.

The vegan sorbets were initially developed with CAFRE in Cookstown, county Tyrone using an Invest NI innovation voucher.

TourismNI would like to invite you to join Patrick and Russell from the GastroGays and learn how to take amazing photography using the technology in your hand! This lunchtime masterclass will take place online, on Thursday 31st March from 12pm – 3pm.

The webinar will be interactive and will transform your food and drink smartphone pictures to Insta worthy shots, and will cover the following topics:

-The importance of high quality photography for the digital age

-Making the most of what you have – Smartphone settings and essentials

-Composition and styling

-Editing and preparing for posting

-Tagging and sharing content 

-Hints and tips, general advice, levelling up your social media imagery

-Analytics and measuring performance

Patrick Hanlon and Russell Alford are better known as GastroGays, an award-winning content creation brand focused on all things food and travel. Begun as a blog in 2013 the pair have amassed a significant international audience and have become one of the foremost voices in food and travel across the Island of Ireland, as well as contributing to publications such as Irish Times, Irish Independent, Lonely Planet and RTE.

This webinar is ideal for those who use food and drink to promote their business and destination and is aimed at those who want to transform their food and drink photography skills for the digital arena.

To find out more and to register for this opportunity, please click the link: https://www.tourismni.com/events/food–drink–smartphone-photography-masterclass/#msdynttrid=qy20SbSamgjuFq3WDqlRVZvIHlLtKpjMfkRXjSP6Sh4

The Chocolate Manor in Castlerock, county Derry has became the 12th Économusée in Northern Ireland.

Along with guests from Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council, Tourism NI and guest speaker chef Paula McIntyre, Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust launched the artisan chocolatier into this international network of elite artisans, in a chocolate infused celebration.

Nestled in the small coastal village of Castlerock visitors to the area have the opportunity to browse the Chocolate Shop and Artisan Food Emporium.  If you’re looking for an engaging activity to share with family, friends or colleagues, or want to add artisan chocolate making to your Irish food experience, a visit to The Chocolate Manor is a must!

The Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council, Councillor Richard Holmes said: “Council is very proud of the role it has played to help Geri transform her hobby and passion in to a very successful business venture.

She has participated in our Sales Growth Programme, Alchemy Business Mentoring and received practical support from our COVID recovery grant, Rural Development Programme and most recently the Tourism Excellence Programme, all of which have aided her sales growth strategy and capital purchases. 

Through Taste Causeway we have supported Geri and other food artisans to showcase their products at Balmoral Show and BBC Good Food Show, and it’s hugely encouraging to witness her progress, which is based on her exceptional products.

The Chocolate Manor is a fantastic addition to the thriving Économusée network and I wish her well as she embarks on this next important step.”

Graham Thompson, Chief Executive of the Causeway Coast and Glens Heritage Trust welcomed guests to the celebratory event, explaining the concept and what visitors can expect to find: ‘’As with all our Économusée businesses, visitors to The Chocolate Manor will have the opportunity to meet the artisan and discover the history of their craft. Having an Économusée artisan, especially a chocolate one, in this superb coastal location will have a positive impact on the area and will be a valuable addition to the network. We welcome Geri and her team and we look forward to working with you and promoting you locally and internationally.’’

In 2020, when the rest of the world stood still, The Chocolate Manor moved to distinctive premises, which have been located at the heart of Castlerock village for over 120 years.  Geri, a skilled and passionate artisan chocolatier has worked with 5-star restaurants and some of the biggest names in the culinary industry to produce bespoke chocolates for special occasions. The Chocolate Manor has even had several commissions for members of the Royal Family.

Geri Martin, owner of The Chocolate Manor, added: ‘I want to thank everyone who has helped me on this journey. I am excited about the future and look forward to being part of the Économusée network, welcoming chocolate loving visitors from far and wide into our workshop to experience, experiment, indulge and create their own unique handcrafted chocolate treats and build life-long memories along the way.’’

Guest speakers at the launch included Carl-Éric Guertin, Director of the Économusée Network Society in Quebec, Martin Graham, Tourism NI, Cllr Richard Holmes Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council, Celebrity Chef, Presenter and Author Paula McIntyre MBE and Graham Thompson, Chief Executive of Causeway Coast & Glens Heritage Trust, and lead partner of the Économusée Artisan at Work project in N. Ireland.

Économusée Artisans at Work is a concept that was developed in Québec and involves partners from Canada, Norway, Sweden, the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland, Haiti, the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. 

Within Northern Ireland the other eleven Économusée workshops are; Broighter Gold Rapeseed Oil in Limavady, Scullion Hurls in Loughgiel, Steenson’s Jewellers in Glenarm, Hillstown Brewery in Ahoghill (currently closed), Hot Milk Forge in Martinstown and Ursa Minor Bakehouse, Broughgammon Farm, North Coast Smokehouse in Ballycastle, Audrey Kyle Arts and Gobbins Crafts in Islandmagee and the Creamery Can in Glarryford.  Each workshop is situated on or close by the famous Causeway Coastal Route making it an ideal craft trail for visitors.

Northern Ireland’s Minister for Agriculture, Environment, and Rural Affairs Edwin Poots and his Republic of Ireland counterpart, Charlie McConalogue, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine have launched the All-Island Food Integrity Initiative (FOOD-I) – in which Queen’s University Belfast will play a leading role. The new network consolidates food-systems expertise on the island of Ireland, bringing together key academic, industry and government stakeholders to realise a step-change in the sustainability, security and integrity of the food system. The ‘All-Island Agri-Food Research Ecosystem Mapping Report’ was also launched at the event. The report is the first of its kind ever to be completed for the island of Ireland and maps the agri-food research ecosystem across the entire island for publicly funded research awarded between 2015 and 2020. The world’s food systems are facing unprecedented challenges, with climate factors, increasing population size and geopolitical conflict threatening food security for all. This is compounded by the need to reach Net Zero greenhouse gas and carbon emissions by 2050. Speaking at the launch, Minister Poots said: “At today’s event we have heard from eminent speakers who have been outlining the challenges and opportunities ahead as we strive to transform how food is produced and consumed and to enhance our global competitiveness and the reputation of our agri-food sectors. “I fully recognise that science and innovation are key enablers of long-term economic productivity and growth and are also vital in underpinning environmental sustainability. I am confident that the science delivered by FOOD-I will rise to meet these challenges and create new opportunities for the agri-food sector – placing sustainability at the heart of a living, working landscape valued by everyone.” Minister McConalogue added: “I welcome the FOOD-I initiative, which provides the unique opportunity to bring stakeholders from all over the island of Ireland together to support innovation and research capability and capacity, in order to implement change in the sustainability, security and integrity of our food systems. “Both FOOD-I and (Irish Government strategy) Food Vision 2030 recognise the benefits and need for a collaborative food systems approach, encompassing economic, environmental and social sustainability. The FOOD-I initiative aims to consolidate food systems expertise and this, along with the initiative’s key aims and objectives, will greatly benefit the island of Ireland, as well as helping to inform the transformation of global food systems.”