Category Archives: Great brands and producers

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September 9, 2011

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Events, Great brands and producers

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Enterprising Food Conference – Dermot Walshe, M&D Bakery

My second post from this conference held during the Harvest Festival in Waterford (see the first one here). They are raw notes and I have not edited them a whole lot.

M&D Bakery. They are in business 25 years and the Blaa is their main product. Started in the 1690’s with the Hugenots who set up an area behind Reginalds Tower known locally as New Geneva. One of the businesses there was a bakery and they imported French flour which was used to make Pain Blanc. Leftovers from their main loaves were used to make smaller pans and it is believed that the Blaa was named as a shortened version of Blanc!

They soon spread and in the 1800’s and 1900’s there were always 10 to 12 bakeries in the City with up to 15,000 blaas made each day. In the 1990’s the number of 9 dwindled down to only 3 still going in Waterford.

Even with only 3 bakeries there are still 10,000 to 12,000 sold a day.

He then explained how the Blaa was given a Euro-torque award and that lead to a lot of coverage for the Blaa and joining Good Food Ireland helped enormously. They took advantage of that and featured in the Galway Volvo Ocean Race Green Dragon blaa sandwich.

After that (and the publicity which then followed) they extended to Electric Picnic, Oxygen and have recently been “listed” by the Guinness Storehouse as their sandwich bread of choice.

They are now thinking beyond the regions and moving to baking and freezing to extend distribution nationally (which fortunately the Blaa is well suited for).

In 2009 they were contacted about the idea of obtaining protected geographic status. They are hoping for PGI – Protected Geographic Indication.

This would be a strong selling point for Waterford and would would be applied for by the Waterford Blaa Bakers Association. The point is to keep commercial blaa manufacture alive in the City so the status would be the beginning of the story.

He shows a graph which showed the various countries which hold this designation  – France and Italy have over 150 designations each. The UK have over 50. We (Ireland) have 4.
Only 2 of those are actually available on the market 😦

Keith

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September 9, 2011

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Great brands and producers

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Enterprising Food Conference – Scottish Borders Food Network & Peelham Farm

I was fortunate enough to be able to get to this event held as part of the Harvest Festival in Waterford and because of the lack of wifi in the venue I took notes during the presentations and will share them over a couple of posts. They are raw notes and I will not be editing them a whole lot.

This one was from Denise Daly Watson who spoke about a Food network she helped to set up and also a little about her own farm based food business.

Scottish Borders Food Network is a Leader funded project which started in 2006 – founded by businesses for businesses with a consensus approach. 61 members – primary producers as well as food hospitality providers (24 producers, 33 providers and 3 associates) Strong artisan focus

She said that their understanding of what consumers/customers what has helped them to add value [and hence to increase margins, keith]

As part of balance of committee 50:50 producers and providers.Their goals include promoting local Borders food, providing a forum for member businesses, tackling the distribution challenge and making the link between food and the environment.

Funding – they have received 100k over 2 years from Leader with matched funding from Local Authority. Also the Scottish Government is very supportive with a strong food policy.

Some of the Network members

Actions Taken:
* Employed a coordinator, created a brand and a website, showing with regional food and tourism events, chefs events to meet the producers.

* Accessability – this was a response to their civic responsibility and addresses the myth that local food is not everyone across the social divide.

* Post Leader Funding – increasing membership, bringing in more artisan producers. Stronger brand recognition.

* 5 year regional food strategy with trans-national collaboration to qualify for EU/Leader funding

* Address shortage of vegetable growers

Learnings to date. Consensus is important, this leads to member buy in. Communications are important to develop trust along the food chain.
Running a food network is complex – mixed profiles and requirements
Peelham

(Denise and her husband – photo from 5pm blog)

She runs Peelham Farm – they are organic and spent a lot of money developing a brand having realised the importance of that in their marketing.
Sustainability, transparency and taste – two of the things which are so important to them and they won a 2009 farm award because of that.
They use rare breeds and have learned the skills/trade of butchering. They sell to a number of Michelin star chefs.
They have an open farm – transparency. So they encourage farm visits.

Finally she said that their use of the internet will be extending and youtube to be added to their twitter and facebook portfolio.

[liked that presentation a lot, very passionate and inspiring speaker, keith]

Keith

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September 4, 2011

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Great brands and producers, Guest Post, Packaging

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Guest Post: The design of the Sarah’s Honey brand for Milleeven Fine Foods

Within this lies another tale – how does a daughter or son establish their own identity on an established brand. It needs to be tackled – otherwise they are just doing what their parent(s) did. I have known Eilis Gough (founder of Milleeven Honey) for many years but have never met Sarah her daughter.

However I was aware of Sarah’s products and brand and so asked Philip Darling from Concept Choice to do a guest post on how the brand and packaging came about.

The design of the Sarah’s Honey brand

“Milleeven Fine Foods, based in Kilkenny, Ireland, decided to launch a range of flavoured honey to the market place. They already produce traditional honey products, so wanted something different for the Irish, UK and international consumer.

Branding and Positioning
Our first stage was to work with Tessa O’Connell of Brand Edge, who hosted a branding and positioning workshop for Mileeven and a selected audience type, from retail buyers to consumers. The day was really useful in identifying the perceived view of honey products, company reputation, qualities and indeed what the ‘modern’ consumer was looking for in honey. We also knew that the UK marketplace was very competitive, with massive marketing budgets to push their products.

We looked at what made Mileeven different, things that the large companies couldn’t claim with any real consumer believability, a love of honey and a hands on involvement from an ‘artisan’ family producer. Once these values and propositions were marked up on the flip chart, coupled with the wonderful mother and daughter story, ‘Sarah’s Honey’ (the daughter’s name) was realised and born. The name and spirit of the brand fitted, was true and gave a real point of difference from their competitors.

Packaging and Labelling practicalities
The next stage, was to look at the packaging practicalities and labeling of the new brand. Mileeven suggested a lovely glass jar that fitted that homemade ‘story’ and we decided to expand the label area to give it more shelf presence. A teardrop shape was conceived which had a secondary subtle effect, of ‘flowing’ honey.

Many typefaces were considered in the logo make-up but we settled on a ‘hand drawn’ effect which fitted well. A series of little watercolour illustrations were commissioned, again as if Sarah herself had created these for her ‘homemade’ production line. Each product also featured a different coloured border to assist content recognition and words such as ‘scrummy’ and ‘passionate’ to enhance the ingredient descriptions within.

Telling the Story – Video

As with any brand, the packaging is just part of the consumer experience, so to really extend the story, we conceived, shot and produced a video entitled ‘Sarah’s World’. Filmed over a couple of days on their farm (and in-between the showers) we created an atmospheric movie that showed Sarah within a rural environment, taking time out, writing, painting and collecting ingredients for her honey recipes. The whole video was then edited to look like a homemade super 8 film and wonderful music score commissioned to complement the visuals.

We also photographed Sarah and the full range of products for use on POS, PR, web and exhibition use. Some shots were taken quickly to capture a spontaneous feel, others took much longer to ensure everything was perfect in presentation. We also sourced vintage props and had lots of help from Eilis with family heirlooms and tablecloths.

The packaging, photography and video was then displayed in the London Food Fair of which they received lots of positive feedback and most importantly, samples requests and advance orders.

Overall, we really enjoyed the project, from brand generation right though to the packaging, photography and video. It was great too, to work with a client prepared to listen, trust and get involved in the marketing of the brand.

Philip Darling, Creative Director of Concept Choice

http://conceptchoice.com/

Great to see the exploration of the positioning using primary and secondary research right at the beginning of this project and also the extension into other media.

You can see the other food packaging guests posts in this series here.

Keith

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September 3, 2011

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Great brands and producers

2 great interviews – Birgitta in Burren Smokehouse, Valerie in Glenilen

Ailbhe is based in the UK and she writes a blog called Simplysplendiferous.

Two of her recent posts are interviews with Irish producers – both of whom have scaled their production without loosing their connection with the passion and core values that make a strong brand.

Burren Smokehouse

The first (linked here) explores the taste of both farmed and wild salmon (recently reintroduced) with Birgitta Curtin. Really smart website BTW – do not remember seeing this properly before.

Glenilen Fairy

In the second one (linked here) Ailbhe discusses brand design and solar power with Valerie Kingston.

While the solar power and planned water turbine get a paragraph of the interview those of you who are familiar with this business will know that Valerie and Alan’s dedication to renewables goes way beyond “lite green” and you do not pick that up from their website or communications generally.

I am looking forward to more in this “Introducing…” series 🙂

Keith

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August 9, 2011

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Great brands and producers, Guest Post

Guest Post: Metalman, the design of their brand

The third in this series comes from David Manser of VitaminStudio.ie who is responsible for the design of the brand, packaging and other elements of the Metalman Brewing who started up in Waterford, Ireland in 2011.

This is what David had to share about the process:

The Story of the MetalMan Brewing Branding

I first heard from the infectiously enthusiastic Gráinne and Tim back in August 2010 (has it really been a year??!!). I immediately decided that I wanted this gig, so I set about putting together a proposal that was the very best I could make it. Thankfully, Gráinne and Tim liked what they saw, so in what was to become quite a regular occurrence, we celebrated our new association over a pint in Geoff’s, Waterford.

MoodBoarding

The first step was to get together a mood board for the three of us to go through and get a feel for likes and dislikes and maybe start to feel out a direction for the branding. It really didn’t take long, we all clicked pretty much straight away. Gráinne and Tim had pretty early on decided that they wanted an art-deco inspired theme from the branding.

Most of my research went off to the dark and dingy corners of the Art Deco movement, far removed from the rather beautiful Cassandre travel posters that immediately spring to mind when mentioning Art Deco! I loved the idea of giving the brand an aged, antique feel but applying modern computer techniques to its production.

Initial Concepts

The next step was to begin sketching and refining the scattergun of ideas down to three cohesive directions. The name Metalman inspired some fairly far out (and sometimes plain scary!) directions ala Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. We felt that idea was just too obvious and probably intimidating!

We also hit an issue in that a Tramore family have actually trademarked the MetalMan. I was secretly quite glad, as the Metalman strikes quite a camp pose! We decided that a figurative logo was probably not going to work so moved away from that into a good, strong typographic logo with embellishment to give the right look and feel.

Colour Scheme

The next step was to get the colour schemes agreed. I have a very simple approach to colour. It’s such a subjective thing that I tend to take a back seat and simply advise and suggest. There are of course some colour schemes that I would definitely advise for and against, but when it comes down to it, if the client is committed to a scheme that isn’t inappropriate for the application then I’m always happy to go with it.

As is proper, the artwork evolved from pencil sketches through to Adobe Illustrator vector work and finally into Photoshop where the fun stuff happens! To finalise the project, we presented Gráinne and Tim with a full suite of logo artwork to suit all applications from print to embroidery to signage to web and beyond.

We added an element of flexibility into the design by producing versions that would work in restrictive spaces. When it comes to logo artwork, I always figure that it’s best to try and anticipate problems and provide solutions rather than leave it up to individual end-users to try and fix it their way. That’s how inconsistency creeps in!

From Logo to Collateral

Once the logo was finished we moved on to font heads, beermats, posters, flyers etc. Having gone through the logo development, we all had a very good feel for the brand and to date, the work has rolled out at a rate of knots. Kinda appropriate being that next seasonal brew we were tasked with branding was Windjammer, a rather delicious pale amber beer released for the Tall Ships festival in Waterford.

It’s been a genuine pleasure to get to know and work with Gráinne and Tim. I genuinely enjoy working on their stuff and I look forward to many more brainstorming/new brew tasting sessions in their company!

Dave Manser
http://www.vitaminstudio.ie/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Vitamin/142849835731578

Thanks to Dave for that and need to line up another guest post now – if you know of a designer who wants to share their work on an Irish artisan brand design let me know 🙂

Keith

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August 8, 2011

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Great brands and producers

Union Roasted

Established in 2001 by Jeremy and Stephen they are based in East London and roast small batches everyday. Update – their website is here.

I enjoy a number of their blends and it is one of the few purchases I make from Dunnes.

Keith

20110808-045627.jpg

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August 1, 2011

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Awards Winners, Great brands and producers

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Irish Winners in the Great Taste Awards 2011

These awards happened while I was away on holidays so I missed the conversations around the large number of Irish winners in the Great Taste Awards 2011.

Courtesy of an ecuddy in the Bord Bia Vantage forums here is a full listing of all Irish Winners to which I have added links to the primary web presence for each of the artisan/smaller scale producers. For those of you not familiar with the Awards they are UK based, utilise a panel of over 300 judges and you will have seen the awards referenced on packaging using this:

They are very well respected within the food sector and a win here is an indicated of a seriously good food product that is ranked by its peers.

3 star – Barry’s Rooibos Tea , Barry’s Tea
3 star – Vanilla Tablet , Mella’s Fudge – http://www.mellasfudge.com/
3 star – SuperValu Supreme Orange Blossom Honey – Produced By Healy Honey , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland – http://www.healyshoney.ie
3 star – Wiberg Pumpkin Seed Oil , Wallbridge
3 star – Yeats Country Organic Full Fat Soft Cheese , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
3 star – Yeats Country Goats Cheese , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
2 star – Solaris Lapsang Souching , Solaris Botanicals – http://www.solarisbotanicals.com/
2 star – Fairtrade Brazil , Ponaire Coffee Roastery
2 star – Fairtrade Master Blend , Bewley’s Ltd.
2 star – Classic Italian Blend , McCabe’s Tea and Coffee – http://www.mccabecoffee.com
2 star – Flapjack Mix , Cathys Spelt For Health  – http://cathysspeltforhealth.blogspot.com/ (website down at time of posting)
2 star – SuperValu Traditional Brown Bread – Produced By CDF , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
2 star – Harvest Brown , McCloskey’s Bakery – https://www.facebook.com/pages/McCloskeys-Bakery/165896440126246 (no website?)
2 star – Wheaten bread , Aroma Bakery (no website?)
2 star – Truffle Fairy Tequila, Salt & Lemon Truffle , The Truffle Fairy – http://www.trufflefairy.com/
2 star – Truffle Fairy Cardamom and Orange Truffle , The Truffle Fairy – http://www.trufflefairy.com/
2 star – Honey and brandy truffle , The Chocolate Garden – http://www.chocolategarden.ie/
2 star – Chestnut and Honey , Cocoa Atelier
2 star – Aldi Kilcree Gold Active 10 Manuka Honey , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
2 star – Abbey Farm Fruits Blackcurrant Jam  , Abbey Farm Fruits – http://www.abbeyfarmfruits.com/
2 star – G’s Gourmet Raspberry Jam 340g  , G’s Gourmet Jams  – http://www.gsgourmetjams.ie/
2 star – Luxury Mincemeat  , The Foods Of Athenry Ltd. – http://www.foodsofathenry.ie/
2 star – SQ Luxury Muesli  , Superquinn Ltd.
2 star – Chilly Quince Jelly , Crossogue Preserves  – http://www.crossoguepreserves.com/
2 star – Tandoori Marinade , Food Lovers Catering Ltd – http://www.food-lover.com/
2 star – Caesar Salad Dressing , Limerick Strand Hotel
2 star – Smoked Bacon Streaky , The Carraig na Breac Smokehouse  – https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Carraig-na-Breac-Smokehouse/121005457975763 (website not built)
2 star – Oliver Carty Smoked Rack of Bacon  , Oliver Carty – http://www.olivercarty.ie/
2 star – Clonakilty Oak Smoked Rashers , Clonakilty Black Pudding Company  – http://www.clonakiltyblackpudding.ie/
2 star – Supervalu Wiltshire Ham on the Bone  , Brady Family Ltd. – http://www.traditionalham.com
2 star – Honey baked ham on the bone , Horgans Delicatessen Supplies – http://www.horgans.com
2 star – Irish Angus T Bone Steak , Hilton Foods Ireland Limited
2 star – Irish Angus Cote Du Bouef , Hilton Foods Ireland Limited
2 star – Aldi Nature’s Isle Irish Smoked Bacon Eye Loin , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
2 Star – Woodcock Smokery Hot Smoked Tuna , Woodcock Smokery – http://www.woodcocksmokery.com/
2 star – Chicken liver pate , Limerick Strand Hotel
2 star – Yeats Country Organic Creme Fraiche , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
2 star – Gortnamona , Cooleeney Farmhouse Cheese – http://www.cooleeney.com/
2 star – Full Fat Soft Cheese , Green Pastures (Donegal) http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
2 star – Light in Fat Soft Cheese , Green Pastures (Donegal) http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
2 star – Aldi Ardagh Specially Selected Irish Vintage White Cheddar , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
2 star – Imokilly regano PDO , Horgans Delicatessen Supplies – http://www.horgans.com
2 star – St Tola Organic Soft Log , Inagh Farmhouse Cheese Ltd. http://www.st-tola.ie/
2 star – Corleggy , Corleggy Cheeses – http://corleggycheeses.com/
2 star – Aldi Ardagh Specially Selected Irish Tipperary Blue Cheese , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
2 star – Blue Cheese- Boyne vally blue , Boyne Valley Blue Farmhouse Cheese
2 star – Superquinn Cashel Blue , Traditional Cheese Co. Ltd. – http://www.traditionalcheese.ie/
2 star – SQ Luxury Mince Pie  , The Foods Of Athenry Ltd.- http://www.foodsofathenry.ie/
2 star – Lily O Brien’s Passion Fruit Posset , Lily O’Briens Chocolates – http://www.lilyobriens.ie/
2 star – Very Delicious Gluten Free Christmas Pudding  , The Foods Of Athenry Ltd.- http://www.foodsofathenry.ie/
2 star – Irish Whisky ice cream  , Tipperary Organic Ice Cream- http://www.chocolategarden.ie/
2 star – Superquinn SQ Raspberry Sorbet , Silver Pail Dairy – http://www.silverpail.com/
2 star – Gookies Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough , Gookies – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gookies/110103285717377 (no website?)
2 star – Christmas made easy roast parsnip soup , Christmas Made Easy – http://www.christmasmadeeasy.ie/
1 star – Winterman Mulled Wine , Hot Irishman Ltd – http://www.hotirishman.com/
1 star – Tyrconnell Single Malt Irish Whiskey , Cooley Distillery (Head Office) – http://www.cooleywhiskey.com/
1 star – Connemara Peated Single Malt Irish Whiskey , Cooley Distillery (Head Office) – http://www.cooleywhiskey.com/
1 star – Aldi Avoca Aged Irish Blended Whiskey , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Walshe’s Fresh Orange Juice , Sunshine Juice Ltd. – http://www.sunshinejuice.com/
1 star – Aldi Del Rivo Pure Pressed Orange & Mango Juice , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – SuperValu MAS Summer Fruits Dilute – Produced By Harneys , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
1 star – Walshe’s Traditional Lemonade , Sunshine Juice Ltd. – http://www.sunshinejuice.com/
1 Star – Fior Uice Sparkling Irish Water , Fior Uisce (True Water) – http://www.fioruisce.com/
1 star – Aldi Vive Rock Shandy , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Campbells Tea , Robert Roberts
1 star – Luxury Loose Leaf Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – Solaris Jasmine Green Tea , Solaris Botanicals- http://www.solarisbotanicals.com/
1 star – Fairtrade Decaf Tea Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – Fairtrade Luxury Kenyan , Robert Roberts
1 star – Darjeeling Earl Grey , Kingfisher Tea – http://www.kingfishertea.com/
1 star – Barry’s Tea Classic Blend , Barry’s Tea
1 star – SuperValu Reserve Fairtrade Tea – produced By Barber Daly , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
1 star – McGraths Gold Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – Rich Leaf Green Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – Lyons Gold Blend – Produced By Unilever , Wilson Hartnell Public Relations
1 star – Barry’s Tea Classic Blend , Barry’s Tea
1 star – Moroccan Mint Green Tea , Kingfisher Tea – http://www.kingfishertea.com/
1 star – Green Yunnan , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – Camillo , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – Peppermint , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – Pure Rooibos Tea – Produced By Keith Spicer Ltd , Bewley’s Ltd.
1 star – Pure Camomile – Produced By Keith Spicer Ltd , Bewley’s Ltd.
1 star – Barry’s Organic Camomile Tea , Barry’s Tea
1 star – Costa/Elsalv Ground Filter , Ponaire Coffee Roastery – http://www.ponaire.ie/
1 star – Mocha Java Blend , McCabe’s Tea and Coffee
1 star – Finnbees Blend , McCabe’s Tea and Coffee – http://www.mccabecoffee.com
1 star – Decaf Java Lintong , Robert Roberts
1 star – Rich Roast Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – FS Zombi Filter , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – SQ Café Mocha Ground , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – SQ Rich Roast Beans , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – Bewley’s Organic Guatemala , Bewley’s Ltd
1 star – Aldi Specially Selected Single Origin Coffee Java , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – European Espresso , Ponaire Coffee Roastery – http://www.ponaire.ie/
1 star – Segovia Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – Fairtrade Segovia Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – Java Supremo , Robert Roberts
1 star – Vivaldi Blend , Robert Roberts
1 star – FS Mezzo Espresso , Java Republic Roasting Company – http://www.javarepublic.com/
1 star – Sutherland Savoury Oatcakes , Christie and Callus Artisan Foods – http://www.onlineoatcakes.com
1 star – O’Donnells Sweet Chilli & Black Pepper Crisps , O’Donnell’s Tipperary Crisps – http://www.odonnellscrisps.com
1 star – SuperValu Supreme Chilli & pepper Crisps – produced By Tayto NI , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
1 star – Kooky Dough White Chocolate and Cranberry , Kooky Dough Ltd – http://www.kookydough.ie/
1 star – Gookies Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough , Gookies- https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gookies/110103285717377 (no website?)
1 star – Maga Homemade Wholemeal Brown bread , Mags Home Baking – http://www.magshomebaking.ie/
1 star – Cottage Brown  , McCloskey’s Bakery – https://www.facebook.com/pages/McCloskeys-Bakery/165896440126246 (no website?)
1 star – Traditional Irish Brown Soda Bread Quarter , Manning’s Bakery – http://www.manningsbakeryshops.ie/
1 star – SuperValu Teabrack – produced By CDF , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
1 star – Aldi Irish Christmas Pudding , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Holycross Dark Chocolate Buscuit Cake , The Tipperary Kitchen – http://thetipperarykitchen.ie/
1 star – Aldi Specially Selected Apple & Cinnamon Tray Bake , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Aldi Specially Selected Rhubarb Tray Bake , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Chocolate Silk Gateau , Heaven’s Cakes – http://www.englishmarket.ie/traders/confectionery/heavenscakes/(no website?)
1 star – Aldi Specially Selected Luxury Toffee Filled Muffin , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Bran Muffin with Apples , Donnybrook Fair – http://www.donnybrookfair.ie/
1 star – Truffle Fairy Chai Espresso Truffle , The Truffle Fairy – http://www.trufflefairy.com/
1 star – Early Grey Tea , Cocoa Atelier – https://www.facebook.com/cocoaatelier (website contains no information)
1 star – Sarah’s Scrummy Honey with Sour Cherries  , Mileeven Fine Foods – http://www.mileeven.com/
1 star – G’s Gourmet Strawberry Jam , G’s Gourmet Jams  – http://www.gsgourmetjams.ie/
1 star – Abbey Farm Fruits Rhubarb and Ginger , Abbey Farm Fruits – http://www.abbeyfarmfruits.com/
1 star – Abbey Farm Fruits Autumn Fruits , Abbey Farm Fruits – http://www.abbeyfarmfruits.com/
1 star – Apricot Pear & Grand Marnier , Crossogue Preserves  – http://www.crossoguepreserves.com/
1 star – SuperValu Supreme Thin Cut Seville Marmalade – Produced By Follain , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland – http://www.follain.ie/
1 star – Orange Marmalade , Pollocks Pickles and Preserves – http://www.pollockspickles.com/
1 star – Aldi Grandessa Sepcially Selected Seville Orange Irish Marmalade , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Aldi Grandessa Specially Selected Dark Orange Irish Marmalade , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – G’s Gourmet Orange Marmalade  , G’s Gourmet Jams  – http://www.gsgourmetjams.ie/
1 star – Abbey Farm Fruits Breakfast Marmalade  , Abbey Farm Fruits – http://www.abbeyfarmfruits.com/
1 star – Aldi Harvest Morn Luxury Sultana, Apricot & Sunflower Seed Porridge , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Very Berry Granola  , The Foods Of Athenry Ltd. – http://www.foodsofathenry.ie/
1 star – Abbey Farm Fruits Cranberry Sauce  , Abbey Farm Fruits – http://www.abbeyfarmfruits.com/
1 star – Derrycamma Farm Rapeseed Oil , Derrycamma Farm Foods – http://www.rapeseed-oil.ie/
1 star – Derrycamma Rapeseed Oil with Lemon , Derrycamma Farm Foods – http://www.rapeseed-oil.ie/
1 star – Derrycamma Rapeseed Oil with Chilli , Derrycamma Farm Foods – http://www.rapeseed-oil.ie/
1 star – SQ Kalamata Whole Olives in Brine  , Superquinn Ltd.
1 star – SQ Queen Whole Olives in Brine  , Superquinn Ltd.
1 star – Red Pepper Chilly Chutney , Crossogue Preserves  – http://www.crossoguepreserves.com/
1 star – Abbey Farm Fruits Red Pepper Relish  , Abbey Farm Fruits – http://www.abbeyfarmfruits.com/
1 star – Christmas made easy red pepper and tomato chutney for cheese  , Christmas Made Easy – http://www.christmasmadeeasy.ie/
1 star – Inferno Sauce Extreme , Mic’s Chilli Limited – http://www.micschilli.ie/
1 star – Molino Di Ferro Le Veneziane Tomato & Basil Sauce , Lavida Food Ltd – http://www.lavidafood.com/
1 star – Florrie’s Ham Glaze , The Scullery – http://www.tipperaryfoodproducers.com/sweet/thescullery.html (no website?)
1 star – Mr Crumb Cranberries in Port Sauce  , Mr Crumb – http://www.mrcrumb.ie/
1 star – Wiberg Steak Pepper , Wallbridge
1 star – Superquinn Toscani Tapenade , Traditional Cheese Co. Ltd. – http://www.traditionalcheese.ie/
1 star – Tamarind Dip , Nutweave Ltd / Bombay Pantry – https://www.bombaypantry.com
1 star – G’s Gourmet Hot Pepper Dip  , G’s Gourmet Jams  – http://www.gsgourmetjams.ie/
1 star – Hummus , Horgans Delicatessen Supplies – http://www.horgans.com/
1 star – Mr Pettersen’s Raspberry Extra , Mr Pettersen’s Limited Edition – http://www.mrpettersens.com/
1 star – Rocket Dressing , Finders Inn Foods – http://www.bandonfarmersmarket.com/stalls/finders-inn-gourmet-foods/ (no website?)
1 Star – Truly Irish Chestnut Smoked Streaky Rasher , Truly Irish Country Foods
1 star – Smoked Bacon Back , The Carraig na Breac Smokehouse  – https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Carraig-na-Breac-Smokehouse/121005457975763 (website not built)
1 star – Oliver Carty  , Oliver Carty – http://www.olivercarty.ie/
1 star – Rogan’s Whiskey Oakwood Smoked Back Bacon , Rogan’s Smokehouse – http://www.rogansfish.com/
1 star – Dry cured bacon  , O’ Flynns Gourmet Sausage Co. – http://www.oflynnsgourmetsausageco.ie/
1 star – Rudd’s Premium Dry Cure Rashers , Rudd’s Fine Food – http://www.rudds.ie/
1 star – SQ Dry Cure Back Rasher , Honeyvale Foods Limited
1 star – Clonakilty Mild Cure Rashers ( Back) , Clonakilty Black Pudding Company  – http://www.clonakiltyblackpudding.ie/
1 star – Clonakilty Dry Cure Rasher ( Back) , Clonakilty Black Pudding Company  – http://www.clonakiltyblackpudding.ie/
1 Star – Aldi Brannans Specially Selected Traditional Irish Rashers , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Hazelmeade Farm Glensallagh Honeycured Back Bacon , Honeyvale Foods Limited
1 star – SQ Dry Cure Joint , Honeyvale Foods Limited
1 star – Clonakilty Roasting Bacon joint , Clonakilty Black Pudding Company  – http://www.clonakiltyblackpudding.ie/
1 star – Finest Irish Pale Drycure Rashers 200g , Hilton Foods Ireland Limited
1 star – Finest Irish Hickory Smoked Back Rashers 200g , Hilton Foods Ireland Limited
1 star – Finest Irish Smoked Drycure Rashers 200g , Hilton Foods Ireland Limited
1 star – Ham on the bone  , Horgans Delicatessen Supplies – http://www.horgans.com/
1 star – Corned Silverside of Beef , John Downey & Son Organic Quality Foods – http://www.organicfoodsireland.com/
1 star – Aldi Nature’s Isle Select Cut Irish Fillet Steaks , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Superquinn Fillet Steak , Aibp Cahir
1 star – SuperValu Quality Irish Lamb Leg Bank Holiday Roast – Produced By Kepak , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
1 star – Superquin Sillan or Fresh Corn Fed Chicken with caramelised onion stuffing , Carton Bros Ltd.
1 star – Lamb, Mint & Black Pepper Sausage , Arthur Mallon Foods Ltd – http://www.mallonfoods.com/
1 star – Rudd’s Premium Black Pudding  , Rudd’s Fine Food – http://www.rudds.ie/
1 star – Rudd’s Premium Roulade of Pudding  , Rudd’s Fine Food – http://www.rudds.ie/
1 star – Rosscarbbery Recipes Black Pudding  , Caherbeg Free Range Pork – http://www.caherbegfreerangepork.ie/
1 star – Home-made white pudding , Rigney’s Farm – http://www.rigneysfarm.com/farm_shop.htm
1 star – Gourmet Chicken Pie , Mora Foods Limited – http://www.morafoods.com/
1 star – Beef Empanadas , Mora Foods Limited – http://www.morafoods.com/
1 star – Burren Smoked Organic Gravadlax , Burren Smokehouse Ltd. – http://www.burrensmokehouse.ie/
1 Star – Woodcock Smokery Wild Smoked Salmon , Woodcock Smokery – http://www.woodcocksmokery.com/
1 star – Smoked Salmon Wild , Simro Ltd / Wright’s of Howth – http://www.wrightsofhowth.com/
1 star – Smoked Salmon Wild , Simro Ltd / Wright’s of Howth – http://www.wrightsofhowth.com/
1 star – Organic Smoked Salmon with Seaweed , The Kenmare Salmon Company – http://www.kenmare-select.com/
1 star – Herb Cured Smoked Salmon , The Kenmare Salmon Company – http://www.kenmare-select.com/
1 star – Smoked Salmon Farmed , Simro Ltd / Wright’s of Howth – http://www.wrightsofhowth.com/
1 star – Super Valu Smoked Irish Organic Salmon , Dunn’s Seafare – http://www.dunns.ie/
1 star – SuperValu Crab Claws – Produced By Sheel Fish De La Mer , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland- http://www.shellfishireland.com/
1 star – Smoked Scallops , The Kenmare Salmon Company – http://www.kenmare-select.com/
1 star – SQ Irish Crab Meat  , Shellfish De La Mer – http://www.shellfishireland.com/
1 star – Chicken Liver Pate , Donnybrook Fair – http://www.donnybrookfair.ie/
1 star – The Market Chicken Liver & Brandy Pate , The Market Foodstore – http://www.themarket.ie/
1 star – Irish Yoghurts Bio Active Natural Yoghurt , Irish Yogurts Ltd. – http://www.irish-yogurts.ie/
1 star – SuperValu Supreme Spanish Lemon Curd and Irish Cream Yoghurt – Produced By Irish Yoghurts , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland – http://www.irish-yogurts.ie/
1 star – SuperValu Supreme Champagne Rhubarb Yoghurt and Irish Cream – Produced By Irish Yoghurts , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland – http://www.irish-yogurts.ie/
1 star – SuperValu Supreme Senga Strawberry and Irish Cream Yoghurt – Produced By Irish Yoghurts , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland – http://www.irish-yogurts.ie/
1 star – Aldi Duneen Specially Selected West Cork Indulgence Yoghurt – Devon Toffee , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Aldi Duneen Specially Selected Handmade Farmhouse Yoghurt Raspberry , Aldi Stores Ireland Ltd
1 star – Raspbury Yogurt , Killowen t/a Green Valley Farm – http://www.goodfoodireland.ie/Member341/Killowen-Yogurt.html (no website?)
1 star – SQ Blackcurrant Yogurt , Killowen t/a Green Valley Farm – http://www.goodfoodireland.ie/Member341/Killowen-Yogurt.html (no website?)
1 star – Superquinn Irish Cream and lemon curd yoghurt , Irish Yogurts Ltd. – http://www.irish-yogurts.ie/
1 star – Greek Style Yoghurt , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
1 star – Yeats Country Organic Sour Cream , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
1 star – Sour Cream , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
1 star – SQ Indulgent Blgian Chocolate brandy cream with courvoisier vs cognac , Connacht Gold Co-Op
1 star – Cuinneog Farmhouse Irish Country Butter , Cuinneog Ltd. – http://www.cuinneog.com/
1 star – Superquinn Irish organic butter , Connacht Gold Co-Op
1 star – Connacht Gold softer butter , Connacht Gold Co-Op
1 star – Cuinneog Natural Buttermilk , Cuinneog Ltd. – http://www.cuinneog.com/
1 star – Wicklow Baun , Wicklow Farmhouse Cheese Ltd. – http://www.wicklowfarmhousecheeseltd.ie/
1 star – Corleggy KID , Corleggy Cheeses – http://corleggycheeses.com/
1 star – Superquinn Gortnamona , Traditional Cheese Co. Ltd. – http://www.traditionalcheese.ie/
1 star – Kilbeg Dairies Mascarpone Cheese , Kilbeg Dairy Delights – http://www.kilbegdairydelights.ie/
1 star – Durrus Cheese , Durrus Cheese – http://www.durruscheese.com/
1 star – Milleens Dote , Milleens Cheese Ltd. – http://www.milleenscheese.com/
1 star – Paneer , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
1 star – Superquinn Vintage White Cheddar , Traditional Cheese Co. Ltd. – http://www.traditionalcheese.ie/
1 star – Wexford extra mature , Wexford Creamery Ltd.
1 star – Creeny , Corleggy Cheeses – http://corleggycheeses.com/
1 star – Soft Cheese with Sweet Chilli , Green Pastures (Donegal) – http://www.greenpasturesdonegal.com
1 star – Holycross Butterscotch Sauce , The Tipperary Kitchen – http://thetipperarykitchen.ie/
1 star – SuperValu Supreme Christmas Pudding – Produced By Seerys , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland – http://www.seerys.ie/menuframe.htm
1 Star – Christmas Pudding , The Scullery – http://www.tipperaryfoodproducers.com/sweet/thescullery.html (no website?)
1 star – Superquinn Christmas Plum Pudding , Seerys / Heatherfield Ltd – http://www.seerys.ie/menuframe.htm
1 star – Supreme Christmas Pudding , Seerys / Heatherfield Ltd – http://www.seerys.ie/menuframe.htm
1 star – Simply Better Christmas Pudding , Seerys / Heatherfield Ltd – http://www.seerys.ie/menuframe.htm
1 star – Bakewell Tart , Bramley Lodge – http://www.bramleylodge.ie/
1 star – Christmas made easy chocolate something , Christmas Made Easy – http://www.christmasmadeeasy.ie/
1 Star – Passion fruit delice , Heaven’s Cakes – http://www.englishmarket.ie/traders/confectionery/heavenscakes/(no website?)
1 star – Raspberry and hazlenut roulade , Fusco Foods – http://www.fuscofoods.com/
1 star – Froberry Frozen Yoghurt – Original , Froberry Ltd. – http://www.froberry.com/
1 star – SuperValu Chilled Spaghetti – produced By Gruppo Saporitalia , Musgrave Retail Partners Ireland
1 star – Dee’s Thai Butternut Squash & lentil , Dee’s Wholefoods – http://www.meatfreemondays.ie/
1 star – Vegetarian Chilli  , The Butler’s Pantry – http://www.thebutlerspantry.ie/
1 star – Superquinn Creamy Spinach , Ballymaguire Foods T/A Country Crest
1 star – A Velvet Creamy Tomato Soup , Cully & Sully Ltd. – http://www.cullyandsully.com/
1 star – Gookies Cranberry & White Chocolate Cookie Dough , Gookies – https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gookies/110103285717377 (no website?)
1 star – Delicious Pizza Base , Delicious: the Gluten Free Bakery – http://www.delicious.ie/
1 star – Skinny Ceasar  , Bia Blasta – http://biablasta.com/
1 star – Bob’s Red Mill Pure Rolled Oats , Lavida Food Ltd – http://www.lavidafood.com/

There are so many brands there I have not come across – what a strong endorsement of the quality of Irish food production. And look at the number of them who are in the artisan or local food producers world.

Well done to each and every one of them.

Keith

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July 30, 2011

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Great brands and producers, Packaging

Take a shedful of oats and a heap of product innovation..

blah, blah, blah “innovation/innovative”. One of the top 10 buzz words bandied around in all business sectors (and by all semi-state support agencies) all of which have ceased to make an impact on me due to overuse.

But instead watching the shelves of small food retailers you can see actual product innovation in action and it is a delight to witness because those new products will drive turnover, profits and survival.

Oats. Porridge. Traditional. Boring. Wholesome.

What a great place to start :-). This crop should be dead in the water, relegated to the breakfast bars of the old, infirm and incarcerated. However take a look at what a variety of producers have been doing with their oats.

Flahavans – www.flahavans.com

6 generations old and still a legend amongst food producers. I met Mary Flahavan at the Waterford Festival of Food in Dungarvan and then with a couple of their marketing team at a Bord Bia event in Cashel. Very impressed with the people I met and it explains why they have been able to move beyond their traditional product.

This is it. The raw material and the product.

And this is the first twist which caught my eye – moving from cereals into the (somewhat) healthy snacks category which targets school snack boxes I assume. Both these and a non-chocolate version are delicious :-). Good packaging design which carries through the original logo and uses bold photography and strong messaging. Inside are 6 individually wrapped bars.

The second shows the power of partnership – with this 6th generation artisan producer working with a global dairy giant to cater for a growth space in cereals – ready to eat. Good article in Shelflife here on this product range.

Kilbeggan Organic Porridge – www.kilbegganorganicfoods.com

Externally this does not look like innovation – its another identical product (even if organic) for consumers to choose from. However the innovation here can be seen from the other side and is directly connected to Flahavans. Pat Lawlor is a supplier of organic oats to Flahavans where his crop gets blended with other oats.

In January this year (2011) he took the bold step of launching his own brand and he has diverted some of his production into the Kilbeggan Organic Porridge bags.

As Oliver Moore says in his blog post on Pat here “the story of Kilbeggen organic porridge oats is exceptionally interesting. It suggests an alternative to much of what goes as standard practice.”

(excuse the crumpled look – rest assured I am not trying for a metrosexual vibe here)

Dorset Cereals – www.dorsetcereals.co.uk

Picking up on the Ready to Eat/convenience trend in the cereal space we can find a different approach from this UK based business. Their product range is massive but this one caught my eye. The strong colours, catchy graphics and large fonted simple text worked really well for me. Taking the standard product, reworking it with some added ingredients and doubtless bumping up gross margins.

Nairn’s – www.nairns-oatcakes.com

Another UK based business and a product back on the snack side – but this time a more adult version. Or certainly not a school bag lunch treat. The Nairn’s oat biscuits are a natural extension from Oat Cakes but look at this packaging and design – lifts it straight into a luxury space.

This is a newly emerging redesign of this range for them – there are a mixture of it and the older designs still kicking around.

MacSween – www.macsween.co.uk

Have to include at least one product here which you are mostly likely never to have heard of :-). MacSween have been making Haggis for over 50 years and in 1984 they introduced this Vegetarian Haggis which includes the core ingredient of oats together with a multiplicity of others.

It’s delicious. Not that I have compared it to the original. A more recent development is their 1 minute haggis – two slices of tasty vegetarian haggis in a unique microwavable pack.

Oatly – www.oatly.com

For the last example we are leaving these Islands and moving north to Scandanavia – specifically to Sweden. Another model behind this range of products – a research collaboration with Lund University in Sweden.

I wonder are their research projects in Ireland at present which would lead to such a strong and unique business being launched? We may well have a dairy heritage but there is no reason why Ireland cannot innovate in the same way and tap into strong emerging trends internationally which demand slightly different approaches to consumer products.

This is a full range of foods and drinks which are in the “dairy milk substitute” category. The photo below shows a couple of examples from a Coop store in Stockholm I visited recently while the first product I came across from Oatly was a one litre tetrapak Oat Milk.

I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it – I have been saving up oat based products for a while to include in this (and because of my artisan leanings I have ignored obvious examples such as the Weetabix Oatabix range).

There is a world of opportunity out there which do not necessarily need farmers to change the crops they are traditionally growing – instead it needs imagination and investment in developing partnerships or new consumer brands from scratch.

That stuff is not easy – in fact it is really difficult to do well. But if the alternative is stagnating markets and declining profit margins (or higher losses) then it is good to see what can be achieved. If your fancy has been tickled then check out the Bord Bia Foresight Program which supports new product devleopment.

Keith

PS – I don’t even want to get started on why porridge (which takes 2 to 3 minutes to cook on a stove) needs to be reworked into a 1 minute microwave version. No thanks 😦

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June 26, 2011

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Same category, different approaches. Organic childrens yogurt

This fascinates me – the different packaging design approaches to an identically positioned product.

Glenisk – www.glenisk.com

Personally I am finding this kinda messy – but I don’t doubt for a second that it is effective.

Rachel’s – http://www.rachelsorganic.co.uk/

For me much clearer messaging = strong fruit statement, very readable text and parent-appealing shot of baby.

I do wonder which is more effective – or have the two brands differentiated the market by targeting different profiles within the organic food purchasing parent population?

As a by the way check out their respective homepages for a quick comment on brand consistency:

To my untrained eye the Glenisk packaging is very much at variance with the website (which itself could do with a rework and update to make it more consistent) and even the Rachel’s website contains subtle brand design references which are not yet reflected in this packaging.

I guess this is the bane of marketing peoples lives – having a large product portfolio and multiple channels/manifestations of the the brand which all need updating once the core brand design and messaging are changed.

Keith

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Killowen Farm packaging and brand redesign

Made for Biabeag – a side by side placing on the fridge shelf of the before and after packaging for Killowen Farm. (I cannot find a website for them, however this link (direct to pdf) gives a little more information)

This redesign was launched in April this year as far as I can tell and seems to have involved:

* Significant work on the main logo to make it much more contemporary in terms of font and colour.

* Addition of the word Farm to the logo to add to the positioning and provenance

* A black and white image of the farm (I assume) to tap into the authenticity message

* Colour ingredient shot to make visual identification clearer

On the back of the pack:

Here we have a update in the story being told to:

* Pick up the name of the family involved (the Dunnes)

* Handcrafted is new, as is the highlighting of no colours, preservatives or additives

* Carried over is the word unique and the phrase smooth, rich milk

Like the new design a lot – much more effective.

Keith