This article is from page 19 of the 2012-03-13 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 19 JPG
NATURAL food businesses in North Clare were to the fore last Friday when the Minister for Food, Horticulture and Food Safety, Minister Shane McEntee (FG) paid a special visit to Inagh Farmhouse Cheese and the Burren Smokehouse.
The minister was met in Lisdoonvarna by co-owner of the Burren Smokehouse, Birgitta Hedin-Curtin. Birgitta, who began the compa- ny with her husband Peter, had just returned from the Middle East, having met with a number of high-end retailers in Kuwait and Qatar.
“For the Burren Smokehouse, it is vital to meet face to face with our customers. I got an invite from my buyer in Kuwait two weeks ago and decided to immediately take up on his invite.
“This is à great opportunity for the Burren Smokehouse to further our brand in the global gourmet market and is part of our brand strategy,” she said.
The smokehouse will soon be launching their brand in specialty food shops in Portugal and Spain.
“This is not an overnight success. We have been building this business for 22 years, staying true to our core values of 100 per cent Irish raw materials, with excellent certification, building a great team, learning hard lessons and building trust with our customers,” said Peter Curtin.
The smokehouse began as a twoperson business with Birgitta and Peter but has since grown to employ 14 people in the low season and 20 in the very busy periods.
Meanwhile, Siobhan Ni Gháirbhith and her team welcomed the minister to Inagh for a tour of the farm and a tasting of their famed St Tola Organic Goats Cheese.
“We are delighted that the minister took the effort to come and visit us and it is a boost to us all that such importance and understanding is being applied to the organic agriculture industry,” said Siobhan.
“Over the past two years, St Tola Organic Goats cheese has grown its business from supplying the catering sector to having a major presence in the Irish retail market with product in all the major supermarkets. St Tola Divine and Logs will be on special offer this month and next in SuperValu and later in May in Tesco.”