Food Producers & Micro Breweries

"My carrots have mud on them, my potatoes too. I expected rocket but got watercress instead. The lady beside me was cross because there were no tomatoes. But it's April I pointed out, what did she expect."

Being a food producer is not easy. Weather intervenes, slugs eat the crops,the sun shines too much or not at all. Getting up early is not to everyone's taste and the hours are undoubtedly long. Making cheese requires dedication, but so too does smoking fish, making jam, or ice-cream for that matter.

We like to think of ourselves as a food island and in a very real sense this is true. Up and down the country there are people producing food with individuality, love, care and attention. It is a passion that flies in the face of much of the modern world and we are all the richer for it.

The people are the heros in the following pages. Their souls reside to be enjoyed by those of us who buy their products. But what we taste is them and their understanding of the resource they have to hand. Of the seasons, of the land. Go on, be different, you'll be amazed.


Dairy

Mossfield Organic Farm, Clareen, Birr, Co. Offaly
Ralph Haslam, the dynamic dairy farmer of Mossfield Organic Farm, and the only organic cheese maker in Ireland, has been in the dairy industry since 1982. In 1999 Ralph went into conversion ... more info>>

The Farmshop at Aillwee Cave, Co. Clare
The Burren in North Co. Clare is the birthplace of this traditional farmhouse cheese. The rugged Limestone hills are interlaced with rich fertile valleys in which pedigree Friesian cows graze the lush herbs and grasses for which the region is renowned... more info>>

Born Free Organic Chickens, Dunmore East, Co Waterford
Producing good chickens doesn't require much. A bit of time, love care and attention. Which is exactly what Born Free is all about. Buy one of their chickens and it will be between 70 and 90 days old. That is more than twice the age of a conventionally farmed chicken ... more info>>

Inagh Farmhouse Cheese Ltd, Inagh, Co Clare
St Tola Goat Cheese has been made near the village of Inagh, just south of the Burren, for 20 years. In 1999, Siobhan Ní Ghairbhith took over and the farm has continued to produce organic cheeses. The company philosophy of producing organic and healthy goat cheese in an ethically, environmentally and sustainable... more info>>

Moyallon Foods, Craigavon, Co Armagh
Fancy a bacon sandwich as it used to be? All sweetness and meatiness, the sort of succulence that had you leaping out of bed on a Sunday morning just to make one with a large pot of coffee? Moyallon bacon hits just this spot. A family-owned business with over 12 years experience, their aim is to supply a 'carefully sourced range of delicious and ... more info>>


Seafood

The Burren Smokehouse, Lisdoonvarna, Co. Clare, Ireland.
The Burren Smokehouse is a family run organisation that was set up in 1989 by Birgitta & Peter Curtin... more info>>

Connemara Smokehouse, Bunowen Pier, Ballyconneely, Galway.
With over 26 years experience passed down from generation to generation and being Connemara's longest established Smokehouse, we have become one of the world's leading manufacturers of high quality Seafood where every product is hand produced in the traditional way.... more info>>

Bellvelly Smokehouse, Cobh, Co Cork.
Belvelly Smokehouse's customer list reads like a star-studded cast; Rick Stein, Ballymaoloe, L'Ecrivain and Avoca. Critical acclaim has strectched as far as the New York Times and the list of products means you can enjoy not just smoked salmon, but mussels, eel and mackerel.... more info>>

Bakery

Dittys Home Bakery, Magherafelt, Co Derry
Ditty's is an award-winning family-run bakery that has been in business for over 40 years... more info>>

Arbutus Breads, Rathdene, Montenotte, Cork
Artisan baker Declan Ryan is a former chef/restaurateur, producing a maximum of 900 finest quality, traditionally crafted real breads daily from his small bakery using a mixture of organic, French and traditional stone ground Irish flours...
more info>>

The Stoneoven, Kingshill, Arklow, Co Wicklow
Germanys loss was Irelands gain when Egon and Liane Friedrich arrived in Arklow some 20 years ago. They founded the Stoneoven, a small bakery that hand-crafts wonderful breads... more info>>

The Heatherlea, Bangor, Co Down
Situated right in the heart of Bangor, this traditional cafÉ and bakery is run by Paul and Patricia Getty. There has been a bakery on the site since 1937 but the building today is bright, modern and airy. Although the food might be described as good, plain and traditional, theres an excellent choice offered throughout the day. Get a hearty breakfast early in the morning.... more info>>

Confectionary

The Cocoa Bean Company, Limerick
We are sisters who started experimenting with chocolate in our kitchen in Limerick in the Spring of 2002. We began selling at Limerick Market and got a reputation for being specialists in dark chocolate... more info>>

Gallweys Chocolates, Ferrybank, Co Waterford
Two great tastes in one. For those partial to a drop of Irish whiskey heres something extremely special. Handmade chocolates filled with pure old Irish whiskey. The Gallwey family recipe has been passed down for generations and is available for sale at quality food purveyors throughout Ireland... more info>>

G's Gourmet Jams, Abbeyleix, Co Laois
Making award-winning jam requires a lot of attention to detail. Top quality fruit, just the right amount of sugar and a cooking process that allows for the flavours to develop. Gs Gourmet Jams tick all the right boxes, allowing the fruit to shine through... more info>>

Lorge Chocolatier, Kenmare, Co Kerry
What used to be a post office in Kenmare has now become Lorge Chocolatier. You can sample, see chocolates being made, enrol on a course and make them yourself or, best of all, buy some to take home. Previously pastry chef at the nearby Sheen Falls... more info>>

Murphy's Ice Cream, Dingle, Co Kerry
You might be forgiven for thinking Murphy's in Dingle is a pub. It almost looks like one and the name certainly sounds right. Inside however it is not creamy pints of Guinness you will find but creamy tubs of ice-cream made by brothers Sean and Kieran Murphy... more info>>

Murphy's Ice Cream, Killarney, Co Kerry
Right in the heart of Killarney on Main Street Murphy's beautifully blends the art of shop and café. You can buy to go, or buy to stay. It might be a coffee. It could be one of the freshly baked cakes but for most it is the ice-cream which attracts. There is a passion inherent in Murphy's ice-cream. And its not just the great flavours... more info>>

Beverages

Ballycross Apple Farm, Bridgestown, Co. Wexford
At Ballycross Apple Farm, we are passionate about the quality of our juices, which is why only apple varieties of exceptional flavour and texture are grown here... more info>>

Boozeberries Classic Irish Liqueur
Michelle Power founder of Cottage Garden herbs a small family business in Ballyconnell Tullow Co Carlow has been supplying fresh herbs to hotels & restaurants in Dublin & Kilkenny for several years... more info>>


Micro Breweries

Franciscan Well Brew Pub, North Mall, Cork
Founded in 1998 on Cork's North Mall, across the street from the river, the Franciscan Well Brewery is built on the site of an old Franciscan Monastery dating back to 1219... more info>>

The Porterhouse
The Porterhouse Brew Pubs in Dublin were the brainchild of Oliver Hughes and his cousin Liam LaPlant. Hughes had become fascinated by brew pubs when studying law in the U.K... more info>>