Butchery specialist wins top Northern Irish agri-food award

Montgomery Food Consulting, a specialist in support services for butchery businesses in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, has been named 'Agri-Food Business of the Year'.

The contribution of the company to the agri-food industry, which runs the Butchery Excellence programme throughout the island of Ireland, was recognised in the Small Business Awards, a competition run by Business Eye magazine in association with Ulster Television. The awards are Northern Ireland's most important for smaller businesses.

Based at Aughnacloy in county Tyrone, the consultancy, which was formed by Rhonda Montgomery in 2010, offers a broad range of professional training, skills development and business growth services to butchers, delis and independent food retailers.

Mrs Rhonda Montgomery, the company's chief executive has a wealth of experience in meat processing and quality management systems with industry leaders such as Dunbia and Linden Foods. Top chef Sean Owens in the company's managing director.

Mrs Montgomery, commenting on the award, says: "We are delighted to have won this important award. It's a tremendous boost for the business and a great endorsement of our work to help food companies here to develop skills, expertise and knowledge for faster growth."

Mrs Montgomery pioneered the Butchery Excellence initiative as a structured and practical programme that would develop a sustainable pipeline of skilled butchers for the retail and processing sectors. The company has also launched the unique Deli Academy.

The Butchery Excellence Scheme and the Deli Academy sit within the company's mission to be one of the leading food consultancy providers in food safety, quality management, training and interim technical support services on the island of Ireland and the UK.

The company, in addition, has been successful in bringing the World Butchers' Challenge to Northern Ireland in 2018.

Montgomery Food Consulting delivers expertise and services. In addition to training in essential butchery expertise such as boning, slicing, knife skills and product development, the company offers a comprehensive portfolio of services covering food safety procedures and accreditations such as BRC and SALSA, advice on nutrition, allergens, hygiene, labelling and manufacturing procedures. The company is registered to deliver SALSA, HACCP and quality and food safety management training.

Cunningham Butchers and Food Hall in Kilkeel, county Down was named 'Independent Retailer of the Year' in the prestigious awards. The butchery business also recently won the UK Food and Farmshop Awards.

}95��A�w