Awards encourage Morelli's Ice Cream to focus on exports

Morelli's Ice Cream in Northern Ireland has signed a new distribution deal to expand sales in Great Britain and the Republic of Ireland and build on its success in winning a series of Ice Cream Alliance awards.

The company, which recently celebrated its centenary and was among the first Italian-styled ice cream producers in Ireland, has linked up with top food distributor Crossgar foodservice to help drive sales faster outside Northern Ireland.

Morelli's Ice Cream, produced at Coleraine in Co Londonderry, is now included in Crossgar's innovative Provenance portfolio of artisan foods sourced exclusively from suppliers in Northern Ireland.

The strategically important distribution deal follows Morelli's impressive achievements in the Ice Cream Alliance's prestigious National Ice Cream Competition.

Morelli's was awarded two Silver Challenge Cups, five Diplomas of Merit and one diploma for its distinctive ice creams. The cups were awarded in the Artisan Ice Cream and Ice Cream Continuous categories. The company also gained diploma's of merit for its ice cream with Ferrero Rocher and Very Berry Cheesecake Ice Cream. All its flavoursare sourced from traditional Italian suppliers.

Arnaldo Morelli, a director of Morelli's, says: "Success in the UK National Ice Cream Competition is tremendously important for us because it is a marvellous endorsement by our industry of the outstanding quality and provenance of our ice cream.

"The awards will be of great benefit as we seek to increase our marketing activities particularly in the Republic of Ireland and in Great Britain. We are targeting 2012 as the year when we want to achieve a significant breakthrough in these immensely important markets.

"While we have a good position in the Republic particularly in Dublin and Donegal, the distribution agreement with Crossgar Foodservice will enable us to achieve far greater penetration, increased market awareness and to respond faster to requests for products from throughout the Republic. In addition, Crossgar has a network in Great Britain which will see our products presented to potential customers there during 2012.

"Being part of Crossgar's Provenance portfolio will also help in reinforcing the essential artisan feature of our ice cream," he adds.

The Morelli family came to Ireland from Italy in 1911 and has been at the centre of the ice cream industry since then, earning widespread recognition and local customers, particularly for unique ice cream sundaes which are sold through ice cream parlours and cafes.

As a result, the Morelli family has become synonymous with high quality scoop ice cream. The company, still family owned and managed, now supplies leading retailers, including Tesco, with a wide range of ice cream packs.