Fivemiletown Creamery quality helps bring in the 'Oscar' of the food world
An innovation from Fivemiletown Creamery for The Fine Cheese Co. in Bath has been voted Outstanding New Product at the New York Fancy Food Show.
The unique product developed by Fivemiletown Creamery and The Fine Cheese Co. struck gold in the SOFI Awards at the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade (NASFT). SOFI stands for Speciality Outstanding Food Innovation and is the most important US award for artisan and speciality producers, often described as the Oscars of the US food industry.
The prestigious SOFI Gold Award 2013 was awarded to The Fine Cheese Co.'s. Pearls of Pure Goats' Cheese - the winner chosen from 11 finalists, selected from 450 entries from all over the world, by American food writers, restaurateurs and speciality food retailers.
The Outstanding New Product is he most prized and hotly contested category. The award winning pearls are made in Northern Ireland by Fivemiletown Creamery.
Owen Jones, Fivemiletown's Business Development Manager, commenting on winning the gold award, says: "Winning a SOFI Award is a tremendous honour and a marvellous endorsement of the innovation and quality of our cheese. We use fresh goats' curd, and marinated the cheese in sunflower oil, garlic and herbs.
"We were delighted to work with The Fine Cheese Co. on the development of this highly innovative product. It was tremendous when The Fine Cheese Co. entered the product in this important competition and then to be part of a winning collaboration that will have a very positive impact on sales in the US and other international markets.
"For this winning UK collaboration to be recognised with a gold award in a event usually dominated by US producers is a remarkable achievement and tremendously encouraging for everyone involved in both companies," he adds.
The tiny pearls are handcrafted and marketed by The Fine Cheese Co. and are positioned as ready to spread on a cracker, or warm crostini for a simple canapé to make the perfect complement to a glass of wine.
The Summer Fancy Food Show was held in one of New York's biggest convention centres from June 30 - July 2, 2013. The show featured180,000 products including confections, cheese, coffee, snacks, spices, ethnic, natural and organic from around 2,500 companies, mostly located in North America.
Established in 1898, Fivemiletown Creamery is among the oldest Irish creameries and one of the first in Northern Ireland. The creamery is a farmer owned co-operative which sources milk from a network of 60 dairy farmers, mostly based in the lush pastures of counties Tyrone and Fermanagh.
The creamery currently employs around 50 people and has a team of experienced cheesemakers, many of whom have been handcrafting cheese for over 40 years. The company has been exporting dairy products, initially creamy butter, since 1900. It now focuses on the production of soft cheeses for retailers and foodservice organisations in the UK, Ireland and other parts of Europe.