Meat companies named Northern Ireland's best

Elmgrove Foods and Hannan Meats have been named as Northern Ireland's best agri-food companies in a major awards event sponsored by Danske Bank.

Elmgrove Food, based in Dungannon, county Tyrone and leading exporter of fifth quarter products especially to Africa and Asia, was named 'Best Agri-Food Company of 2013 in the annual Northern Ireland Farming and Food Awards, an event organised by the region's main farming publication, Farming Life, with Danske Bank.

Elmgrove gained a Queen's Award for Enterprise -Export Category - earlier in the year andwas established in November 2008. It currently employs 10 people.

It has introduced and named over 90 products into the marketplace. Elmgrove's core business is exporting beef, lamb and pork offal to the Far East, African and European customers.

Prior to 2008, all of these products were being rendered at a cost to the abattoir, sold as pet food or put in landfill which damages the environment.

Initially containers were produced at a rate of 25 tonnes per six weeks. Elmgrove is now exporting 12900 tonnes per year and has expanded its product portfolio from 10 beef and lamb products to in excess of 90. It achieved £10.7m sales for year ended March 2012.

Hannan Meats, which has its main processing plant at Moira, county Antrim, where it operates the world's biggest salt-aging chamber, gained the award as the "Best Small Agri-Food Business 2013'.

Hannan, formed by entrepreneur Peter Hannan in 1992, gained a record five products listed in the Top 50 Foods by the UK Guild of Fine Foods. It also was awarded 44 gold stars, building on its success in 2012/13 when it won the Supreme Champion Award for its Italian style guanciale.

Among companies shortlisted by a panel of expert judges were Glastry Farm Ice Cream and Broighter Gold Rapeseed Oil, both of which have gained UK Great Taste Awards.