Northern Irish meat business launches salt moss aged beef for M&S

Linden Foods in Northern Ireland has developedsalt moss ageing to produce succulent salt-aged beef productsfor Marks & Spencer. The Dungannon based meat processor is supplying the salt-aged range of fillet steak, ribeye steak and sirloin to more than 230 M&S stores across the UK. The beef is dry aged for a minimum of 28 days in an innovative Salt Moss Chamber Cave.

The cave ingredientsinclude Extra Virgin Irish Oriel Sea Salt, Irish Sea Moss and Seaweed Mix using Black Seaweed Salt. All ingredients are sourced in Northern Ireland and harvested under managed conditions.

Elaine Willis, head of innovation and business development at Linden Foods, says: "The drier atmosphere within our salt chamber puts a modern twist on the classic method of dry ageing and creates an even more intense, full-flavoured and succulent eating experience. The product is 'cocooned' and brought under a more stable and quicker control than a non-salt aged comparable.

"Our wall of salt, blended with some of nature's most unique, managed and replenished resources, takes our beef to a whole new level. We use traditional beef breeds from the best of Ireland's grass-fed systems. We carefully hand select meat cuts for size, fat cover, marbling, ph and some of the muscle eye development, the marker and first of the many points for selecting great beef.

"The beef naturally continues to breathe whilst in an anaerobic and naked form. As part of normal respiration, moisture will be exuded from the meat into the chambers atmosphere. This humidity within the chill will be attracted to the Salt wall by ionization. The wall has a high potassium level instead of sodium. The dry culture within the chill is maintained by the self-managed wall.

"Our extremely skilled staff are constantly innovating and researching consumer trends and eating behaviours. We have a great relationship with M&S which challenges us and we work very hard with them to create new and exciting products that customers want to buy."

Anna Playfair Hannay, M&S Agricultural Technologist M&S, adds: "The relationship with Linden Foods spans more than 15 years and the team in Dungannon, county Tyrone continues to impress us with their innovation and new product development.

"We have collaborated with them to produce the very best salt dry aged meat beginning with the animal welfare and working through the manufacturing process to perfecting the master craftsmanship of natural and sustainable salt ageing.

Linden Foods forms part of the Linden Food Group and is part of the Fane Valley Group of Companies.