Top business award for Mash Direct director

Tracy Hamilton of Mash Direct, the Northern Irish specialist in convenience meals, has been named 'Outstanding Businesswomen of the Year 2015. Mrs Hamilton received the accolade from Women in Business Northern Ireland at a gala event in Belfast. She won the award for her role with husband Martin in developing Mash Direct into one of Northern Ireland's most successful food business. The Women in Business Northern Ireland Awards celebrate the hard work and achievements of many business women who make a valuable contribution to the economic life of Northern Ireland. Now in it's fifth year, the awards continue to recognise the women at the cutting edge of our economy. Another food pioneer, Kate Burns of Ocean Sea Veg in Ballycastle, who was named Entrepreneur and Innovator of the Year 2015 for her work in developing the Islander business specialising in growing seaweed and producing kelp pesto and other products which are now being exported to foodservice organisations in Europe. Mash Direct, a farm diversification business based at Comber in county Down, processes a range of quality quick-serve potato and vegetable products and is now among Northern Ireland's most successful food businesses with an impressive track record in new product development. All Mash Direct vegetables are steam cooked and packaged on the family farm and distributed throughout the UK, Ireland, other parts of Europe, the US and Middle East. The company has won a series of Great Taste Awards from the UK Guildof Fine Food. An emphasis on provenance and traceability means that the family farm produces the majority of the raw materials with the rest being meticulously sourced throughout the UK and Ireland to produce a range free from artificial additives, preservatives or colourings. Islander, the small company formed by Kate Burns and son Benji McFaul, is at the forefront of the development of seaweed from around Rathlin Island. It now expanding its laboratory and processing operation on the island to meet the growing demand for its natural products.