Gourmet pasta sauce launched by artisan ketchup business

A new Italian-style pasta sauce in a jar has been launched by Northern Ireland's award-winning Peppup.

The company, based at Portaferry in county Down and owned by Turin-born Luca Montorio, adds the new pasta sauce to its existing three-strong portfolio of gourmet ketchups, products which have won UK Great Taste Awards and led to business from major retailers such as Fortnum and Mason in London, Booths in Lancashire and Donnybrook Fair in Dublin.

The recipe for the new pasta sauce, the first produced in Northern Ireland, was created by Montorio and is based on his food industry experience in Italy. Ingredients include tomatoes, roasted peppers, wine vinegar and sultanas with stevia as a sugar substitute.

The pasta sauce is also gluten free and is available in a 295g jar at a recommended retail price of £2.50. It has a shelf-life of 15 months.

Mr Montorio, commenting on the new product, says: "Creating an authentic Italian pasta sauce is a logical development of our existing range of gourmet ketchups that are proving popular in Britain and the Republic of Ireland. I saw an opportunity to develop a gourmet sauce that would bring Italian flavours from tomatoes and roasted peppers.

"I've used sultanas to add an earthiness and sweetness. It also features stevia, a natural sweeter for those keen to reduce their sugar intake. I believe it's the first pasta sauce to use stevia. The sauce is also low in calories and is ideal for all pasta dishes," he adds.

The new sauce has been listed by Musgrave Group SuperValu supermarkets and is on sale in independent stores in Northern Ireland. Peppup is also exploring opportunities for the sauce in leading health food stores.

He established Peppup in 2013 to create innovative gourmet table sauces and subsequently gained a series of national awards for his initial ketchups, which include chilli and low salt versions.