Innovative pork product from Northern Irish processors

Two Northern Irish artisan food processors have teamed up to develop an innovative pork product. Kennedy Bacon, which is based near Omagh in county Tyrone, linked up with Long Meadow Cider at Loughgall in county Armagh to produce a dry-cured ham cooked in craft cider.

Mervyn Kennedy, founder and managing director of Kennedy Bacon, a small farm-based business that has won UK Great Taste Awards, commenting on the new ham product, says: "We've been looking at a number of products that will help set us apart in what is very competitive marketplaces in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

"While we've built up a reputation as a supplier of dry-cured bacon, gammon and ham we recognised that something new was required. I met Pat McKeever of Long Meadow Cider at a show and started a conversation about co-operating to add further value to our ham. We began exploring cider in the cooking process and it proved successful in terms of providing a deliciously different taste."

Mr Kennedy is a third generation farmer raising over 2,000 pigs and a successful business producing of bacon, gammon and ham for delis and independent retailers.

"What helps to set my pork products apart is my unique dry-curing technique. It's my own recipe from my experience of rearing my own pigs. I also slice, prepare and package the products. This means the entire process is under my control, ensuring consistent quality and provenance. My bacon, for example, is cured for between seven and nine days using my recipe which also takes into account current health concerns particularly about salt and sugar.

"The bacon is cured in as near to the traditional way as possible, using the minimum amount of cure, which leaves the bacon less salty. The result is a tasty product that allows the pan/grill to stay clean. And with no water added the bacon tastes as it should, savoury, yummy and moreish.

Long Meadow Cider is among the most successful cider processors in Northern Ireland. The business is based on an apple farm at the heart of the region's 'Orchard County'.

Cider is now among the most dynamic and successful categories in Northern Ireland's burgeoning artisan food and drink sector. Long Meadow has developed sales outside Northern Ireland including France.

The company was the first in Northern Ireland to develop oak-cask cider. The decision to create Northern Ireland's first oak-aged variety was the outcome of a desire to offer cider lovers a more mature flavour. The McKeever family grows and harvests apples from a total of 120 acres, 30 of which are on the home farm. It uses local bramley and sweet apples.