Northern Irish Organic Salmon for United Arab Emirates

Glenarm Organic Salmon, the Northern Irish salmon producer, has secured its first foodservice business in the United Arab Emirates.

The company, Northern Ireland's only salmon farm, has won business in Dubai with one of the leading luxury food and drink distributors in the Gulf following a marketing drive in the region in the final quarter of last year.

The company's new distributor supplies customers in seven states in the Gulf region which include leading hotels, fine dining restaurants, royal palaces, multinational retailers and airlines in its client portfolio.

The Dubai business follows Glenarm's success, also last year, in winning sales in Hong Kong. The company also supplies salmon to leading hotels and restaurants in Britain, the US, Singapore and Thailand.

The new business in the Gulf was announced by John Russell, Glenarm Organic Salmon managing director.

Mr Russell said: "The contract is strategically important for us because it provides a springboard for further growth in markets which remains among the world's most affluent regions and fastest growing tourism centres.

"The Gulf region is also a marketplace in which consumers and visitors are becoming increasingly concerned about health issues and are now keen on organic products such as our salmon which offer outstanding flavour and texture with provenance that comes from the location of our salmon farm in the invigorating environment in the Irish Sea.

"Our first visit to Dubai last year led to the agreement with the distributor. We have "now shipped the first consignment of organic salmon to them for customers in major hotels and high-end restaurants. We will be supporting the activities of our new business partner to develop our sales in Dubai and the other Emirates."

Glenarm Organic Salmon, established in 2008, is the only Atlantic salmon producer in the Irish Sea and Northern Ireland's only salmon farming business.

The company produces over 500 tonnes of organic salmon each year which is distributed throughout the UK and overseas markets to customers seeking premium quality organic salmon from responsible and sustainable aquaculture and is recognised as such by the influential Organic Food Federation.