Food experts love Northern Irish luxury Ice Cream

Northern Ireland's Glastry Farm Ice Cream has been named in the Top 10 Ice Creams by the influential lovefood.com.

The listing follows an extensive review by lovefood.com, formed in 2010 to showcase UK artisan food producers, of ice cream producers. Lovefood, one of the UK's fastest growing food websites, provides a broad range of coverage including recipes from the likes of Rick Stein, Phil Vickery, Gary Rhodes and Rachel Allen as well as expert reports by food writers, journalists, bloggers and industry insiders.

Explaining the choice of Glastry Farm Ice Cream, lovefood.com said: "Glastry Farm Ice Cream has been going for just over five years and prides itself on the quality of their milk, which comes from a pedigree herd (and is apparently in the top one per cent of quality milk in Northern Ireland). It's run by the Taylor family, who have been farming dairy cows and producing milk on Glastry Farm since 1856 - that's some heritage.

"Their ice cream includes 'vanilla bean', 'yellowman honeycomb' and 'strawberry blonde', and in 2010 they added sorbets to the list too (pear, raspberry ruffle and champagne...). Much of it is sold in restaurants across Northern Ireland, and their awards include 'Bridgestone Best in Ireland 2012', and gold stars in the UK Great Taste Awards."

The company gained four gold stars in the recent UK Great Taste Awards and has won significant business in the Republic of Ireland for its products including at the Kilbeggan Irish Whiskey Distillery, near Dublin, for its award winning Kilbeggan Ice Cream.

Glastry Farm Ice Cream was endorsed recently in Georgina Campbell's Ireland, the island's leading independent hospitality guide. The critically acclaimed guide, established by top food and hospitality writer Georgina Campbell, lists the best accommodation and food products on the island of Ireland.

Glastry Farm premium ice cream and creamy sorbets are handcrafted from milk from the farm's own pedigree Holstein-Friesian herd. The farm has also been accredited by the UK Red Tractor organisation.

The products do not include artificial additives, stabilisers or other artificial ingredients, thereby assuring customers of the wholesomeness of the ice cream and sorbets.

The range currently features 20 ice creams and four low-fat sorbets. Other ice-cream flavours include rhubarb and custard, heavenly chocolate and berry blueberry. The company also supplies ice cream to the National Trust and to leading hospitality organisations.