Top UK innovation award for Northern Irish salt-aged beef

Unique salt-aged beef from Hannan Meats, the Northern Irish catering butchery business, has been named Innovation of the Year 2014 in a major UK awards.

The latest success for multi-award winning Hannan Meats, based at Moira, county Down, came in the Butcher's Shop of the Awards on Thursday 14thNovember, a national competition organised by the influential Meat Trades Journal industry magazine.

Another Northern Irish company, McAtamney's Butchers and Deli in Ballymena, county Antrim was chosen by a panel of expert judges as UK Butcher Shop of the Year. McAtamneys was also named Northern Ireland Butcher Shop of the Year.

Hannan's gained award for beef that isaged in the world's biggest Himalayan salt chamber and retailed from its own Meat Merchant factory shop and deli, now among the most popular in Northern Ireland. In addition to its retail and foodservice operations, Hannan is now exporting the salt-aged beef to high-end restaurants in France, Italy, Portugal and the Republic of Ireland.

The beef also gained a record seven three gold stars in the recent UK Great Taste Awards. Five of the seven beef products were listed among the Top 50 Foods by the influential Guild of Food.

Peter Hannan says: "It's immensely encouraging to be recognised by our industry as an innovator. We've invested heavily in the salt chamber to provide exceptional meat and in setting up networks of farmers who ;provide us with exceptional Glenarm Shorthorn and European Angus meat to be aged in the two salt chambers that we've created at our factory."

The final competition, organised by Meat Trades Journal and held at Plaisterers' Hall in London, recognises excellence across the high street butchery sector. It covers butchers' shops up and down the country, with the winner in each region going head to head to pick out the best shop in the UK.

A new record in entries was set this year. Thirty six companies were shortlisted. Apart from McAtamney's, two Enniskillen butchers, O'Doherty's and Stewarts reached the final stage in the Northern Ireland category.

This year saw the introduction of a new category for New Business of the Year, aimed at recognising a newly established butcher's shop, set up within the past two years.

Pic Caption:Pictured L-R with Peter Hannan, Hannan Meats are Sonia Young, Publisher of Meat Trades Journal and Awards presenter, comedienne Ellie Taylor.