Podcast Ep 222: Bank of Ireland’s head of Food & Beverage Sector Lucy Ryan discusses the future of Irish food ahead of the pivotal Blas na hEireann Irish Food Awards in Dingle in October.
2024 will be a record year for the Blas na hEireann Irish Food Awards with the amount of products entered surpassing 3,000 products. The majority of entries come from both established food and beverage creators and artisans to new and upcoming producers.
There will be more than 400 finalist producers and awards presented at the event in Dingle which takes place between Friday 4 and Saturday October.
“For some of the finalists it pushes them way beyond their present capability and they have to scale up their businesses pretty quickly”
As well as showcasing quality Irish food and beverage products to finalists, judges, buyers, trade and press at the Backyard at Blas event, proudly supported by Bank of Ireland, the Dingle Food Festival will take place throughout the weekend with market stalls lining the streets as well as cookery demos and workshops.
Now in its 17th year, the first Blas awards had 400 entries for 36 categories and has grown to more than 3,000 entries for 150 categories. They were established by former fisherman Artie Clifford who felt there was a need to recognise and award quality Irish food and ingredients in a way that is de rigour in most European countries.
Artisanal evolution
The process is painstaking, beginning in April and involving blind tasting over the summer months by judges. The blind tasting in June and July is the largest event of its kind on the island of Ireland.
For consumers, seeing a Blas award sticker proudly adorning a product whether it is relish, bacon, butter, cheese or steak in a retail outlet is a hallmark of distinction and a guarantee of quality.
“Seeing that sticker, a consumer will see that it’s a good quality product,” explained Lucy Ryan, head of Food & Beverage Sector at Bank of Ireland. “It’s an endorsement.
“But behind it is so much work. Blas na hEireann started out approximately 17 years ago as a very small awards ceremony or process to award and acknowledge the many great food and drinks suppliers and producers that are in the country. It was only a gem of an idea back then with a handful of entrants that was started by Artie Clifford and now involves his daughter Fallon and others.
“It’s a way of saying thankyou and endorsing those many great products.”
The finalists involve enterprises of all sizes from micro-producers to SMEs and large businesses.
Because of the blind-tasting process, Ryan says it is as level a playing field as you could wish to find in the food business. “It covers the entire spectrum in terms of size and capability. Because of the blind tasting it means everyone has an opportunity, which is fantastic.
“For some of the finalists it pushes them way beyond their present capability and they have to scale up their businesses pretty quickly. So in one way it’s a challenge but in another it is a brilliant opportunity for them and a big stamp of approval.
“At Blas they also get to meet buyers from larger companies and having that stamp of approval helps them get their products to consumers. It’s an absolutely fantastic operation that has pushed on the food-producing nation that we are here.”
Appreciating Irish food
Ryan said that it is a truly all-island affair with finalists from Armagh to Wexford and everywhere in between getting an important platform in which to have the quality of their products endorsed.
The awards have come a long way in just 17 years but in many ways Ireland is a little late to the party when it comes to recognising and celebrating the power of its own food ingredients.
“We didn’t really have that sense of appreciation of certain food until probably no more than 20 or 30 years ago. When you compare some of the foods we ate growing up to what you can now enjoy in our restaurants and supermarkets it is amazing. We grew up eating mostly processed cheese, for example, but now there are many farmhouse cheeses you can buy.
“We have been relatively late compared to others in Europe who always had that appreciation of their own foods. We were producing far more processed foods generally over the decades.
“That change came partly to us being in the EU and partly to being exposed and more open to foods and ideas from other countries and people coming to live in Ireland. And that sparked a whole appreciation of great quality Irish foods.”
Ryan said that 17 years may not be long in the overall scheme of food production but Blas na hEireann has really made an impact in recognising quality.
It also goes hand-in-hand with a trend towards diversification among Irish farm businesses but also the rise of artisanal food entrepreneurs producing everything from pates and black puddings to even venison salami.
Often these food businesses began when farms decided to make use of ingredients like extra milk and saw additional opportunities. This coincided with a growing appreciation and interest in cooking.
“The combination of these two elements and the fact that we are travelling further afield and with more people coming to live here, it was opening up possibilities we hadn’t thought about before.
“We’re now at a point where are learning that some of these processed foods we’ve been eating haven’t been great for us, but okay in moderation.
“This gives us an impetus to start growing and developing newer brands.”
The emphasis now, Ryan says, is on sustainability and avoiding over producing from a carbon emissions perspective.
“So we’re likely to be eating more plant-based things. But we have to get the balance right between foods that are healthy and nutritious and food that tastes really good, still. So I think we’ve started on that path now. We just need to evolve and develop what those quality, more artisan brands look like, and how they can be scaled up.”
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