'Power of Good' from our award-winning food and drink

Promotion body FoodNI has developed the marketing campaign, Our Food: Power of Good, with the Northern Ireland Regional Food programme of the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), which aims to raise the profile of quality local food and increase its consumption here, in the Republic of Ireland and Great Britain.

Support for the important promotion is also being provided by the Livestock and Meat Commission, Ulster Pork and Bacon Forum, and Moy Park, Northern Ireland’s biggest food company.

Edwin Poots, former DAERA Minister explains: “The launch follows an unprecedented run of successes of local food and drink producers, especially artisan and smaller enterprises, in national and international awards for quality and outstanding taste such as the UK Great Taste and Blas na hEireann awards.

“Larger companies such as ABP, Linden, Dunbia and Mash Direct have also contributed by collecting major international awards. Linden, for instance, won the World’s Best Grass Fed Ribeye Steak in last month’s prestigious World Steak Challenge in Dublin, a high profile event involving steaks from 20 nations.

“The aim of Our Food: Power of Good, which has been launched on television, radio and social media, is to persuade shoppers, retailers of all sizes and the hospitality sector here to buy more local food and drink produce. It celebrates the outstanding achievements of our food and drink at home and in more than 60 global markets, urging shoppers to look for and to ask retailers about local produce,” Mr Poots adds.

“We really do have a host of companies, both large and small and in virtually every sector, focused on original and outstandingly tasty food and drink products which are increasingly being appreciated by shoppers in Britain, Ireland and much further afield,” Michele Shirlow, Food NI’s chief executive, continues.

“In FoodNI, we are keen to assist the industry to prosper, indeed to grow stronger here and abroad. While we are supportive of the drive to help our companies to export, and especially in the key neighbouring markets of Britain and Ireland, we also recognise just how important it is to promote the companies and their products to local consumers.

“Success at home is essential in providing companies with a firm base for growth. It provides the confidence and essential cash flow which enables them to look beyond for the sort of growth that will strengthen the position of an industry which currently employs over 100,000 people and generates more than £5 billion annually to the local economy and especially to rural communities in which most of the companies, both large and small, are based,” adds Michele.

Companies at home and abroad are being supported by extensive and imaginative marketing and promotional activities involving creative advertising on television, social media and conventional media.

It’s a timely initiative to help our largest single manufacturing industry surmount the challenges of spiralling energy costs and when consumers are seeking quality and tasty food that’s fresh and also great value for money. It also supports our beleaguered restaurants and cafes.

Promotion bodies such as Love British Food have also stepped up their support for UK food and drink. Love British Food’s support for the industry there features annual promotions over periods of two weeks.

The Our Food: Power of Good campaign, first launched last year, has been revamped to showcase the quality and taste of our food and drink further and the exceptionally close relationships between farmers and fishermen and processers here. The key message is that a dynamic and resilient local market for food and drink enables farmers and producers to continue to invest in farming, innovative produce and local production.

Our Food: Power of Good has been developed to “celebrate the diversity and rich, natural flavours of local food and drink…and the people who produce it with immense dedication to wholesomeness, nutrition and sustainability”.

Northern Ireland food, it emphasises, is “produced to the highest standards of animal welfare and processing systems. It’s safe, readily available in local stores, nutritious and with a rich heritage and provenance.”