Delicious Irish products to pick up on your next food shop

With so much food talent across Ireland, there are lots of products to discover. From seaside villages, to west of Ireland valleys, makers and producers are creating hidden gems in wonderful places, and lucky for us, many of those items are now available to pick up on the weekly shop.  Below, we’re highlighting some of the talented people who have been winners and runners up in the Irish Made Awards Food category, offering plenty of new flavours to try out in the coming months.

For 2024, we are excited to announce O’Donnells Crisps as the sponsor of our highly competitive Food category. Since the 1700s, over seven generations of the O’Donnell family have lived on Seskin Farm, Co. Tipperary and have mastered the art of cultivating the perfect potato. Today, they bring their hard won expertise as well as the name, to realise the finest of hand cooked crisps.

Speaking about the company’s involvement in the Irish Made Awards, Kate O’Donnell of O’Donnell Crisps said: “We are proud members of both The Tipperary Food Producers Network and Love Irish Food. We are surrounded by many talented fellow food and drink producers in Ireland so O’Donnells are delighted to support The Irish Made Awards 2024.”

The deadline for entries to the awards is fast approaching so be sure to send us your pitch by 30 May! For details on how to enter, see the Awards page, and FAQs here.

Meet the past Food winners and runners-up of the Irish Made Awards:

Murphy’s Ice Cream: The 2023 Food category winners were Sean and Kieran Murphy who started Murphy’s Ice Cream in Dingle, Co. Kerry in 2000, with the goal of making the best ice cream in the world. Using the milk of the rare, indigenous breed of Kerry cow, their uachtar reoite gleoite is produced in the Gaeltacht area of Corca Dhuibhne, an area with special linguistic status, where the Irish language is still spoken on a daily basis.

West of Dingle Sea Salt: The 2023 runner up in the Food category is made up of Brian and Marie, a married couple, based in Ireland’s most westerly peninsula in Dingle, who came up with the idea of harvesting sea salt. Community connection is really important to them, from the people they work with to the people they sell to, and everyone in between. Unrefined and naturally pure, this duo is changing the game in salt with their wild and wonderful sea salt flavours.

Burren Smokehouse: Burren Smokehouse produces a range of hot and cold smoked Irish organic salmon and took home the overall Food prize at the 2022 awards. Husband and wife team Peter Curtin and Birgitta Hedin-Curtin started to smoke salmon in 1987, and they have a passion for artisan foods and promoting ecotourism in their local area. Their bestselling classic cold smoked salmon celebrates the pure pleasure of oak-smoked salmon made in the traditional Irish way. They’ve created new, flavourful versions of their salmon with honey, whiskey and Irish seaweed, and have an extensive range and gifting selection available online. At their beautiful purpose-built visitor centre in Lisdoonvarna, they share the story of their brand and provenance of each ingredient. 

Dingle Sea Salt: Highly Commended in 2022 was this Co Kerry business Dingle Sea Salt. Carefully harvested by hand, the team claim to use only the sun, wind & clear Atlantic waters – a seasonal process unique in Ireland & gentle on the environment. Using a low-carbon solar evaporation method patiently, they create a mineral-rich sea salt bringing customers a distinct taste of the Dingle Peninsula.

Blackwater Honey: In 2021, the winner was Blackwater Honey. This is a family-run, bee farming business, co-founded in 2020 by two brothers with a huge passion for bees. Their honey is 100% natural and made by native Irish honeybees, which means every jar is unique! The company has several apiaries throughout Ireland, with the main production coming from near the Blackwater River, Co Cork and Phoenix Park in Dublin.

Ballymaloe Foods: Our 2021 runner-up was Ballymaloe. Ballymaloe Foods has been making relish and sauces in Ireland since 1990. Everything is made with 100% natural ingredients and produced in Cork. There are no artificial preservatives or additives used, and ingredients are sourced in Ireland where possible, making Ballymaloe’s range of sauces and condiments a delicious choice.

Grá Chocolates: 2020’s Irish Made winner, Grá Chocolates, was founded to give people the best quality produce with a mouthful of excitement. The chocolates are made in small batches in Co Galway and take three days to create as they are hand-painted. Their ingredients are locally and ethically sourced. Looking for a gift? This box of 10 hand-painted chocolates with original fillings makes for a stunning treat. 

Sadie’s Kitchen: Sadie’s Kitchen is an innovative food company, specialising in delicious and nutritious bone broth. It was a runner-up in Irish Made Awards 2020. Along with the very best ingredients including Irish free-range chicken, their broths are slow cooked with love and patience for maximum flavour and nutrition. In 2017, Alison Cowzer from Dragons’ Den invested in the business rolling out over 300 stores. If you want to improve your gut health, check out this comforting chicken broth below. 

Atlantic Treasures: Another Irish Made Food runner-up in 2020 was Atlantic Treasures. The O’Donnell Family from Killybegs founded the company and have been processing fish from the Atlantic for over 30 years. They believe that fish can and should be utilised sustainability and safely. Their products are handmade, and they smoke and marinade only the best quality of fish. Try out these seafood recipes with their fresh scallops. 

Wexford Home Preserves: Our 2019 Irish Made Awards runner-up in the Food & Drink category was Wexford Home Preserves – an artisan maker of jams, marmalades, savoury and specialty preserves. Every product is handmade in small batches using the traditional open pot boiling method. Their ingredients are local, and all preserves are 100% natural. Get yourself a delicious raspberry jam and try it out on some delicious scones.