Downpatrick food manufacturer, Finnebrogue Artisan, said that it plans to create 125 extra jobs in Northern Ireland by expanding its nitrite-free bacon production.
The company has invested over £17 million in a new production facility in County Down where it hopes to push sales of its Naked Bacon products.
The company said that it is aiming for £23 million in sales by 2022.
Better & Safe
The company was founded by Denis Lynn over 30 years ago, focusing on meat products such as venison, pork, lamb, and beef sausages, while it is now pushing towards the bacon market.
However, speaking with the Irish Times, Lynn said that he would not “make a single rasher of bacon until we could figure out a way to make it better and safer”.
“It has been known for decades that nitrites used in curing meat can cause cancer,” he told the Irish Times. “We always set out to make food the best it can be, without being bound by the way it has always been done.”
“And so, after much research, we discovered a process that uses fruit and spice extracts to flavour the pork, keep it pink and retain shelf life. We are using this technology in our Naked Bacon, and we’ve had a great response from both retailers and consumers.”
© 2019 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Aidan O’Sullivan. Click subscribe to sign up for the Checkout print edition.
